Bonner David’s newest artist, Benjamin Shamback, is adding a unique flair with his paintings. His work is characterized by the rich color and vivid detail, expressed in his simple, yet beautifully intricate still life paintings. Using subject matter such as filled glasses, vases, delicate flowers and brightly colored bags he creates eye-catching work that seldom fails to draw one in.
Working with oil is his specialty; however, Shamback is one of the only painters in the United States who paints on copper, exclusively. He began painting on this surface after studying a piece by Baroque artist, Artemesia Gentileschi, which was painted with oil on copper. By working with this unique combination, Shamback only adds to the depth and intrigue of his paintings. In addition, he seeks a greater discovery in his work, stating that, “the intense realism of these paintings is intended as a contrast to the physicality and harshness of the metal.” His passion for his art is evident in his work. “I am drawn in every painting, to the tension between the conveyance and clarity of information and the conceptual and technical potential of paint.”
Shamback received a BA in illustration from Central Connecticut State University in 1996. In 1999 he earned his masters of Fine Arts from Fontbonne University in St. Louis, Missouri. Located now in Mobile, Alabama with his wife and two daughters, he is also a Professor of Painting and Drawing at the University of South Alabama.
Not only can you find Shamback’s paintings in Bonner David Galleries, but they have appeared in movies, such as the 2011 film, “A Little Bit of Heaven,” not yet released in the US. (http://www.kate-hudson.org/images/displayimage.php?album=2384&pid=93036#)
