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Biography

A plein-air painter based in southern California, John Cosby uses strong, bold brushstrokes to depict landscapes, figures and marine scenes from the many locations including Laguna Beach, Hawaii, and Taos, New Mexico.

Born in Hollywood California in 1955, Cosby was raised in the west.  At an early age he began to draw and paint and was lucky enough to have been inspired by a grandmother who was an oil painter.  "She would give me the paint, some brushes and a scrap of canvas and set me off to paint.  This early experience took the fear out of creating a painting," said Cosby.

Cosby started traveling at an early age.  At 18 he was chosen as an advance man for the Executive Branch of the US Government, served under two Presidents and traveled the world, admiring the great works of art he encountered.

Upon his return to the California, Cosby began painting the sea and landscape of coastal California.  With a strong gallery response, his success as a painter quickly followed. While Cosby works on location around the world, he currently resides and maintains a studio in San Clemente, CA.

Selected Collections

The Hilbert Museum of CA Art
Big Canyon Country Club
The Irvine Museum Permanent Collection

Professional Membership

Founding Board Member, Laguna Plein Air Painters Association
Signature Member, Plein Air Painters of America
Signature Member, California Art Club
Founder of the Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational

Selected Awards and Honors

2024 Gold Medal for Best Still Life at California Art Club’s 113th Gold Medal Exhibition held at Hilbert Museum of California Art at Chapman University
2019 ARC Salon 2nd Place in Pleinair Shown at Barcelona MOMA
2011 First Place, Plein Air in the Park, Paso Robles, CA (Awarded by Jean Stern, The Irvine Museum)
2009 Collectors Choice Award; Laguna Art Museum, CA
2007 First Place, Heritage Art Show, San Juan Capistrano, CA
2007 Irvine Museum Award, Coastal Splendor Plein Air Invitational, Crystal Cove, CA
2007 Second Place, Casa Romantica, San Clemente, CA
2005 Honorable Mention; Coastal Splendor Plein Air Invitational, Crystal Cove, CA
2004 Honorable Mention; Sights of Southern California; Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA
2004 Honorable Mention; Coastal Splendor Plein Air Invitational, Crystal Cove, CA
2004 Artist Choice Award; Quick Draw, Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational, CA
2003 Honorable Mention, Sights of Southern California; Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA
2002 Collectors Choice Award, Laguna Plein Air Painting Invitational, Laguna Beach, CA
2001 First Place, Quick Draw, Haggin Museum, Yosemite Painters Group, Stockton, CA
2001 Best of Show Award, Lahaina, Maui, HI
2001 First Place, Quick Draw Competition, “Third Annual Desert Plein Air”; La Quinta, CA

Press and Publications

American Legacy Fine Arts presents John Cosby in Western Art & Architecture Magazine, 2017

John Cosby in Western Art & Architecture Magazine, 2017

In Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, cemetery, on a grey, sleety morning, Joe Paquet stood at his French easel. The cemetery offered the best view of the subject Paquet had come to paint: …

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American Legacy Fine Arts presents John Cosby in Southwest Art Magazine, September 2015.

John Cosby Featured in Southwest Art Magazine, 2015

Not long ago, John Cosby set up his easel on a rocky rise gazing southward across a cove in Laguna Beach, CA, half an hour up the coast from his …

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American Legacy Fine Arts presents John Cosby in Plein Air Magazine, November 2012.

John Cosby Featured in Plein Air Magazine, November 2012

Although step-by-step plein air painting demonstrations may be helpful when they’re featured in magazines, books, DVD’s, or YouTube videos, they sometimes leave us wondering how the artists decide to paint …

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