Biography
James Alan DeCesare is an award-winning portrait painter and popular arts educator. DeCesare and his wife, Kelly constructed DeCesare Studio of Drawing and Painting; a portrait-painting studio and private fine arts school constructed exclusively for the advancement of drawing and painting. DeCesare, his wife, Kelly and young daughters, Annie Rose and Madeline reside in Collinsville, Connecticut.
DeCesare earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Hartford Art School, a Master of Arts degree from Syracuse University, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Hartford Art School, graduating with highest honors from each institution. DeCesare has worked with such art luminaries as Burton Silverman, Everett Raymond Kinstler, Murray Tinkelman, Foster Caddell and Joe Bowler.
DeCesare has an ever-growing list of important public and private commissions including: “Dr. Paul Dworkin,” Executive Vice President, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, “Mr. Mark Scheinberg,” President, Goodwin College, East Hartford, CT, “Dr. Peter Deckers,” Dean, University of Connecticut Health Center, Jack Dempsey Hospital, “Dr. Peter J. Robinson,” Dean Emeritus, University of Connecticut Health Center, School of Dental Medicine, "Mr. Jack Rosenthal," former first selectman of Newtown, CT, "Adriaen Block," permanent collection of The Connecticut River Museum, “Alex P. Franklin,” permanent collection of the Farmington Public Library in Farmington, CT, and “C.P. Noel McCarthy MD,” permanent collection of Saint Raphael Hospital in New Haven, CT.
DeCesare’s work has been honored by regional and national juried exhibitions including: The Connecticut Academy of Fine Art and The Connecticut Society of Portrait Artists. He has won numerous awards for his work. DeCesare’s oil paintings were featured at the Barnes-Franklin Gallery, Tunxis Community College, The Silpe Gallery, University of Hartford, Syracuse University and The New Britain Museum of American Art, among others.
DeCesare has broad experience as an artist educator including: Figure Drawing Instructor at the New Britain Museum of American Art, Adjunct Instructor of Painting at The Hartford Art School, Portrait Painting Instructor at the West Hartford Art League, Adjunct Instructor of Painting, Drawing, Figure Drawing, Color Theory and Art History at Tunxis Community College, as well as countless lectures and demonstrations.
DeCesare lectures to higher education faculty of Connecticut colleges including Middlesex Community College and Tunxis Community College on the topic of Creativity in the Digital Age. DeCesare shares ways of bridging the gap between traditional art principles and digital media.
DeCesare is a seasoned educator of teen artists. He is an invited lecturer to Connecticut public high schools. DeCesare serves as Head of Visual and Performing Arts at The Master’s School, Simsbury, Connecticut. DeCesare served as Portfolio Development and Figure-Drawing Instructor at the Hartford Art School Pre-College Program for fourteen years. He has taught professional development to Connecticut high school art teachers at the Connecticut Art Educators Association annual conference, and regularly mentors teens building scholarship-level art portfolios from his studio in Collinsville, Connecticut.
