Stephen Charles Shortridge, the artist may be more familiar to you as an actor. During the seventies and eighties, Shortridge built an enviable career appearing in such well-known television series as "Welcome Back Kotter" and "The Love Boat". He co-starred with Debbie Reynolds on the ABC show "Aloha Paradise". He spent the year of 1987 playing the role of David Reed as part of the original cast on the CBS daytime soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful". Stephen also worked regularly as a model and appeared in over fifty TV commercials.
Stephen enjoyed acting but found painting much more creatively satisfying and explains, "In acting a large part of the creative process had taken place by the time I was involved. In contrast, painting gives me complete control from start to finish, which is good and bad. Good when the work is good, ... bad, when there is no one else to blame for bad but me."
"I think the most important aspect of creating is staying true to your heart and trying to share that passion. I think too often we pursue knowledge rather than experience or relationship. Knowledge never creates anything, but intimate experience of the heart does.“
"Romantic Impressionism is what I do... I think the term best expresses how and why I paint. I appreciate, or try to appreciate, all forms of art, but the one that first stirred me was Impressionism. To me it was bold, and full of life and color. It was uninhibited and had a magic quality to it. Rather than attempt to tell you something accurately, it just made you feel it! That's why I set out to interpret life through this style of art; it invites the viewers' emotions to take part.“
"Over the last several years the two artists that I most admire are, Josquin Sorolla, and John singer Sargent. Sorolla, for his passionate expression, and Sargent, for his simple mastery. However, what I am most passionate about, as an artist, is holding on to MY expression of what I paint. I think Richard Schmidt, an excellent contemporary artist, put it best, "it's not WHAT do you see! . . .It's what do YOU see!.“
"I thank God for everything, the least of which is to be creative, and to paraphrase a famous line from "Chariots of Fire", ' ... when I paint I feel His pleasure' ... this I certainly do!"