Alden Mason (artist)

Alden Mason (1919 - February 6, 2013) was a widely traveled American painter, particularly noted for his controversial murals.

Mason was born in the summer of 1919 in Everett, Washington. Mason was raised by a protective mother and is self described as "a small, skinny kid who couldn’t see" (it was not until Mason’s second year of college that he discovered he was in need of glasses). As a young boy, growing up as an outsider, he spent most of his time by himself outdoors bird watching, hiking, and exploring. He recalled the moment he knew he would be an artist, a little sparrow alighted his fingertip, staying for a few seconds to look into his eyes. At age twelve the aspiring artist found himself trapping muskrats to earn money for mail-away cartooning lessons. "I felt guilty trapping all those muskrats, but I loved cartoons, with figures jumping, hopping and smooching. They were having more fun than I was. They lived in a brighter world." Throughout his artistic career evidence of Mason’s time on the Skagit farm remain in his improvisational paintings; animals and native plants such as sparrows and tulips remain themes to the present day.

"Although the imagery and media used by Mason have gone through many changes over the years, his paintings always exhibit exuberance and inventiveness in form, color, and style. Mason drew inspiration from Arshile Gorky, Willem de Kooning, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, and the many different cultures he encountered while traveling." Mason traveled abroad to experience exotic flora and fauna. He said, "I like to go to the tropics because there are hundreds of kinds of birds, beautiful tropical birds of all kinds from parrots to parakeets to toucans." hi

Mason’s travels took him abroad to many different countries. Travels to South and Central America translated directly into his large Squeeze Bottle paintings of 1978–1980s. Stylized South American mola and brilliantly colored Huichol Indian yarn paintings from Mexico were later reinterpreted in paint. Roaming the earth to mostly indigenous cultures let Mason see elements of the world to record later in paintings as an extended, personal, travel journal.

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