Summer reading

I am a native of New Jersey, the son of special education teachers, Dennis and Dorothy Connors. At the age of 12 I began taking weekend lessons at a comic book drawing school in New Jersey and under the encouragement of my parents, would spend my teenage years traveling to drawing and painting workshops in the New York Metro area. After two years at Sullivan County Community College art program and the unfortunate lost of my parents, I went to work for local advertising agencies to support myself. As my career progressed as a digital artist and multi-media programmer, drawing was still my passion and something that occupied a lot of my free time. In 2000 I moved to the lower east side of Manhattan and enrolled at the Education Alliance for painting classes under Paul Lucchesi. Then Later I enrolled for evening classed at the Art Students League to learn with Jack Faragasso to learn the Frank Reilly method of painting. And after that I enrolled at the Grand Central Academy Atelier to learn portrait painting with Scott Waddell and Joshua LaRock. Currently I travel the city to find meetups and workshops to work on my craft and pursue my passion for painting and drawing.
I work in oils on canvas and charcoals in a realm between impressionism and realism, although I do not try for a photo-realistic effect. I strive to create an image that grabs the viewer as a painting but clearly represents the subject and conveys a greater message that is seen from below the surface.
Currently I reside and have a studio in Long Island City, NY with my wonderfu wife and twin daughters.