VERO BEACH — Franklin Faust has been painting and teaching watercolor for over 50 years. His brilliant uses of color and hard edge interpretations have inspired countless imitators and admirers.
However, given his reticence and an aversion to the spotlight, much of his work has gone unseen for too many years to count having had only a few public and private showings. He has had only one other exhibition in the last 30 years.
Now, Mr. Faust has agreed to display his formidable talents at Lighthouse Art and Framing in Vero Beach for the month of January in an exhibit titled “On The Rocks.”
Faust’s connection with Lighthouse came about by chance. Barry Shapiro, Lighthouse’s owner and an artist himself, had studied under Faust at Pratt Institute in the early 1970’s and had mentioned his mentor-ship in a blog he publishes every month.
When Faust’s friend, Carol Carbonella, did a Google search as part of a research project, she came across the blog. The two met and a bond was formed. 41 years after studying under him, Shapiro had the opportunity to speak with his former teacher by phone, and the exhibit was approved.
Franklin Paul Faust, born in 1929, has shown his work in some of the most prestigious galleries from Palm Beach to New York to Los Angeles and Atlanta. His teaching credits include California State University, Sacramento City College, Taft College, and Pratt Institute.
Now 83, he lives on the seacoast of Maine where he still paints in Plein-air almost every day, carrying his equipment until he finds the slice of coastline that captures his imagination.
He sketches lightly “to find the linear structure of the painting and find out why a scene interests me.” He then builds his painting using blocks of color to create light and shadow.
This show features 18 recent seascapes and one still life painted around 1973. It is a small peak into the world of a private yet generous artist, teacher, and individualist.
The show runs through January at the Lighthouse Gallery open Monday through Saturday in the Downtown Art District.
