A painter known for his Southern and Appalachian Mountains genre, Alan Shuptrine has extended his reputation from a renowned framemaker and water gilder to a nationally acclaimed watercolorist. Born the son of recognized painter, Hubert Shuptrine (1936-2006), Alan has continued the legacy of realism that both Andrew Wyeth and his father Hubert established.  

A resident of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, Shuptrine’s pursuit of the arts includes schooling at The Baylor School (Chattanooga, TN); The University of the South (Sewanee, TN); and The University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN).

His realistic watercolors are highly detailed and exhibit dramatic lighting in both his landscapes and figurative paintings. Shuptrine’s medium is primarily watercolor which he applies and controls in various techniques, from wet-in-wet to drybrush. He prefers to handcraft, carve, and gold leaf his own frames for his paintings. 

Recognized by publications such as American Artist Magazine and Watercolor Artist Magazine, Shuptrine garnered additional recognition when he was asked to participate in the exhibit, In the Tradition of Wyeth: Contemporary Watercolor Masters at The Vero Beach Museum of Art in 2010. The exhibition opened with Alan’s paintings displayed alongside the works by Andrew Wyeth and his father.

Following the Vero Beach exhibition, the Huntsville Museum of Art and The Tennessee State Museum selected Shuptrine’s watercolors for their permanent collections. After participating in numerous juried exhibitions and receiving awards from national and international watercolor societies, Shuptrine launched his first solo museum exhibition in May, 2017. The exhibition opened at the Tennessee State Museum in Nashville and celebrates the Celtic roots of the Appalachian Mountains. Serving as a monument to the descendants of early English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh who settled the Eastern Seaboard, this art collection and soon-to-be coffee table book and documentary film, will collectively preserve mountain heritage and traditions for future generations. 

Upon completion of the traveling exhibition, Alan collaborated with Best-Selling author, avid hiker, and sought-after storyteller, Jennifer Pharr Davis, for his first fine art, coffee table book that launched in Fall, 2019. Titled, I Come From A Place, this thematic book contains images of Shuptrine’s watercolors, as well as Pharr Davis’ prose and serves to collectively preserve and celebrate the mountain heritage and traditions for future generations. The book was awarded the Independent Publisher’s Book Award for Best Southeastern Non-Fiction Book for 2020.

Biography