Whitehall artist Bradley Boyer has always enjoyed painting and is especially fascinated with impressionist art. As early as age 10, he was inspired by Claude Monet, the founder of French impressionist painting, and Pennsylvania impressionists such as Edward Redfield, Fern Coppedge and Lehigh Valley’s own Walter Baum, who founded Baum School of Art and Allentown Art Museum. Boyer would study their painting techniques with a magnifying glass, in order to best replicate their impressionist style while incorporating his own signature brush strokes and passion.

Impressionist-style painting began in the late 1880s and is defined as a 19th-century style of art created with small, thin brush strokes with an emphasis on the movement of light and its effect on scope. Impressionism is unique as paintings and are typically done right in the outdoors in order to capture the most realistic appearance of light as it flickers in and out. Inspired by God and nature, Boyer said he creates his artistry within nature itself, enabling him to give his paintings a three-dimensional quality. He has completed more than 1,000 paintings, and many are in private collections. His canvasses range from 11-by-14 inches to 48-by-60 inches in size and feature birds, skies, streams, trees and vivid outdoor colors in various seasons.

“Painting outdoors gives the impression that your scenery is alive, as if it’s coming right off the canvas at you. A camera’s photos are flat and not three dimensional, as in nature, and it cannot duplicate the energy and spontaneity of what a human being is seeing and feeling live,” Boyer said. “Landscape painting is my favorite because I love the countryside. I have been hiking and painting the countryside of Lehigh and Bucks [counties] for over 30 years.”

“Impressionist-style painting can be bold, and the artists can paint with no fear of making mistakes.”

Bradley Boyer

Boyer attended school in Paris in 1974 at the renowned art school Penninghen, which is affiliated with the Academie’ Julian in Paris. Many masters of American impressionists have studied art at Penninghen, including Redfield and Childe Hassam.

Boyer won a gold medal in Paris for one of his impressionist landscape paintings.

“We painted as we wished there. I did some figure work, but my primary focus was landscape,” he said. “I learned the painting methods of the impressionists painting with thick impasto, rapid brushwork, bold colors and painted outdoors directly from nature.”

Boyer’s most memorable landscape painting experience was when he painted a stream that Redfield had once painted.

“I hiked 1/4 mile in deep snow and freezing temperatures with 75 pounds of equipment on my back, and I was sweating when I got to my destination, which was a snow-covered stream in the Poconos. I had to change my wet shirt immediately because of the potential of frostbite and hypothermia, and in order to keep the paint from freezing, I had to mix linseed oil with the oil paint,” Boyer said.

He set up his easel, built a fire to stay warm and painted from dawn until dusk. Twelve hours later, he had created a 48-by-60 canvas.

Boyer has completed many impressionist paintings of local and historic scenery including Hokendauqua Creek, Helfrich Springs Grist Mill and five paintings in various sizes of Seemsville Bridge, East Allen Township, which is one of his favorites. He loves the tranquility of the mountains, streams and rolling hills of Seemsville, and some of these paintings from this collection are available for purchase.

Boyer’s artwork has been featured in exhibits at the Gratz Gallery and Conservation Studio in Doylestown, for the bicentennial exhibition event. He went on to win a Pennsylvania Impressionist Award, for one of his favorite paintings, which was sponsored by the Gratz Gallery, from the Phillips Mill Art Committee. The Gratz Gallery is considered to be a renowned authority on Pennsylvania impressionism. Only prominent artists of Bucks County have ever received this accolade.

Boyer’s artwork has received many awards and nominations, including the Walter Baum Award and the New Hope Impressionism Award for his painting “Winter at Carversville.” He is also a 2011 and 2012 Martha Stewart Fine Art Nominee, and his artwork “Winter at Carversville” was featured on the cover of the winter 2010 issue of Bucks County Town and Country Living Magazine.

“Impressionism is truly unique because it simplifies the scene and lets the viewer engage in the painting with their own imagination. Impressionist-style painting can be bold, and the artists can paint with no fear of making mistakes. By placing complementary colors side by side, the human eye naturally blends them together when they are viewed,” Boyer said.

Several of Boyer’s paintings are currently featured in an ongoing exhibit at Rich Timmons Fine Art Gallery, located on Route 202 in Doylestown. For any questions regarding Boyer’s available artwork and pricing, you can contact the gallery directly.

His work is featured on his website, bradboyerart.com. He can be reached at 484-201-7690 or bradboyer47@gmail.com.