beattyprofile

   "Without the support of my parents, I'm not sure I would have thought that I could accomplish anything in art," Chad Beatty says. "When you're young, it's one thing to have encouragement for something done well, but something else entirely to have encouragement for things that suck."

   Beatty, who describes his artistic development as a "slow build," didn't suck for long. A 1995 graduate of the University of Florida with an honors B.F.A. in drawing, he sold his first commissioned work in 1997. Since that time, he's worked in ceramics, advertising, and as an instructor at the art center in Hutchison, Kansas, all the while earning an impressive array of awards and the kind of commissioned portfolio that inspires awe ... and not a little envy.

   Beatty cites 19th-century German romantic painter Casper David Friedrich and contemporary fantasist Michael Whelan as influences. "I remember being drawn to Whelan's cover illustrations at the local bookstore when I was about 18, but I didn't know who he was at the time," Beatty says. "Later on in college I was coming into my own style, and began hunting out his works. I have always been more moved by his personal visions than his commissioned work." This philosophy was supported in

At left: Logos, oil on canvas, one of a series of conceptually linked works called The Aftermath of Grace. These paintings "explore aspects of our lives through the understanding of our finite nature and our connection to absolute ideas or that which is infinite," Beatty says. Concepts of man in communication with God/Infinite Nature through symbolic expression form a common thematic in Beatty's art.

"For sketching I use a mechanical pencil with a soft lead (2B or softer). I have always painted with oils," Beatty says. "Some black and white portraits are done with graphite and some with compressed charcoal. I prefer the charcoal for richness and drama if the drawing is large enough. For graphic design I use a combination of sketches, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop."

   "I see communication in any form as being closely linked to God or those things that are an unchanging, absolute part of our universe," Beatty says. "If there is an infinite creator, our thoughts are the closest thing we have to being like him. It is at times when we communicate sincerely that we are most like him."

   Beatty's images certainly communicate spirituality - in The Aftermath of Grace, and in the paintings comprising The Waiting Room of the World. The latter series draws name and inspiration from British theologian and fantasist C.S. Lewis. "Lewis referred to the world as a 'waiting room' to convey the idea of how we endure the time spent here in anticipation of the life to come after death," Beatty says. The paintings in the Waiting Room series are intentionally muted and restrained to preserve the clarity and simplicity of that message.

Beatty's current projects include a series of paintings revolving around his personal revisiting of the Romantic/Gothic era style. "I am very much inspired by the origins of the gothic style and the mindset of the people living in that era. I tend to be preoccupied with ideas of truth, life and death when I paint. In my own subtle way I explore them."

Beatty is the illustrator for Betty in Sideshow and The Conviction of Praxis in this issue. He is a member of the Association of Science Fiction and FantasyArtists. His AFSA profile is here. His portfolio is here.