Thomas Fluharty

Thomas Lively Fluharty Jr., (born 1962) is an American illustrator and art educator. Fluharty's work has appeared on covers for Der Spiegel, Time, Mad, and The Weekly Standard, in The New York Times, U.S. News & World Report, the Village Voice, and in books for children. Fluharty teaches drawing and oil painting online at Schoolism.com.[1]

Thomas Fluharty
NationalityAmerican
EducationArt Institute of Pittsburgh
Known forArt, Illustration
MovementDutch/Flemish
Spouse(s)Kristi
AwardsCommunication Arts illustration annual winner 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2013
Websitethomasfluharty.com

Early life
Fluharty studied the work of Bouguereau.

Fluharty was born in 1962 in Santa Ana, California.[2] He studied art during 11th and 12th grade at the Montgomery County Joint Vocational School, in Englewood, Ohio. Then he earned an associate degree at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Then he moved to New York City where he trained for thirteen years with Ken Bald, who in the 1950s drew Dr. Kildare cartoons and other Marvel Comics.[2] Fluharty learned acrylic paint at the School of Visual Arts and also attended classes at the National Academy of Fine Arts.[2] For eight years from 2002 until about 2010, he sought classical training for his new work in oil paint.[3] His artistic heroes are Rembrandt and William-Adolphe Bouguereau.[4]

He married Kristi Fluharty. They have five daughters and a dog named Cash.[4] The family lives in Prior Lake, Minnesota.[5]

Career highlights

His first major success came when Fluharty designed a cover for Mad magazine in 1996.[2][6] The New York Times then commissioned five caricatures of Jerry Lewis.[2] "That really started it all," said Fluharty.[2]

Fluharty served as a worship leader at Sovereign Grace Church in Bloomington, Minnesota, a Christian evangelical church affiliated with Sovereign Grace Ministries.[7]

From 2004 to 2008, Fluharty contributed five covers for Der Spiegel magazine.[8] His work was reproduced in the book and traveling show The Art of Der Spiegel: Cover Illustrations Over Five Decades.[5][9]

Fluharty illustrated three children's books published by Crossway: Fool Moon Rising (2009), cowritten with his wife, Kristi Fluharty;[10] The Barber Who Wanted to Pray (2011) by R. C. Sproul Sr.;[11] and The Boy and the Ocean (2013) by Max Lucado.[12]

For The New York Times in 2013, he painted a caricature portrait of Woody Allen towering over Diane Keaton, Dianne Wiest, Scarlett Johansson and Penélope Cruz, who were "strong and memorable women" who had played leading roles in Allen's films.[13]

Fluharty and four advertising illustrators founded Pitch House, a company that creates storyboards.[14]

Awards and recognition

Fluharty's portrait of Ken Griffey Jr. and Mark McGwire was a cover of Time magazine in 1998.[15] The following year, Time gave the work, titled Outta Here!, to the National Portrait Gallery.[16] He has been recognized by the Society of Illustrators in New York and in Los Angeles.[5] Communication Arts selected his work as winner for their illustration annuals in 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2013.[17] Fluharty won a gold medal for a portrait of Hillary Clinton from Spectrum Fantastic Art.[5]

Notes
  1. "Instructors: Thomas Fluharty". Imaginism Studios. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  2. "The Art Of DER SPIEGEL: Thomas Fluharty". Der Spiegel. Retrieved July 24, 2013.
  3. Fluharty, Thomas. Thomas Fluharty. Schoolism. Imaginism Studios. Event occurs at 1:00. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  4. "T. Lively Bio". Thomas Fluharty. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  5. "Thomas Fluharty". Schoolism. Imaginism Studios. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  6. "Mad #333 Jan./Feb. 1995". Doug Gilford's Mad Cover Site. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  7. Fritz, Stacey. "Sunday Preparation". Sovereign Grace Church. Retrieved July 24, 2013.
  8. "Search result for "thomas fluharty"". Der Spiegel. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  9. Aust, Stefan (October 1, 2004). The Art of Der Spiegel: Cover Illustrations Over Five Decades. Te Neues. ISBN 3832790004.
  10. Fluharty, Kristi & Fluharty, T. Lively (August 25, 2009). Fool Moon Rising. Crossway. ISBN 1433506823.
  11. Sproul, R. C. (September 16, 2011). The Barber Who Wanted to Pray. Crossway. ISBN 1433527030.
  12. Lucado, Max (March 31, 2013). The Boy and the Ocean. Crossway. ISBN 1433539314.
  13. Itzkoff, Dave (July 17, 2013). "Annie and Her Sisters: Woody Allen's Distinctive Female Characters". The New York Times. and Fluharty, Thomas (July 21, 2013). "Image Page". The New York Times. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  14. "About Us". The Pitch House. Retrieved July 24, 2013.
  15. "Ken Griffey, Jr. and Mark McGwire: July 27, 1998". Time. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  16. "CAP Search Results: Object ID 86544". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  17. "Illustration Annual: Winners 2005". and "2006". and "2008". and "2013". Communication Arts. Coyne & Blanchard. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
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