John Currin is a contemporary American artist considered among the most influential painters working today. Combining the techniques of Northern Renaissance painters such as Lucas Cranach the Elder, with a satirical attitude towards his subject matter, the artist produces works steeped in both art history and kitsch, as seen in his 2003 painting Thanksgiving. “I find I can't get rid of my trashiness as an artist,” he explained. “A lot of my themes in painting, to the extent that there are intentional themes, are meant to bring that conundrum into high relief.” Born in 1962 in Boulder, CO, he grew up in Connecticut where he studied with the academically trained artist Lev Meshberg. After receiving his BFA from Carnegie Mellon University in 1984, Currin went on to study at the Yale School of Art alongside both Lisa Yuskavage and Sean Landers. Through the following decades, he has participated in shows at Sadie Coles HQ in London and Gagosian Gallery in New York and was the subject of a mid-career retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 2004. Currin currently lives and works in New York, NY, with his wife the artist Rachel Feinstein, who often serves as a model for his paintings. Today, the artist’s works are held in the collections of the Tate Gallery in London, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, among others.