"The Man in Black"

6 x 8"

oil on panel
sold

When I was in high school some 40 years ago, I was obsessed with figure drawing.  I'd cut school, take the train to downtown Chicago, with sketchbooks and pens in hand, and spend mornings in the Amtrak lounge in Union Station then afternoons at the Art Institute of Chicago.  I drew hundreds of people sitting, eating, standing or lounging until I had to head back home.  

So if anyone wonders where this subject matter of painting people looking at art - I started it years ago.  And sometimes, like with this new painting, it's all about the people.  I credit my mom, an artist herself, with the great pastime, people watching.  

This gentleman caught my eye immediately.  His tall, slender figure was striking.  Especially clad in all black and topped with his handsome felt hat.  I live for figures like his.  

Although minor here, the artwork the man in black is viewing is a relief sculpture of Alexander the Great, done in 1485 by the artist Andrea del Verrocchio, in the National Gallery of Art in DC.

"The Picasso"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

In 1963, the great Pablo Picasso was commissioned to create a public art sculpture by the architects of the Richard J. Daley Center in the loop in Chicago.  Picasso completed a maquette, or a small-scale version, featured in my new painting.  The cost of the 50-foot sculpture was $351,959 (equivalent to $2.7 million in present day) - paid for thru foundations and gifted from the artist himself to the city of Chicago.  The maquette resides in the Art Institute of Chicago, also gifted by Picasso.

The Chicago Picasso, known as The Picasso, was dedicated in 1967 by the Mayor Richard Daley ...

... and met with mixed reactions.  The famed journalist Mike Royko ripped it to shreds in his newspaper column, saying "The fact is, it has a long stupid face and looks like some giant insect that is about to eat a smaller, weaker insect.  Its eyes are like the eyes of every slum owner who made a buck off the small and weak.  And of every building inspector who took a wad from a slum owner to make it all possible."  Quintessential Mike Royko.

Mayor Daley responded, at the dedication, saying "We dedicate this celebrated work this morning with the belief that what is strange to us today will be familiar tomorrow."

And it is familiar to anyone who lives in Chicago or has visited - or has watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off or The Blues Brothers.  It's a well-known "meet me at the Picasso" spot, enjoyed by the public with a farmer's market surrounding it in the plaza and many seasonal affairs.  So there Mike Royko.

"Chin Up"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

You might have run across Edgar Dega's sculpture of the young ballerina in several different art museums.  You're not crazy.  This Little Dancer, Aged Fourteen resides in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.  When I visited the museum, it was not encased in a glass box, which made a huge difference in appreciating this perfect figurative sculpture.  And I mean perfect.

Degas painted young ballet dancers numerous times.  At rehearsals, stretching exercises and lessons in ballet studios.  He drew them in pastels and charcoal, painted them in oils.  The model for Little Dancer was Marie van Goethem who posed for the only sculpture exhibited in Dega's lifetime in 1881.  Little Dancer was originally executed in wax and later cast in bronze around 1922, after Dega's death.  Which is why you maybe have seen one yourself.

"High Noon"

8 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

It's been my observation that men really like this Portrait of Balzac by Auguste Rodin.  The sculpture stands in the large French Impressionism gallery in the Art Institute of Chicago, strikingly bolder than the oil paintings by Renoirs and Degas, to name a few.

The Portrait of Balzac was one of several bronze sculptures commissioned by a literary society in the 1890's, in honor of the famous French novelist Honore de Balzac.  Rodin immersed himself in studying the writer - reading all his books, visiting his birthplace and studying all known existing portraits.  It took Rodin seven years before he created this particular one - intending to stress Balzac's 'vitality and candor' in a full nude portrait that was immediately rejected by the literary society and the public at large.

This rejection, among others, didn't prevent Rodin from becoming the most famous artist in the world at the beginning of the 20th century.  He is best known for the marble sculpture The Kiss and the bronze, The Thinker.   Not to mention there's an entire museum in Philadelphia, the Rodin Museum, devoted to the man. 

"It's That Way"

8 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

The woman here is seemingly taking a cue from Pointing Man by Alberto Giacometti in the Museum of Modern Art.  My mom, who was a painter, printmaker and occasional sculptor,  L-O-V-E-D Giacometti.  I was introduced to this artist at a very young age, by my mom, who taped up dozens of his works on the wall of her studio.

Giacometti was born in Switzerland in 1901, took on formal training in the arts during the era of Cubism and the craze of tribal art - much like Pablo Picasso.  He dabbled in Surrealism for a while, broke off from that to the emergence of Existentialism.  He created small, thin figurative sculptures which took off because of the overall dismal, suffering atmosphere from World War II, and he became quite the popular artist of that time.

His works evolved all through the 50's and 60's, during which time he painted numerous portraits, which my mom was crazy over.  I am too.

"Hammered"

5 x 7"

oil on panel
sold

From the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC - a woman stands in front of the hammered-bronze sculpture Knife Edge Mirror Two Piece by Henry Moore.

"Head and Shoulders"

6 x 8"

oil on panel
sold

Since I was a teenager, I've been fascinated with realism - or in this case, hyper-realism.  Just the idea of how an artist executes the artwork boggles my mind.  You see paintings in museums that look like a photograph, so precise it's staggering.  I wanted to do that for years, until I realized I wasn't up to it.  I'm more interested, now, in realism with a looser style - although you'll notice some paintings lean tighter and some, like much of these smaller pieces I frequently auction, are more painterly.  It keeps me sane.

The hyper-realism sculpture I feature in this new painting is by Evan Penny titled 'Old Self: Portrait of the Artist as He Will (Not) Be'.  Not only is this work of art insanely precise, down to every wrinkle and whisker and fold, the cast of shadows under the strong lighting is so very cool - not to mention the reactions of the museum patrons.  Evan Penny has a great website and on the Crystal Bridges Museum's website, you can read 'A Conversation With Evan Penny' that will give you insight of the artist's thoughts.

"Mystic" (study)

6 x 8"

oil on panel

sold

And now for peace....

The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC is home to this beautiful, wooden sculpture 'Saint John of the Cross (San Juan de la Cruz)' - commissioned in 1675 by a convent near Seville, Spain to a 21-year-old artist named Francisco Antonio Gijon.  The contract survived all these years, stating the work was to be made of cypress supplied by the monks and be finished in less than two months time.

Yikes.

Saint John of the Cross was a 16th century Spanish mystic, imprisoned for pushing reform of his Carmelite order - his imprisonment inspired some of the most admired poetry and spiritual verses ever written in Spanish.  The mystic figure holds a quill on one hand and a book with a model of a mountain surmounted by a cross in the other - referring to his 'The Ascent of Mount Carmel'.

This 6-1/2' sculpture will bring you to your knees.

~ Happy Spring

"How Thoughtful"

5 x 7"

oil on panel
sold

I'm so very pleased with this painting I did today.  It's just the right balance of tight and loose.  Yay.

From the side garden outside of the Art Institute of Chicago.

"Head of Parks & Recreation"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Today I loosened up with a fun piece - and continuing on with my series ATL to NYC & Back, we left the High Line, made our way through the chaos of a parade and headed to Madison Square Park for some peace. I love that park. It's filled with happy dogs and a great people-watching stop. I had read about this new installation, commissioned for Madison Square Park, by the Spanish sculptor Jaume Plensa titled 'Echo' - in person, it's just delightful.

"Tiny Dancers"

12 x 12"

oil on masonite
sold

Degas' 'Little Dancer' is always a chick magnet in any museum - the Philadelphia Museum of Art has an unobstructed view of the sculpture, which is quite pleasing. The painting behind the little patron is Monet's 'The Sheltered Path'.

Please click here for a larger view.

Have a great holiday -

"Cloud Gate"

11 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

I've painted Cloud Gate several times in different perspectives - it's a subject that is somewhat daunting to paint or draw but I've learned to tackle it in steps. I don't always approach a painting that way - in this case you almost have to. Your head is spinning at first, too many things to render and on top of that, shapes are warped, which goes against the logic. That's why I chose this as my weekly challenge on my Different Strokes From Different Folks Blog. If you're game, I urge you to take your time - but persevere (by definition - to persist in or remain constant to a purpose, idea, or task in the face of obstacles or discouragement). You'll be surprised at what you can do.

Cloud Gate, also known as 'The Bean', resides in Millennium Park in Chicago.

Speaking of challenges, last week's miniature white pumpkins reaped 93 different versions. I am really proud of all the participants - please visit the blog to see all the wonderful works of art.

"Shoulder To Shoulder"

9 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

Something new to show you today - doing my best to catch up on some gallery pieces. This young lady was standing shoulder to shoulder with the French sculpture 'Bust of an African Woman' by Charles Henri Cordier, inside the Art Institute of Chicago.

Please click here for a larger view.

"Opening"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

I couldn't resist using Opening for the letter O, continuing on with my alphabet series. This was taken from the opening reception of my show, a couple of weeks ago, at the Howard/Mandville Gallery. There was a nice, casual feel that night - and this painting needed to reflect that. The man portrayed in the scene was so kind to mention he watched my YouTube videos - I remember when I got back to my hotel room that night, it dawned on me that I reach a lot of people with what I do. And occasionally I have the pleasure of meeting those people in person, way across the globe. It really does make me proud.

"Enormous"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

Continuing on with the alphabet, E is for Enormous - specifically the ten-foot-long sculpture "Tiber", the river god accompanied by Romulus and Remus, the twin founders of Rome. This colossal piece is currently on view at Atlanta's High Museum of Art, borrowed from the Louvre.

"Stand By"

7 x 5"

oil on masonite

This little painting was done for a fund-raising event called Postcards from the Ledge, held in Asheville, North Carolina. Sponsored by the city's Public Art Board, postcard-size artwork will sell for $25 each. If you're interested in donating a work of art or would like to attend this event, click here for details.

"Spit and Image"

9 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

This is one of those moments captured - where I wonder if I can pull it off and how would it come across as brush strokes. Such a fun painting to do. A kid laying under the reflective sculpture "Cloudgate", a major attraction in Chicago's Millennium Park.

This new painting will be included in my July show at 16 Patton, in Asheville.

Please click here for a larger view.

"The Bean IV"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

Chicago's my favorite city, no doubt, and "The Bean" is my favorite stop. And one of my all-time favorite subjects to paint. Officially titled "Cloudgate", it sits in Millennium Park and draws in people like honey to a bee.

This subject is great to paint for a couple of reasons - certainly it's fun and challenging, in that it's made up of shapes and colors, warped and unreal - so the challenge is to rely on your eyes to make all the shapes and curves and colors make sense in the end. Which, I guess, is what the challenge of painting is, no matter what you're depicting.

"Woman To Woman"

16 x 8"

oil on masonite

sold

I let a perfect spring day pass by today - I really did want to paint. That's a good thing. There'll be plenty of those days ahead.

This is somewhat of a backed-up view of museum visitors and I like that. I found the women, as a group, more interesting than singling out anyone in particular. The room filled with French artworks is in the Legion of Honor, in San Francisco.

Click here if you'd like a larger view and purchase info.

"Bent Out of Shape"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

Picking up where I left off - I spent the next three or so hours in the Legion of Honor Museum, a somewhat small collection, but so worth it. This gentleman was admiring a modern sculpture, I wish I knew the artist but all I know is the Picasso in the background. I enjoy these figurative paintings both for the art and I get to play with the texture and folds and colors of clothing on a person. I'm always interested in getting that weight of the coat or flow of the skirt. I also like the relationship of the man with the bent and rigid form of the sculpture.