Meet the Artists

Lance

My relationship with painting began early, inspired by the Indiana countryside where I grew up and nurtured by lessons with Robert Weaver of the Herron School of Art, where I learned technique and a realistic style of painting. As I developed a strong passion and commitment to my career in rehabilitation neuropsychology, my study of art shifted as time permitted, but one absolute constant was visiting art museums across decades of professional and personal travel in the U.S. and Europe.

My academic background included a major in psychology and a minor in philosophy. I was immediately attracted to both neuroscience and humanistic philosophy, which focuses on respect for human value, dignity, free will, and personal growth. As it turned out, my career as a rehabilitation neuropsychologist was driven by humanistic philosophy—the “why”—and neuroscience—the “what.”

When I returned to painting seriously in my forties, my style began to shift. During the 1990s, my work became increasingly inspired by Impressionism, an influence that emerged in my approach to light, color, and atmosphere. In more recent years, I’ve found that Post-Impressionism, the Expressionists, and the Fauvist styles offer a more powerful visual language for expressing the emotional intensity and heightened color that I want to convey. One of my favorite Fauvists, André Derain, said, “The goal we set for ourselves is happiness, a happiness which consequently we should create.” 1 Henri Matisse made his thoughts even more specific, noting, “It is through color that I feel.” 2 Fauvism is about the joie de vivre and the triumph of the element of color. 3 These traditions allow me not only to depict a scene, but to convey a humanistic experience of being within it. So, the humanistic philosophy, the “why,” has remained constant, but now painting has become one more “what.”

In 2019, my wife and I moved to the Saugatuck region, drawn by its natural beauty and thriving arts community. Workshops with artists such as Ken Cadwallader, Richard Jordan, Colley Whisson, James Swanson, James Brandess, and David Baker have further shaped my technique and artistic voice.

My goal remains simple but essential: to find and express the beauty and emotional resonance present in the natural world—and within ourselves. For me, art is the color of a meaningfu lexperience. I paint to inhabit that experience, and to share it with others in the tradition of philosophical humanism. I think our world needs that.

If you have questions about my work, or simply want to talk about art, life, and finding the best in both—or if you’ re interested in acquiring a painting—I invite you to reach out to me directly at lance.trexler@gmail.com.

Thank you for visiting my website—I hope these images bring a moment of joy and intensity of experience to your day.

1 Diehl, G., 1967. André Derain. Paris: Flammarion, p.36
2 Crespelle, J.-P., 1958. Vlaminck, fauve de la peinture. Paris: Gallimard, p.118.
3 Brodskaia, N., 2020. The Fauves. New York: Parkstone Press International.