Orange and Cherry Reflections

"Orange and Cherry Reflections"  8x8" Acrylic  Click to bid

This still life was set up for my Wednesday morning painting class, specifically to learn about dealing with the interesting reflections cast on a shiny metallic surface.  After class ended, I just had to jump in and paint it myself. 

A new summer session of 8 classes is beginning soon, and we are switching to Thursday mornings for painting, and Thursday afternoons for "Painterly Collage".  Below is a sample of the type of project that incorporates collage, acrylic gels, pastes and mediums, stamping, spraying and more. Working in a mixed media style is big fun, and I for one can't wait for class to begin. There is something very freeing about layering and mixed media, its a completely different approach than working only with paint and brushes. If you are local (NYC / Hudson River Valley), come join us!

"Heading Downtown"  18x24"  Mixed Media (SOLD)

Two Pears

Barbara's Pears  6x6"  acrylic  (SOLD)

Finally back from traveling and spending some time with my folks. The Syracuse workshop went great although we all wished it were longer. We have already begun planning a 5 day workshop in spring 2014 to cover more ground - namely color theory and color schemes.
Here is one of the demo paintings I did. I set up a simple still life and composed two value studies, using black, grey and white values to illustrate a big point about seeing values - namely that there are many ways to translate an image into a simple value structure. It's up to the artist to simplify and push the values one way or another to make the painting work. In otherwords, the artist is the designer, not the transcriber. I often push students to do more than one value study, to determine which ones work best, and to get them into the habit of doing what works - rather than copying what's there. (IMHO) designing the overall value structure is key to strong compositions!

Tulips and Cherries

Tulips and Cherries  Acrylic, 6x6"

This is a painting of the still life I set up for my Wednesday morning class. After the students left I decided to paint it myself. 

Today I'm leaving for about a week, to teach a workshop in Syracuse NY, my hometown. I'm looking forward to the workshop, as well as spending some time with my family!

New York City Impressions 2

City Impressions  2  Acrylic on WC Paper  14x14"

Another piece for the show... the view is from Soho looking North. I like working on paper, but when the time comes, I am not going to enjoy all the framing.

New York City Impressions

City Impressions 1  Acrylic on WC Paper 10x10"

I'm creating a lot of new work for my upcoming show in Provincetown at Simie Maryles Gallery. It starts on Labor Day weekend in September and will be up for a month. The entire show will be a collection of urban landscapes based on NYC. 

Only the Good Die Young

A Few Good 'Maters   Acrylic on Gessoboard  8x8"  $150  Buy Now  

Every artist knows that at a certain point you stop looking at your subject altogether, and just start giving the painting what it needs.  At that certain point, apparently, the far left tomato rolled off my table and landed near my right foot. Needless to say, the little guy got squished mercilessly, after posing so patiently. Well, life ain't fair. At least he was immortalized in paint -- a better fate than most tomatoes get!