Glenn Dean’s childhood interest in art matured by his early 20s into a love of painting landscapes. Exposure to the early 1900s California and Western landscape painters had a great influence on the young artist, directing the course of his career early on. In recent years, he turned his attention to the figure within the landscape as he brings it closer to the forefront. It is the relationship between the figure and his surroundings which intrigues him.
Largely a self-taught artist, Dean gained recognition early in his career. He has twice been honored as the cover artist for Western Art Collector magazine, and has appeared in several national magazines including Western Art & Architecture, Art of the West, Southwest Art, and American Artist. Dean has won a number of awards including his most recent, the Artists’ Choice Award at the Eiteljorg Museum’s 2017 Quest for the West Exhibition. In 2016 at the Quest for the West, Dean received the Victor Higgins Award of Distinction for the Best Overall Body of Work. Select awards include: the Gold Thunderbird Award (Best of Show) at Maynard Dixon Country; the first-ever Emerging Artist Award presented by Art and Antiques Magazine; and the Grand Prize and Artists’ Choice Award at the inaugural Tucson/Sonoran Desert Museum Plein Air Invitational.
Dean paints on-location throughout the Southwest, though time in the field and in the studio are equally important. Dean and his wife, Suzanne, live in his native state of California on the Central Coast.