It was my starting point as a painter. Today after over three decades as a professional artist, Ruthven continues to paint from the heart. He approaches a canvas from sky to foreground, a process he learned from studying Woods, and works until the imagery looks right - that is to say, until the painting jells with his visual memory. Figuratively speaking, he wants the viewer to walk through the painting and draws one in with focal interest as simple as stones in a dry creek bed, a winding dirt road, or a vanishing fence line - all elements that lead the eye through the painting to the horizon. From what perspective can the steepness of the cliff be portrayed.
Endless drawings give the answers.
Jerry Ruthven's Texas landscapes are more than just an accurate depiction of the terrain's ruggedness or beauty. The ever changing weather plays its part, too. It is Ruthven's ability to translate these elements to canvas that adds life to his landscapes. As an artist, Jerry Ruthven continues the legacy of Texas landscape painting - a tradition established a century ago by Julian Onderdonk. The same can be said for Jerry Ruthven today.