John Severson's first grade teacher praised his crude attempts at "airplane".
In less than an hour she had convinced him that he was an artist! He never got
over it, and when he first put his love of surfing with his passion for painting in 1956,
he began to paint with a "stoke" that so far has lasted over forty years.

"There are no shortcuts in affairs of the heart" says Severson, who paints with a
spontaneity, but is willing to paint a lot to say something simply. "I love the cars
and the chase; the surf coming up just around the corner. I don't want to
leave anyone high and dry. It's the stoke of knowing you're about to get the
perfect wave." It is also about the colors, design, and culture of surfing.

"Surfing and painting it. I get to ride all the waves I paint!"

"Some of the new paintings are inspired by recent surf trips to Baja, Costa Rica,
and the Mexican mainland. Lots of tough driving, smooth sliding, and big hits of
Latin culture. Also traveling around Maui, filling sketchbooks with ideas.
Particularly intriguing has been the road to Hana and its many vistas.
Along with ongoing surf pieces, I've been moved to draw on old memories in an
abstract mode--an update of some of my '50s be-bop art." JS

The site paintings are usually available, but you may want to verify via e-mail.