Del-Bourree Bach is a jack of all trades—and a master of several. Painter, illustrator, and opera singer, Del is a lifelong artist whose work has captivated audiences from stage, page, and canvas. 

It was Del’s grandfather, an artist and vocalist in the U.S. Army Band, who discovered and nurtured his grandson’s talents. Under his grandfather’s instruction, Del already excelled at drawing by age nine, and was later enrolled in voice lessons. It was no great surprise, then, when Del decided to pursue Fine Art and Voice in college.

During the next 25 years, Del balanced two careers in New York City, singing in opera and musical theater shows while illustrating for clients including the New York Times and E.P. Dutton. It was a true New York hustle, each job demanding his all. “I always say it’s hard enough to make a living in one of the arts, let alone two at the same time, but I scraped through,” he says. “Doing both got me to the three D’s: desire to create, and discipline, which was necessary to meet the third thing, deadlines.”

Del lived by this maxim until the travel commitments required by performing became overwhelming, at which point he pivoted towards fine art. “I liked that I could claim the whole product, which isn’t the case when you’re a single person in a theatrical production,” Del explains. He began to showcase paintings at festivals and local competitions, and for the last 25 years in galleries, both which serve as influences in his artistic career. “I do about 30 competitions a year,” he says. 

Competing proved to be a sound strategic choice as well as an artistic one. Del gained notoriety, earning magazine features, interviews, and increasingly opportune gallery placements. For years, he worked twelve hours per day to establish himself in this new space. He often leaned on a mantra from painter Chuck Close: inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work. “I feel blessed every day that I’m able to do what I do,” he says.

Today Del has replaced city bustle with the coastal calm of Mystic, Connecticut. Nevertheless, influences from his past life remain. Del still favors acrylics, the medium he used as an illustrator. As with his illustrations, his painting style is crisp, clean, and often compared to photography, though that’s not his intention. “I’m trying to go beyond photorealism,” he says. “I’m trying to create a feeling.”

In part, he achieves this by incorporating life into each painting. Sometimes, as in the soaring egret of Wind Surfer, it’s an obvious allusion. But in works like Little Buddy or Grassy Nap, in which worn dinghies languish among reeds, life is present even when creatures are absent. “I like to paint things that show a little history,” explains Del. “A suggestion of life adds atmosphere.” 

Del’s depictions of shallow water are atmospheric in their own right. The texture of his first shallow water painting, which depicted a clammer named Quahog Joe, shocked even himself. After years of refining his technique, Del’s shallow water paintings have become a hallmark of his style.  

A firm believer in giving back, Del is a dedicated volunteer at the Lyme Art Association, the Providence Art Club, and several other art associations throughout New England. He has been active in New York’s Salmagundi Club for 46 years, including as Art Committee Chair and Board Member, and has served as Auctioneer since the late 1990s. Among other honors, he is a Copley Master at Boston’s Copley Society of Art.

Despite his successes, Del considers growth to be a never-ending endeavor. “To find a voice for yourself is the hardest thing to do,” he reflects. “But if it comes from your heart then I think it shows eventually.”   

Del-Bouree Bach’s work can be seen at del-boureebach.com and at Gallery Antonia in Chatham where he will have an opening on August 21st.

~Hannah Kunze