About

Born of parents that understood the important role that art plays in society and how crucial exposure and participation in it is to the development of a young person.

I was raised in the western suburbs of Chicago with access to museums and concert halls of every variety. Graduating from the American Academy of Art in Chicago gave me the foundations to build a life in the arts.

Moving to Traverse City some thirty years ago set my art on a wonderful trajectory. I count each artistic endeavor I have embarked on as a rich experience that has shaped the artist I am today.

Living in such an incredibly beautiful place the landscape has, of course, become an overwhelming source of inspiration. My background and interest in figurative work mixed with what I have gained from painting my local surroundings on location help me to realize I am finding new answers daily.

My love for teaching and art has allowed me to travel far and wide. I feel so fortunate that my artwork has made it possible to work in many of the countries of Western Europe and Israel presenting classes, workshops, and retreats.

More recently, I am fascinated by how I am less interested in any particular subject in my work. It’s less about the representation of a subject and much more about the experience surrounding a specific subject.

Life, with all of its ups and downs, is very good.

Nature is eternal, that is what captures my interest. Compared to most accomplishments of man, they are either going out of style or simply breaking down, and nature by its nature tends to remain constant. The landscape as a subject changes throughout the day, and each season brings something new. Yet the landscape abides by principles that are unchanging. The human figure likewise has remained the same from the dawn of humankind. I feel a strong connection between the human form and woods, fields, and shorelines.

A personal response to the direct observation of the subject informs my work. I focus on beauty and an overall gestural expression through my mark-making – the quality of a graphite line and the richness of brushstrokes of wet paint describe my experience with my subject.

I tell my students that no matter how photo-realistically their aim maybe when they paint, their painting of a tree or a hand will never be a tree or a hand. In the end, all that remains is a series of brushstrokes on canvas. As artists, we must make the most beautiful marks we have the facility to produce.

2020

Must Love Blue - BLK\MRKT Art Space, Traverse City, MI Group Exhibition

Crooked Tree Guild Member Show - Crooked Tree, Petoskey, MI Group Exhibition

2019

many - BLK\MRKT, Traverse City, MI Solo Exhibition

Figure Show - Water Street Gallery, Douglas, Michigan - Group Gallery Show

NW Michigan Regional Salon des Refusés 2019 - Leelanau Studios, Traverse City

2018

Figures from Life - BLK\MRKT, Traverse City, Solo Exhibition

Pulse - Hudson Gallery, Sylvania, OH, Group Show

Reconnect - Gardner Center for the Arts, Miller Beach, Gary, IN, Group Show

Royce Deans - Center Gallery, Glen Arbor, MI - Solo Exhibition

Irregular Symmetry of Pattern - Wright Gallery, Northport, MI - Group Gallery Show

Spring Show - Water Street Gallery, Douglas, MI - Group Gallery Show

New Gallery/New Work - Glen Arbor Arts Center, Glen Arbor, MI - Invitational Group Show

2017

Here & There - Grand Traverse Distillery, Traverse City - 2 Person Show with Tali Farchi

Painting Leelanau - Old Art Building, Leland, MI - Group Show

Cities, Like Dreams, Swamps Where Cedars Grow - The Provincial, Kaleva, MI - Group Show

Landscapes by Royce Deans - Traverse City Country Club, Traverse City, MI - Solo Show

The Art Mixer - Grand Traverse Distillery, Traverse City, MI - Group Show

2016

Great Big Little Black and White - BLK MRKT, Traverse City, MI - Group Show

Art of Royce Deans - Traverse City Country Club, Traverse City, MI - Solo Show

Worlds Turning - Richard App Gallery - Grand Rapids, Michigan

Painting Leelanau - Old Art Building, Leland, MI - Group Show

2015

Studio Opening Celebration - Leelanau Studios - Solo Show

Figural - BLK MRKT, Traverse City, MI - Group Show

Painting Leelanau - Old Art Building, Leland, MI - Group Show

Leland Air - Old Art Building - Leland, Michigan - Plein Air Event

2LITTLE - ArtisTTable Groups Show - Richard App Gallery, Grand Rapids, Michigan

Made With Heart - Re-invent Gallery, Lake Forest, Illinois - Group Show

Human Nature - Urban Edge Gallery - Waukegan, Illinois

2014

Over the Lake and Through the Woods - Re-invent Gallery, Lake Forest, Illinois - Group Show

Five 4 Three - Ledbetter Gallery, Traverse City, Michigan - Group Show

bluSamsara- JAZZoPERA, by Renee´ Baker, Chicago Modern Orchestra- Fulton St. Collective, Chicago, IL

ArtPrize 2014 - Kitsch 2 Kunst - DeVos Place, Grand Rapids, Michigan

Painting Leelanau - Old Art Building, Leland, MI - Group Show

Leland Air - Old Art Building - Leland, Michigan - Plein Air Event

Art Leelanau Group Show - Leland, MI

LITTLE - ArtisTTable Groups Show - Richard App Gallery, Grand Rapids, Michigan

bluSamsara- Modern Chamber Opera, by Renee´ Baker - Stedelijk Museum Zwolle, Netherlands

Art at the Opera - Traverse City Opera House - Group Show

2013

Down on the Farm - Gallery Fifty - Group Show

ArtPrize 2013 - Van der Wouden - Deans Family Portraits

Painting Leelanau - Old Art Building, Leland, MI - Group Show

Art Leelanau Group Show - Leland, MI

Fishtown Invitational Paint Event - Main Street Gallery - Leland, MI

Live Painting with Reneé Baker Chamber Ensemble with Tali Farchi, App Gallery, Grand Rapids, MI

Colorboration - Richard App Gallery, Grand Rapids, MI - Two person show with Tali Farchi

Temple Emanuel, Grand Rapids, MI Live painting w/ live music (GR Jewish Cultural Council)

Classes/Workshops Taught:

Under the Influence of Matisee - Crooked Tree Arts Center, Traverse City, MI

Painting Expressively with Acrylics: Interpreting the Landscape - Old Art Building, Leland, MI

Figure in the Landscape - Glen Arbor Arts Association, Glen Arbor, MI

Painting with Gouache - Palet Zwolle Kunstenaars, Zwolle, The Netherlands

Finding Abstraction in Tel Aviv - ArtisTTable Workshop, Tel Aviv, Israel

Painting Authentic Abstraction - Crooked Tree Arts Center, Traverse City, MI

Painting the Figure in the Landscape - Palet Zwolle Kunstenaars, Zwolle, The Netherlands

Introduction to Figure Drawing - Northwest Michigan College Extended Ed., Traverse City, MI

Figure Drawing II - Northwest Michigan College Extended Ed., Traverse City, MI

Painting the Figure Expressively - Royce Deans Studio, Traverse City, MI

Painting with Intention - Royce Deans Studio, Traverse City, MI

Bring Life to Still Life - Royce Deans Studio, Traverse City, MI

Still Life is NOT Dead: Painting in Acrylic, Royce Deans Studio, Traverse City, MI

Various Plein Air workshops on ArtisTTable Art Retreats

Gallery Representation:

Hudson Gallery - Sylvania, Ohio

AES Gallery - Chicago, Illinois

Other Artistic Endeavors:

• 2013 to present - ArtisTTable - International Art Retreats / Artist Community / Art Exhibitions

• 2009 to 2012 - Two Designing - Graphic design with studios in Michigan and The Netherlands.

• 2007 to 2012 - Mo(ve)mentUSA, Producer/performer

• 2007 to 2012 - Mo(ve)ment, performing art group from the Netherlands

• 2000 to 2007 - Owner or the independent record label, 54º40' or Fight!

• 1998 to 2007 - publisher and producer of Copper Press, a journal styled publication that covers art and independently produced music.

• 1994 to 1998- publisher and producer of Pøk Magazine, an indie zine covering snowboarding, skateboarding, and music.

• 1990 to 1992 - Owner of Arms of Venus Art Gallery, in Traverse City, Michigan. Represented 30 local artists

• 1983 to present - McDonald's Corp., painting artwork for the company's corporate collection

• 1986 to present - Freelance Designer

• 1983 to 1986 - Co-Owner/Designer, Technigraphix, LaGrange, IL

Education:

• 1979 to 1982 - American Academy of Art - Illustration and Design, Chicago, IL