Hometown: Sykesville, MD

Bruce Woodward, a native of central Maryland, grew up amidst peaceful, rural surroundings that have provided the influence for much of his watercolor and acrylic landscape paintings. Favored pastimes of fly-fishing, hiking, and camping have afforded him first-hand opportunities to experience the Mid-Atlantic geographical diversity from mountains to shore and to closely observe wildlife within these bounds. Many paintings are conceived of personal observations of the rural landscapes and wildlife of the Appalachian Mountains, Chesapeake Bay region, and Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

Much of Mr. Woodward’s work pays homage to the legacies of disappearing landscapes and ways of life. Capturing the landscapes of our agrarian roots has been a centerpiece of his work as he preserves these images of a passing way of American life. Similarly, much of his work also records a fleeting way of life from the Chesapeake Bay region, that of the watermen, their workboats, and the marshes and waterways they call home.

Increasingly, Bruce’s most recent works reflect his longtime interest in the spirit of fly-fishing and its intimacy with the natural world. His direct experiences on regional streams and rivers during fly-fishing trips lend authenticity and atmosphere to finished works, which celebrate the sport in its truest form.

Bruce holds degrees in art from Towson State University and the Maryland Institute College of Art. He is represented by the The William Ris Gallery, Jamestown, New York and the LuEv Gallery, Easton, Maryland. He also brings his unique perspective and style to commissioned pieces of work, collaboratively designing images of meaning to individuals within a particular setting.

Mr. Woodward is a signature member of the Baltimore Watercolor Society and counts among his other achievements: First Place, Maryland Ducks Unlimited Sponsor Print Competition; Maryland Ducks Unlimited Artist of the Year; First Place, Grand National Waterfowl Hunt and Artists’ Invitational; First Place, Maryland Trout Stamp Competition. He has participated in numerous group and one-person shows, including one-man shows of his work at the National Institutes of Health and the National Wildlife Federation Headquarters Gallery in Vienna, Virginia. Group shows in which he has participated include the Easton Waterfowl Festival, Ward Foundation Show, Life of Maryland Wildlife Show, and the Baltimore Museum of Art, Teachers of Art Exhibition.

Other honors have included being commissioned to design the kestrel logo used by the National Audubon Society, Maryland Chapter, and invitations to many prestigious regional art shows. Bruce has donated his artwork to various local and national conservation organizations and has twice been awarded the Ducks Unlimited Conservation Award.

Maintaining his Cedar Run Studio in a rural setting of Southern Carroll County on the edge of Piney Run Lake offers him opportunities to see and interpret natural settings on a daily basis. Short trips by car or on foot place him in close touch with many of the other settings shaping his work.