Hubert Shuptrine at reception of Grass Roots, Knoxville Museum of Art, September 13 - November 28, 1993. Photo courtesy of Knoxville News Sentinel.

Hubert Shuptrine was an internationally recognized and accomplished artist with an insightful approach to depicting America’s heartland, its people, its traditions, and its landscape. 

Whether focusing on the pattern of creases in a timeworn face, the tiniest strands of whiskers in a bristly beard, or the uneven rhythm of weathered boards on the side of an old cabin, Shuptrine penetrated the surface of his subjects to reveal their inner spirit.  In depicting people, he saw his images more as a form of visual biography than as portraiture.  His goal was to reveal in all his subjects “the sum of moments – past, present, and future infused into a single glance.”

Shuptrine’s brushwork ranges from broad washes of subtle color to a dry brush technique characterized by tiny strokes of tightly controlled pigment.  This technical variety enabled him to render broad atmospheric effects such as mist, laden skies, or morning light spilling through a window as well as intricate details and textures.

However impressive, his realistic technique in no way diminishes the expressive power of his paintings. As Shuptrine explained, “I don’t think of myself as a realist because if you look up that word in the dictionary, it is one who paints with precision without regard for ideology, feeling, or the potential of meanings.  I refer to my works as ‘realizations’ because I like the subjective part of painting as much as the objective part of painting.  I like to be involved with my subjects so that what I am painting is emotion as much as surface appearance.”   

A native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Shuptrine held a degree in fine arts painting from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His works are held by private collectors nationwide and are included in numerous corporate and museum collections.

To view available works by Hubert Shuptrine, click here.

Publications

Shuptrine, Hubert and Dickey, James.

Jericho: The South Beheld.  

Birmingham: Oxmoor House, 1974. 

The publication of this first book brought him national recognition and broke all records in the history of art book publishing.  Following the first edition of 150,000 copies, a second edition of 25,000 was sold.  

Read a New York Times book review of Jericho: The South Beheld.

Shuptrine, Hubert.

Home to Jericho.  

Birmingham: Oxmoor House, 1987.

Chronicling Shuptrine's unique vision of the American South and its inhabitants, this second publication also received national acclaim.

Current Museum Exhibits

Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia - Realizations: The Art of Hubert Shuptrine

May 27 - August 13, 2006
For more information, please visit The Morris Museum of Art website. 

For more information regarding the work of Hubert Shuptrine, please contact Alan Shuptrine at
Gold Leaf Designs & Gallery.