Aaron Krone
The world is shaped by action, and personal resolutions emerge from deep reflection, where individuals carefully weigh their options before committing to a course of action. The Thinking Man by Aaron Krone visually encapsulates this intense moment of contemplation.
Aaron’s artwork naturally invites comparison with the bronze sculpture by Auguste Rodin, one of the most iconic representations of intellectual reflection. While both artworks focus on an individual lost in thought, their stylistic approaches and emotional impacts differ significantly. Rodin’s piece is muscular and idealized, emphasizing physical strength as a metaphor for intellectual power. The figure in Rodin’s sculpture is hunched over, with furrowed brows and clenched toes, reflecting both mental and physical tension. In contrast, Aaron’s version is more introverted and subdued.
Krone’s piece depicts a man contemplating his next moves, gazing into space with his chin resting on his hand—a classic pose for someone immersed in thought. The slightly off-center positioning of the figure draws our attention to this gesture. The artist chose charcoal for the portrait, which helps create a dramatic chiaroscuro effect—an interplay of light and shadow that reinforces the weight of the subject’s thoughts. The monochromatic palette enhances the atmosphere of absorption and focus. As the famous American commercial and documentary photographer Elliott Erwitt noted, “Colour is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.”
The contrast between deep blacks and smudged grays creates depth and texture, avoiding a rough sculptural form while overlaying angular, geometric lines with a certain haziness. The interplay of dark and light defines the contours of the figure’s face, emphasizing wrinkles and an intense stare that reveals an ongoing inner monologue. The image merges stillness with the expressive texture of charcoal, capturing the essence of personal resolution—the unfolding transition from thought to action.
Aaron Krone is a visual artist and educator with a B.A. from Friends University in Wichita, Kansas, and an MFA from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas. He is an Associate Professor of Studio Arts at Friends University, teaching compositional design, painting, art history, and life drawing. Krone has an extensive exhibition record, having participated in over 270 international competitions and numerous national exhibitions between 2019 and 2023. His work has garnered multiple awards, including First Place in the Gallery Ring Open International Competition, Talent Prize Awards in the Taravarna Figurative and Portrait Exhibits, and Fifth Place in the 2023 World Art Awards (Impressionism: Human Category). Additionally, he has received multiple Judges’ Choice honours, Crystal Awards of Merit, and Honorable Mentions in juried exhibitions such as the Blue Koi Gallery Nature Competition and the Grey Cube Gallery Faces Competition.
Aaron Krone is the Bronze Artist of the ArtAscent Resolutions call for artists. To see the full body of work and profile, get a copy of the 2025 ArtAscent Art & Literature Journal Resolutions issue.
