Charles Pitcher

Charles Pitcher Frank L. Melega Peter West Andrew Knez Jr. Ray W. Forquer

Charles Pitcher (USA, 1927-2010)

My paintings are about expressing nature in its most pristine form. I create illusions using nature’s elements and spaces to challenge the viewer by placing him face to face with the reality of a pure, untouched environment.

When nature is experienced as primordial, it generates a poetic feeling of loneliness evocative of the deeper instinctive aspects of the self. In the woodlands among majestic trees, I find a very spiritual place to express my art. Specific detail is used to increase the believability of one’s presence in the paintings. My objective is to provoke an emotional and psychological response from the viewer. Nature, particularly trees, provides the perfect vehicle to express this idea.

H.D. Thoreau expressed this when he stated, ‘it is as if I always met in those places some grand, serene, immortal, infinitely encouraging, though invisible companion, and walked with him.’

Charles Pitcher (1927-2010)

A Dialogue with Charlie Pitcher, Pittsburgh Center of the Arts - Artist of the Year - 1987.

Why did you choose painting as a profession?
Need. For me, making art is the most satisfying
thing that I wish to do with my life.

Are you considered a photo realist?
I'm not sure what that really means. Every artist paints their own way to make a serious statement.
The category that each work falls under has so many overlaps that the label is never absolute. I make realistic paintings, which is obvious. However, I am always aware that what I paint is an illusion of three dimensional space on a flat surface. Therefore, it's exciting to me to expand this idea.

Are the realist painters still fighting against the abstract expressionists?
Some yes. Some no. It seems to me that if realism is used as a vehicle for some social expression or protest, most critics react favorably. In a way, my work tends to protest protest. I have no quarrel with the abstract expressionists beginning with the grand themes of Pollock, deKooning, Rothko, and all that have followed. In my paintings, I choose realistic detail to describe specific three dimensional spaces.

Is your work considered sentimental?
If expressing nature is sentimental, yes. I become so involved with linear and spatial relationships in each painting, it never occurs to me whether the work is sentimental or not. However, I always have a certain emotional response to every painting.

Have you been influenced by other artists?
That is a very complicated question. However, if I have been influenced by any one artist, I'm not consciously aware of it. I try very hard to relate to all artists' work...what the work is saying to me and how profound a statement is being made.

Greeting the Day
Watercolor, 40 x 50 in
$12,000
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Elements
Watercolor, 40 x 60 in
$12,000
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Wintergreens II
Watercolor, 40 x 60 in
$12,000
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Sanctum
Watercolor, 60 x 40 in
$12,000
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Thoreau's Brook II
Watercolor, 60 x 40 in
$12,000
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Enlightenment
Watercolor, 60 x 40 in
$12,000
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Woodland
Watercolor, 32 x 40 in
$5,000
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Laurel Wilderness
Watercolor, 40 x 32 in
$6,000
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Ensemble
Watercolor, 40 x 60 in
$12,000
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Another Day
Watercolor, 30 x 22 in
$4,000
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Sycamore Morning
Watercolor, 32 x 40 in
$4,000
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Puritas
Watercolor, 30 x 22 in
$4,500
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Tree Pearls
Watercolor
NFS
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Roof Tops
Watercolor, 29 x 22 in
$3,500
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March in PA
Watercolor, 21 x 13 in
$3,000
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PA Umber #2
Watercolor, 40 x 30 in
$4,000
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January Rest
Watercolor, 60 x 40 in
$12,000
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Thistle
Watercolor, 30 x 22 in
$4,500
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Rigging of #6
Watercolor, 30 x 22 in
$5,000
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Off the County Road
Watercolor, 22 x 30 in
$4,500
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Washington County Homestead
Watercolor, 28 x 20 in
$3,000
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Triangles
Oil, 52 x 36 in
$8,500
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Grouse Run
Oil, 22 x 50 in
$10,000
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Retro Barn
Oil, 30 x 24 in
$4,000
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Susan and Charlie Pitcher, 2000 (Top Left)
Jeffrey Moyer, Susan and Charlie Pitcher, 2003 (Right)
Ray Forquer and Charlie Pitcher, 2005 (Bottom Left)

BIO
Recognized as a major artist, Charles Pitcher has received wide acclaim for his art work. His intimate and sensitive landscapes, painted in oil or transparent watercolor, are included in many corporate and private collections. His work reflects nature in its most pristine manner.

Charles was born in Cumberland, Maryland in 1927. In his young life, his family moved many times. After completing his education, he chose Western Pennsylvania to be his permanent home.

His education includes a Bachelor of Arts degree from Westminster College, Special Studies at Pratt Institute, and a BSAED Degree from Edinboro University.

SELECTED COLLECTIONS:
Alcoa Corporation
Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad
Consolidated Coal Company

Coopers & Leybrand

Copperweld Corporation

Crossgates International

Duquesne Light

Gulf Oil Corporation

Hunt Botanical Institute

Integra Bank

J & L Structural

LTV Corporation

McGraw Edison

Mathews, Phillips, Inc.
Mellon Bank
Miles, Inc.

National Steel
PNC Corporation

PPG Industries

Price Waterhouse

Rivers Club
Rockwell International
Ross Mould
U.S.X. Corporation
Westinghouse Corporation
Westmoreland County Museum

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:
Associated Artists of Pittsburgh at Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Concept Gallery, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Golden Door Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania
International Botanical Art Show, Hunt Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
International Miniature Show, Verona, New Jersey
McClelland State Regional Gallery, Langwarrin, Australia
Oglebay Institute, Wheeling, West Virginia
Olin Fine Arts Center, W & J College, Washington, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art, Loretto, Pennsylvania
Westmoreland Museum Invitational, Greensburg, Pennsylvania

Zanesville Art Institute, Zanesville, Ohio

SELECTED HONORS/AWARDS:
2nd Place Award, Oils, New Jersey National Miniature Show, Verona, New Jersey

Artist of the Year, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Award of Distinction, Mainstreams National Show, Marietta, Ohio
Mobay Purchase Award, Associated Artists Show, Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

George L. Craig Award, Associated Artists Show, Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Honorable Mention, Three Rivers Annual Show, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

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Washington, PA 15301

(724) 225-4663

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World West Galleries; Established 1999

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