“Circumstances,” an oil painting by Syracuse artist John Fitzsimmons, offers two views of an elderly man who wears shorts but is shirtless and barefoot. The figure on the right glances at the depiction of himself on the left and seems to scowl, perhaps wondering about how his life has evolved.
In a second painting, “Running Woman,” a lone woman appears by herself with long hair falling across her face and over her right shoulder. There’s a sense she’s in motion but nothing to suggest she’s jogging. With a green background and lots of shadows, the viewer is left to speculate on where the woman is and whether she’s fleeing someone or something. The narrative is open-ended.
These artworks are part of a large portfolio: a series of visually intriguing, ambiguous paintings. The works draw on Fitzsimmons’ deep interest in non-verbal communication, in what can’t be told, in a realm for which language doesn’t exist.
Over the course of his artistic career, Fitzsimmons has consistently created striking portraits that both capture a viewer’s attention and invite reflection. And he’s done it on an ongoing basis with a fluid, flexible style.
In one painting, we see a woman wrapped up in a robe. She looks away, and a viewer can only see her back and wonder what’s she’s looking at. It’s not possible to see her face, yet the artwork still manages to stir interest.
Another painting is very different but well within Fitzsimmons’ body of work. We see two views of a female figure with a large piece of fabric flowing over her. At the left, she stands erect. Her legs are visible, one eye is covered, and her left arm stands straight out. To the right, she crouches. Her head is covered by the fabric. Her hands poke out from under the fabric, gesturing awkwardly. Like other artworks, it’s subject to a viewer’s interpretation.
Like most artists, Fitzsimmons is interested in sharing his work with the public. He already has two exhibits lined up for 2026. From February 14 through March 27, he will have a solo show at the Fritton Center for Creative Arts in Hamilton, Ohio, just outside Cincinnati. It will feature 13 of his oil paintings, most of which are large. “Running Woman,” for example, is 72 x 48 inches.
Then two months later, from April 17 through May 29, his painting will be exhibited in the gallery at the Delavan Center building, 509 W. Fayette St., not far from Armory Square. Fitzsimmons, like a bevy of local artists, has a studio at the Delavan.
In the past, he’s taken part in a variety of solo and group exhibitions, including venues such as the Artisan Gallery in Binghamton, Utica’s Other Side Gallery, the Edgewood Gallery in Syracuse, and a gallery at William Patterson University, Wayne, New Jersey. In 2019, he received a Best in Show award for the “Made in New York” exhibit at the Schweinfurth Art Center, Auburn.
In addition, he pursued several projects connected to print media. For example, he created 12 illustrations for “Cairns,” a book-length poem by Syracuse writer Phil Memmer. And his art appeared on the cover of an issue of “Glassworks Journal” published by the creative-writing program at Rowan University.
While he’s happy to have two exhibitions coming up, Fitzsimmons is looking to display his work at other venues. And he’s working on other paintings. In an interview, the artist said it takes a long time to finish a large piece. In a year, he might complete six or seven works.
Those paintings typically involve a session with a model. Fitzsimmons and the model will often collaborate, discussing poses.
During a session, Fitzsimmons will create a drawing or take reference photos. He says he will take many photos and use them solely as source material. He doesn’t look at a photograph and simply try to recreate it—his creative process is far more complex than that.
Indeed, over the years, he’s spent dozens of hours in his studio. Even when he was employed by Oneida Air Systems doing industrial-design work, he still spent several evenings a week at his Delavan studio. Now that he’s retired, he’s able to devote even more time to painting.
Fitzsimmons is a painter first and foremost, but when he needs a break from the medium, he makes prints, which he has shown in the past at the Mosesian Art Center in Watertown, Massachusetts. To explore more of Fitzsimmons’ work, visit https://www.johnfitzsimmonsart.com/home
About the Author
Carl Mellor covered visual arts for the Syracuse New Times from 1994 through 2019. He continues to write about artists and exhibitions in Central New York. He writes reviews and artist profiles for CNY Arts as a community partner.
