Indeed, Italy was one of Howard Behrens\u2019 most beloved muses. The artist credited this to the natural beauty of the land, the sunshine, the colorful buildings, the interesting vegetation, the sparkling lakes and the myriad ports and rolling hills. Other experts say the land is universally loved and a mecca for art-loving travelers and is a major reason Italian-themed Behrens works are so popular. \u201cNaturally, one of the reasons people buy his work is because they\u2019ve been to these places, and that is a natural attraction,\u201d said Rick Moore of Rick Moore Fine Art.\u00a0<\/h2>\n\u201cUltimately, Howard\u2019s appeal lies in his ability to take you there,\u201d added Eliot Burns. \u201cHe always presents a very special place, an idealized version of the world\u2019s most beautiful places, places where the water shimmers in azure shades, breezes are always blowing, the sun is always shining, and the flowers are always in bloom. Where else would you want to be?\u201d<\/h2>\nAnother great inspiration in Howard\u2019s life and in his work was his wife and publisher, Judi.\u00a0 She managed Howard\u2019s career and his business relationships for 17 years. The couple spent more than 15 years traveling and working together, soaking up the sun in exotic locales around the world and celebrating their love. \u201cI really lucked out when I found Judi. She\u2019s a huge source of support for me. And like me, she adores the sun,\u201d said Behrens. \u201cShe is truly my muse, and I have published the \u2018My Beloved\u2019 series to honor her. I\u2019ve painted her walking in the surf on the beaches of the world, overlooking century-old castles and manors in Italy, and strolling in quaint villages in America. Our romance is as beautiful as the places we have visited together\u2014and she inspires me constantly.\u201d<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Another great inspiration in Howard\u2019s life and in his work was his wife and publisher, Judi.\u00a0 She managed Howard\u2019s career and his business relationships for 17 years. The couple spent more than 15 years traveling and working together, soaking up the sun in exotic locales around the world and celebrating their love. \u201cI really lucked out when I found Judi. She\u2019s a huge source of support for me. And like me, she adores the sun,\u201d said Behrens. \u201cShe is truly my muse, and I have published the \u2018My Beloved\u2019 series to honor her. I\u2019ve painted her walking in the surf on the beaches of the world, overlooking century-old castles and manors in Italy, and strolling in quaint villages in America. Our romance is as beautiful as the places we have visited together\u2014and she inspires me constantly.\u201d<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Judi Behrens has managed Howard\u2019s career and his business relationships for 16 years.<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Features” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ background_color=”#f7f6ec” custom_padding=”0px|||||”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Title Row” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ custom_padding=”|||” animation_style=”fade” locked=”off”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Title & Paragraph” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ text_font=”Noto Sans||||||||” text_font_size=”17px” text_line_height=”2em” link_font=”||||||||” ul_font=”||||||||” ol_font=”||||||||” quote_font=”||||||||” header_font=”||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”#E02B20″ header_2_font=”Open Sans|700|||||||” header_2_text_align=”left” header_2_text_color=”#545454″ header_2_font_size=”36px” header_2_line_height=”1.5em” header_3_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” header_2_font_size_tablet=”21px” header_2_font_size_phone=”21px” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone”]<\/p>\n
THE TRADITION CONTINUED<\/h2>\n
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Nearly three decades after he started his second career as a painter and capturer of color and light, Howard Behrens remains a fixture in the world of art. He had nearly 200 shows throughout the United States and abroad, and his work hangs in some of the most auspicious collections in the world. \u00a0His heavily-embellished limited-edition giclee prints are published by Behrens International Group, LLC. His images can also be found on posters, puzzles, tapestries and other art-related products.<\/h2>\n\u00a0Indeed, Behrens captured the sun, the sea and the light. He also focused on the beauty of gardens.\u00a0 In 2000, he created \u201cA Tribute to Monet,\u201d a stunning collection of works inspired by Monet\u2019s gardens in Giverny, France. The show was exhibited at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C. in October 2001, and a series of limited-edition prints were created from that collection.<\/h2>\n\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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During the last 10 years of his career, Behrens took his work to the high seas.\u00a0 He and Judi joined art lovers and collectors on art-themed cruises throughout the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, the Mexican Riviera, the Baltic, and more on acclaimed Connoisseur Cruises on Princess, Cunard, and more than 30 other ships. Featured on the cruises were art auctions of originals and special-edition prints and a chance for Behrens\u2019 fans to spend time with the artist and to watch him complete a painting.<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Gallery” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ background_color=”#f7f6ec” overflow-x=”hidden” overflow-y=”hidden” custom_padding=”3px|||||”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” module_alignment=”center” animation_style=”fade” locked=”off” header_2_font_size_tablet=”21px” header_2_font_size_phone=”21px” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/nwdn_file_temp_1614341640856-1.jpg” title_text=”nwdn_file_temp_1614341640856″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ animation_direction=”bottom” border_radii=”on|3px|3px|3px|3px” locked=”off”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Title & Paragraph” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ text_font=”Noto Sans||||||||” text_font_size=”17px” text_line_height=”2em” link_font=”||||||||” ul_font=”||||||||” ol_font=”||||||||” quote_font=”||||||||” header_font=”||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”#E02B20″ header_2_font=”Open Sans|700|||||||” header_2_text_align=”left” header_2_text_color=”#545454″ header_2_font_size=”36px” header_2_line_height=”1.5em” header_3_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” header_2_font_size_tablet=”21px” header_2_font_size_phone=”21px” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” locked=”off”]<\/p>\n
A CONSUMMATE ARTIST<\/h2>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider color=”#ffcf9a” divider_weight=”3px” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” width_tablet=”” width_phone=”” width_last_edited=”on|tablet” max_width=”100%” module_alignment=”left” custom_margin=”-20px||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” locked=”off”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ text_font_size=”16px” text_line_height=”2.2em” header_2_font=”Open Sans||||||||” header_2_text_color=”#6d6d65″ header_2_font_size=”15px” header_2_line_height=”1.56em” header_2_font_size_tablet=”13px” header_2_font_size_phone=”” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” locked=”off” header_3_font_size__hover=”22px” header_3_font_size__hover_enabled=”22px” header_3_line_height__hover=”1em” header_3_line_height__hover_enabled=”1em” header_2_font_size__hover=”26px” header_2_font_size__hover_enabled=”26px” header_2_letter_spacing__hover=”0px” header_2_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”0px” header_2_line_height__hover=”1em” header_2_line_height__hover_enabled=”1em” header_2_text_shadow_style__hover=”none” header_2_text_shadow_style__hover_enabled=”none” header_2_text_shadow_color__hover=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)” header_2_text_shadow_color__hover_enabled=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)” text_letter_spacing__hover=”0px” text_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”0px” text_text_shadow_style__hover=”none” text_text_shadow_style__hover_enabled=”none” text_text_shadow_color__hover=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)” text_text_shadow_color__hover_enabled=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)” header_3_letter_spacing__hover=”0px” header_3_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”0px” header_3_text_shadow_style__hover=”none” header_3_text_shadow_style__hover_enabled=”none” header_3_text_shadow_color__hover=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)” header_3_text_shadow_color__hover_enabled=”rgba(0,0,0,0.4)”]<\/p>\n
In spite of his incredible success as an artist, Howard Behrens remained true to his humble, yet artistically passionate soul. He often waxed poetic about the act of painting, his love of his work and his affinity for his collectors. \u201cAs well known, widely collected and widely recognized of an artist as he is, I am always surprised at how genuinely humble Howard was, and how much he treasured the people who collected his work,\u201d said Josh Miller of Ocean Galleries. \u201cYou see artists who eventually see art as a way to pay bills, and it becomes just a job. With Howard, I don\u2019t think that original excitement that a young artist achieves ever left him.\u201d<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_2_font=”Open Sans||||||||” header_2_text_align=”center” header_2_text_color=”#6d6d65″ header_2_font_size=”15px” custom_margin=”-20px||||false|false” header_2_font_size_tablet=”10px” header_2_font_size_phone=”” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone”]<\/p>\n
((Editorial remarks: The above article was edited after Howard\u2019s death to reflect his passing.))<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#160b00″ locked=”off”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_4,1_4″ use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”1″ make_equal=”on” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”0px||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false” custom_css_main_element=”display: flex;”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Behrens_White_250150.png” title_text=”Behrens_White LOGO” src_tablet=”https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Behrens_White-LOGO.png” src_phone=”https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Behrens_White-LOGO.png” src_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”-10px||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_2_font=”Cardo||||||||” header_2_text_color=”rgba(255,207,154,0.4)” header_2_font_size=”18px” header_2_line_height=”1.56em” header_2_font_size_tablet=”15px” header_2_font_size_phone=”” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_font=”Open Sans|700|||||||” header_text_color=”#E09900″ header_font_size=”21px” header_font_size_tablet=”17px” header_font_size_phone=”” header_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_2_font=”Nunito||||||||” header_2_text_color=”rgba(255,207,154,0.4)” header_2_font_size=”15px” header_2_line_height=”1.56em” custom_margin=”10px||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false” header_2_font_size_tablet=”13px” header_2_font_size_phone=”” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_font=”Open Sans|700|||||||” header_text_color=”#E09900″ header_font_size=”21px” header_font_size_tablet=”17px” header_font_size_phone=”” header_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” locked=”off”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.2″ _module_preset=”default” header_2_font=”Nunito||||||||” header_2_text_color=”rgba(255,207,154,0.4)” header_2_font_size=”15px” header_2_line_height=”1.56em” custom_margin=”10px||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ header_2_font_size_tablet=”13px” header_2_font_size_phone=”” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” locked=”off” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_divider color=”#ffcf9a” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ _module_preset=”default”][\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Charles F. Kettering, 1876-1958Howard Behrens (1933 \u2013 2014)By Julie Keller \u2013\u00a0former Editor-in-Chief of \u201cArt Business News\u201d and a frequent contributor to art industry publicationsIf ever there was a composer of color, it was Howard Behrens, a brilliant painter who emerged among a sea of artists to become the preeminent modern master of the palette knife […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":8,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"[vc_row css=\".vc_custom_1471012254585{margin-top: 73px !important;margin-bottom: 108px !important;padding-top: 10px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 30px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}\"][vc_column][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471018729251{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n Howard Behrens<\/p>\n By Julie Keller - former Editor-in-Chief of \u201cArt Business News\u201d and a frequent contributor to art industry publications<\/em><\/p>\n\n Charles F. Kettering, 1876-1958<\/p>\n If ever there was a composer of color, it is Howard Behrens, a brilliant painter who has emerged among a sea of artists to become the preeminent modern master of the palette knife and an incomparable translator of color. \u201cUsing an analogy from music, I like to think of myself not as a piano player, but as a composer. There are a lot of piano players, but they are playing someone else\u2019s music. I want to be remembered as a master \u2018composer\u2019 of art, not a \u2018musician.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\nIndeed, Behrens will be remembered as the composer. He will also be remembered as a master colorist, a palette knife magician, and a kind and gentle soul. \u201cOne thing about the palette knife is that you get great color and you can play with the texture,\u201d he said. \u201cSo it\u2019s color and texture and real genuine paint where you see the act of painting.\u201d\n\nThe experts couldn\u2019t agree more. \u201cHoward is the best colorist among a large group of post-Impressionist painters in the United States today,\u201d shared Harriet Rinehart, founder of Rinehart Fine Arts. \u201cAlthough many people try to imitate him, they always come up second best.\u201d \u201cThere are many who have tried to imitate his style, but no one has come close,\u201d added Josh Miller of Ocean Galleries in Stone Harbor and Avalon, New Jersey. \u201cThere are different people trying to do what he does, but they just don\u2019t pull it off,\u201d agreed Rick Moore of Rick Moore Fine Art in Naples, Florida, and Rick Moore Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico.\n\nAt once an introspective and humble man and a skilled painter, Behrens has created a world of beauty in his work that combines a love of paint, a passion for travel, and a mastery of style and color.\n <\/p>\n\n It was this pivotal choice that began the exceptional artistic career of Howard Behrens. After receiving his masters degree, the artist worked for 17 years as a government graphic designer and took advantage of his experiences there and the generous government vacation schedule to work on his paintings and travel the world gaining inspiration from the lush, tropical locales he visited. That is where the real story of the artist begins. In the late 1970s, Behrens began experimenting with paint and style and found inspiration in work he created with a palette knife, a tool most artists use to mix oil paints before applying them to canvas. \u201cI kept changing my style,\u201d he explained. \u201cI feel like every painting is a prerequisite for the next painting. You come across something that really rings a bell and starts you thinking differently, and you continue on with that new technique, style or subject matter. That\u2019s how I eventually got into palette knife painting. It was an evolutionary thing.\u201d<\/p>\nThe evolution to today\u2019s rich, distinctive, texturized style came through experimentation. \u201cI slowly started using the palette knife to paint on the canvas,\u201d said Behrens. \u201cIt started out very fine and thin using very little paint. Then, it got thicker and thicker and heavier and heavier. Finally, the most amazing thing happened\u2014the act of painting became the subject matter.\u201d\n\nBehrens also developed a method for creation that combined travel, sketching, fine art photography and painting. Creation of paintings that integrate what he calls \u201cbig, juicy chunks of paint\u201d is no simple task. In 1976, Behrens took a trip to Jamaica and was blown away by the color and beauty of the lush tropical island. \u201cBeach subject matter is beautiful for palette knife painting, and Jamaica was gorgeous,\u201d he said. \u201cThere was so much color\u2014sailboats, beach umbrellas, girls walking in colorful bathing suits, bright beach blankets, and the reflections in the water. It was stunning.\u201d\n\nBehrens painted several canvases and realized he couldn\u2019t bring wet paintings back on the plane. So a new creation method was born. He traveled to Italy and let the beauty of the villages and harbors wash over him, making stops in such places as Venice, Portofino, Capri, and Lake Como. He realized that it wasn\u2019t just beaches that held majestic beauty that was easily captured with a palette knife. \u201cArchitecture is a lot more difficult subject matter than the beach,\u201d he said. \u201cI was entranced by the boats, the architecture, the bougainvillea and all the old-world charm.\u201d\n\nBehrens soon became a master with the camera and sketch pad, and even now brings these tools on all of his travels and uses them to piece together his distinctive paintings. \u201cI will photograph reference material\u2014awnings, flower pots, caf\u00e9s under the sycamore trees, boats in the harbor. I probably get 30 or 40 slides in one walk of 100 yards or so,\u201d he explained. \u201cI also stop every 100 yards and make a quick sketch. The sketches are the compositions, the heart of my paintings.\"\n\nIt is when he returns home to his studio that he is able to work his magic. \u201cI will go through my slides and look at my sketches then sketch the same thing on the canvas,\u201d he said. \u201cFinally, I will get it to the point where the pattern is just right, and I can see from the slides some of the colorful things I can put in there\u2014a string of yellow umbrellas, a cluster of flowers. The subject matter just goes on and on.\n Judi Behrens has managed Howard\u2019s career and his business relationships for 16 years.<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_masonry_media_grid gap=\"0\" item=\"mediaGrid_SlideOutCaption\" grid_id=\"vc_gid:1471021943851-8e7820db-c075-5\" include=\"87,88,89\" css=\".vc_custom_1471022569799{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471024099059{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n Howard Behrens<\/p>\n August 20th, 1933 - April 14th, 2014<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-10","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/10","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/10\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2111,"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/10\/revisions\/2111"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/howardbehrens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Behrens International Group, LLC<\/span>
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\u201cThe opportunities of man are limited only by his imagination. But so few have imagination that there are ten thousand fiddlers to one composer.\u201d<\/h4>\n
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS<\/h4>\nBehrens\u2019 love of art started at an early age. Born in Chicago in 1933, he inherited creative talents from both of his parents. His mother, Marie, was an artistic soul with a flair for design, and his father, Walter, worked as a printer who was meticulous with his work. Behrens\u2019 first introduction to the world of art began in the third grade when he received a watercolor set. \u201cWe didn\u2019t have much money, so the painting set was like a toy,\u201d he said. \u201cI didn\u2019t know any better, so I just kept playing with it. Finally, I just loved doing it.\u201d\n\nThis love of art continued through grade school and high school when his family moved to Tacoma Park, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C. He quickly became known as \u201cthe class artist\u201d who created work for the yearbook and newspaper. Behrens\u2019 love of art was cemented following a sledding accident his senior year of high school. He was sequestered to the hospital for several months, and he whittled away the hours by painting. \u201cI just kept painting,\u201d he said. \u201cI was in there having a ball and painting away.\u201d\n\nUpon graduation from high school, Behrens took a job as a government clerk and continued his studies in art as an undergraduate at the University of Maryland. He was accepted into the medical illustration program at Johns Hopkins University, but he opted to pursue a graduate degree in painting and illustration instead. \u201cI decided that creative art is nothing like scientific illustration. In scientific illustration you create exactly what is there,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou don\u2019t create or change anything. You don\u2019t do anything except follow what you see. I didn\u2019t want to do that.\u201d\n\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_masonry_media_grid gap=\"0\" item=\"mediaGrid_SlideOutCaption\" grid_id=\"vc_gid:1471018008028-8c9e96bf5cd49bfedae362289a1e46d3-9\" include=\"78,80,79\" css=\".vc_custom_1471019728770{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471020703742{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n
CONTROLLED SPONTANEITY<\/h4>\nA Howard Behrens painting is a combination of artistic influences that culminates in a style he calls \u201ccontrolled spontaneity.\u201d In his work are reflections of such artists as Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Camille Pisarro, Alfred Sisely, and Italian palette knife painter Nicola Simbari. At his heart, Behrens considers himself an expressionist who has integrated the spontaneous nature of the Impressionist painters. \u201cI'm an expressionist. I like to use color and dramatic, long areas of light and dark. Sunlight makes things more intense than they are. I purposely exaggerate light because it brings out more emotion. With the palette knife, you can\u2019t help but to be spontaneous,\u201d he explained. \u201cOftentimes, I will splash a lot of areas with thick paint. Then I will go back and use the edge of the knife to put the edges on buildings and other things. You work back to the controlled part.\u201d\n\nThis \u201ccontrolled spontaneity\u201d was truly honed when Behrens started painting full time in the early 1980s. The Penguin Gallery in Jacksonville, Florida, saw his work in a gallery near Washington, D.C., and was intrigued by the palette knife style. The gallery signed him up for a one-man show, and the rest is history. Behrens soon signed on with the Wally Findlay Galleries. Up next were a series of successful shows in such prestigious locales as Palm Beach, Florida; Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, California; and along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Soon Behrens quit his job in the government and devoted himself to painting full time. \u201cI hit the jackpot and was really lucky,\u201d he said. \u201cNothing succeeds like a little success. I couldn\u2019t believe what was happening. It was an incentive like no incentive I\u2019ve ever had in my life.\u201d\n
INNOVATIONS IN SERIGRAPHY<\/h4>\nBehrens\u2019 career soon exploded. He continued to travel and become inspired by tropical areas in the Caribbean, Hawaii and Mexico, as well as the beaches and villages throughout Europe and the United States. He also caught the eye of fine art print publisher Soho Editions. The two joined forces in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s and made waves in the industry by creating the world\u2019s first collections of hand-embellished,\n\nLimited-edition prints. \u201cI was immediately impressed when I saw Howard\u2019s work,\u201d said Elliot Burns of Soho Editions. \u201cHis bold use of color and paint, his ability to bring you into the scene, the sense of harmony and economy of palette and his ability to capture the sun were among the things that caught my eye.\u201d\n\nSoho Editions soon published a series of serigraphs. These beautiful works captured Behrens\u2019 magnificent originals and gave him an even more universal appeal. They also received his personal, palette knife enhancements that expressed the beauty of his paintings all over again to thousands of additional collectors. \u201cHoward\u2019s ability with the palette knife was truly amazing,\u201d related Burns about Howard\u2019s first hand-embellished serigraph. \u201cHe put that first print proof up on his easel, and in an hour, we had the world\u2019s first enhanced serigraph-on-canvas. Behrens had created a whole new medium that would eventually take the art world by storm. Without Howard Behrens\u2019 ability to work quickly with the palette knife, there never would have been an enhanced serigraph on canvas in the industry.\u201d\n\nThe embellished serigraphs were a boon to the printing industry and helped make a name for Howard Behrens among collectors at all levels of the art-buying spectrum. \u201cPeople really begin to know who you are when they procure an original work,\u201d said Behrens. \u201cBut when you sell a single, brilliant original to a collector, no one except that collector knows it exists. A series of limited-edition works derived from that original, however, can showcase the work to the world.\u201d\n\nBehrens created many enduring images during his partnership with Soho Editions, but he truly made history with work created following a trip to the Italian Lakes Region in 1990. \u201cReturning with innumerable photographs, he proceeded to paint some of his most famous images, including \u2018Bellagio Promenade,\u2019 \u2018Il Lago di Como,\u2019 and \u2018Lugano.\u2019 All were smash successes as limited editions, and \u2018Bellagio Promenade,\u2019 later published as a poster, proved to be one of the best selling images in the history of art printing.\u201d\n
THE ARTIST\u2019S HEART<\/h4>\nIndeed, Italy has continued to be one Howard Behrens\u2019 most beloved muses. The artist credits this to the natural beauty of the land, the sunshine, the colorful buildings, the interesting vegetation, the sparkling lakes and the myriad ports and rolling hills. Other experts say the land is universally loved and a mecca for art-loving travelers and is a major reason Italian-themed Behrens works are so popular. \u201cNaturally, one of the reasons people buy his work is because they\u2019ve been to these places, and that is a natural attraction,\u201d said Rick Moore of Rick Moore Fine Art.\n\n\u201cUltimately, Howard\u2019s appeal lies in his ability to take you there,\u201d added Eliot Burns. \u201cHe always presents a very special place, an idealized version of the world\u2019s most beautiful places, places where the water shimmers in azure shades, breezes are always blowing, the sun is always shining, and the flowers are always in bloom. Where else would you want to be?\u201d\n\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_masonry_media_grid gap=\"0\" item=\"mediaGrid_SlideOutCaption\" grid_id=\"vc_gid:1471021285836-028a6afa-4c3f-4\" include=\"83,84,85\" css=\".vc_custom_1471021526582{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471021876853{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n
THE TRADITION CONTINUES<\/h4>\nNearly two decades after he started his second career as a painter and capturer of color and light, Howard Behrens remains a fixture in the world of art. He\u2019s had nearly 200 shows throughout the United States and abroad, and his work hangs in some of the most auspicious collections in the world. Prior to his semi-retirement in 2011, he inspired collectors with incomparable originals from \u201cVilla Behrens\u201d -- his former home and private studio in Potomac, Maryland. The home was sold in 2011 but a collection of his art remains in the home in honor of his decade of living and working in his studio there.[\/vc_column_text][vc_masonry_media_grid gap=\"0\" item=\"mediaGrid_SlideOutCaption\" grid_id=\"vc_gid:1471024166399-da55c10d-9e43-1\" include=\"91,92,93\" css=\".vc_custom_1471024589668{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471024677488{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]His heavily-embellished limited-edition giclee prints are published by Behrens International. His images can also be found on posters, puzzles, tapestries and other art-related products through Rinehart Fine Arts and the Bentley Licensing Group. \u201cArtist trends come and go very quickly in our world,\u201d pointed out Harriet Rinehart. \u201cHoward has a very long history of popularity. Rinehart began publishing Howard's work in 1992. Bentley Publishing Group acquired Rinehart Fine Arts in 1999 and expanded the list of available titles. Thirteen years later, Behrens art is routinely listed among our top 20 best selling artists.\u201d\n\nIndeed, Behrens continues to capture the sun, the sea and the light. He\u2019s also recently focused on the beauty of gardens. In 2000, he created \u201cA Tribute to Monet,\u201d a stunning collection of works inspired by Monet\u2019s gardens in Giverny, France. The show was exhibited at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C. in October 2001, and a series of limited-edition prints were created from that collection.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=\"94\" img_size=\"full\" alignment=\"center\" style=\"vc_box_shadow_border_circle\" onclick=\"link_image\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471024946747{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]As one of the official artists for the Winter Olympics 2002, Behrens\u2019 painting, \u201cIn Motion\u201d was featured at the Winter Games. Additionally, numerous celebrities collect Behrens\u2019 works. Donald Trump and his wife Melania Knauss were celebrity sponsors of events in New York and New Jersey. Former President and Mrs. George Bush also collect Behrens\u2019 works.[\/vc_column_text][vc_masonry_media_grid gap=\"0\" item=\"mediaGrid_SlideOutCaption\" grid_id=\"vc_gid:1471025227168-cd0814d7-5c13-6\" include=\"96,97,98\" css=\".vc_custom_1471025796650{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471025265791{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]Until late 2011, Behrens even took his work to the high seas. He joined art lovers and collectors on art-themed cruises throughout the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, the Mexican Riviera, the Baltic, and more on acclaimed Connoisseur Cruises on Princess, Cunard, and more than 30 other ships. Featured on the cruises are art auctions of originals and special-edition prints and a chance for Behrens\u2019 fans to spend time with the artist and watch him complete a painting. According to Mark Bronson, Director of Global Fine Art and organizer of the auctions, the cruises have been a smashing success.\u201cCollectors love Howard\u2019s work,\u201d he said. \u201cThe artwork speaks for itself. They see the rich texture of the palette knife and how unique Howard is right now in contemporary art. It\u2019s really well received. He\u2019s one of our most popular artists.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=\"99\" img_size=\"292x354\" alignment=\"center\" style=\"vc_box_shadow_border\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471027159460{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n
A CONSUMMATE ARTIST<\/h4>\nIn spite of his incredible success as an artist, Howard Behrens remains true to his humble, yet artistically passionate soul. He still waxes poetic about the act of painting, his love of his work and his affinity for his collectors. \u201cAs well known, widely collected and widely recognized of an artist as he is, I am always surprised at how genuinely humble Howard is, and how much he treasures the people who collect his work,\u201d said Josh Miller of Ocean Galleries. \u201cYou see artists who eventually see art as a way to pay bills, and it becomes just a job. With Howard, I don\u2019t think that original excitement that a young artist achieves has ever left him.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=\"100\" img_size=\"full\" alignment=\"center\" style=\"vc_box_rounded\"][vc_column_text css=\".vc_custom_1471027955092{padding-right: 80px !important;padding-left: 80px !important;}\"]\n