Wise Dan

Shawn Faust is an American painter whose career spans portraiture, equine art, illustration, and contemporary figurative painting. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Delaware in 1990, where intensive study in drawing provided the foundation for his later work. After graduation, Faust established himself as a freelance illustrator and became a prominent architectural illustrator in Delaware. At the same time, he continued pursuing portrait painting, receiving an important early commission in 1992 to paint the official portrait of Delaware Governor Michael Castle. In 1995, he studied oil portraiture with renowned painter Daniel Greene, an experience Faust credits with significantly changing the way he understood and interpreted color. He later returned to formal study and received his MFA in Studio Art from the University of the Arts in 2019.

As Faust’s fine art career developed, the horse became an increasingly important subject. His early equine head studies attracted the attention of prominent Thoroughbred owners and led to commissions that brought him to farms and racetracks throughout the country. His approach remains closely connected to portraiture: anatomy and draftsmanship provide the structure, but character, expression, light, and presence ultimately define the finished painting. This ability to portray the horse as an individual rather than simply as a sporting subject has become one of the defining qualities of his work.

Faust is a Signature Member of the American Academy of Equine Art, a founding member of the Portrait Society of America, and an Associate Member of Oil Painters of America. His work has been exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the United States and internationally, including participation in the 2019 Beijing International Art Biennale in China. His paintings are represented in permanent collections including the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, the National Museum of China in Beijing, and the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum in Washington, D.C., as well as numerous private and corporate collections.