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William Vincent Kirkpatrick

Famous American Impressionist. 1939-2004. Kirkpatrick was born to Irish parents in St. Augustine, began painting as early as 10 years old and won his first art contest at the same age. His style of painting made people dubbed him as the second Van Gogh. Art critics have proclaimed that his paintings are highly valuable and represents a new phase of artistic development. His painting are usually signed "William Vincent" at the bottom.

His painting consists mostly of landscapes, floral, fruits, figures and portraits. He also painted murals, including two rather large ones at the Tomasita’s Santa Fe Station restaurant in New Mexico, where the artist lived later in life. Kirkpatrick’s introduction to Impressionism occurred during the mid-1950s, when he studied and worked under the late writer and artist Alfred Morang, himself an accomplished Impressionist painter. Morang believed the medium of painting was a reflection of life itself, a “springboard to the imagination,” as he said. He passed this ethos on to many aspiring artists.

Kirkpatrick was one of three young painters who especially benefited from Morang’s tutelage. The influence Morang had on the young student was considerable – the intimacy of the impressions, the vibrancy of the palette and the enduring affinity for landscapes, as well as other common subjects of interest. Morang died suddenly and tragically in 1962. At around that time, Kirkpatrick began studying at the Taos School of Art in New Mexico, and this ushered in yet another phase in his artistic development. It is there that Morang’s direct influence began to enlighten and influence his work, resulting in a style best described as American Impressionism – bright colors, painterly textures and common subjects. His thick brush stroke paintings often gave viewers a "three-dimensional" feel.

Kirkpatrick also studied in Denver (with his friend, the artist Ramon Kelley) and was also influenced by the artists Walter Gonske and Rod Goebel, whom he considered masters of Impressionism. He later studied Realism with the Spanish painter Gilboa, and Impressionism with the artist Mortimer Wilson Jr. in Arizona. Kirkpatrick passed away at age 65 in 2004.

Kirkpatrick’s estate has been diligently maintained by his family ever since his passing. His works, in fact, had been kept from public view for years. In recent years, his mother-in-law released these paintings for auctions which was quickly snapped up by enthusiastic buyers.

A book about the life of William (Vincent) Kirkpatrick, titled Invention is also written to describe the life of this impressive artist.