Don Antram‘s mixed media art is very textural and tactile. He incorporates and embeds a wide variety of materials such as molding and fiber pastes, granular and glass bead gels, mica, glass, gold and silver leaf foils, dichroic glass, gems, stones, shells, glass beads, glitter, and other reflective pieces. Metallic paints are also a big part of his art. He wants each painting to vibrate with energy and color, entertaining the eye and mind. He uses a multitude of mediums to create textures that will capture and reflect light. Whether abstract or realistic, he would like the viewer to come close and inspect what is on the canvas. He wants them to want to touch it.
Don has lived his entire life in California and his personal artistic journey began at an early age. He started taking oil painting classes through adult education in the seventh grade and he continued taking elective art classes all through high school. After graduation, he went straight to Junior College for two years, then four years at Long Beach State where he achieved a Bachelor’s in Art Degree.
Several years after Don moved to Sacramento in 1985, he started his own mural and faux finish business. Creating murals and commissioned canvas work kept his brushes in paint and remarkably busy until 2008. The economy slowed down and so did his schedule, which allowed him more time to create his own art. He moved from working with oil paints to watercolors and then decided to try acrylics and loved them. His art to this point had always been very realistic.
In April 2010, a good friend of his kept inviting him to join her in some art classes that she had been taking from an amazing abstract artist by the name of Sondra Hersh. From the very first class, Don could not get enough of this new style. He then studied with Sondra for two years, soaking up her knowledge, her insight, and her passion. Sondra’s encouragement and inspiration was invaluable in helping him to learn to paint from within, both spiritually and from his heart. Her teaching of self-exploration has also helped Don grow as an artist as well as a person. She exposed him to a variety of mixed mediums which he now incorporates into his paintings.
Don believes that Art has a way of touching our hearts and our minds. A piece of art can trigger feelings, emotions, and memories. It has the power to inspire, to heal and even to motivate us. All art communicates something. The joy of an artist is to provide the connection.
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