Born in 1975, Huntington Beach native John Patzold has been pursuing the study and practice of art his entire life. From an early age he could be found drawing and doodling to pass the time. His inspiration comes from his extensive travels and life experiences. By the time he was in high school, John knew he had a talent for art. Shortly after graduating from Edison High School, John decided to get focused and find a college to compliment and nurture his talent. John studied art and its history at the Laguna College of Art and Design in Laguna Beach, California. The painting and drawing program at LCAD is well known for its focus on representational art and this is where John saw his technical abilities progress. In May 2004 John graduated from LCAD with a B.F.A. degree and a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.6. After graduation, John pursued the commercial side of art by entering exhibitions, creating commissions, and doing art walks. At the same time he began his career in education, working as an instructional aide, then a substitute teacher. Over the past few years, John has currently focused on a series of large paintings that depict people and landscape he witnessed while on trips to Indonesia during 1997, 1999, 2000, and 2007. Also of importance has been John completing his teaching credential in Art Education at California State University of Long Beach, finishing with an overall G.P.A. of 3.9. He feels that the combination of sound traditional art training in his undergraduate program along with pedagogical strategies learned in his teaching credential program will be essential in educating the youth in Art. "I feel that the skills and knowledge I have learned over the past 20 years ought to be taught to young individuals that are interested not only in Art, but life as well."