6 x 6"oil on masonite
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There's nothing like a hot day in Atlanta to make me daydream of swimming in the ocean. I took a trip to South Beach a while back, first time I'd ever been. Visually speaking, it was non-stop inspiration for future paintings. Colors that don't present themselves in my normal day. Aquas, blues, purple-blues, yellows, golds - everything seemed intensified, especially from the sun.
9 x 12"oil on masonite
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I love the woman's white coat - surrounded by the golds and greys especially. The painting before her is Rembrandt's "Old Man With a Gold Chain", which hangs in the Art Institute of Chicago.
6 x 6"oil on masonite
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As I got about half way through this painting, it took on a "Clifford Bailey Look". Clifford's artwork is fantastic, lots of exaggerated musicians, very angular and striking. I look at his paintings all the time. These two couples were partying and hob-nobbing at a wine/art event, here in Atlanta.
9 x 12"oil on masonite
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I've been a bit of a computer geek this week, setting up a new system, getting out of the dinosaur days. All hard work, but great fun in the end. Now it's time to get back to painting.
This new piece is of a woman inside the Art Institute of Chicago. She certainly caught my eye - with those colorful pants - every time she stood in front of a painting with the blues and greens, she looked like part of the art. So cool.
This painting can be purchased directly through me.
5 x 7"oil on masonite
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I thought I'd do a small series of party-goers. The setting was very swank, an art/wine event in a beautiful home here in Atlanta where selected artworks, from local galleries, hung all around the rooms and halls, including two of my paintings.
When I was in my mid 20's, I made a promise to myself that as soon as I had some extra money in my pocket, I'd buy a pastel painting by Margaret Dyer. It took until I was around 31, but I did it and I bought two. They are the two most prized possessions I have. I love everything Margaret paints. She has been a major influence on the way I see the figure and color.I wanted to mention Margaret is offering her beautiful pastels on auctions on eBay - what a great opportunity for any of us to collect some of her work. Part of me wants to keep it a secret, so I can be the highest bidder on some of these awesome pieces - but she deserves the best and I wanted to put in a good word for her.
oil on masonite
sold
This may be a little odd for me - to leave out surroundings altogether but, visually speaking, the morning green market was filled with bright, blinding light - and that is what made me notice this woman most of all. So I chose to "spotlight" her, in my own way.
11 x 14"I've kindof gotten lost in this latest painting - when I started it yesterday morning, I thought I must be nuts. All those books.......yikes. It's also one of those paintings where it's hard not to be too 'illustrative'. It's always on my mind to stay loose - get the point done with three brush strokes rather than ten. It's nice to end this day with a finished piece of work that I really am proud of.
Enjoy the weekend wherever you are.
Please click here for a larger view.
9 x 12"oil on masonite
sold
Well.... duty called this week. Lots of work to do at my frame shop. July can be a busy month, I expect because it's too hot to do anything outside so folks work on their insides.
I finished this new painting last night - a young woman sketching the painting before her by Peter Paul Rubens, "The Holy Family with Saints Elizabeth and John the Baptist", which hangs in the Art Institute of Chicago. As a teenager, I spent endless hours in that museum, doing the very same thing.
10 x 8"oil on masonite
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It was probably the rain and the splendid solitude I had in my studio today which prompted me to paint this woman who was enjoying some me-time with a good book. I've painted her a couple of times, I find the image to be so relaxing and Zenlike. The scene was from a park bordering the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC.
approx. 6-1/4 x 6-1/4"acrylic on heavy watercolor paper
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This is a piece I did, I think, around 4 years ago, when I first starting painting again. I had such a hunger to go back to figurative studies, so I tore up all of my old nude photography books and starting working. The human figure is something I really love to paint - clothed or unclothed.
NFSI painted our cat, Bitz, today - she was 17 years old and she was put to sleep this afternoon. She lived outside for years - faithfully coming for breakfast and dinner every single day. She had this funny eye thing when she was relaxed, one would shut, as if she was winking at you. Her mother did the same thing. Years ago, when she slept inside the house, she'd bring in live presents - snakes, birds, chipmunks, butterflies - whatever she could catch, but she'd never kill them. That was always fun. Painting her today made me feel good - she was a great pet and will be missed.
12 x 9"oil on masonite
The painting on the left of the young lady is "The Wrestlers", by George Luks - certainly one of my top-5 favorites in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. It is hung in a small, warm room and faces you dead-on when you walk into the space. It's absolutely breathtaking. The painting the young lady is writing about, the portrait before her, is Robert Henri's "The Irish Girl". I had to wonder why she chose the one over the other for her essay, but beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
This painting can be bought directly from me.
The opening of my show was last Saturday evening, at the 16 Patton Gallery in Asheville. It was actually a dual show - with a North Carolina artist, Mase Lucas, who paints and photographs horses, which are all very striking. I want to thank all who took the time to come and especially took a moment to talk to me. I appreciate all of it.As I was driving home Sunday, I realized a couple of things about how much I have benefited from the opening night. It's not often I get to talk with other artists, and there were a lot of them there. The feedback I get from other painters is so crucial, and I find myself learning more and more. Mostly I find I may be odd - in my choices of paint, my brushes, my medium, that I paint on black, etc. Chalk that up to no formal training - which I sometimes think is a good thing. You tend to find your own preferences and your own way and maybe your own place in the big world of art.
Another huge benefit to having a show is that I can see a collection of my own work in one place - I can see how they all relate to each other - and how people relate to the work. Painting one at a time, framing them, sending them off - I don't get that perspective otherwise. It really blows my mind when I step into the gallery and see the whole presentation. You learn a lot from that. It gives you an idea of how consistant you may or may not be, or how you favor certain colors, or even what may be really right (or wrong) about individual pieces. It also gave me the opportunity to step back and really enjoy all of them as a body of work. That's a cool thing.
It's a commitment, no doubt, to agree to having a show - but the motivation trumps the pressure. I think the benefits are far more than just the sales - it gives you a goal, a push and hopefully some recognition in the end. Anyways...... I'm back at it again today. Thanks again - for all the good wishes and the feedback along the way. I appreciate it all.
9 x 12"oil on masonite
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What I should be doing is finding something to wear at the opening Saturday night - but I wanted to paint instead. My way of staying calm. This new piece is a couple standing close to Vincent Van Gogh's masterpiece "The Starry Night", which hangs in the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City.
I'll be gone for a few days, thanks to all who wished me a great opening. I'm very excited and I'll let you know how it all went as soon as I get back home. Have a good weekend.
6 x 6"oil on masonite
sold
I don't paint many kids - it's tough, I think. This pose was so natural, the slouch, the loose hair, the light from the left. I really wanted to paint her.
This was a young lady in a drawing class held in the High Museum of Art in Atlanta.
When I'm in a public space, outside or inside, and the use of a camera is not an issue, I freely take photographs of everything around me, if I find it interesting. That doesn't require permission from anyone who is captured in a photograph unless I publish that person's image in print, which I don't do. Photographs are a valuable tool for artists, no doubt - to catch action, light, color and figures - but I suggest it is not taken literally when creating a painting or drawing from that photograph. That's just boring to me. Part of the learning process is using references as a way of being somewhat accurate, but giving the scene more of your own interpretation.
I do enjoy painting people in museums, as you can see - and there are policies in each and every museum which I am totally aware of before I step through the door. Most privately-run museums forbid any use of cameras, obviously because the artworks are privately owned or on loan. A lot of special exhibitions are off limits to photography for the same reasons. If you're interested in using your camera inside of any space, I'd suggest you pay close attention to the rules and always be as non-invasive as possible. Simple as that.
12 x 9"oil on masonite
I had a busy week getting all the paintings framed for the show - and Asheville's close enough that I can pack up my truck and deliver everything in one afternoon, which is all done. What a great feeling of accomplishment. Just a reminder, please come by the 16 Patton Gallery if you're in Asheville. It's a very nice place to visit.
This new painting will be available in the Cohen-Rese Gallery, in San Francisco - museum visitors enjoying the Pissarro paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago.
Please click here for a larger view and purchase information.
