"My Best Friend"

Dave Hay is an emerging American contemporary artist, born in 1962 in Joliet, Illinois. Dave was raised in Springfield, Massachusetts and currently resides in Longmeadow, MA. Dave’s creativity developed at an early age and was cultivated in part by his mother, Jayne Hay, an art teacher in the Springfield public schools. His talent was recognized in High School when he received two Gold Keys as part of the Boston Globe Scholastic Art Awards. He earned a degree in Art from Springfield College and an advanced Art Education degree from Westfield State University. Dave had been teaching art in Western Massachusetts and Springfield, MA for the last 25 years and previously served as the Art Director at Monomoy Day Camp/Cape Cod Sea Camps. Presently, he has retired from teaching to pursue a full time career as an Artist. Dave’s work has been showcased in a number of solo and group exhibitions and is held in a number of private collections. Dave worked from his studio in a converted textile mill in Indian Orchard, Massachusetts in the United States but now works from his studio in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong.

In his own words: "Abstract Expressionism, Color Field, Pop Realism, Street Art, Contemporary and Conceptual art are major influences on my work. I draw additional inspiration from the work of artists Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cy Twombly, Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Joan Mitchell, Christopher Wool, Jenny Holzer, Niki Hare, Robert Szot & Bansky. My work is characterized by vibrant colors and/or bold graphic words and phrases. I seek to create art that confronts you; is self-evident through color, space, shape, and typography all in an effort to create an engaging and thought provoking visual experience."