Tony Cacalano graduated from Yale University with his Bachelor's and Master's degree in Fine Arts in painting. While at Yale, he studied with major 20th century painters and historians, such as Alex Katz, Jack Tworkov and Robert Herbert.
While he taught painting and drawing classes at Old Dominion University, Norfolk State College and East Carolina University, he found there was still enough time in the day to keep his own painting skills alive, growing and maturing as an artist.
Tony Cacalano's Early Years
His first fifteen years painting were spent in the realm of realism. He moved on from there to discover abstract art with its heavy, dripping paint on large canvasses only to find that his strong point was color.
Not the heavy layers of oil paint, but acrylics on smaller canvasses with clean color palettes.
His choice of colors and topics are rich and magnetic. Admirers find themselves looking deeply into the story of each painting, returning more than once to be surprised by yet another detail not originally noticed.
Where to Find Cacalano Paintings
Tony's paintings appear in important art collections including the Chrysler Museum, the Yale University Permanent Collection, the Mario Amaya Estate, and the Ronald McDonald Collection, to name a few.
Cacalano originals are very popular with private collectors, especially those in the movie industry. His works appear in the collections of Rodney Dangerfield, the composer, Monty Gold, Mort LIndsey, and Oscar winners, Jim and Debbie Kristoff of Metro Light Studios, among many others.
Tony Cacalano's Art on Television
Tony's paintings have been nearly ubiquitous in set designs on over a dozen different television shows such as, "Sister, Sister", "Veronica's Closet", "The Office", "King of Queens", "Murder She Wrote", "90210", and "Roseanne", to name a few.
If you look carefully, you'll even find Tony's paintings hanging on walls in the background of television commercials. His work appeals to men, women and children with his inimitable style. Tony explains, "My art has a cartoon quality to it and no one else paints in quite the same way", which is evident and explains why so many are drawn to his work.
Tony Cacalano-University Professor/Painter
For over forty years Tony has dedicated himself to his art, teaching painting, drawing, design and art history while creating works in his studio. He's been the recipient of several grants, including the prestigious NEA grant.
The dreamy quality of Tony's artwork just begs the busy man or woman on the go to slow down and get in touch with the moment at hand. Tony's work is a lifelong process of diligence coupled with a desire to create something of enduring quality and beauty.
If you are interested in seeing more of Tony's paintings, you can view them here.
