Bill McLane is a native New Englander, born in Fall River, MA in 1951, and growing up in Swansea. Following the family tradition, he has been painting since the age of 16.  Searching for apprenticeship in the style of the Old Masters he found little discipline at American Art Schools in the 1980’s.  This lead him to search for the right teachers who would enable him to understand the importance of light and form in painting.  This search took him to various parts of the globe until he landed in Munich, Germany where he studied in private ateliers with several talented teachers who taught him the techniques, palettes and styles of the Old Masters.

Time and light are the true subjects of these land and seascapes and only when the viewer is able to see the spirit captured by these canvases can one really appreciate this artist’s true love of “the paint”.  Bill McLane is a genuine painter from concept to completion. It is the love of the land and the majesty of nature in front of him which propels his vision.

Bill is a plein air artist in every sense of the word. Refusing to work from photographs or other replicated images, he draws and paints exclusively out of doors.  He says “It’s all about the light”.  The seasonal light of Martha’s Vineyard unites his work as the underlying theme, veiling his paintings in luminosity.

“My painting is simple”, he says. “It has to do with working the land and the sea and the overwhelming beauty that I see when I’m out painting every day.  While painting outdoors on the Vineyard, Nantucket and the Cape, throughout the year and at varying times of the day, I encounter what most people may not have the opportunity to experience, and work to capture its essence on canvas before it is lost.”

His successful career has led to extensive exhibitions in Newport, RI, Block Island and on the Vineyard, his home for the last 15 years.  His work has a loyal following of collectors and has been shown and collected in Germany, France, Australia and throughout the United States.