About the Owners:
Dan & Zuleica Thornton...
Dan Thornton received his Bachelor of Art degree along with his Utah State
Secondary Education Teaching Certificate from Brigham Young
University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. While attending BYU, he worked part time as an art instructor
for the Mesa College Continuing Education program in Montrose, Colorado; and as it was called at that time, the Utah Valley Community College Continuing Education program on the Provo and Orem campuses in Utah. Upon his graduation,
he hired on as a fulltime high school art and special education teacher for Provo School
District in Provo, Utah.
In the summer of 1990, Dan left teaching to become a fulltime, self-employed
artist. He worked nine years as a free-lance artist
supporting his family: his wife Zuleica and their four children. During these nine years, Dan became an activist in
environmentally-sustainable community master planning, design, and development. He
was a principal designer and team player in the innovation and construction of an Agrarian
City planned community model that demonstrated an affective combination of agricultural,
commercial, residenial, and industrial development centered around pedestrian-friendly infrastructures made to coexist with nature in a
sustainable green habitat.
In 1998, Dan and Zuleica moved their family from Provo, Utah, to St. Joseph, Missouri,
where they now reside. Dan went literally to the sky when he hired on
with United Airlines and became a Flight Attendant. Today he flies the
world, takes notes; and when he's home he
catches up with his family, house, and his art.
Zuleica has taken on a most noble responsibility working as a stay-home mom. She successfully homeschooled each of their four
children. Three have gone on to college: two have attended BYU Provo, one graduated with a BFA in fine art painting and drawing; and the third
is attending BYU Idaho. Their youngest son enters High School next year.
Zuleica would rather have shuttled the kids and run errands by gondola or motoscafo than to have been a taxi mom, but after 28 years of raising her family in America, she has endured driving the mini van on traffic-infested boulevards and highways. Zuleica Brega
is from Venice, Italy. She studied art & humanities at CaFoscari University in Venice. From her youth she experienced the fine art
of Italy and has developed a keen eye for aesthetic good taste. Zuleica's artistic notariety comes from her oil painting depictions of
Italian country side and community life. She his currently painting new Italian village and landscape scenes.
Together they are well traveled having visited Austria, Belgium,
Brazil, Canada, China, England, Egypt, France, Germany, Holland, Hong
Kong, Israel, Italy, Japan, and Switzerland not to mention coast to coast travels
throughout the United States -- broadening their perspective on arts and cultures, people, the world, and things.
The Gallery's future...
The Thornton Gallery now provides art collectors and patrons the opportunity to own authentic signed and numbered giclée
reproductions of Dan Thornton's work. ARTEXC (the abbreviated name and logo for "Art Excellence,") is a canvas printing and online
distribution company committed to providing it's customers the best in Art Excellence. ARTEXC ensures professional giclée
printing on high resolution canvases and fine art papers. This arrangement made with Thornton Gallery and ARTEXC.com will guarantee
more collectors and patrons access to authentic signed and numbered, limited-edition prints, which ultimately will increase the
demand and market value of Thornton's original paintings. |
