Jon Strawbridge
Artist Biography
I am an artist, illustrator, and retired award-winning designer based in Glendale, Wisconsin.
After many years of working in commercial art and design, I retired in 2020 to focus fully on creating my own fine artwork. Drawing on decades of experience, I have developed a unique style that blends the techniques I refined throughout my career with my personal creative vision. Over the past several years, my work has been accepted into the Watercolor Wisconsin Exhibition at the Racine Art Museum, and I have exhibited and sold pieces at the Cedarburg Art Museum, as well as in member shows at the Cedarburg Cultural Center and the Museum of Wisconsin Art.
As an illustrator, I combine imagination with technical precision, working across a range of mediums from hand-drawn and vector artwork to dimensional rendering and modeling. I also welcome commissioned projects.
Prior to focusing exclusively on fine art, I spent over 30 years as an award-winning designer in the Point of Purchase and Signage industry. This extensive experience continues to inform my work, providing strong insight into branding, visual communication, and effective graphic solutions for a wide range of creative projects.
Artist Statement
When I develop a piece, I focus on creating a strong graphic composition that emphasizes the beauty of the main element rather than the background. I enjoy the interplay between negative space and the subject, allowing the central image to breathe and stand forward with clarity and intention. Through my art, I strive to capture what I have seen and what has struck me as beautiful and meaningful.
My work is primarily created using a combination of colored pencils, watercolor pencils, and watercolors on watercolor paper or illustration board. I have also produced detailed pencil drawings and automotive illustrations created digitally in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.
Rooted in realism and emotional depth, my art explores the quiet beauty of nature and the contemplative moments it inspires. Through detailed landscapes, wildlife, and reflective figures, I aim to evoke tranquility and a sense of connection to the natural world. Each piece is a celebration of warmth, stillness, and the subtle stories found in everyday scenes.
https://www.strawbridgedesignillustration.com / jonstrawbridge@gmail.com