We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Bernard Dellario. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Bernard below.

Bernard, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

I am very happy as a artist/teacher. I had a full time career as a CPA and finance professional for almost 40 years. During that time, I developed my art and advanced as much as I could. Upon retirement I can now fully focus on my artistic development and have also gotten into teaching both in person and through online platforms. That has really opened up my exposure.

Bernard, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have always been fascinated by art and painting. Not sure where it came from since I had no role models in my family or childhood, I just knew that I was happiest trying to create something. My earliest recollection was copying faithfully the tile mosaic of birds in my Aunt’s bathroom. I was always with a pencil or brush in my hand. and I learned on my own with little class structure. After focusing on my career in finance and getting settled in my first job, I turned my free time attention to studying at the Art League in Old Town Alexandria VA. I lived in Washington DC at the time and was lucky to be located close to the fabulous learning facility with many wonderful instructors. It was there that I learned how to become a painter. I took as many classes as I could handle over many years. Being in the midst of these great teachers inspired me to one day become a teacher. I often think about how grateful I was to learn from them and how I now try to pay that forward with my students. As far as my art, it’s pretty straight forward, I would have to say my main goal is to relay the beauty that inspires me to the world in a unique and abbreviated perspective. A sort of foothold reality and abstraction. I approach each painting as a goal to learn something, hone my skills and move the ball forward rather than trying to create a finished piece.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I think the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is our ability to see the world more intently and creatively. An artist will stop and take in a subject that others would whisk by not seeing the beauty. It’s almost like we have a window into a special world that no one sees until we paint it.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Yes and it’s simple, my goal is to become a better painter and always try to move in new and different directions. My work today is very different from my work from 20 years ago. Part of that is skill development and part is from tying to convey things differently or more succinctly. If there’s a good painting after that, all the better but the process is more my focus than the result

Contact Info:

• Website: bjdellario.com
• Instagram: bernarddellarioart

Image Credits
The group photos of me painting were taken by Ted Vlatch