Robert Wyland/James Coleman (Born 1956/1949) American, Limited Edition Lithograph. This piece is a collaboration by two great artists with their signature sealife and landscape looks combined. Signed by Coleman in the print upper middle left, signed by Wyland and dated 1992 in the print lower left. Framed. Signed in pencil by Wyland bottom right. Signed in pencil by Coleman bottom left. Numbered 196/950 in pencil bottom left beside Coleman's signature. 

Overall: 28 1/2 x 33 3/8 in. 

Sight: 18 x 22 1/2 in. 

Robert Wyland was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1956. He is active/lives in California, and is known for his lusciously detailed marine life seascapes, as well as his Whaling Wall public art mural. He attended the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit, majoring in painting and sculpture. Upon graduation his professors Jay Holland, Russell Keeter, and Bill Gerard recognized his talent and encouraged him to move to the California coast where he could further develop his art. Wyland, who paints in watercolors and oils, celebrates underwater sea life in his paintings and bronze sculptures. He is also known for his conservation efforts. In 1981 after being frustrated by his attempts to capture whales on canvas he painted his first public art titled, Whaling Wall. After garnering media attention for the artwork he embarked on a quest to complete 100 Whaling Walls by 2011 to raise public awareness of sea life, with the final piece being painted at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 when he was the official artist for the United State Team. In 1993 he founded the Wyland Foundation to promote and protect ocean resources through life-sized public art, educational programs and support for environmental groups. In 1998 the United Nations proclaimed him the official artist for the International Year of the Ocean. 

James Coleman was born in Hollywood, California in 1949. As a youth he soon disregarded his traditional education in favor of cultivating his creative abilities, and became a self-taught artist by the time he graduated high school. A brief additional interest in filmmaking eventually led to his long, successful career in animated films. Over the years his name has become synonymous with images of illuminated skies, lush forests, and sweeping deserts with Impressionistic and Luminist influences that are often referred to as the “Disney look” of the 1960s through the 1990s. Coleman himself in interviews has admitted that he is unsure of whether he was influenced by his time at Disney, or if he perhaps helped define that unique Disney flair, but either way it is his dedication to the company for so long that made his art unique and recognizable to generations of fans. Coleman began working at Walt Disney Studios in the summer of 1969 when his mother, a secretary at Disney, got him a job in the studio’s mailroom. Coleman’s big break came when he entered one of his paintings in the studio’s employee art show. He won the $30 prize, and several of the older Disney artists saw his work and realized Coleman had potential, encouraging him to join them in their animation background painting. Walt Disney Productions gave him his first work painting backgrounds for the 1974 short “Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too!” Discovering an interest in design and color styling, he became the primary background artist for his first full-length feature film, “The Rescuers,” released in 1977. His work led Disney to promote Coleman to Background Department Supervisor, where he helmed the hand-painted backgrounds of 12 feature films and 30 shorts over the next 17 years. After completing the Academy Award-winning “Beauty and the Beast” in 1991 he decided to leave the company to devote himself to original fine art, with galleries in the United States and Asia eagerly seeking to represent him. Today his pieces can be found in collections around the world, including that of the Disney family. In addition to his passion for art, Coleman is a naturalist and environmentalist who supports the National Parks and other environmental organizations, and is a five-year finalist in the Arts for the Parks competition held by the U.S. National Park Service.