About the artist:

From his Smoky Ridge studio in Texas, Atkinson seeks to "capture the emotion, be it subtle or exaggerated,' a pursuit that has been in evolution since he started painting as a child in the northwest Texas town of Lubbock.

Attracted early to the study of architecture, he earned a degree from Texas Tech University, then taught and worked in the field for a time. From the first, his art, prints and posters have reflected his training, experience, and wide-ranging interests, as he creates images buildings, oceanscapes, animals, and Southwestern landscapes through a unique, semi-abstract style and a mastery of watercolor's "spontaneity and freedom.

White space is an essential element of the composition that characterizes Atkinson's art, prints and posters. "The white is not empty. It is completely finished. Treating the paper as an element of design, the artist works from one concentrated area of detail and color, leaving much of the paper white and allowing the eye to focus on the central image without intrusion from the periphery.