New Painting 1-31-11

                          " Tenement Laundry " 6x6 oil on canvasboard $200 SOLD

        For some reason, hanging laundry has always been a popular theme for subject matter in many artists' paintings. Perhaps because it hearkens back to simpler times when electric clothes driers weren't available to average working class people. But it was the strong shadows cast across this brightly lit triple- decker in my hometown of Brockton, MA which caught my eye.
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New Painting 1-27-11

"Coldwaith Building, Brockton" 6x8 oil on canvasboard $250

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
        I am constantly drawn to architecture for subject matter to paint. Not merely for the fact that I find architecture interesting, but also because they make for great studies in perspective, value,composition, and  virtually every element that goes into what I think makes a good painting. When I choose a building to paint, it's not necessarily because it holds some particular sentimental value to me, rather it is because I see all of the elements aforementioned above coming together harmoniously in good balance. It could be the dark shadows being cast in contrast to bright sunlit areas causing intense drama in the scene, or the wide range of values created by the same sunlight as well as different tones and shades of color. It could also be a good contrast of complimentary colors that draws my eye. All of these elements are important in the making of good artwork, but of course there are many others as well. By focusing on one area of the building, the composition takes on a quality that is almost abstract in the first stages of the painting process, which gives me a better understanding of how shapes and lines relate to one another. It's only by placing the right values in the right places that the painting then starts to take on some depth , giving the appearance of a third dimension.
        So these are but a few examples of why buildings make for great subject matter. In the end, one of the main purposes of my painting them is to gain greater insight, and knowledge of art.
       

New Painting 1-20-11

                                  "Tourists" 6x8 oil on canvasboard $250 SOLD
       Hello Again everyone. It's been awhile but I've been pretty busy so far this New Year. Thanks to all the blog traffic I got back in December , I've been selling a lot of paintings and taking commissions, also I've had a couple of offers to do shows. I hope this keeps up but its been putting a strain on my ability to produce more work. I guess I'll have just have to work harder, which I intend to do.
        So far this year we've had at least three major snow storms and there's nothing more I'd like to do than produce some great New England winter scenes . But you see, in order for me to paint I must have some sort of visual reference and that usually means that I have to paint on sight or work from photographs. My wife Jenn is the one who takes pictures for me, my disability prevents me from shooting my own. But she's been working full time lately, so we haven't been able to find the time to go out and shoot and if you think I'm going to go out and stand and paint in the freezing cold and snow your nuts! Its supposed to snow tomorrow and I'm hoping that we'll be able to go out this weekend.
      In the meantime, I'll have to settle for painting from the photos I have on file and because I don't have any winter scenes I'll have to dream about summer and paint from the warm confines of my heated garage studio. This particular scene was taken from a family visit to Provincetown , MA. , located at the very tip of Cape Cod. Its a picturesque little town by the sea, brimming with shops, art galleries, seafood restaraunts and well, ..... plenty of tourists. We stayed exactly three hours (the kids were very bored) , which is exactly how long it took to drive home. 

New Painting 1-4-11

"West Chop Light" 8x8 oil on canvasboard $275 SOLD

Last month some of you emailed me and asked if I had any paintings of lighthouses. At the time I

did not, however I did have plenty of light house photos wich my wife had taken while visiting Martha's Vineyard, wich lies practically a stones throw off the coast of Cape Cod and not far at all from where we live . I painted this scene from one such photo. It depicts the lighthouse known as West Chop light, and is seen here from the road on wich it lies. If you've ever visited the island, and have taken the ferry from the Massachusetts mainland at Wood's Hole or Hyannis, you can see the light from its other perspective as it peeks through the trees, perched upon the bluff as you gaze out starboard when approaching the ferry landing at Vineyard Haven. I chose to paint it from this particular view because it had the flagpole in the foreground. Perhaps some day I'll paint it from the other vantage point.