Education
2008-current Attends figure drawing and figure painting workshops on a weekly basis to further develop my figurative work.
2002-2007 Laguna College of Art & Design. Bachelor’s degree in
illustration with a minor in fine arts. Received partial scholarships
and grants.
2004-2005 Hipbone Studios in Portland, OR. Attended extensive figure drawing workshops on upper level anatomy studies.
2002- Moved to Southern California to attend Laguna College of Art & Design.
1998-2002 Portland Community College. High School Diploma & Associates Degree earned. Received full scholarship.
2001- Painted at 12 foot mural of Noah's Ark at the United Methodist Church in Portland, OR.
2000- Editorial cartoonist for Portland Community College Newspaper, The Bridge. Won the statewide best cartoonist two years in a row.
1997-98 Pacific Northwest College of Art. Studied under Bob Dozono & Al Green. Received full scholarship.
1987- Sold drawings of Disney characters at recess on the playground in grade school.
The 80's -coloring books, National Geographic & Saturday morning cartoons.
Jonathan Edward Luczycki ( Lou-ziss-key)
Born in Springfield, OR in the fall of 1980, Jonathan was drawing before the age of three and started selling his drawings of Disney characters while in grade school for chocolate milk money.
By high school he spent all of his free time drawing and painting, doing steady painting commissions for private clients, churches and working as a cartoonist for the Portland Community College newspaper, "The Bridge." Winning the state wide "Best cartoonist for a college newspaper" two years in a row, all before the age of seventeen.
"I moved from the green hills of northern Oregon to the fake taa taa's and over priced cookie cutter land of Southern California in 2002 to study illustration and fine art at Laguna College of Art & Design. I knew nothing about Orange County except from what I saw in Jack Black's film, "Orange County" That movie lied. It was filmed in L.A.
"Since moving to Southern California nearly seven years ago, I grew fascinated with the early California impressionists and this thing called plein air painting during my junior year of college at LCAD. "En plein air" is a French expression which means in "the open air", and is used to describe the act of painting in the outside environment rather than indoors, such as in a studio. Ninety percent of the paintings you see on this site were painted in one sitting out on location. I paint fast. Thank you coffee."
"I am utterly fascinated by the effects of light in a natural environment and I love the challenge of capturing the mood before the light changes, especially at dawn and dusk. I will paint many of the same scenes over and over again, but the light is always different, challenging me to truly observe and capture that moment in time. For me plein air painting is like capturing a true moment in time, recording our current state of history, for our landscape and environment is always evolving."
Just about everyday Jonathan is out painting in the natural light. He paints from Balboa Island to Little Corona and Laguna of Southern California, to Carmel and the Red Woods, to the foothills of Northern Oregon, and once every few months he visits a new state and capture it's light. "My motivation and dream is to paint in every continent, and believe me, I will do it!"
Jonathan works in several mediums and is not known for just one style, although his landscapes are what he is currently being recognized for. Academically trained as a professional illustrator, the human figure and portraiture continue to captivate him and he constantly strives to paint them in new and exciting ways. He has been studying anatomy and has been involved in figure drawing classes and workshops on a constant basis for over a decade.
Jonathan has had several solo and group shows along the west coast since 2002, from Portland, Oregon to Laguna Beach, Hollywood and downtown L.A. Since 2005 he has built relationships with collectors on a national and international scale.
Jonathan Edward Luczycki is a member of LPAPA(Laguna Plein Air Painters Association) and a member of SOCALPAPA(Southern California Plein Air Painters Association).
His paintings are in private collections across the country, as well as in collections in Mexico City, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Canada, Tokyo, Germany, Australia, and Paris.
He resides and works out of his studio in Costa Mesa, CA painting landscapes by day and portraits by night.
To view his illustration and portraiture work, go to: WWW.ABSTROTICA.COM
UPDATE: On July 31st, 2009, Jonathan was involved in a very serious auto accident, being t-boned on his driver side door by a reckless Suburban who ran a red light at over 50 mph. Lucky to be alive, he is still greatly affected by the crash one year later. Migraines, neck and back pain, nerve damage and weekly doctor visits limit how often Jonathan can be out working in the field and studio. Hopefully this will all resolve soon so he can get back to doing what he does best.
