John Page

While John Page is best known for his imaginative printmaking, he has always been a painter in both oil and watercolors. Much of his art contains a degree of Romanticism and the color and light that is most notable with the Impressionists. Page is at his best when he works outdoors, within nature and natural light. While he at times explored European urbanity, his art is much quieter, more contemplative, and humble than what many consider to be contemporary art. Both his art and his skill as a teacher have won him great praise and accolades throughout his career. Page formally began his training with a scholarship to attend the Minneapolis School of Art. During this time, he also spent two months at the Art Students League in New York City. After returning from being drafted into the army, where he continued to sketch during his free time, he attended the University of Michigan for his B.A. Page then went to the University of Iowa for graduate school and it was there that he found more kinship working in the print medium under the tutelage of Mauricio Lasansky and earned his M.F.A. He began teaching in New Mexico, but spent the bulk of his career at the University of Northern Iowa where he taught from 1954 until he retired in 1987. Page has come to be considered one of the most notable artists and printmakers from the Midwest and has been in exhibitions throughout the country, at major art institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Page continues to create art, especially enjoying the freedom of watercolor and creating of the moment paintings which meld liquid color into dynamic and beautiful works of art.