Christopher Blossom

Like a member of another famous American art family, the Wyeths, Christopher Blossom follows in a line of highly accomplished artists. Both his grandfather, Earl, and his father David, were celebrated, commercial artists. Their influence in combination with Chris’ own unique approach to easel painting has led him to become regarded as one of the undisputed leaders of today’s generation of marine painters.

After informal studies with his father, Chris attended the Parsons School of Design. At the same time, he worked in the Industrial Design studio of Robert Bourke where he learned to accurately interpret blueprints of all kinds. By the time he finished, he was able to visualize an entire boat by using its plans alone as a reference and he could draw a craft accurately from any angle, a skill possessed by very few.

Born in 1956, Blossom has received a level of recognition that most artists need a lifetime to achieve. At the age of twenty, he was awarded a “Scholarship Gold Medal” by the Society of Illustrators. He went on to become a charter member and then President of the American Society of Marine Artists. Shortly thereafter, he was accepted into the exclusive Society of Historical Artists. He is the only marine artist to have been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Western Art, from whom he received a “Gold Medal” in 1991. He was one of only 20 artists nationwide selected by Forbes Magazine, and American Artist Magazine to paint the Forbes family ranch in Colorado and their chateau in Normandy, France for two special exhibitions in New York City. He is also one of the 29 elected members of the Plein Air Painters of America. In 2004, his paintings were part of the nationwide touring exhibition entitled FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA: A Reflection of America, which included forty-seven of America’s finest realist and impressionist painters. Chris Blossom's passion for history and his unique ability to visualize in three dimensions has allowed him to recreate scenes from maritime history with genuineness and feeling that is unequaled among his contemporaries. His distinctive painterly style, complex compositions, and subtle use of light are characteristics that have attracted collectors from all over the globe. It should come as no surprise that when other top Marine Artists are asked to identify artists they admire, Christopher Blossom is often the first name on their list.

In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious top prize at the Prix de West Art Exhibition, where he also received the coveted Robert Lougheed Award, selected by his fellow artists as the ‘Best in Show’ for an unprecedented four years. In 2015 Chris was once again awarded top honors, the Frederic Remington Painting Award at the Prix de West.