VISUAL ARTIST
COLE COLLIER
2026-27 PROGRAM COVER ARTIST
BEACHES FINE ARTS SERIES
In addition to its outstanding concerts and educational outreach programs, BFAS also presents an art exhibit by an area visual artist at each home concert.
Works are showcased at the concert and at the reception following each concert. Concert attendees are able to meet the artists at the receptions and works are available for purchase.
Each year at our annual Patron Appreciation Event, season presenting artists are invited to submit works to be judged by a panel. The winning piece will then set the theme for the upcoming concert season and will be featured on the cover of the program booklets and season announcement brochure.
Congratulations, Cole!
The Artist
Growing up in a family who operated a commercial/ residential construction company, I was surrounded by men that I looked up to. On Fridays the crew would come to my house after work to pick up paychecks. I remember getting home from school to greet them all hanging out in my driveway, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, and I would listen to what they talked about even though I understood little of it. I idolized them and knew that I wanted to grow up and be tough like them.
I grew older and worked with a lot of these same guys during the summer in high school, later in college part time, and now during the summers when I am not teaching.
I’ve found more humility within them and respect for them in a more mature sense. Many of them struggle with generational poverty, broken families, substance abuse, or they just never got a fair shake to begin with.
I wish for others to see these guys like I do. The guys that could tie steel, walk trusses, jet bulkhead pylons, bust concrete, and even put on a new coat of paint all in a day’s work.
Inspired by the baroque, I paint scenes that pay homage to the working class. Common themes in my work are speed, drama, and vulnerability. I use traditional methods and mediums to create these paintings. All photographs are my personal photos that I take. Sometimes several photos are collaged together to create an entirely new scene, story or space.
2026-2027
COLE COLLIER
PROGRAM COVER ARTIST
In addition to its outstanding concerts and educational outreach programs, BFAS also presents an art exhibit by an area visual artist at each home concert.
Works are showcased at the concert and at the reception following each concert. Concert attendees are able to meet the artists at the receptions and works are available for purchase.
Each year at our annual Patron Appreciation Event, season presenting artists are invited to submit works to be judged by a panel. The winning piece will then set the theme for the upcoming concert season and will be featured on the cover of the program booklets and season announcement brochure.
Congratulations, Cole!
The Artist
Growing up in a family who operated a commercial/ residential construction company, I was surrounded by men that I looked up to. On Fridays the crew would come to my house after work to pick up paychecks. I remember getting home from school to greet them all hanging out in my driveway, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, and I would listen to what they talked about even though I understood little of it. I idolized them and knew that I wanted to grow up and be tough like them.
I grew older and worked with a lot of these same guys during the summer in high school, later in college part time, and now during the summers when I am not teaching. I’ve found more humility within them and respect for them in a more mature sense. Many of them struggle with generational poverty, broken families, substance abuse, or they just never got a fair shake to begin with. I wish for others to see these guys like I do. The guys that could tie steel, walk trusses, jet bulkhead pylons, bust concrete, and even put on a new coat of paint all in a day’s work.
Inspired by the baroque, I paint scenes that pay homage to the working class. Common themes in my work are speed, drama, and vulnerability. I use traditional methods and mediums to create these paintings. All photographs are my personal photos that I take. Sometimes several photos are collaged together to create an entirely new scene, story or space.