Ian Strawn

Ian Strawn was born to two artist parents in San Bernardino, California. Since, he's lived in Los Angeles, Oregon, Utah, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Washington State, and New Zealand, a nomadic past feeding his fascination with the people around him. He's now settled down in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.

Strawn's paintings mix a deadpan photorealistic sense with a graphic approach, offering an arresting visual analysis of the cross-section of humanity one encounters in the streets. Working from snapshots of strangers, Strawn translates the images to canvas, stripping away superfluous details to heighten the subject's effect. In this way, he transforms fleeting expressions and gestures into modern-day /mementi mori/, reminding the viewer of art's power to supersede time.

His work has been shown in LA, Denver, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Boston, San Francisco, New York, and London.