12 Important Life Lessons Duane Murrin Art Taught Us

December 28, 2019

Allan Murrin is one of my all-time favorite artists. He has created some beautiful paintings and prints that truly stand the test of time. From portraits of our children and beloved pets to beautiful landscapes, Murrin's work will appeal to all ages and genders. If you love to have these amazing photos of (12 Important Life Lessons Duane Murrin Art Teaches You) printed on canvas for posterity, click here on this website to download the images for your computer:

“This is What Happens When You Click” – This is a lovely oil painting of a waterfall by duane murrin. Each detail is a masterpiece in itself. The water cascading over the right shoulder is so real that it makes me weak just looking at it. The scene changes as the water disappears into the horizon beyond. The viewer is now standing in the center of the waterfalls with his or her own camera poised above. There are multiple poses and unique colors which give the viewer just about the experience of standing right in front of the waterfall.

“The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven” – This is another gorgeous oil painting which was actually displayed in the West End of Chicago, Illinois, for five years before it was stolen from the owner. It depicts a boy lying on a beach with several angels around him. Near the bottom there appears to be something very luminous beneath the waves. Near the bottom of the painting there is a figure of Jesus with his back turned to the viewer. We can almost feel the presence of Jesus nearby.

Another of Duane murrin's paintings called “The Sky” is even weirder. In the words of the artist it is “a collage of still life photographs, sky scrapers and my imagination.” Looking at it you can almost sense a presence, as if by a door being opened or a light brightening overhead. That sense of familiarity is characteristic of many of Duane Murrin's work and it is found in all of his oil paintings.

The simplicity of his drawings is indicative of his simplicity in his life. In addition, the simplicity of his life is indicative of where he is in his artistic journey. He has said that he started to paint at age twelve, when he was surfing in a nearby lake. He has also said that his earliest memory of art came from watching his father and grandfather as they carved wood and made birdhouses out of branches. Those experiences combined with his fascination with nature led him to a career as a landscape artist.

Murrin was drawn to therian painting as a child but felt that he lacked the skills to pursue it professionally. He pursued his passion as an independent school league cartoon artist in Cleveland, Ohio. During his time there he worked with such legendary cartoonists as Bill Griffith and was involved in many community projects. His experience in Cleveland gave him a strong appreciation of the culture of the state of Ohio as a whole. He also was impressed with the quality of the artists of the Cleveland arts scene which included such notable personalities as Mark Twain, Will Rogers, Walt Disney, Emile Zola, W.B. Yeats, and many others.

From the early years of his career, he was most notably associated with the community-based, intergenerational, social-cultural arts programs sponsored by the Billy Ireland Cartoon Museum and the John Locke Community Theater. As a result of this work he received numerous awards including the presto prize for “Best Young Artist” from the Ohio school board in 1977. Later he served as an artist-in-residence for the Masters of Fine Arts Department of the Cleveland Institute of Art. He was also an associate artist for the National Association of Artists. Due to his association with the artists, he was often referred to as the “Rudolf” of Cleveland. This became an enduring joke in political comedy about the state of Ohio and artist/rapper Rudolf was his namesake.

Murrin's paintings of cars and streets in the West End and Cedar Point, along with his painting entitled “The Conversion” (also from the late seventies), sold for huge sums at auctions. He was also known for his portraits of people. The pictures of suburban American life he painted during this time were often stark and realistic. Many of the people in his work are shown as merely existing. His work has inspired many contemporary artists.