Van H. Treat is a native of one of the most art-conscious areas of the country. Born in San Francisco in 1941, he graduated from high school in Carmel, California in 1959. He attend California College of Arts and Crafts, and Oklahoma State University. After a three year tour with the United States Army, he enrolled in the prestigious Brooks Institute of Photography, in Santa Barbara, California, graduating with a major in Illustration. Van spent the next 17 years as a professional, in the area of research and industrial photography. During this time he confined his love of painting, to late nights, and exhibiting at week-end festivals. In 1986, the avocation became a full-time vocation. Over the years, Van has won many First Place and Best of show awards at exhibitions all across the country.

Van has spent years perfecting his impeccable dry brush watercolor technique. Preferring not to be labeled a regional painter, he gathers his subject matter from location across the country. He uses his extensive knowledge of photography and composition to aid him in capturing the basic scene on film for further study in the studio. His highly detailed paintings, reflect his mastery of composition and draftsmanship, requiring long hours of intense designing, drawing, and painting to achieve his distinctive and recognizable style. His art is a dramatic interplay of stark settings, and serene moods, intensified by his expressive handling of light and shadow, on rural and maritime themes.

Van's paintings have been compared to such greats as; Andrew Wyeth, and Eric Sloan, both in style and content. A long-time friend of Van's, from his Carmel days, Donald Teague, personalized his book to Van by saying 'Van picked the most fascinating medium of all, and knows how to handle it...' a high compliment from the Dean of American Watercolorists.

Van and his wife Fannie, live in the shadows of the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee, and Van's limited edition prints and Original Watercolors can be found in finer galleries across the country. You can also visit with Van in his working studio at Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

"Van H. Treat is an artist who invites you to walk through the woods, meander up long deserted pathways, pull up a rock, and sit beside a running stream...There is no Illusion here. His places are real...VERY real."