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Welcome!  My work is shown at Carmel Modern, a gallery focused on modernist and contemporary art,  in Carmel-by-the-Sea,  www.carmelmodern.art    and at the Carmel Art Association, which is the oldest continuously operating Artist cooperative in the western United States, which I was honored to be juried into in 2025, www.carmelart.org.  

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Art has always been my passion, encompassing painting, photography, cartoons, illustration and sculpture.  After a fulfilling career in technology investment banking, I’ve been able to focus intensely on my artistic journey. My work is in collections across the United States and internationally.

Primarily working in acrylic, either on canvas or on raised panels, I also experiment with textural effects by layering paper or gesso, which can create surprises where color can pool or gather.   Each piece starts with a detailed composition, but the finished piece often is quite different, following paths of discovery and surprise as I add and subtract elements from the piece.    

Much of my interest in layering developed years ago, which commuting to San Francisco, seeing the billboards along the highway (before they all went digital), and what became of them after the winter storms.  You would see tattered layers on top of earlier iterations, revealing hidden layers and messages underneath.  I like that mystery.  Sometimes I add paper or work the surface with layers of gesso for creating texture, complications and irregularities to the surface for added interest. While I work in all sizes, I tend to prefer larger pieces, which offer a more immersive experience (like the billboards, but not so large), in essence a new window or vista in the collector's home.  

Please visit Carmel Modern or the Carmel Art Association, or just contact me directly if you would be interested in learning more about my work. I also do commissions on occasion.  

To stay connected, follow me on Instagram at #johncromwellart.

I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for visiting!