Heights artist Bob Jones exhibits paintings at Lee Road Library

Bob Jones visits with a painting in his show at the Lee Road Library.  

Cleveland Heights resident and artist Robert (Bob) Jones, is exhibiting a selection of paintings at the Lee Road Library through Nov. 6. The show features lush, oil-on-canvas landscapes depicting colorful skies, clouds, rich foliage, water and dramatic mountains.

The works on exhibit span 25 years of Jones’ life, with a concentration of paintings done in the 1990s, a time when Jones was most prolific, painting late at night in the basement of his home.

A self-taught artist, Jones works from memory and quick pencil sketches made during frequent trips to North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, Virginia and Pennsylvania. “I draw what I see,” said Jones, who grew up drawing. His father used to write stories to accompany his drawings.

As a young adult, Jones made charcoal portraits of his family and friends. Besides completing an 18-month correspondence course in art, Jones’ only other training came from television host and famed art instructor Bob Ross, who inspired him to pick up oil painting. Jones never looked back. The rich texture of the oil paints, the ease of color mixing, and oils forgiving nature on the canvas have given Jones all he needs to create.

Jones paintings have found homes across the United States, and one even traveled from the Cleveland Clinic to Egypt with a royal dignitary. On one occasion, a visitor to Jones’ Cleveland Heights home bought one of his paintings right off the wall. “I guess she had to have it,” Jones recalled.

A Cleveland Heights resident since 1977, Jones is retired from a career in transportation, and lives with his wife on Yorkshire Road. For Jones, the current exhibition brings back fond memories of hours spent painting in the basement. He looks forward to getting back to work.

The Lee Road Library’s gallery is located on the first floor of the Heights Knowledge and Education Center, next to the Dobama Theatre box office. The gallery is open during regular library hours. 

Nicole Tugeau

Nicole Tugeau is an agent for children's book authors and illustrators. She lives in Cleveland Heights with her artist husband and three children. 

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Volume 10, Issue 11, Posted 4:21 PM, 10.29.2017