I spent my first decade of life in Cambridge, Vermont, which happened to be one of Aldro Hibbard and Emile Gruppe’s favorite places to paint. Both of them died about ten years before my birth, but the same landscape that inspired them inspired me. The small farms, wooded hills, and shallow streams were bursting with inspiration. It was the perfect place to awaken a desire to create. 

I also grew up seeing the artwork of my family members William Trost Richards, Francis Davis Millet, Kathleen McEnery, and most importantly, my grandfather Michael Cunningham. Both my great-grandmother Kathleen and my grandfather Michael passed away seventeen years before I was born. Still, through their paintings, they showed me that a career as an artist was within reach.I studied art with oil painter and illustrator Brian Jekel and other excellent teachers at Pensacola Christian College (PCC). The art classes at PCC focused on representational painting rather than modern art or abstract art. During my four years there, I learned a process for creating a painting that I still use today. Immediately after graduating in 2010, I began my career as a professional artist. 

In 2014 Southwest Art recognized me as an emerging artist in their “21 under 31” article. Since then, my landscape paintings have won awards from the PleinAir Salon, the Portrait Society of America, the Art Renewal Center, and the Oil Painters of America.

Life is more than art, though, and one great benefit of this vocation is the time that I have to enjoy with my family. My wife, Julie, and I share in the joy of three beautiful children. I sign all my paintings with a small PTL (Praise The Lord) under my name. Life is a gift. One I receive with tremendous gratitude.

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Science in Commercial Art -- Pensacola Christian College, Pensacola, FL, 2006 - 2010

HONORS AND AWARDS

2020 Best Overall Painting, December/January bimonthly Plein Air Salon Competition

2019 Finalist, 14th International Art Renewal Center Salon Competition, Port Reading, NJ

2019 Animal Award of Excellence, 28th National Juried Exhibition of Oil Painters of America, St. George, UT

2019 Top 25 Finalist, 8th Annual PleinAir Salon

2018 Best Building, August/September bimonthly Plein Air Salon Competition

2018 Outstanding Composition and Technique Award of Excellence, 27th National Juried Exhibition of Oil Painters of America, Steamboat Springs, CO

2018 Honorable Mention, 13th International Art Renewal Center Salon Competition, Port Reading, NJ

2016 First Place Landscape, 2016 Member’s Only Competition, Portrait Society of America

2016 Honorable Mention, 2016 International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America

2015 Best Overall Oil, October/November bimonthly Plein Air Salon Competition

2015 The BoldBrush Award, October 2015 BoldBrush Painting Competition

2014 Fifth Place, 2014 International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America

2014 Travis H. Toland Memorial Award, The 23rd Annual Juried Art Show, Breckenridge Fine Arts Center, Breckenridge, TX

2013 Exceptional Merit, 2013 International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America

 SOLO SHOWS

2018 Roots, Edgewater Gallery, Stowe, VT

2017 The River, Edgewater Gallery, Middlebury, VT

2013 Adirondack Lake, Edgewater Gallery, Middlebury, VT.

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2019 Landscape Today: First Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Painting, Harrison Center, Indianapolis, IN

2019 Winner’s Circle, Argosy Gallery, Bar Harbor, ME

2019 Nurture, Old Main Gallery, Bozeman, MT

2019 28th National Juried Exhibition of Oil Painters of America, St. George, UT

2018 Rising Stars, Argosy Gallery, Bar Harbor, ME

2018 Summer Salon, Collins Galleries, Orleans, MA

2018 This Land is…, ARCADIA CONTEMPORARY, Pasadena, CA

2018 Exploring Air, Edgewater Gallery, Stowe, VT

2018 27th OPA National Juried Exhibition, Steamboat Art Museum, Steamboat Springs, CO

2017 Five and Under, ARCADIA CONTEMPORARY, Pasadena, CA

2016 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Mountain Oyster Club, Tucson, AZ

2015 “Joseph McGurl, Karen Blackwood, T.J. Cunningham, Marc Dalessio & Friends”, Haynes Galleries, Thomaston, ME

2014 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Mountain Oyster Club, Tucson, AZ

2014 Celebrating the Portrait as Timeless Art, Haynes Galleries, Nashville, TN

2011   Annual Members Show, Southern Vermont Art Center, Manchester, VT

2010 Impressions of New England, The Bennington Art Center, Bennington, VT 

PUBLICATIONS

“What to Know About Painting Snow” PleinAir Magazine, February/March 2019

“Art of the Portrait: Master Showcase” International Artist, August / September 2015

"21 Under 31: Young Artists to Watch in 2014" Southwest Art Magazine, August 2014

“Art of the Portrait: Master Showcase” International Artist, December/January 2014

” The Artist as a Young Man Art Review: T.J. Cunningham at The Art House” Seven Days, August 2010

“Moments of inspiration spark young career” Addison Independent, August 9, 2010