Jon Crane celebrates 50 years of artistry

One of the most noted artists of the Black Hills, Jon Crane is marking a major milestone this year, his golden anniversary as a watercolor artist. 

After 50 years of painting, Crane has no intentions of slowing down. 

Crane is best known for his meticulously detailed watercolor paintings depicting rural America, historical farmsteads, old buildings, wildlife and landscapes of the Black Hills and Great Plains. More than creating paintings, he creates a window into the heart and soul of South Dakota’s natural beauty through every brush stroke. 

Crane teases that he pursued painting to “avoid getting a real job,” but remarks that the most rewarding aspect of his career has been learning how much enjoyment his work brings to people. 

“That’s really satisfying,” said Crane. 

After spending five years as an Air Force pilot, Crane decided to pursue his artwork. He recalls his early beginnings as an artist.

“In the first few years, it was a struggle, but little by little things came along,” he said. “My earlier pieces didn’t show the detail that they do now.”

Crane traveled the country to different shows and festivals in search of a national market. Over the last two decades, however, he has focused primarily on a regional audience. In 1966, he and Gail opened the original Jon Crane Gallery. 

Although the couple no longer owns the gallery that still bears his name, his artwork continues to be featured there along with the work of other artists.

Throughout his career, Crane has developed a deep appreciation for detail and texture, elements that he carefully etches into each painting.

“I love textures, and if you look at my pieces, you’ll see a lot of texture in my originals,” he admitted. “I’m a detail person. I’m the kind of guy that would rather see a movie than go to the theater. The theater is theatrical, where I like to get into the finite detail of things.” 

That attention to detail requires both time and patience.

“Like my wife, Gail, says, I have a lot of patience with my artwork, but don’t necessarily have patience with a lot of other things,” Crane said.

Crane produces between six and 12 pieces each year. Because of the extensive detail involved, he works primarily from photographs, often spending more than 100 hours on a single painting.

“That doesn’t lend itself well to working on location,” he said. 

Each piece begins with a carefully rendered sketch before he begins applying the watercolor pigment to the paper.

“You do not use light over dark or white paints, the paper is your medium,” said Crane. “All the light areas you see are actually the light showing through the white paper through the transparent pigment.”

His two newest paintings were inspired from locations near his home in Mystic and feature something a little out of the ordinary for Crane: wildflowers.

“Two of the pieces I’ve done this year that are pictures of the area near our home in Mystic, both of them are off of the Mickelson Trail and feature wildflowers,” said Crane. “Which is a little bit of a change for me.”

The two new originals will be unveiled during an open house at the Jon Crane Gallery this Saturday from 1-4 p.m. The event celebrates both Crane’s 50th anniversary as a watercolor artist and the gallery’s 30th anniversary, and includes a meet-and-greet with the artist.

Crane has created 317 pieces throughout his career and said one unexpected challenge is finding unique titles for new works. Recently, he turned to social media for help, inviting followers to suggest names. The person whose title is selected receives an artist’s proof.

“It’s really a lot of fun to put it out there and get some new thoughts on names of the pieces,” he said.

Even after five decades as an artist, Crane plans to keep painting for as long as he’s able.

“I’m still producing as much as I ever have, and hopefully will be able to continue for some time to come,” said Crane. “I’m just happy to be able to do what I do.”