Buddy Plumlee

I paint the faces of those people closest to me, the ones that define my life and who I am. I paint them in familiar places, places with meaning, the centers of our world. I paint them so that I won't forget them, and they won't forget me. I paint my wife's face so that our children will not forget her love for them. And I paint my face as a way to preserve a memory of me long after I am gone. The fear of being alone, of being forgotten, and worst of all of me forgetting even the tiniest detail of those who mean the most to me is a far greater concern than death itself. My paintings are narrative portraiture and biographical in nature. They reflect the intimacy and deep understanding I have with my subjects. They are also meant to remind us about the importance of compassion and forgiveness and the responsibility we all share to preserve human dignity. It is through those paintings that I hope to capture the growth and essence of a person, and the spiritual connection I have with them. - Buddy Plumlee Buddy received formal training at Scuola Lorenzo de Medici in Florence, Italy, where he immersed himself in Renaissance art and traditional studio practices. He loves the detail in narrative work, where images and setting provide an allegorical telling of his version of the subject's sometimes hidden story; he brings to the canvas a biographical writer's illuminating touch. Buddy Plumlee received a BFA degree from Illinois State University in 1989, an MS degree in painting and drawing from ISU in 1991, and an MFA degree in painting and drawing from The University of Iowa in 1993. Buddy is a teaching artist, and currently teaches art at Elgin High School. He, his wife Christy and their four children live in West Chicago along with their painfully shy dog Elio.