Ygnacio Valley Library Presents Artist Roger B Sperling February 1-28, 2011

Roger has been a resident of Walnut Creek since 1970, working as an engineering manager for a variety of firms, including Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.  When he became fully retired in 2001 his wife, Nancy, a watercolor student of Pat Strout, challenged him to try painting. 

He signed up for Pat’s acrylic class at Mount Diablo Adult Education and is now in his tenth year, painting weekly under her watchful eye. He is always looking for interesting painting subjects--of places he has been or sights he has seen—using his other hobby of photography as a jumping off point for his paintings. 

Roger had tried oil painting many years ago but never took a formal class.  With his more recent second effort he discovered acrylic paints are easier to work with.  He was able to use his engineering drafting experience to draw his subjects realistically but had to learn the fundamentals of color, value and blending to achieve artistic results.

He discovered that his most popular subject has been “edible” still life—familiar fruits and vegetables. The slopes of Mount Diablo are a personal favorite—in panorama views of our local mountain. He also specializes in triptychs, three-panel renderings of landscapes that also include Mt. Diablo.