As a child, Don Tiller recalls drawing cartoon characters, and imaginary rocket ships on anything that would hold his mark, from cardboard to scrap paper. He was introduced to painting when his dad brought home tempera colors from a local sign painter, as well as from his sister’s “borrowed” paint-by-number kits.
Don was off on an artistic journey that would take him through college and into the next decade, only to be interrupted to raise a family and build two successful retail businesses. After returning to art full time, oils remained his medium of choice until a few years ago when he made the transition to acrylics: “They are less toxic, odor free, and transport easily on my frequent plein air painting sessions,” explains Tiller. “Each medium challenges me differently to find a process that will reflect a conversation with the subject.”
Don Tiller’s most recent body of work is primarily composed of interesting shapes and bold colors. The paintings are snippets of warped remembrances, allowing a glimpse into the things he has seen, or places he has been. Don revels when he hears that viewers of his work feel as if they’ve been to a place he has portrayed, or if they think they know of a place in one of his pieces; then he know that the connection between creator and viewer has been made.
“I am intrigued with the imprint left on the landscape when touched by mankind. With bold colors and simple shapes, I have given these paintings my interpretation of man’s attempt to initiate order in nature. Natural chaos provides interest balanced with geometric repetition.”
