Bruce E. Gruenzel
Bruce E. Gruenzel was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Not unlike many children, he began drawing at an early age. He drew everything from cartoons to rocket ships in outer space and other fantasies of his imagination. During his teens he fell away from his artistic talents and channeled most of his energy toward sports activities. It wasn’t until he came to California in the mid-fifties and saw the ocean for the first time that his interest in artistic expression was renewed.…
“….it was a moving experience watching the power of the breakers and waves crashing against the rocks, the ebb and flow, the myriad of colors…..I had always been attracted to rough water in Wisconsin, going to the edge of Lake Michigan in heavy storms and watching the surf crash against the shore.”
Always a strong swimmer, Bruce was fortunate to become a beach lifeguard for the City of Los Angeles. During his ten-year employment on the various beaches, he was able to study first hand all the nuances of the surf. It was during this period that he started oil painting to express this experience of the sea.
After moving to the Bay Area in Northern California he exhibited paintings during the 1970’s, among them Gallery at the Square and others in Oakland. He painted a large 10’ by 68’ wall mural for the Telephone Pioneers of America as an exhibit in their San Francisco Museum depicting the four Bay Area Counties of the Ladd Chapter.
His seascapes were juried at the El Cerrito Art Association exhibit in the 1980’s and won several awards. In 1994, Bruce attended the New Renaissance Academy, School of Living Oils, in Washington State. Under the direction of the school’s founder, Ms. Libby Berry, he learned how the laws of nature apply to artistic expression as well as the methods of building colors as employed by daVinci and other Masters of that period.
“While primarily my paintings depict scenes reflecting my love of the sea, I am also inspired to paint dramatic landscapes.”
Since moving to Placerville in 2003, Bruce has become an active participant in the Placerville Art Association, and winning the People’s Choice award at their Membership Show in 2006 for the seascape “Out of the Storm” and again in 2007 for "The Searchers" .
