Frederick D. Somers

Fred Somers has been painting full-time since 1975 at his farm-home-studio near Northfield, MN.  His oil and pastel paintings, known for their peaceful sensitivity, reflect themes from the land. Whether in intimate views of grass, rocks and water with reflections of light and sky, or in spacious vistas of the countryside he seeks to share the hidden places of nature. He now brings his love of life to sensitive commissioned portraits. Fred visits the lush countryside, canoeing the rivers, walking through big woods, in every season and all kinds of weather. In much of Fred’s recent work, water is evident in one form or another.   Fred’s pastel paintings of the Big Woods State Park near Northfield were chosen for the 1996 Minnesota State Park Permit design. He continues to inspire others through his painting workshops in the U.S. and abroad. Since his designation as American Swedish Artist of the Year in 1984 he has continued to exhibit and teach in Scandinavia.

“Working outside is a source of intimacy (with the subject). I do small studies, pencil sketches, color studies, photography. Frequently things done on location become studies for other paintings, but I do most finished work in the studio. I think of water as a metaphor. It’s what it is and what it reflects…Water is how heaven touches earth. I seek to bring to others an experience of the beauty of light as it bathes creation and to point them to a pathway that reaches into eternity. My paintings are done from 15 feet away. I decide from that distance what I want to look at and then I move closer. The painting has to be exciting both from a distance and up close.”

1995 Taught pastel painting, 1989 watercolor painting classes Mullsjö Folkhögskola, Sweden
            
1970-75 and 1980 Instructor of painting, drawing, printmaking, art education, and gallery director at St. Olaf and Carleton colleges, Northfield, MN

2017-18 President, Lake Country Pastel Society