Meet the Artist
Alan Shuptrine is an internationally recognized American watercolorist and master craftsman, renowned for his exquisitely realistic watercolors, oils, and gold leaf panels. Beyond his paintings, he is a leading authority on the centuries-old traditions of handcrafting and water gilding fine art frames and mirrors, as well as in wood carving and sgraffito etching. Shuptrine’s expressive and meticulously detailed works—along with his handcrafted frames and restoration projects—reside in the permanent collections of 14 American fine art museums and in hundreds of corporate and private collections nationwide. The son of acclaimed painter Hubert Shuptrine (1936–2006), Alan proudly continues the legacy of American realism in watercolor championed by his father and Andrew Wyeth.
His art has been the focus of several museum exhibitions, including a two-year, four-museum solo traveling show. Following that exhibition, Shuptrine co-authored I Come From A Place, a fine art coffee table book that earned the Independent Publisher’s Award for Best Regional Non-Fiction.
Most recently, a selection of his paintings was displayed at Scotland’s historic Skibo Castle in Dornoch, where he served as Artist in Residence. Shuptrine continues to create themed collections of his work while preparing for upcoming museum exhibitions, public speaking engagements, and teaching workshops in watercolor and gold leaf techniques.
Along with Shuptrine's Gallery, Alan's work can be found at the Grand Bohemian Galleries in Asheville, NC and Birmingham, AL; as well as Paderewski Fine Art and The Sportsman's Gallery, Ltd. (Nashville, TN; Charleston, SC; Beaver Creek, CO.) and The FLOW Gallery, Palmetto Bluff, Bluffton, SC.
Alan Shuptrine, an internationally renowned American watercolor artist and master craftsman, is a painter known for his realistic watercolors, oils, gold leaf panels. He is also a leading practitioner in the centuries-old art of handcrafting and water gilding fine art frames and mirrors, wood carving, and sgraffito etching. His bold, yet sensitive and thought-provoking works, frames, and restoration pieces are in the permanent collections of 14 American fine art museums and hundreds of corporate and private collections nationwide. Born the son of recognized painter, Hubert Shuptrine (1936-2006), Alan has continued the legacy of realism in watercolor that both Andrew Wyeth and his father Hubert established.
Covered by publications such as Fine Art Connoisseur, American Artist Magazine, Watercolor Artist Magazine and numerous others, Shuptrine garnered 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. The exhibition opened with Alan’s paintings displayed alongside the works of his two childhood heroes: his father and Andrew Wyeth.
Following the museum exhibition at Vero Beach, Shuptrine was featured in a solo 2-year, 4-museum traveling exhibition from 2017 to 2019 showcasing over 80 of his paintings about the Celtic roots of Appalachia and the traditions of our ancestors. Alan collaborated with best-selling author and National Geographic’s Adventurer of the Year, Jennifer Pharr Davis, on a self-published coffee table book titled I Come From A Place. The book was awarded the Independent Publisher’s Award for Best Regional Non-Fiction.
Shuptrine continues to create themed collections of his work while planning future museum exhibitions, speaking engagements, appearances at national literary and art showcases, and workshops. In 2022, Shuptrine exhibited his gilded creations, as well as taught a master course on water gilding curriculum, at The Florence Academy of Art in Florence, Italy. He was also selected to participate in the Art in Embassies program by the United States Department of State when his painting, Dancing Man, was chosen for display in the residence of the Ambassador to Qatar. Shuptrine was featured at Palmetto Bluff Resort, in Bluffton, South Carolina as the Artist in Residence where his works were exhibited and are continued to be offered through Flow Gallery. His travels have also included visits to Ireland and Scotland for inspiration on a new collection of paintings as an encore to I Come From a Place. In August 2025, Shuptrine was invited as the Artist in Residence at Scotland’s historical Skibo Castle in Dornoch. During his residency, his works were exhibited in the castle gallery and he hosted painting classes and private lessons on property. He is currently creating a body of work for his next museum exhibition, as well as continuing to offer watercolor and gold leaf workshops.
Biography
Skibo Castle, Dornoch, Scotland, Artist in Residency and Exhibition, August 2025
National Watercolor Society Members Only Juried Exhibition Finalist and Award Winner, NYC, 2025
Art Renewal Center 17th Annual International Salon Competition Finalist, 2024
National Watercolor Society Members Only Juried Exhibition Finalist, New York, 2024
Artists Magazine: The Best in Watercolor Finalist, Summer 2024
Central South Art Exhibition, Centennial Arts Center, Centennial Park, Nashville, TN 2024
Spectrum, Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, TN, 2024
Art In Embassies, American Embassy - Quatar, exhibiting 2023-2026
Artist in Residence, 2023, Palmetto Bluff, Bluffton, SC
Coastal Treasures, Vero Beach Museum of Art, Fall, 2023
Southern Watercolor Society Juried Members Exhibition, 2023
Featured Artist, Greenville Center for Creative Arts, Greenville, SC, Feb 2023
Featured Artist, Grand Bohemian Gallery – The Kessler Collection, Asheville, NC, Fall 2022
American Watercolor Society, Associate Members Exhibition, 2022
Featured Artist, Paderewski Fine Art & The Sportsman’s Gallery Ltd.
A Gilded Age, Florence Academy of Art, Florence, Italy, September 2022
Arts at Erlanger, Erlanger Baroness Hospital, Chattanooga, TN, 2021 and 2022
ArtFields, Selected Artist and Featured Speaker, Lake City, SC, 2021 and May 2022
First Place and Best in Show for Watercolor, Mountain View Americana Art Show, South Carolina, 2021
Featured Artist, Grand Bohemian Gallery – The Kessler Collection, Birmingham, AL, Dec 2019 – December 2020
Biltmore Farms Featured Speaker, Asheville, NC, May 2019
Reframed: American Women from the Sellars Collection featuring framing by Alan Shuptrine, The Huntsville Museum of Art, Summer 2019
Alan Shuptrine: Appalachian Watercolors of The Serpentine Chain, Tennessee State Museum (Nashville, TN) in May, 2017, Morris Museum of Art (Augusta, GA), January-April, 2018; Huntsville Museum of Art (AL), May- August, 2018; Museum Center a 5ive Points (Cleveland, TN), September 2018-January, 2019.
In the Tradition of Wyeth: Contemporary Watercolor Masters, Vero Beach Museum of Art, Vero Beach FL, 2011-2012
The Serpentine Chain Collection Preview, Tennessee Association of Museums, Nashville, TN, 2016
Tennessee Watercolor Society Juried Exhibition, Nashville, TN, 2016
Water Gilding: A Lost Art, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL, 2016
The Serpentine Chain Collection Preview, The Poinsett Club, Greenville, SC, 2016
The Serpentine Chain Collection Preview, The Biltmore Forest Country Club, Asheville, NC, 2015
The Bascom Guest Instructor Exhibition, Highlands, NC, 2014
Hudson Valley Art Association Juried Exhibition, New York, 2013
National Watercolor Society Members Only Juried Exhibition Finalist, 2012
National Watercolor Society, Finalist in Members Juried Exhibition, San Pedro, California, 2011
The Bascom: A Center for the Visual Arts, Members Exhibition, Highlands, NC, 2010
Tennessee Watercolor Society Annual Juried Exhibition, Chattanooga, TN, 2010
Salmagundi Art Club Floral Exhibition, NY, 2010
Huntsville Museum of Art Annual Gala, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL, 2009
The Southern Watercolor Society Juried Annual Exhibition Finalist, 2009
Spectrum, Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, TN, 2009
Salmagundi Art Club Annual Juried Painting/Sculpture Exhibition, Non-Members, NYC, 2008
Tennessee Watercolor Society Annual Juried Exhibition, Knoxville, TN, 2008
Tennessee Art League Central Art Exhibition National, Nashville, TN, 2008
Southern Watercolor Society Annual Juried Exhibition, Quincy, FL, 2008
Greenville County Museum of Art Antiques & Exhibitions, Greenville, SC, 2006
exhibitions & collections
National Watercolor Society Members Only Juried Exhibition Finalist and Award Winner, NYC, 2025
Watercolor Magazine Finalist, Best in Watercolor Competition, 2024
Distinguished Alumnus Award, The Baylor School, Chattanooga, TN, 2021
First Place, Best in Show, and Founding Member Award, Mountain View Americana Art Show, South Carolina, 2021
Independent Publisher Book Award for Best Southeastern Non-Fiction Book for I Come From A Place, 2020
Okra Magazine, Southern-Made Artist Spotlight, December, 2019
Blue Ridge Country Magazine Featured Artist, July 2019
Watercolor Artist Magazine, Must-See Show of the Season, October 2017
Watercolor Artist Magazine, Featured Artist, February, 2015
My Artist Portfolio Landscape 2012 International Juried Competition, Honorable Mention, 2012
American Artist Magazine All Media Competition, Watercolor Honorable Mention, 2012
35th Annual Southern Watercolor Society Juried Exhibition Finalist, Winner of the Colart Americas (Winsor and Newton) Award, 2012
Tennessee Watercolor Society Biennial Juried Exhibition Finalist, Winner of the Beauty of Water Media Award, and achieved Signature Membership, 2012
Salmagundi Art Club Annual Juried Exhibition, Certificate of Merit, 2011, NYC
Tennessee Watercolor Society Juried Exhibition, Outstanding Technical Award, 2010
Cover Finalist for American Artist Watercolor Magazine, Summer 2008 Issue
Artist Colony Annual International Online Exhibition, 2nd Place Overall, 2008
awards & recognition
Permanent Collection, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
Permanent Collection, Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, TN
Permanent Collection, Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA
Permanent Collection of The Baylor School, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Permanent Collections of Textile Rubber, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia
Permanent Collection of Fletcher Bright Realty, Tennessee and Georgia
Permanent Collections of over 80 individual watercolors and fine handmade frames privately collected in the United States and Japan for The Serpentine Chain Collections.
Permanent Collection of Dr. and Mrs. Al Peabody, Greenville, South Carolina
Permanent Collection of Mr. James Dicke, Crowne Corporation, Ohio
Permanent Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Robertson, New York, NY.
Permanent Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Underwood, New Jersey
Private Collections, North and South Carolina
Private Collections, Alabama
Private Collections, Tennessee
Private Collections, Georgia
Private Collection, Florida
Private Collection, Louisiana
Private Collection, South Carolina
Private Collection, Watercolor and Gilded pieces, Japan
And other permanent and private collections that are too numerous to name individually. Shuptrine continues to provide commission pieces to individual clientele.
CollectionS
Guest Water Gilding Instructor, Florence Academy of Art, September 2022
Master craftsman of Gilded Frames for Permanent Collection of Andrew Wyeth original watercolors, Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, South Carolina.
Restoration and Conservation of Permanent Collection, post-Hurricane Katrina, Permanent Collections, New Orleans Museum of Art
Restoration and Conservation of Gilded Historical Period Antiques, The Swan House, The Atlanta History Center, Atlanta, Georgia
Gold Leaf restoration of period Antiques, The Georgia Governor’s Mansion, Atlanta, Georgia
Restoration and Conservation of Gold Leaf, and fine paintings, of the Natchez Historical Park, Natchez, Mississippi
Water Gilding and Period Restoration Acknowledgments
Birmingham Museum of Art, AL
Booth Western Art Museum, GA
Greenville County Museum of Art, SC
Hunter Museum of American Art, TN
Huntsville Museum of Art, AL
Morris Museum of Art, GA
New Orleans Museum of Art, LA
The Bascom, Highlands, NC
Vero Beach Museum of Art, FL
Watercolor and Gold Leaf Workshops and Demonstrations
