Chad Aldrin grew up in Griffith, Indiana.  He first became interested in art after a visit to Chicago’s Art Institute as a youngster.  “I was awestruck by what I saw, especially the paintings of the French Impressionists and the American Artists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  These works that inspired me seemed to dance with light and color.  In some ways, they seemed more real than life.”

Aldrin won a scholarship from the Griffith Parks Department to attend the American Academy of Art in Chicago.  While in art school, he became a member of the Palette and Chisel Club, the oldest art organization in the Midwest where he would paint in the evenings after attending classes at the Academy.  “This 100 year old club became a second home to me.  I found an energy working with other professional artists that really pushed me and helped me to grow.”  It was here that Aldrin began exhibiting and selling his work.  In 1998, he was awarded First Place in the Palette and Chisel’s Annual Black and White Exhibition. 

Chad’s subject matter ranges from landscapes, and still lives, to portraits and the figure.  “I enjoy traveling the country on painting trips in search of exciting new subject matter.  However, I find much inspiration comes from the everyday objects that surround me in my studio.”   He paints mostly in oil but occasionally works in other media such as watercolor, charcoal, and pastel.  “I generally paint wet into wet keeping my oils as fresh as possible.  The artists who have inspired me such as John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, and Joquin Sorolla all worked this way.”   Aldrin works mostly with Winsor & Newton oil paints and brushes.  For his canvas, he uses a high quality Clausen's Belgium linen. 

Chad is a graduate of the American Academy of Art in Chicago.  He also currently resides in Chicago.  He finds the city to be a continual source of inspiration.  “I feel very fortunate to be living in this great city that has so much to offer.  I am always meeting new people and discovering new places.”

As one of today’s rising young artists, Aldrin has received national recognition for his work.  In 2000, he entered the Oil Painters of America’s Ninth Annual National Exhibition of Traditional Oils in Carmel, California and won the Franklin Mint Award of Excellence.  Chad’s work is represented by the Talisman Gallery in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, the Talisman Gallery in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the Palette and Chisel in Chicago.  He is a member of Oil Painters of America and the Palette and Chisel.  His artworks are in many private and corporate collections across the country.

 “My goal in painting is to convey to others the wonder and excitement of the world as I experience it.  If somebody can walk away from my paintings inspired or enriched, then I have succeeded.”