b. 1963 Florida, USA
2005 MFA University of Florida
1985 BFA Kansas City Art institute
Lives and works in Florida, USA

John Westmark explores metaphorical relationships between seemingly disparate ideas and materials. His paintings start with industrial paper sewing patterns applied directly to the canvas. Using this material outside if its traditional function, the artist builds ambiguous and multilayered imagery.

Westmark's paintings reference mythological narratives that explore human nature. Individual characters in myths symbolise certain human attributes and values. According to the artist, “the persistence of myth over time is indicative of our need to understand the ‘patterns’ of human lives.”

Westmark’s work is held in collections across the world. He was recently awarded the Gibbes Museum of Art Factor Prize for Southern Art (2012). In 2011, he was the recipient of a Pollock-Krasner grant and was a finalist for the Arte Laguna painting prize in Venice, Italy. In 2006, the artist was invited to participate in the Peace Tower project by the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. In 2013 the artist will be holding a solo exhibition at Manifest, a not-for-profit institution in Cincinnati. Westmark was selected from among 150 proposals that were submitted in consideration for Manifest's ninth season.

His work has been featured in New Surface Design Journal, American Paintings, American Art Collector, and Studio Visit Magazine.