Bio:
Adam Umbach was born in Chicago, and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. After being inspired from an early age by the modern masters collection at the Art Institute of Chicago, he received his BFA in painting from the University of Wisconsin.
Beginning his painting career with minimalist canvases based on the enigmatic names of color swatches, Umbach’s creative approach has expanded to experiments with abstraction, geometric painting, and expressionism. The evolution of Umbach’s painting is markedly influenced by his surroundings, from the maritime imagery and seaside colors from his time living in East Hampton, New York and Islesboro, Maine to the graphic style of New York City’s architecture and graffiti.
Umbach’s work pairs formalist explorations with photorealistic depictions of recognizable objects, including boats, toys such as rubber ducks and teddy bears, and pink flamingo lawn ornaments. A biographical painter, Umbach’s chosen subjects, which often repeat through differing bodies of work, belong to a personal and familial iconography. Though sourced from his life, Umbach’s paintings invite viewers to connect with this imagery by evoking their own experiences and memories.