Conor Durand's use of found materials, the flotsam and jetsam of everyday life in the valley, portrays a unique vision of the Catskill landscape. Concentrating not on the bucolic vistas, but rather on the beings who occupy them and the forces with which they must struggle to survive. This subject matter mated to the weathered surfaces on which I work invokes a dichotomous relationship with the paintings of the Hudson River School, almost as if they were painted on the back sides of the hallowed canvases. While the front revels in the glory of God's creation, the back exposes the harsh mechanisms of this existence, thereby expanding the breadth and scope of our usual take on the Hudson River School of painting. Conor Durand has studied at both Oberlin College and SUNY New Paltz and has shown throughout the Hudson Valley.

Visit our artist's web site: Conor Durand.