Rob Hartshorn

Owner, Hartshorn Studios & Principal Artist

Rob Hartshorn is a fourth generation artist who, after five decades of painting, found a home in portraiture and painting the figure.

An avid proponent of chiaroscuro, Rob explores the evocative beauty of light playing over the human figure. His use of austere form and negative space has evoked narrative such as “academic with a modernist twist” and “minimalist”, but the artist hopes that people view his work as a simple expression of beauty without the need for further interpretation.

Oil on linen is his medium. Extensive “old-masters” glazing is his method. His palette is extremely spare but complete enough to explore endless nuances of gestures. In commissioned portraits of men, women and children, these techniques ensure that the artist captures a perfect likeness.

For paintings of the figure, Rob works with untrained live models for inspiration.

I look for subjects who can tell their story in the subtle expressions of their body…an inner emotion revealed in an outer form.Rob Hartshorn

His award-winning, masterful paintings have been featured in museums, studios and private collections from Los Angeles to New York to London to Beijing.

Please visit the Galleries below for more portraits and information:

men's portrait, portrait of a man,
  Portraits of Men
  Portraits of Women
  Portraits of Children
  Paintings of the Figure