"Chill Factor"

 

 

6 x 8"

oil on panel

sold

Every winter I obsess about wanting snow fall here in Atlanta.  I scroll through the Twitter posts of photos during snowstorms with deep envy.  Hence my inspiration for this new painting - bringing to mind one of my favorite landscapes by Claude Monet, The Magpie.

The low level sun behind the fence. The shadows of icy-blues and lavenders. You can imagine how quiet it was when Monet worked on this winter landscape.  The tiny hint of life of the magpie, perched on the gate completely in its element.  It is a perfect painting.

From the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. 

"It's Curtains For You"

 

 

9 x 12"

oil on panel

sold

 

I remember the first time I saw this painting in the Art Institute of Chicago - Madame Paul Escudier (Louise Lefevre) - I wouldn't have guessed it was by John Singer Sargent.  It's not the classic Sargent portrait.  You have more of the surroundings of the Parisian apartment with more emphasis on the light  and curtains framing the woman.  She's not the dominant feature of the portrait, rather she's part of the composition.  And I love that.

I know very little about Ms. Lefevre other than she was French and Sargent was her choice for the commission.  Turned out this portrayal, subdued as it is, was a big hit in the Paris art world and Sargent's popularity grew larger than it already was.

Please click here for a larger view.

~ Stay safe. Stay healthy. Wear your mask.  Enjoy the brighter days that are ahead.

"Over There"

 

 

7 x 12"

oil on panel

sold

It may surprise you Portrait of Marie Breunig was painted by Gustav Klimt.  Klimt is widely known for his portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer, aka The Lady in Gold. Before Klimt headed the Secession movement in Vienna in 1897, he was a sought-after portrait painter, much like John Singer Sargent.  Simply put, he painted the wealthy in a very classic, conventional style.

"Born in humble circumstances",  Marie Breunig married into wealth.  She was an avid client of the Floge sisters' fashion salon, keeping up with the rest of high society circles.  The Floge sisters were also immortalized in portraits by Klimt, several times.  

Although the Portrait of Marie Breunig belongs to a private collection, it currently in on display at the Belvedere Museum in Vienna, Austria.

For a larger view, click here.