Reaching For Something That Cannot Be Touched

This is an alabaster sculpture I am working on. I still need to smooth it out and polish it, maybe round it a little more. It is about 12" high. I gave it a really long name, but it was exactly what I wanted to express.

I will be traveling and won't be posting for a few days. Ready to go when I return with more photos.

Lemons and a Shoe

This still life I did as a companion piece to another one previously posted of 3 lemons with a little marble angel. This shoe is actually a candle. I haven't yet thought of a good name for it. Although I like the colors and the lemons, I wish I had pushed the composition higher on the canvas. I have been looking at still lifes with this horizontal composition in the lower half, which I like, but I wish it was a 1/2 inch to an inch higher.
#39

Slovakian Vase

This beautiful vase was given to me from a friend whose home of origin is Slovakia. Recently I met a sculptor who resides in Manhattan, but who also comes from Slovakia. Really wonderful people are those Slovakians! #38

Wait For Me!

I like the way this turned out. Some paintings come so easy and some not so. Usually if they are a struggle, I end up fiddling with them endlessly. Sometimes they improve, but more often they just look like a fussy mess. This one came easy and I really enjoyed doing it. It was from a friend's photo and the painting is a gift. #37

Rose and Pumpkin

I need to take some photos of my paintings but have been really busy this week with stone carving. I did this one quite a while ago, but it fits in with my series of still lifes so that is why I am posting it today. #36

Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is so beautiful. What a treat to walk across it on a sunny day and take in all the elegant lines. What do I keep? What do I get rid of? That seems to be an on-going theme in my paintings. I like the way this turned out. #35

Sunday On Wall Street

Wall Street scene which has been de-cluttered. Actually there are many flags hanging and the buildings have more detail and there were lots more people. So, I am calling this Sunday on Wall Street. It is a quieter version of Wall Street. #34

Deep Discussion

This is another Friday Nite Live snapshot of three peaple in deep discussion in front of the Book King. I like how they are holding their hands in interesting positions. #33

Please Don't Eat Me

This really, really, big dog made a dramatic appearance at Friday Nite Live in Rutland. He got everyone's attention! #32

Artist's Still Life

A quick still life using materials I had on location, and I was actually using them while I painted it. That was a bit of a trick for me. #31

Yoga Pose

Another acrylic still life here. I need to photograph some of my recent oils. This reminds me of a yoga pose. #30

December Love

Roses do not grow outside in December in Vermont, but they do hang in there in other parts. My friend suggested that this looks like one of those last roses of December, hence the title. Personally I think it looks like an alien ship that landed on a barren planet. I love the strong shadows. The cloth is actually more purple than the photo shows and the rose is more intense. This is a part of a series of acrylic still lifes I am doing when I paint once a week at the Chaffee Art Gallery. It is easier to use acrylics on the go and it is easy to set up a small still life with a little portable lamp to illuminate it...or strong sunshine if I paint outside. It is also important to me to mix it up a bit with different mediums and subject matter. Soon I am going to start a series of watercolor landscapes. I have several commissions to do first. #29

Sprained Ankle

This was from the Staten Island Ferry. I liked the crossed legs, but even better, this poor lady had a sprained ankle and was trying to get it up while she could. It is hard to be a tourist in NYC with a sprained ankle. #28

Sunlit Beanbag Baby

My granddaughter Samara "reading" a book while she sits in the sun on a bean bag. She is 15 months old. #27

Quick Step

A group of women were at a hat vendor's stall, all laughing and trying on outrageous hats. I was not quick enough to photograph them, but as they turned to walk away I caught a photo of these fabulous legs and heels. What more can I say? #26

Solitude In the Multitude

Actually this is the first painting I did of the NY series. I am out-of-town, so I am posting some already finished paintings, not yet posted. This was an assignment by Karin Jurick. We all painted from the same photo. It was not only a lesson in Karin's technique, it also is an excellent example of simple but powerful composition and universal subject matter. It was really fun to see how everyone interpreted the same subject. We painted different styles and the signature of brushstrokes made each unique. #25

A Moment to Notice

To the mom, in a hurry to flag down the taxi, the pigeon on the sidewalk is just a dirty, nuisance, flying rat. To her daughter, it is a opportunity to freeze time and give her attention to a piece being of beauty. #24

Distractions

A junior executive strolling through Central Park with determination, is carrying his important accouterments (sippy cup, snack pak, ball) in his miniature reproduction shopping cart. #23
SOLD

Puzzled

I followed this guy through the Met's modern art rooms. He was really studying this Rothko painting...moving forward, backward to each side...really puzzling over it. I really wish I could have heard his internal dialogue with himself. This pose really captures the moment. #22

Intersections

Another New York oil painting of power women going places. I am thinking of changing the woman's skirt color, but the jury is still out on this. If I do, I will re-post it. Of course, I welcome all comments, especially when I am trying to make decisions like this. #21

The Dish and the Wallflower

This painting is an acrylic landscape of strawberries (duh) on my great grandmother's wedding china (very cool). Each piece white piece was purchased at a different time and when all pieces were collected, they were painted by a china painter (Mrs. Barton). I am also showing how it looks when framed. #20

Burble (no image)

The site won't let me post images right now. This has happened before, so I will just post when I can. I am one day behind. Yesterday was one big burble. Firstly, a burble is really a skydiving term meaning a drop in air pressure usually caused when a sky diver makes the wrong move which causes this person to free-fall. If it involves a group formation that falls apart, it is called a frommel. Anyway, since it only involved me, it was a burble, but it had nothing to do with falling out of the sky. We are having unusually hot weather. I went to workout and contrary to my thought processes, I did not hydrate myself sufficiently before the workout in an non-air conditioned building. Even after swimming, a cold shower and lots of post-workout water, I still became dehydrated and seriously ill, with a killer headache, nausea, dry skin, etc. So it was a burble cause by operator error...not fatal, but certainly it got my attention. My apologies go to all skydivers for borrowing the terminology. When I can, I will post two paintings, one for today and one for yesterday.

Walking On Madison Avenue

Walking down Madison Ave. one morning, very early, I spotted these boys on the way to school with their nanny. You can tell what school they go to by the backpack. Most of the kids wear uniforms, but I think since it was the end of the year and really warm maybe they didn't have to. On the other hand, maybe their school doesn't require uniforms, just matching backpacks. KIds everywhere fascinate me. #19
SOLD

Warhol - Mao

Can't see the forest for the trees. This guy is leaning in to the detail of the huge Mao print by Andy Warhol. I saw him from the balcony over the modern art room at the Met. His clothes echo the surreal colors of the print, as does the wood floor. This has a very abstract quality I like. #18

From the Top

From the top of the Museum of Metropolitan Art, there is a large deck where people hang out and drink wine and talk and look at the great view of the skyline. Now there is a 25' high bamboo installation up on the roof built by rock climbers under the management of identical twin brothers who are photographers. They had a fear of heights which makes this project all the more interesting. It was fun watching how people approached the edge of the railing to look at the views. It is quite safe but some folks just couldn't get close. #17

Sun Worshippers

The reference material I used for this painting came from my good friend Marilyn who was also my roommate for the NYC workshop. It is intimate...it is like being the fly on the wall or looking down from the sun's point of view. I love the abstract quality and feeling of sunshine. #16

Waiting

This little guy was waiting for a train at Penn Station. There is not much to do there except people watch so while everyone was sitting in their waiting chairs, surrounded by luggage, coffees, and newspapers, he found a great people watching spot. Although it looks like a window to the great outdoors, it actually is a window to the underground corridor filled with folks rushing here and there. It is painted with a limited palette. Everything was beigish-goldish-grayish except for his dark clothes and the bright red hair. #15