St. Cloud Times — One of Dan Mondloch’s ’87 first memories of painting was when his father was teaching he and his fellow second-graders art lessons as part of a residency. Jim Mondloch came around to each student, one by one, to check the work.
“I was just super stoked about my painting. I was so happy with it. I couldn’t wait for him to see it,” Mondloch said. “He finally got around to me, and he said, ‘Dan, that’s a really nice mountain scene, but today we’re painting a desert.’ ”
(Note: This story cracks Dan Mondloch up, and it was the gentlest of admonishments.)
Years later, when he was in ninth grade, Mondloch told his father that he wanted to take up painting. (Dan’s mother and great-grandfather were artists, too.)
“I woke up the next morning, and out on the kitchen table he had everything I could ever possibly need to paint a picture laid out for me,” he said. “I started painting then and just haven’t really stopped.”
At 32, Mondloch is among the St. Cloud area’s most accomplished current artists. The Apollo High School and St. Cloud State University graduate has racked up numerous awards in art shows, including multiple honors for his recent “plein air” work. Plein air (which in French means open air or outdoors) is when painters stake out a spot outside and paint the scene in front of them.
