CY SEYMOUR
Why I Started Painting
My name is Cy Seymour and I’m 92 years of age. I started painting in the year 2014 to explore the talent I never had the chance to try.
I worked in the advertising business for 40 years, I was the owner of ‘Service Art Studio’ in New York City. Starting in the swinging 60’s, my company created artwork and photography for world renowned advertising agencies such as J. Walter Thompson, BBDO, Grey, serviced accounts such as Chanel, Revlon, General Foods and original ads for Volkswagen Beetle, movie titles for To Kill a Mockingbird, Planet of the Apes and with acclaimed photographers such as Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, amongst many others.
You can say I was one of the original Mad Men!
After I retired, I played tennis and golf like the rest of the folk in Florida, which I did greatly enjoy.
However I was craving something more, something creative from my past which I knew was missing from my life.
On a whim I purchased a blank canvas and the rest we say is living history…
CY SEYMOUR
About My Work
Given my career in advertising based on the visual senses and my general passion for art and design, I have always been fascinated by the power of color, how the same painting, whether of ‘loud’ color or subtle nature can evoke different intense emotions.
As a young man I was heavily influenced by abstract expressionism which was thriving in the 40’s and 50’s, and evident in the freeform style of painting I devised. Each of my paintings, over 200 in my collection and counting, is a different color combination and composition. I spend countless hours meticulously planning out each combination (my studio is completely covered in an explosion of color, I no longer need coffee : ), and then when I paint, the application becomes a subconscious journey. This freeform technique also allows me complete freedom of movement over and around my large scale canvases, which I realise is much healthier than sitting for hours and hours at my age. Overall it is a liberating experience for me.
After I complete a painting I stare at it at different times during the day, and then again days and weeks later. I find it interesting to feel the different responses based on whatever mood or thoughts I was carrying with me on that day. In turn, I aim to project that experience on to my viewers. While I do employ a unique style emulated by many, I believe as a result I have taken it to a more complex level.
My goal is to simultaneously challenge the eye as well as the soul.
I hope you enjoy viewing my work and commissions are welcomed. And if you’re in the neighborhood (West Palm Beach, Florida), private viewings can be arranged.