David Berkowitz Has a Passion for Painting

Artist David Berkowitz Chicago has over 300 exhibitions that display over 7,000 paintings all over the world. He loves to blend landscapes with child-like fantasies. He has been creating and producing work for over fifty years and he doesn’t  plan on resigning anytime soon.  

As a child, David Berkowitz Chicago attended the School of the Art Institute (SAIC). In 1969, Berkowitz discovered his affection for painting after a severe injury to his spine while playing football. While in recovery, he started to create various works of art. This is when he realized that he wanted to pursue a career as an artist. 

“It sounds strange, but it really just called on me,” Berkowitz says. “I knew that I had a strong connection to what I was doing and I didn’t want to stop, even after the injury healed.” As cliche as it sounds, it was David Berkowitz Chigao’s says it’s his calling in life.

In 1970, David Berkowitz Chicago joined the artist’s group that goes by the name “Village.” After joining the group, it was clear that he was different. Because of his unusual style, his artwork became hard to dismiss. He quickly gained notoriety for his representation of horses and respect from other artists for the quality of his work. 

David Berkowitz Chicago explores ideas about his own youth and nature. The urban community and modern abstraction are tied together in his one-of-a-kind mixed-media collages. He enjoys blending the two concepts because from an outsider’s perspective the two have very little in common. David Berkowitz Chicago enjoys the challenge of blending these opposing elements. “There’s something great that happens when you combine two things that contrast so strongly,” Berkowitz explains. “They start to build a chemistry if you find out how to combine them correctly and then beautiful and interesting things can really start to happen.” 

The places David Berkowitz Chicago remembers from his youth still linger in his mind. The ethereal landscape of his memory, such as hazy banks, traveling up the legendary river, shacks on the floodplain, and the barns where he felt safe as a youngster. The hen houses where he talked with chickens as a young boy are also included in his distinctive paintings. These things remind David Berkowitz Chicago of home. 

“I love to look back and use that to move forward,” David Berkowitz Chicago says. “The past should inform and influence the future in all aspects in my opinion, including art.” 

The farmland is something David Berkowitz Chicago is always exploring for inspiration. He grew up in these vast landscapes. Because of this, the plants and foliage appear in his works. Because of the open fields, he grew up in, wild horses are often featured in his works. The wild horses symbolize something spiritual for him and they have become a hallmark of his work.

David Berkowitz Chicago paints the blissful moments in life. Whether he uses pastels or oil, the pieces that are produced are surreal. He takes everyday life and turns the landscape into something triumphant. 

David Berkowitz Chicago creates a connection between sober and splendor. In the last few decades, he has participated in more than three group exhibitions across Europe, North America, and Canada, having about forty independent showings. In the beginning of his career, David Berkowitz Chicago’s paintings were not nearly as popular. Now, his pieces are quite expensive, and sadly, not everyone can afford to have them in their personal spaces. He wishes that they were somehow more easily obtainable. Even after over 50 years, David Berkowitz Chicago continues to thrive in his passion for painting.