John Caggiano

John Caggiano was born in Brooklyn, New York, where he studied pre-engineering at Brooklyn Technical High School. He received a BA degree from Brooklyn College and an MFA from Pratt Institute, both with honors. His education was supplemented by courses at The Brooklyn Museum of Art and the Studio and Forum of Stage Design in New York City.

He relocated to Rockport, Massachusetts in 1980, drawn to the physical beauty and unique quality of Cape Ann’s light. He travels extensively, both here and abroad, painting on location. This plein aireapproach enables him to capture the essence of the time and place that he interprets into his bright and colorful “Impressionistic-realism” style. The work is further enhanced by his daring use of a palette knife, enhancing the effects of his brushwork. “Painting for me is the bold and dynamic use of color that infuses life into the subject of the painting. Color is the lifeblood of the painting. Nothing stimulates more than its pleasing harmony, whether strongly applied or toned and tranquil.”

John loves the sea. He has always lived near it and feels withdrawal symptoms when traveling on one of his landlocked painting trips. Although he’s been on an occasional sailing trip, his most intimate experience with Neptune has been as a crew member on a commercial purse-seiner in his youth. He is now more than satisfied to have his feet on dry land, recording the activities of others with brushes and paint.

An artist member of many organizations, Mr. Caggiano has served as President of the Rockport Art Association, and had been a member of its Board of Governors for sixteen years. Both he and his award-winning paintings have made appearances on nationwide television shows such as ABC’s Good Morning America, on It’s All About The Arts, WBNN’s Boston channel and on international TV, Televisione Italiana- RAI. His art has also been featured in and graced the covers of numerous books, magazines and newspapers such as Marine Art: A Gallery of Marine Art, Monhegan: The Artists’ Island, and The Best of Oil Painting among many others. He is listed in Who’s Who in American Art and in Artprice.com. He is represented worldwide in many private and corporate collections as well as galleries across the country. John is a regular exhibitor and elected member of Academic Artists Association, Rockport Art Association, Northshore Arts Association, etc., where he has received such awards as the Guild of Boston Artists Award, The Beverly DeMont Memorial Award, the Roger W. Curtis Memorial Award, and the William Meyerwitz Memorial Award, among others.

John Caggiano has maintained a gallery and studio on Bearskin Neck in Rockport since 1981.