JOHN AQUILINO
The urban landscape has been the focus of John Aquilino’s artwork since he moved from New York City to Maryland in 2003. While living in New York, John was a commercial illustrator and graphic artist for more than 20 years. He is now a full-time professional fine artist working in his Rockville, MD studio. Aquilino exhibits regularly in the Washington, DC region and nationally.
John says, “In exploring the cityscape theme, I am intrigued by the endless patterns of colors and shadows produced by the changing light throughout the day and even at different times of the year. My goal is not to document a particular city or view, but rather I manipulate shapes and shadows to create striking compositions. The colors are exaggerated, the surfaces are simplified, and architectural features are rearranged or eliminated. My work often combines realistic and abstract elements, and I find this contrast really interesting.”
Aquilino has had 13 solo shows and has participated in more than 70 juried and invitational exhibits. In addition, John’s work has been exhibited at a number of art fairs including the Affordable Art Fair New York City, Architecture Home Design Show (New York City), Boston International Art Fair, Bridge Art Fair (Wynwood, Miami), and Red Dot Art Fair (Wynwood, Miami), and SOFA CHICAGO.
Over the past decade, the DC Commission of the Arts and Humanities has purchased seven of John’s urban landscapes for the Art Bank Collection. Earlier this year, Freddie Mac purchased four paintings for its corporate art collection. His work also is in a number of other corporate collections including Brookline Bankcorp (Boston), Inova Health Care Services (Fairfax, VA), Jewish Museum of Florida, and National Association of Home Builders in D.C.
John Aquilino’s preferred medium is oil, but he also uses gouache, graphite, and collage.
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