ABOUT
Cody DeLong
Providing a visual reference point in a visually noisy world
"Creativity is a delicate mistress
I love the dance between passion and skill, between knowledge and learning."
— cody delong
"I know what it means when a collector says,
'This piece speaks to me.' That voice, That emotion,
That’s what I’m chasing."
Chasing The Light!
I come from a background of airbrush illustration, you know, before computers took that over. Before that I had a custom airbrush facility in Las Vegas, painting hood murals and custom Harleys, even backgrounds for casino shows. Before that I even did sign painting, back when hand lettering was an art in itself.
Eventually I got tired of commercial art, so I bought a small camper and spent 4 years traveling the country, just me and my dog. We had some great adventures (this was before cell phones) That's where I really got into oil painting. I was in the woods every day and I had a dirtbike which I'd ride to even more remote places to paint and be inspired by nature.
In the 90s, I stopped my nomadic lifestyle and settled in Jerome AZ where I opened a working Studio/Gallery which I ran for over 20 years. (see studio info below).
I've been working in Oils for over 30 years now.
Today I'm a nationally recognized artist. I've been featured in numerous magazines and have been invited to several national events over the years. I even won some meaningful awards along the way.
The real reason I paint though, is simply because I love it.
NOMAD LIFE
On the left is the dirtbike I had, an old KLR 650, which I used for years to explore the most remote areas of the American Southwest. I had it strapped on the back of the camper in the picture on the right. This was probably early 90s and I was visiting my dear Grandmother. My dog T-Bone is in the lower right. I spent 4 years traveling around as a true nomad, long before that was a thing. This was before cell phones, so I would stop at a pay phone once or twice a month and call my Mother to let her know I was still alive. I spent those years learning to paint Plein-Air in Oils. That's how I transitioned from commercial to fine art.
It was a wonderful time of adventure and discovery.
Grand Canyon River Trips
A river legacy
Grand Canyon River Trips for
Plein Air Painters.
For 14 years Cody lead 8 and 10 day river trips through the Grand Canyon for artists who wanted to paint along the way!
Grand Canyon!
It was an experience of a lifetime for most of the artists who participated.
The last one was launched in May of 2021.
Cody worked with the outfitter to design a custom trip for artists.
The boat had to accommodate space for each of the twelve artists to take a plein-air painting backpack, in addition to clothes, adult beverages etc. for the 8 or 10 day trip.
The outfitter provided not only the boat, safety equipment and permits, camping gear, food and water for the week, but an experienced crew as well, who kept us safe, well fed,
and entertained throughout the adventure.
We painted each morning in camp while the crew loaded the boat, then rafted through the day, making camp in the late afternoon where we would paint again while the crew made dinner.
Clair and Cody
Clair Quist is a long time friend and a lifelong boatman.
With half a century of experience on the river he kept us safe, entertained
and put up with the crazy artist trip each year for over a decade.
Thank you Clair!
JEROME STUDIO
Quick Video of my Jerome Studio, for over two decades.
CODY DELONG STUDIO
JEROME - ARIZONA
“Ghost town - Mining History, Music, Wine, Bikes, Bars...and Art.
Cody DeLong Studio/Gallery stood in
the heart of it for over two decades.”
SouthWest Art Magazine - Feature Article
Cody has been featured in several books, magazines and newspapers - Sedona's Best Artists, Sedona Verde Valley Art, Plein Air New Mexico, Jack Richeson Series - Volume One, The Richeson 75 International - Landscape and Exteriors 2007 and magazines - including the cover of Sedona Magazine (fall 2008 with 3 page color feature) Western Art Collector (many times), American Artist Workshop Magazine, Arizona Highways, Southwest Art, Sedona Monthly, Phoenix Magazine, Mountain Living Magazine (feature article) A 5 page feature article in Plein Air Magazine (June/July 2015) Most recently an 8 page feature article in SouthwestArt Magazine (Feb. 2019).
Cody is a founding member and former Vice-President of the Arizona Plein Air Painters.
Select Awards:
Montgomery Frames Award - 2017 Phippen Museum 43rd Annual Western Art Exhibition and Sale
First Place, Quick Draw - 2017 Sedona Arts Center event at L'Auberge de Sedona
Artists Choice Award - 2015 Grand Canyon Plein Air Invitational
First Place, Painting Category - 2015 Sedona Arts Festival
Two Purchase Awards - 2015 Zion Natl. Park Plein Air Invitational
Zion plein air event - 2012 In the Footsteps of Thomas Moran, Cody won two Purchase Awards.
One of his paintings is part of the Zion Lodge collection, in Zion National Park, Utah.
Grand Canyon plein air event - 2012 Grand Canyon Celebration of Art, Cody's studio piece won the 'Best Western, Squire Inn Purchase Award.
His painting "Lapping Waves of the Colorado" is part of the resort's permanent Grand Canyon Collection.
Cody was the top selling artist selling 25 paintings at this event
Best in Show/First Place - 2010 Grand Canyon Plein Air Invitational
Cody sold all 12 of his paintings in the first 24 hours of the show, including his studio piece and quick draw
Cody was the Featured Artist and won a Second Place ribbon at the Wyoming Plein Air event held in Cheyenne in 2008
Vasari Award - 2007 Sedona Plein Air Festival
Cody's work is in the permanent collection of the Grand Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, El Tovar Hotel, Grand Canyon.
2007: Cody won the "Artists Choice Award" at the Plein Air New Mexico in Santa Fe, NM.
Cody's painting "Galisteo Basin" was chosen from a field of over 60 artists and 170 paintings.
2003, he was awarded a Merit based Scholarship at the Scottsdale Artists School.
In 2004 the Oil Painters of America selected him as that year's Shirl Smithson Scholarship Winner.
In 2009 Cody was awarded a Teachers Scholarship by the Marylin Sunderman Legacy Fund for his innovative workshop techniques.
"I love helping others unlock their creativity"
Cody's interview by Eric Rhodes, editor of Plein Air Magazine in 2019.
(You will have to listen through a few minutes of his promos, but he eventually gets around to interviewing me)
2ive a listen, see what you think.
Cody on Inspiration for Artists:
Increasingly I'm making an effort to maximize the time spent working on whichever project I feel the most inspiration for. When I'm excited about an idea for a painting, that's the time to pursue it. if I'm motivated to make video or coaching content because I've got an idea that I am excited about that's the time to do it.
It sounds simple, but consciously optimizing your workflow in the direction in which you feel some genuine inspiration, gives you the best chance of finding flow. it's important to seize the moment to change your schedule, to pivot, adapt, iterate and go with the flow, invite inspiration.
Invite your creative life force to become fully engaged.
Visualize completing a new painting and feeling a giant swell of pride when you realize you just painted one of the best pieces of your life. Invite that.
Sometimes I just try to paint something well, Other times I mix two ideas or more, preserving the core beauty of the scene that drew me to it, execute that well, then take some of the secondary areas and find a way to abstract them slightly. This increases the focus where you want it and, invites curiosity surrounding the focal point.
A schedule and routines are great, they help keep systems in place and operational. The discipline of simply working each day has great value and compounding rewards.
But practicing awareness of mind state, is amazing. It can allow you to not only invite, but recognize when you are in early stages of genuine inspiration.
Pick up on that feeling and grow it, believe in it and take action. Sketch it out, develop even more desire for creating it. When the canvas is prepared, Block out an afternoon or evening undisturbed, and step into your idea fully.
Trust it trust yourself. By the time your brush first touches the Canvas, your mind should be fully engaged and your heart excited for the journey to come.
Also to the best of your ability, release attachment to outcome. You're playing. This is an experiment. You don't know where it's gonna go, but you're excited to see it no matter how it turns out.
It's a journey of discovery, not unlike traveling it's the unexpected things that make it so interesting.
Creative discovery is one of the better addictions one can have.
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COLLECTOR REVIEWS
“THE OUTCOME FAR EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS.”
"I asked Cody if he'd take a commission and he humbly accepted. He did four small pieces for me—a tetraptych—graciously accommodating my request on size, canvas material, and subject matter. We collaborated easily on style and color palette. It mattered not that he was in Portugal and I in Sedona: the shipping was fast, and the pieces arrived in perfect condition, exquisitely executed. They'll be with my family for a very long time."
— JOHN P., SEDONA
“HE HAS PROVEN TO BE EXACTLY THE RIGHT ARTIST.”
"I have long admired Cody's understanding of light and color, and his ability to capture buildings and vehicles. My husband and I felt he would be the perfect artist to portray an old barn on our property we're very attached to—and we were so right. He led us through sketches and collaborated with us at every step. He has proven to be exactly the right artist for a painting that will mean a lot to our family for a long time."
— ANNA D., HOTCHKISS, COLORADO
“THE SOUTHWEST THEME AND COLORS JUST COME ALIVE IN OUR HOME.”
"We'd admired Cody's work and loved his landscapes, but had a difficult location for the artwork we wanted. After discussing our size and lighting requirements, we commissioned him to develop and paint a desert landscape that's proven to be the ideal solution for us. His professional ability to adapt to our requirements, coupled with his raw talent and creative vision, gave us a wonderful oil painting we're proud to have relied on him for. The Southwest theme and colors just come alive in our home, and we'll always enjoy this piece of commissioned art."
— RON M., SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA
“A COLLABORATION WITH ONE OF THE FINEST LANDSCAPE ARTISTS WORKING TODAY.”
"Cody is a true professional. Once we agreed on the subject and how it should be presented, he really got to work—setting a reasonable schedule, providing sketches along the way. He listens, but he doesn't waver from the original vision. To commission a painting with Cody is really a collaboration with one of the finest landscape artists working today."
— BARBARA S., BOULDER CITY, NV
