Josh Clare (b. 1982) was born and raised in Utah and has believed he was an artist ever since his 5th grade elementary school teacher Mrs. Brady told him he was. He received formal training at Brigham Young University Idaho where he was introduced to oil painting, and blessed with mentors, instruction, and inspiration that will last a lifetime. Blessed with early recognition and success his career has been one of continual learning and growth, and he thanks God every day for the ‘privilege of seeing the sun cast shadows.’ Josh lives with his wife and five children in Cache Valley, Utah.

Biography

Artists Statement

“Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in his majesty and power. I say unto you, he hath seen him; nevertheless, he who came unto his own was not comprehended” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:47-48).

Paintings are magic. They really are. Somehow in the simple act of creation I engage in nearly every day a part of my desires, a part of me, gets stuck into the paint, and it stays there. It still fills me with wonder, even after 15 years of painting, but it really happens. And every once in a while I come across a painting done by a man or a woman who truly saw something, truly felt it and had to tell about it—and it changes me for good. That’s why I paint.

I live hoping to become the kind of man worth knowing, and I paint hoping that someday, someone will see the bits of me stuck there in my work—and be changed for the better.​ If there is anything in my work that is good—it’s because of and thanks to God the father of our spirits and His son Jesus Christ. As often as I forget it, I know that I am nothing of myself, and I’m deeply grateful that God has allowed me to live, and to paint.