"The subject, focus and style of my art has taken many twists and turns throughout the years, but my love for painting on location outdoors is something that has steadfastly been a part of me since I received my first paint set during my grade school years.
While studying art at SDSU part of the course was to keep sketchbooks and work outdoors. After college I was drafted into the army and assigned through army wide competition to the U.S. Army Vietnam Combat Art Program. As a participant of this program I sketched on location in the fields of war torn Vietnam to bring a soldier artist's perspective of the war to the U.S. Army Center of Military History's permanent war art collection.
Since those days my outdoors subject matter has been more peaceful. On location, I prefer landscapes and pay particular attention to atmospheric conditions which I try to emphasize and at times exaggerate. I work small, and watercolors are my favorite media. They allow me to respond to quickly and continually changing conditions encountered outdoors. I strive to simplify and eliminate details in order to portray the subject before me in its most basic and gestural form. I do not try to impart a literal interpretation of a scene, but seek to create an emotional impression from the spirit of the moment." — Jim Pollock
