Realism: Remembered

visitor checking out Teresa Fischer's paintings

Before I get started I have to report that when I downloaded my images from the show last night, half of them had been corrupted, so a lot of the artists I wanted to spotlight got lost in a digital wasteland. If it's any consolation, this includes myself. None of the photos of my wall were salvageable. The photo above shows one of the visitors checking out Teresa Fischer's work, and if you look through the doorway you can see one of Paul Cadden's amazing pencil drawings.

taking home a copy of one of Jelaine Faunce's paintings

Mark, Kelly and Andrea did a great job putting this show together. The weather was perfect, the turnout was huge and for a few lucky artists profitable. Abby Ryan, Teresa Fischer, Sally Tharp, Marc Chatov and Karen all had red dots by the end of the evening. Congratulations!

admiring the work of Jeff Hayes

It was great talking to the visitors. Everyone was very nice and complimentary of my contributions to the show. It's great to hear that people appreciate what you do. I have to say, for me, the best aspect of the evening was having the chance to get reacquainted with old friends I haven't seen in a while. Lots of friends made the effort to drive in and for me that made the night. Thank you all for coming!

he spent a lot of time viewing the work of Alvin Richard

The show will run through the first week in May, and hopefully somewhere during that time a red dot will show up on one of my paintings. If I can get one on the Mule or the B-25 I will view that as a sign that it's okay to paint another, and I really want to paint another.

stopping to view the work of Michael Naples and Abby Ryan

Now I'm back to work full-time painting for the show at Tree's Place in July. I've got a number of pieces complete, but still have a way to go. I've got three in rotation on the easel right now and will post and image of the first one done in a day or so.

Realism at Mason Murer Fine Art

Friday evening is the opening reception of the Realism Show at Mason Murer Fine Art. Karen and I delivered our paintings yesterday, and did a walk around to see what had already been hung. There are a lot of beautiful paintings on those walls! The weather for that night looks to be perfect, so hopefully there will be a good turn out. I'll be bringing my little point and shoot camera. If I get some good pix I'll post some of them in the days following the reception. If you're in the neighborhood, stop by.

B-25: Complete

24 x 72 oil on canvas

The B-25 is complete. I can't believe I was able to finish it in time for the Realism Show at Mason Murer. Opening night reception is April 8th, and this should give me enough time for the painting to dry and maybe get a coat of varnish on it as well.

detail: nose section

This is by far the largest and most complex painting I've ever done, and I have to say, I've developed a taste for large and complex. I really hope there's a market out there for something like this because I'd love an opportunity to paint this subject much more often.

detail: left engine nacelle and prop

Even though my career as an aircraft mechanic only lasted a few years, I could easily imagine myself in the presence of this plane as I was painting it. All the sights, sounds and smells of working on the flight line came back . . . and it was great. I still kind of miss it.

Now it's time to reduce the scale and get back to work for the July show at Tree's Place on Cape Cod. I'll be shipping them the first five paintings within the week, and should have an image of their sixth painting ready to post in the next few days.

Karen's First Book: WindowScapes

Karen and I have been working together to assemble a collection of her WindowScapes paintings into a book. We used blurb, an online book creation/publication website that I used for my first book, Paintings in Oil. Her "proof" copy arrived a few days ago, and it's top notch. I don't know how blurb does it so much better than other book creation sites, but the images are a spot on match to the originals. It's a 12 x 12 inch hardback book with a dust jacket and contains 39 of Karen's favorite windowscapes paintings. If you'd like to preview the entire book and make a purchase click here.

B-25 in Progress: Days Six, Seven and Eight

24 x 72 oil on canvas

Finished up the underpainting of the fuselage last night, which completes the first pass. Eight days in so far. I'm really working hard on this one trying to stay ahead of the deadline. Not sure at this point if I'll make or not, but doing what I can. One possible scenario, it may have to go to the gallery wet and unvarnished. Worse case scenario, it's not done. Back to work on the sky today, and if I'm lucky I'll be able to spend some time on the right wing as well. This may be the last of the in progress shots. I don't think the changes will be pronounced enough to justify further posts. I'll probably hold off and post a high quality jpeg of the final painting when it's complete.

B-25 in Progress: Days Four & Five

24 x 72 oil on canvas

Days four and five on the B-25. One day each on the underpainting for the engine nacelle's. Today I'll start work on the fuselage. When I've got that done, I'll probably do the second pass on the sky, then return to the wings for their next pass.

B-25 in Progress: Day Three

24 x 72 oil on canvas

Day three on the B-25. Finished up the underpainting on the wings. Now it's on to the engine nacelle's and props, then the fuselage.

B-25 In Progress: Day One

24 x 72 oil on canvas

For people who regularly paint large this wouldn't appear all that impressive, but for me gazing upon a canvas that requires two easels to support is a pretty daunting scene. This piece also comes with the added pressure of a deadline. It has to be completed in three weeks if it's to be ready for the Realism show at Mason Murer on April 8th. Suffice it to say, I'm freaking out. On the other hand, this is a subject I've wanted to paint for ever. It combines my love of flying and vintage aircraft with my love of painting.

One more side note about the Realism show, my nephew called the other night to tell me that he saw my Mule No.2 in an ad in Atlanta magazine promoting the show at Mason Murer. Karen and I went out the next day and picked up a copy. Andrea at the gallery creates all their ads and she did a great job. She's got a great eye for design and the use of type. It's wonderful seeing my paintings in print. I still can't believe that I get to do this for a living. It took fifty years and three previous career moves, but it was worth the wait.

Ketchup No.2: Complete

16 x 20 oil on hardboard panel

I am really tempted to continue on and work this one to death, but Karen says, "it's done, move on". If I didn't have a deadline on the next painting, I'd probably override her suggestion and keep refining it. I'm sure she's right. The added work I'd put into this one would probably be lost on everyone else in the world. I had some trouble getting a good photo of this one. It's a bit darker than in person, but it's close. Now it's onto the next piece. Hopefully I'll have an in progress shot in the next few days.

Stacked Blocks: Complete

5 7/8 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

On some occasions the first pass of a painting comes very close to a completed piece. At least it appears that way in the image I post here on my blog. In the flesh, they do look more distinct. Stacked Blocks is a good example of this. The in progress image and the jpeg of the completed painting look very similar on the computer monitor, but the finished painting is, in actuality, much more developed. I've been working on the second Ketchup Bottle for the last few days and I'm facing that same situation with it. Any in progress post at this point would be very hard to discern from it's predecessor, so I'm holding off until it's complete to show the final pass. My next painting will be a very large and complex one and I think it will work better as an in progress piece. If it takes as long as I think it will, you may all be pretty sick of seeing it by the time it's done.

My First Book and Prints for Sale

Inspired by the years of successful sales Karen has had with her prints, and also by Karin Jurick and her new book 100 Faces BUST-ED, I've decided to venture into the realm of both. Utilizing Gallery Street, the same production company Karen uses for her fine art giclée prints, I've selected a few of my favorite paintings to offer as prints. The quality of the work produced at Gallery Street is outstanding and I'm very happy with the first set of proof prints. These will be offered on canvas, in multiple sizes, stretched or un-stretched and on paper as well. I will be adding to the list of paintings offered as prints in the future. I have also included an option to request a print of any painting from my site, the only stipulation being I may not have an image of adequate quality of every painting to produce a satisfactory print. I will have to do a search of my archive for an image of the requested painting, then have a proof print done. Hopefully this will result in a high quality print, but this may not always be the case.

I've also decided to put together a book. I had created a couple of books in the past using various online production companies, but was never completely satisfied with the results. Karin told me that she has just produced 100 Faces using blurb and was very happy with her book, so I took a few days and put together a collection of 39 images painted over the last few years. I have to say when my copy arrived I was extremely happy with the quality of the printing and the construction. The images of the paintings were spot on. If this book proves to be even a modest success, I'll definitely put together a second volume. I have a large (13 x 11 inch) hardback coffee table version with a dust jacket and a smaller (10 x 8) softcover version as well. If you click on the links they will redirect you to the blurb site where you can preview the entire book, and if you choose, make a purchase.

I'll be finishing up the final pass on the Stack of Blocks today. I'll post an image tomorrow of the completed painting, then it's back to the large Ketchup Bottle.

Stacked Blocks in Progress: Day Two

5 7/8 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

It's no secret that I'm very fond of the Dick Blick cradled hardboard panels, but there are some gaps in the sizes they offer. One of my favorite sizes is the 12 x 24, which falls into that category. So, I took one of their 18 x 24's and cut it down. The larger section was used for the first Ketchup Bottle, and I worked out the composition above for the long skinny remaining piece. It is a very odd size, but I think it works. The first pass represents two days work. I think I'll offer it to Tree's Place for my show in July. Hopefully they'll like it.

Condiments in Progress: First Pass

16 x 20 oil on hardboard panel

I've got another couple of paintings in the works at the moment. One is the new Ketchup Bottle above and the second is another Blocks piece. The under-painting on the Ketchup took three days and the first pass on the Blocks will be completed today. I'll post an image of it tomorrow. When these two are finished I'll begin a new large painting for Mason Murer Fine Art. It may be the most intensive painting I've tried to do yet but if it works out the way I hope, could wind up being one of my favorites. I really enjoy painting cars and airplanes, and this new piece will be an aircraft I shot at a recent airshow. It's going to be a challenge, and I readily admit I'm pretty apprehensive about its' size and complexity. If I take my time, it could pleasurable as well. I just need to get my head in the right place and have fun with it.

Orange Bowl: Complete

12 x 12 oil on hardboard panel

The oranges (actually Clementines) took more time to finish up than I anticipated, but the variation between each days progress was so subtle that there wasn't much point in putting up an interim blog post. Figured I'd hold off, then post the completed painting. The image here doesn't show it very well, but I believe I got a little closer, in this piece, to achieving the elusive goal I have set for myself of painting porcelain "correctly". The translucentyness of that surface is really tough for me, but one of these days I'm going to get it right.

I've got another ketchup bottle in the works. I'll put up some "in progress" images in the next day or so. It's a little bigger than the previous piece at 16 x 20. This one has a pair of salt and pepper shakers incorporated into the composition. Glass and shiny metal . . . nuff said.

Blocks with Spyglass: Complete

12 x 16 oil on hardboard panel

I switched up the order a little and decided to work on the Blocks first rather than the Orange Bowl. I have to say, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. Makes me want to incorporate the magnifying glass into more compositions.

I'm currently working out the details for a show in July at my new gallery in Orleans Massachusetts. The gallery is called Tree's Place. I was contacted by them a few weeks ago about coming on board and possibly having a one man show. If all goes as planned, it will be held there July 8th. This, the Ketchup Bottle and the Orange Bowl will be the first paintings slated for the show.

I've wanted to show at Tree's Place for sometime. Karen and I were in Cape Cod for a show a few years ago, and in our travels around the cape we stumbled upon their gallery. Coincidentally the gallery and we were both featured in separate articles in that months issue of American Art Collector and when we introduced ourselves they knew who we were. They were all very nice and we had a great visit that day.

I'll be mixing up the destinations of the next couple of paintings. I've got compositions ready to paint for Stricoff Fine Art and Mason Murer Fine Art. When those are done I'll get back to producing more work for the Tree's Place show. Now . . . back to the oranges.

Ketchup Complete

12 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

I've been slogging away at the second pass on this piece for about a week now and I feel it's (nearly) complete. There's just a couple of dabs here and there I think it still needs, but all in all, I thought it was close enough to go ahead and post the image and call it done. The final disposition of this painting is yet to be determined. I should know in a couple of days if it's going where I hope it's going. I'll confirm it, most likely, in my next post.

Now it's back to the Oranges. I've commented a number of times in previous posts that related to paintings of porcelain that I have struggled to achieve the wonderful translucent creamieness of that surface. Duane Keiser does it beautifully. The bowl containing the oranges puts me back at that place once more. I've never really recreated that surface to my satisfaction and hope with this piece I can get a little closer. Karen showed me a technique that I used on the Ketchup Bottle that may get me there. We'll see.

Blocks with Spyglass in Progress: Day Two

12 x 16 oil on hardboard panel

I got sidetracked yesterday on other matters and didn't have time to finish up the underpainting on the blocks, but I got an early start today and was able to complete the first pass. I don't think the second pass on this one will be too difficult. I love doing these blocks, especially with the magnifying glass as part of the composition. Tomorrow I'll return to the Ketchup Bottle. I'm excited and fearful simultaneously with that one. I just need to reject any notion of finishing it quickly and just take my time. I tend, on occasion, to get wrapped up in the desire to complete a painting in a hurry, rather than just allow whatever time is needed and enjoy the process. My goal tomorrow is to chill out and embrace that philosophy.

Blocks with Spyglass in Progress: Day One

12 x 16 oil on hardboard panel

While the Ketchup Bottle and the Oranges are drying I began a third piece to put into the rotation. I did a version of the Blocks with spyglass once before and wanted to revisit it. I reached this point on the first day, and I'm hoping that I can finish up the first pass today. If I can do that, I'll be able to return to the Ketchup tomorrow. That one is going to be a challenge. Working with the labels and all that type is worrisome. Hope I can get it right.

I also wanted to put in a plug for Karin Juricks' new easel. It was designed and built by her boyfriend Brett. She's been painting on the original version for seven years now, loves it, and they've decided to market them. So far it's been very successful. The first two runs each sold out in a matter of days. They're currently busy building more.

To take a more in-depth look, including additional images and a description of it's features, click here. If you're in the market for a table top easel check this one out. If you decide to buy one they are being sold through Karin's ebay store.

Orange Bowl in Progress: Day One

12 x 12 oil on hardboard panel

While the Ketchup Bottle is drying I started work on a second painting. The first pass on it went a little faster than I anticipated, so now I'm beginning a third painting to work on until these two dry for their second pass. I'm still trying to figure out which of my current images will be number three. I should have an "in progress" post on that in the next day or so.

Ketchup in Progress: Day Two

12 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

Day Two. Just blocking in the reds and beginning to define the bottle. Long way to go yet. I'll be setting this one aside for a couple of days until the red dries, then I'll start in on the second pass.

Ketchup In Progress: Day One

12 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

It's been so long since I actually painted that I feel a bit like Rip Van Winkle just awakened and it may take a little while to get my sea legs back. The last few weeks have been filled with the holidays, unexpected dental work, snow and lots of photography, so it's definitely not been a vacation. It does feel really good to have a brush in my hand again, and I'm looking forward to working on some of my new images.

I've been a fan of Ralph Goings since forever and I always loved his paintings of diners and particularly his still life paintings of condiments on the counter. These nearly always included bottles of Heinz Ketchup . . . so, I wanted to try one myself as a sort of homage. The problem is you can't buy Heinz Ketchup in those bottles any longer, so finding one presented a problem. Fortunately a local diner, The OK Cafe (one of our favorite places to eat) still has them on the tables, and the staff there was kind enough to give me two empty bottles (cleaned up nicely) at no charge. All I had to do was fill them up again. Above is the first day's work, and I'll continue to put up a series of images as the piece progress's.

Karen: Cover & Article The Laurel of Asheville

Karen has her work on the cover and a feature article in the January 2011 issue of The Laurel of Asheville Magazine. The article is accompanied by three of her paintings and there is a fourth on the table of contents page.

Paul Howey wrote the article and did a really nice job of piecing together Karen's responses to his questions. Karen and I were astonished at the quality of the printing. We've both been in magazines before, and usually the reproductions of the paintings is very poor. Whoever printed these did a great job.

I'm still doing a lot of photography, and searching out new objects for future paintings. I have to say I'm really itching to get back to the easel and do some painting. Tonight we're going to the Marietta Square to attend the opening night reception at DK Gallery of our friend Jeanie Tomanek. She's such an amazing person, and great painter. If we had more money our house would be filled with Jeanie's paintings.

Spinning Straw - 60x48 - oil on canvas

Addendum: We had a great time at Jeanie's show last night. Attendance was high and her work looked great. Donna, Amber and the rest of the team at DK Gallery did a terrific job of hanging the show and working the crowd. Before we left, Spinning Straw (above) had a red dot. Congrats, Jeanie.

After the show ended Karen and I were invited over to Jeanie's house, along with a small group of her oldest friends, to hang out and take part in a tasting of a variety of Italian standards prepared by Jeanie's husband Dennis. A true renaissance man, phenomenal chef and all round great guy. It was a wonderful evening.

First Post of 2011

A couple of newsworthy items to start the new year.

First off, Karen was invited to have her work shown in Gallery ArteLibre's fifth annual volume, Arte y Libertad V. It's a very impressive 200+ page hardback book showing the work of over 100 realist painters. She was very excited about having her work shown along with artists such as Pedro Campos, Steve Mills, Alysa Monks, Cesar Santander and Randy Ford.

Karen got her copy yesterday and was very pleased with the quality of the printing. I'm not too proud to say that I'm more than a little envious, and would love to find my work in a future volume one day.

If you think you may want to have a copy for yourself, you can purchase it online direct from the gallery by clicking here. All the text is in Spanish, but it's not too difficult to figure out how to secure a copy. It'll run you 40 euros (just under $55) plus shipping. If you're a fan of realism in painting, I think you'll enjoy this book.

Hands of Time - 8 x 11

I wasn't able to pull off a win in Katherine Tyrell's, "Best Picture of the Year on an Art Blog", but I did come in first in the Still Life category. In the overall, I was only able to secure a third place (tie) with Jeanette Johnson - who got my vote for the Natural World category with her painting Tangle of Capelin II. I love that painting.

The honor this year went to close friend and genius, Karin Jurick, for her painting Hands of Time. This is the second year in a row that she has won the title. There's no shame in losing to her, in fact it's an honor just to be chosen to participate in a competition with an artist of her calibre. Congratulations Karin, you earned it!

I've been taking it a little slower the last week or so. With the holidays I thought I'd take a bit of a break. I have been doing some photography and a little trawling for new props, but gave myself permission, for the most part, to be a little lazy. Monday it's back to work.

In the meantime I'll be playing with my new iPad, which I loooooove! (Thank you Karen) I'm really looking forward to finding ways of integrating it into my art career.

Making A Mark - Award 2010

6 x 6 oil on hardboard panel

I thought I'd made my last post for the year, but I was talking with Karin Jurick today, and she informed me that one of my paintings was in the running for the, "Best Artwork on A Blog" Award. This award is the brainchild of Katherine Tyrrell, creator of Marking A Mark, one, if not the, best art blogs out there.

Anyone can vote, and there are four categories of genre to chose from. My piece is in the "still life" category, and Karin's is in the "portrait/figures" category. The deadline for voting is coming up quick. Thursday at 6 p.m. (Greenwich Mean Time), so don't delay. I know this is a shameless request for votes, but what can I say.

I'd also like to thank the tireless, tenacious and talented, Belinda Del Pesco for nominating my painting for this award. If you'd like to vote you can visit Katherine's blog by clicking here.

Thanks in advance!

Happy Holidays 2010

It's time to wrap up another year, but before go I wanted to thank everyone who visited my blog and FaceBook page in 2010. Many of you were kind enough to take the time to leave some wonderful comments and personal impressions of my work. I have to tell you those responses mean a great deal to me, and even though I'm bad about replying to all of the comments, I appreciate each of them very much. I hope you all have a great holiday season, and a terrific 2011.

Wild Turkey

6 x 6 oil on hardboard panel

I broke a tooth the other day. Fortunately I have a nephew who is an incredibly skilled dentist. If that wasn't enough, he allows me to pay with art. How can you beat that. He did a beautiful job putting my tooth back together. You'd never know it was ever damaged. So, as payment I did this little whiskey piece. I was in the mood to do some glass, and the wonderful amber color of the liquor is a joy to paint. When it's dry I'll varnish it then send it off. Hope he likes it.

Mule: Complete

20 x 60 oil on canvas

I finished up the Mule yesterday, and I think it turned out pretty good. This one was a pleasure from start to finish. I really had fun with it. All the rigging in the harness was a joy to paint. I hope this proves to be a popular subject because I'd love to paint a few more. When it's dry and varnished, I'll be delivering it to my hometown gallery Mason Murer Fine Art. I've already emailed them a jpeg, and they seem very happy to get it.

detail

Now . . . what to do next? I'm not really sure. There's an event coming up next summer that I could get started on (more on that later), but what I should do is get some new work to my other galleries first. The last couple of years have been lean ones to say the least, but in the last few weeks I've seen a resurgence of sales through my galleries. I'll probably get going on some work for them first, then dive into that other "project".

Elizabeth Edwards

I wanted to take a moment to leave a personal comment on the passing of Elizabeth Edwards, and remark on the impact she had on the early art careers of Karen and myself. When Karen and I were just beginning to sell our paintings on ebay, the ID "heelsfan" began to show up frequently in our auction listings. It wasn't long after that the Elizabeth wrote to let us know that she was heelsfan, and she was the wife of senator John Edwards. Her letters were very sweet and complimentary, and we both were impressed that she took the time to let us know how much she enjoyed our paintings. It was also very exciting to think that our work would be hanging in the home of a senator. Elizabeth never seemed to be too busy to respond to a letter from us. Even when she was on the campaign trail, she would reply to an email from her laptop.

We also just loved the fact that she purchased so much of her art from artists on ebay. Many of our friends, such as Karin Jurick, Jeff and Leslie Cohen and Chris Stott were among those whose paintings she collected. She was an amazing human being, whom I thought would have made an awesome first lady. When her husband was running for the VP slot with John Kerry, the New York Times Sunday magazine section ran an article on the families of the candidates. In the article about the Edwards family the photo of them in their living room showed one of Karen's paintings hanging on the wall in the background. Elizabeth wrote Karen just to let her know that her painting could be seen in the picture. It was the little things like that, that showed her warmth. She was wonderful and will be greatly missed.