Growing up on 90 acres of farmland in Pavilion NY, Jay Brooks has always had the landscape as an integral part of his life and art. At the young age of 14, Brooks began painting under the classical apprenticeship of John Piesley and the plein air instruction of Charles Movalli, a disciple of the late Emile Gruppe. Brooks was also introduced to the pre-impressionist styles of Corot, George Inness and Asher B. Durand.
