Lobster Lunch by Colin Page Oil on canvas, 36″ x 48″ Available at DowlingWalsh.com
Colin Page. Exquisite paintings. Colin loves to paint and it shows. The paintings for his latest show “SUMMER” at Dowling Walsh Gallery in Rockland, Maine are stunning!
Every. Single. One!
Lobster Lunch pictured above, is one example. I didn’t want to ruin it for you and show too many. If you’re in the Rockland, Maine area, stop by Dowling Walsh Gallery – the show runs August 1 – 30, 2014.
The opening reception is Friday, August 1st, 5PM to 8PM – don’t miss it! But… if you won’t be in the area, check out the Dowling Walsh website!
The show at Dowling Walsh includes Colin Page (top image), Tadashi Moriyama (middle image) and Eric Hopkins (bottom image)! (Click on links to see paintings)…
I’m giving you all a heads up! Elsa Sroka is having her first Solo Show at Abend Gallery, and it opens September 5, 2014 – so be sure to mark your calendar if you’re in the Denver, CO area! Her work for that show will be on Abend Gallery’s website closer to that date, so hold tight!
Doesn’t Elsa have a way with cows? They just ooze feeling – they each have so much personality… and the names, I love when people are creative and come up with great names! Good job Elsa!
I love the abstract qualities in Otis (as well as the name)! He’s very cool!
Read a blip about Elsa from her website, and while you’re there check out her work:
Elsa is a Colorado native from a family of six siblings, all of whom share the love of art and design. Mostly self taught, Elsa’s work is based on instinct rather than theory. Her inspiration can be selective as when drawn from early childhood memories; particularly hours spent drawing at the kitchen table with her brothers and sisters overseen by their father. Her inspiration can also randomly unfold as she approaches a blank canvas with no preconceived ideas, not knowing where it will end up. Often the subjects of her paintings are secondary to what may emerge from both unintentional marks and intentional smears that ignite a series of chain reactions suggesting a direction and ultimately meaning.
While Elsa paints a variety of subjects, all exude a forward-thinking, contemporary attitude.
Her landscapes are mostly color-driven, finding inspiration in many sources including the various landscapes discovered in her travels, elements found in architecture, the imagery of other artists, and her own imagination. After laying down her foundational colors she scrapes away and moves the paint to reveal what is underneath, then applies more layers of paint. It’s not unusual for her to destroy a large portion of the piece in progress, ultimately resurrecting it through layer after layer, creating meaning and form in the process.
In Elsa’s cow series, expression is the most important element; infusing the subject with personality. Emotional connection is necessary before painting can begin. Recently she’s found inspiration in imagining cows in unconventional setting; a conscious departure from the traditional context found in much western art. She believes the ordinary subject becomes significantly more intriguing when misplaced, inviting the viewer to pay attention through the element of surprise. This idea can apply to many different subjects, encouraging appreciation of the more subtle qualities of beauty.
You’ll find her paintings share an intriguing play a genre and technique-many stylistically blurred; skewing reality, leaving the viewer to insert their own interpretation. She is particularly interested in the interplay of different mediums, along with the challenge presented in manipulating traditional methods.
In the end, if Elsa is able to emotionally engage the viewer, she feels her work is complete.
All images via ElsaSrokaArt.com, used with permission from the artist…
Tenants Harbor Halls Market by Bjorn Runquist 16×20 oil on linen – SOLD
Bjorn Runquist. Amazing artist. We have a painting of his that he did of the ice cream shop and Stone Fish in Port Clyde, ME. It’s a favorite! I love this painting above. I think the setting is amazing, the flag just drew me right in. This is SO Maine… I really feel that’s where my heart is… Although, I believe that most people who visit Maine feel the same way!
February Across Wheeler Bay by Bjorn Runquist 12×24″ Oil on Linen
Another fabulous painting by Bjorn! I would love to have this view… fabulous painting!
AUBADE by Bjorn Runquist 4×8″ $400 – Landing Gallery
Aren’t these paintings fabulous?! Aubade: a song or poem to greet the dawn… pretty cool, eh? These paintings are all of a similar view, different days… Stunning!
“For me, making things is inseparable from living. What I choose to make is a function of how I respond to “ordinary” life. Sometimes that response is to make an object, sometimes a haiku, sometimes to whistle. Usually it is an object and that object is usually a painting as the physical, sensual, nature of paint functions well as a means for exploring my response to what I see. The “ordinary” can range from a sunrise, if I’m up early, to the sun shining off a delivery truck parked at the corner. It doesn’t matter: it is all life and within the commonplace there is often “all the wonder one needs.” This winter and spring I have started each day with a response to the morning as seen across Wheeler Bay. It is the same view each day and though its familiarity should make on blind to its beauty I find it always a wonder, no matter what the weather. It is the start of each day and a new beginning. From there the day evolves and further painting that day is nearly always an unanticipated engagement. The subjects vary: there are things I return to and there are things I paint only once. But, at the core is the ever-present force of light as the source of all we see, indeed, at the source of life itself – the source of each new day’s new beginning.”
– Bjorn Runquist
All images via LandingArt.com, used with permission from the artist…
Sacred Groves Study by Ryan Brown – 9 x 12″ Oil – Collection of the Artist
Ryan has done several of these studies, the fabulous greens, the woods, I am so drawn to these paintings. They are stunning! Isn’t there something so magical about this painting? It pulls me right in. Wow!
I thought this was amazing as well:
The Lord’s Prayer by Ryan Brown – 24 x 32 Oil
What a talented guy! He’s truly got so many wonderful paintings it was difficult to choose!
Ryan S. Brown was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. By the time he was a senior in high school Ryan had decided to pursue art as a profession. This pursuit led him to Brigham Young University where he studied Illustration, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2002. While finishing his studies at BYU, Ryan became aware of the deficiencies in his University education. Because his interests were in the academic and naturalist traditions of the nineteenth century, it became necessary for him to get the foundational drawing and painting training not offered at the university. In his senior year at BYU, Ryan began studying with William Whitaker, a renowned portrait and figurative painter. Soon after this, Ryan entered the Florence Academy of Art, where he received his first taste of Academic training. The organized, intense and concise training of the Florence Academy provided Ryan with what he considers the beginning of his understanding of the craft of art. This training not only gave Ryan a deep understanding and love of drawing, but also developed in him a strong self-discipline and work ethic, as well as an insatiable appetite for learning.
In 2003 Ryan returned home to Utah. Upon his return, Ryan began producing work for galleries. Ryan also began teaching academic principles at BYU, teaching figure drawing, observational and spatial drawing and cast drawing. Ryan also opened his studio to students, establishing the Classical Drawing Academy in Springville, Utah. During the three years this Academy was available to students, Ryan saw more than 80 students come through his studio to experience this training. Ryan also taught part-time at Utah Valley State College. Ryan was able to teach and pass on these academic principles until the end of 2006. Ryan also taught at the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art sporadically between 2004 and 2006, culminating in an academic drawing workshop given in 2006. An article in American Artist Workshop Magazine in the Winter 2006 issue covered this workshop. In January, 2007 Ryan, his wife and three kids moved back to Florence in order to finish his studies at the Florence Academy of Art. Ryan is living and working again in Utah and has established the Center for Academic Study and Naturalist Painting (CAS). He is currently interviewing potential students and welcomes any application for study.
Ryan was the top award winner of the John F. and Anna Lee Stacey scholarship in 2004. He also received third place in the Art Renewal Scholarship competition in 2005. In 2006 Ryan was one of ten artists to be invited by American Artist Magazine to the Forbes Trinchera Ranch for a nine day retreat that was followed by a special article in the magazine and a showing of these select artist’s works at the Forbes Gallery in New York in March, 2007. Ryan was also accepted into the Hudson River School for Landscape in its inaugural year, which he attended in the summer of 2007. In 2007 Ryan also won Fourth Place in the Art Renewal Center Scholarship Competition. Ryan was featured in the May, 2008 issue of Southwest Art as “A Rising Artist to Watch”. Ryan won the “Best Painting of the Year” at the Florence Academy of Art in 2008.
All images via RyanSBrownArt.com used with permission from the artist…
The Red Door on 21st Street by Charles Newman Oil on Panel 16×24″
Character. Charles Newman paints his subjects with character. There is something defintely unique about his paintings and I LOVE them! The color and light are amazing, but this painting oozes character!
Home by Charles Newman Oil on Linen 24×36″ – SOLD
He’s got some interior paintings, which area always a favorite, this is wonderful. I’m telling you, check out this guys work, its different… in a very, very good way!
The process of making a painting is more than just the painting itself. For me, it’s a journey, discovery, experience and sensation. My work hints at the sweetness and rigor of daily life. From the overlooked industrial settings to the privacy of the home I am always conscious of the effect of light on different surfaces and through various filters. Light is established through the reaction of a color next to another color. To achieve the fresh and harmonious representation of light, many of my works are done alla prima. Whether painting en plein air, an interior, or a still life, I strive to discover the integrity of my personal touch, as I bear witness to the moment and the changing conditions of my surroundings. Translating these elements onto the surface makes the painting process challenging, but also exciting.
Study for Child and Mother with Red Towel 24×18, oil on paper
Tom Balderas. Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I have admired this artist for years. His paintings come alive. I’ve seen them in person and they are WOW on every level. I have featured Tom in the past, his work is so incredible, and though I’ve never actually met him, I feel as if he is one of the most creative people I have (almost) met… Just read his bio… He is one I have not forgotten, I have featured so many artists over the past three years, and Tom is one that I haven’t forgotten. The bio alone will make you remember.
Well, now he’s gone and done something that I think all artists should do… He is selling his studies. Brilliant! Ok, maybe I am overusing that word, but it really is such a smart thing to do. Instead of having them sit around collecting dust, Tom is now selling them… I believe he has been encouraged by his friends to do this… why not?!!
As many of you know I work, part time, at a gallery here in Charleston. One of our artists sells her studies, Dee Beard Dean. They are fabulous and a definite hit among people perusing the galleries in Charleston! I always thought that was so smart of her. It’s a great way for people to get original art at not the regular price tag… it gives everyone a place to start.
Third son of four. painter. writer. musician. photographer. thinker. creator. listener. observer. human. social. loner. understanding. misunderstanding. giver. taker. wanter. perfectionist. imperfect. mess. father. Found himself dwelling upon an emotional and artistic precipice since birth.
Growing up in Torrance, California, Tom Balderas lived only a few miles from the ocean, which has made nature, along with his family, the main inspiration of his paintings. Balderas attended Loyola Marymount University, where he studied film production and art. After graduating, he worked several years for NBC Productions and made many made-for-television movies. He then began studying under the tutelage of his photographer father, as well as Joseph Mendez, master painter and teacher. Balderas considers the time spent studying with Mendez to be the cornerstone of his growth as a painter.
Also, studied with charles, anne, jennifer, daniel, sophia, lynne, joseph, harold, zen, elliott, starbuck, dan, andrew, dr. block, zinaida, david, e. charlton, michael, rose, ken, walter, selden, chris, armin, joaquin, edward, bejar, valentin, george, edward, jesus, pierre, rachel, mort, marileigh to name but a few of so many.
Works towards progress.
Told ya! Creative, eh? Catch you back here tomorrow!
Ella & the Mocking Birds by June Stratton 18×22″ Pastel & Silver Leaf on Paper
Robert Lange Studios. Cutting edge. This gallery is always at the top of their game. They represent some of the most unique artists and they do it so well. Tonight is the long awaited Palette & Palate Stroll, where the CFADA (Charleston Fine Art Dealers Association) galleries team up with some of the hottest restaurants in town. You buy a ticket, then stroll from gallery to gallery, checking out the fabulous art and tasting some of the most wonderful food on the planet. What’s not to love? Art and food! Robert Lange Studios has been paired with McCrady’s Restaurant. A match made in heaven!
June Stratton – a stunning artist who creates the most gorgeous pieces, from work in this show, Flutter to past work, every piece is amazing!
Look at the way this dog is watching the mocking birds In Ella and the Mocking Birds. June has this so spot on! I can see my own Jack Russell looking out of his windows at the birds. So intense. What a unique composition.
Here is a little something that June has to say about her show:
As a diversion from my usual figurative art works, I decided to create drawings that were intended as dreamscape studies for larger figurative paintings these combine a cast of inhabitants from my nocturnal wanderings. These smaller drawings have become alluring similes of dream portraits all on their own. These new art works are Pastel and Silver Leaf on Canson paper. The silver leaf within these pieces is both a metaphor of reflective meaning and an intentional nod to aesthetic appearance of iconic drawings of centuries past.
This painting is from a past show, but shows that June is cutting edge herself, making each piece uniquely hers.
Tangled in Blues by June Stratton 16×20″ Oil & Silver on Linen – SOLD
What a masterpiece this painting is! Everything about it is briliant!
I know you’re hoping you have tickets to the Palette and Palate Stroll this evening! It’s going to be a great time. If you don’t have tickets, swing by the gallery on Saturday (or check out the show online!).
First Blossoms by Bryce Liston – 20 x 24″ Oil on Linen
Quite amazing how this woman looks like if she were to stand up, she could quietly walk right off the canvas… the obscure background puts more emphasis on the woman, and I think compliments her perfectly.
If you’re on Facebook, Bryce has a Facebook page – Bryce Liston ~ Fine Art and you’ll see how he starts some of his wonderful paintings and the progression… its pretty amazing, I suggest you check it out! Scroll through Bryce’s website… the paintings are amazing!
“Being an artist and painting the human figure is what compels me.
It wakes me up at night, it’s what I love and I drive myself to do it very well.
Art is my life-long obsession, pleasure and torment”. _______
Born in 1965 in a small town in Utah, Bryce believes his first desire to be an artist was formed at a very young age when he would go out with his mother while she painted the Utah landscape. Later in school, drawing was a comfort zone for Liston. “It was a subject that excited me- I always had energy and interest for it.” It was here that Liston found his love of the human form. “I don’t quite know why I was drawn to the human form; I suspect the seed was planted while studying the art of the great American Illustrators like N.C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle.”
It was then that he knew it was the human form that he wanted to portray in his art. He attended the University of Utah for a short time but dropped out before finishing his degree. “I wanted to learn about the craft of art. I wanted to learn to actually <em “mso-bidi-font-style:=”” normal”=””>produce art, not just discuss it.” With limited resources Bryce found himself working in the studio and foundry of master sculptor, Edward J. Fraughton. The time Liston spent with Fraughton provided him with a knowledge of anatomy that few painters possess and that understanding brings depth and life to the figures he paints. “In Ed’s studio I learned a lot about art. It’s funny, I learned about painting from a sculptor- I don’t think that’s something that happens everyday.”
Bryce’s education has been self-directed and continues to be that way. Not having a formal art education can be a long and hard way to go about it but it does have its advantages. It allows you to find your own voice rather than emulating that of your teachers, a principle lesson that Liston imparts to all of his students. “Take in all the information that is presented to you, then afterwards disassemble it and make it fit into your personal vision and style.”
Bryce’s work is shown in galleries around the country and he participates in many national and international exhibitions each year. Bryce’s artwork has won numerous prestigious awards, including The Tuffy Berg Award, The Honorary Chairman’s Award and the Southwest Art Award of Excellence at the 2010 CM Russell Auction. He is a signature member of the Oil Painters of America and was awarded Best in Show at the 2008 OPA Western Regional Exhibition. He was also named one of the Top Ten Artists to Watch by Southwest ArtMagazine in January, 2009. His art has been published in many magazines as well as on book covers.
He currently resides in Holladay, Utah with his wife and three daughters. “I can’t even imagine myself not painting or sculpting. My mother was a very talented artist and I can already see some of the same abilities emerging in my young daughters.”
All images via ListonArt.com – used with permission from the artist…
Generations of Frederick by John Porter Lasater IV
John Porter Lasater IV. Nice work. This year at the Easels in Frederick plein air competition, John won Best of Show with Generations of Frederick. Pretty nice, huh? I like the simplicity of this piece. It works nicely. This is not overworked, its a nice painting!
South and Carroll by John Porter Lasater IV
He also took home a Collector’s Choice award for South and Carroll. I think nocturnes are so cool and the light in this one is amazing. The stop lights and street light just add so much, don’t they?
Every once in a while John does an event on his own where he paints 24 paintings in 24 hours. Crazy! Read about one of them, see the paintings… they ALL SOLD! He did another one this month! Pretty cool idea if you can stay up that long!
If you’re interested in taking a WORKSHOP with John, he’s got some great ones lined up, check them out!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
All images via LasaterArt.com – used with permission from the artist…
I met the neatest artist the other day. This guy is going places. Fast. His name is Isaiah Ratterman. He is a outstanding painter and photographer. I thought “Death Before the Butterfly” was a brilliant painting with such a clever title. It made me smile. I’m happy to know that the little green men’s bullets can’t really shoot… therefore NO BUTTERFLY WAS HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS PAINTING, hee hee.
This is a painting of absolute beauty. Isaiah executed it so elegantly, the bottom koi seems to be dancing in the water, while the koi at the top of the painting seems to be in an elegant drift. Gorgeous! Different. Thought provoking. I look forward to watching for more of Isaiah’s work. He is one to keep an eye on! If you’re in the Charleston, SC area, you can see Isaiah’s work in person at Galerie on Broad! He’s got one piece there now and more on the way!
Did I mention that Isaiah is a nice guy on top of it? Modest, interesting, talented, and he truly loves art and it shows!
Isaiah Ratterman is an artist who is committed to working from life. He holds a MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and is currently living and working in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Artist Statement:
I hold a reverence for the Romantic painters of the past, however their ethos has been replaced in our age of excess, leaving a need for our relationship to the landscape to be redefined. Through the landscape, I find a narrative that questions the primacy of Necessity based upon my own travels. Experiences under these circumstances become important and fulfilling, offering a brief glimpse into a deeper meaning of Being. Thoughts are not processed within the moment, but collected and decrypted afterwards. My paintings act as a way of deciphering the felt experiences I hold so close.
All images via IsaiahRatterman.com – Used with permission from the artist… Note: the photograph above was taken by Isaiah. Amazing work!
Caesar Citraro is an artist (actually when you read below you’ll see that he’s a painter, printer and bookmaker)! His paintings are absolutely gorgeous! The soft blues and yellow’s make this painting above such an eye catching piece. The subtle nuances in the water add such interest. I really want to be wherever this is, sitting on the edge of the water, watching the day go by…
How is this for a dramatic painting? I grew up loving weather… loving storms. This painting is a fabulous depiction! You know how some storms can get so dark and wicked, yet bits of light shine through. Stunning!
Caesar lives in Michigan now, a state I grew up in. He is represented by Elizabeth Pollie Fine Art, a wonderful gallery in Harbor Springs, MI. Elizabeth is a wonderful artist herself, and her gallery is a collection of some of the very best artists. Check out the gallery if you’re in the area, or check it out online! I have heard nothing but great things about Caesar, and I see why!
I am a painter, printer and bookmaker who has dedicated my career to making and preserving works of art. Shortly after receiving my BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1986, I went to Chicago to further my career as an artist. I became an employee of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1987 and worked as a conservation technician in the Department of Prints and Drawings. During my tenure at the museum I had ample opportunity to explore the various collections that have informed my art making from my earliest days in Chicago. I studied traditional bookbinding methods; the materials and techniques used in medieval manuscript cuttings and volumes, and was inspired by the many exemplars that surrounded me on a daily basis. Some of my earliest work includes a number of reliquary boxes and books that are embellished in a manner that evokes the bejeweled covers of medieval books, their worn leather and time stained pages. My painting techniques were fashioned after the earliest masters of panel painting with their smooth translucent surfaces, rich colors, and incised details.
My career at the Art Institute also afforded the opportunity to travel the globe to places as far reaching as Japan and New Zealand where I was inspired by the flora indigenous to these places. The paintings that followed contained biomorphic and organic forms derived from nature, but not of this world. My painted world was one of pure imagination where tentacles, thorns, and vines intertwined. My materials included wax, colored pencils, and oils that were applied to smooth, gessoed-wood panels. My techniques included rubbing and burnishing these surfaces, incising them, and adding more colored media into the incised lines to create multi-layered images.
More recently, my relocation from Chicago to Petoskey Michigan in 2008 inspired another stylistic turn in my work. Now, I take a broader view of my surroundings and have shifted from painting the minutia of nature to painting broad expanses of land and the flora contained therein. I concern myself with the play of light through trees, across rolling hills, or on groups of leaves, branches, and even single pinecones. Small elements of the abstracted, biomorphic forms found in earlier work are subtly incorporated into these works from time to time, yet the imagery remains solidly rooted in the real world.
“The lush farmlands and mysterious forests near my home captivate me. The beauty and visual diversity in this area are amazing to me and I feel the need to somehow convey that in my art.”
I was represented by Gary Marks Gallery in Chicago. My books were shown at SOFA Chicago in 1992. I have paintings, books, and reliquaries held in a number of private collections. Most recently, my paintings have been included in four group exhibitions in 2010, Four Group exhibitions and one solo exhibition in 2011, at Three Pines Studio, Michigan.
In 2012 I was a featured artist in the Exhibition “as small as a world and as large as alone” at the Crooked Tree Arts Center in Petoskey Michigan.
Currently, I am represented by Huey’s Fine Art, Santa Fe NM& Elizabeth Pollie Fine Art, Harbor Springs MI
I was born in Cleveland, Ohio and presently reside in Petoskey, Michigan.
John David Wissler… WOW! His work is so incredible, especially if you love these types of views, which I do! This, to me, is SO MAINE. The water is fabulous with the island in the distance. Can’t you feel the movement? I love how it’s kind of abstract closer to the shore. WONDERFUL!
Setting on the Western Way by JD Wissler 18 x 37″ Oil on Panel – Image: LancasterGalleries.com
There are plenty more where this came from. JD has a great collection of paintings, each as fabulous as the next! It was torture trying to pick only two, please go check them out!
“My passion has always been the landscape. I feel a sense of history when painting… the painters I admire and study, Corot, Constable, Turner, Inness, Bonard, Resika…the history of the land itself and my own familiar connection to it. Painting comes through the study of nature…transformed, not merely copied. Seeing the immediacy of the place…what strikes me first. The way trees react to fields, colour to colour, shape to shape…pushing and pulling the plastic nature of the picture plane, creating believable space.
I find the challenge of using what I have observed, taking it to my studio, and creating a new painting invigorating. Drawing upon the memory of place and experience…using the language I have learned from nature, trying to keep the painting fresh…space, clarity, surprise…that’s painting!” – John David Wissler
Jeffrey Hein‘s work blows me away! Just look at this painting! Doesn’t she look like she could walk right off the canvas? Her beautiful hair against that dark background is a stunner! All of Jeffrey’s paintings are equally as incredible. I remember seeing another painting of this woman, JoAnn… here it is below… the painting below is sold, but the painting above is available! Just contact the artist! Of course Jeff paints other subjects, but I am just captivated by the way he has painted JoAnn!
JoAnn by Jeffrey Hein (SOLD)
The way JoAnn is looking right into your eyes is very soulful. I want to know more about her. Don’t you get that feeling?
If you are an artist looking to take a workshop, check out the Teaching and Workshop section of Jeffrey’s website!
Jeffrey Hein was born in 1974 in New Windsor, NY. Despite knowing early that he was interested in art, he had little exposure to it as a youth. His education was limited to numerous drawings of his childhood teachers on his schoolbook covers and on backs of handouts. After only one year of schooling, Hein left to serve a 2 year mission for his church. His missionary work ended prematurely when he was diagnosed with cancer. He battled for about a year and a half before he could return to ‘normal life.’ “After that I dated my wife for about six months in New York while I got ready for school and to come out here to do who knows what. I knew I wanted to do art; but I had no money so it was kind of, what next? So I got married and moved out here” Hein says of his move to Salt Lake City, UT. Hein believes his life experiences have helped him to reach his goals as an artist and have inspired much of his work. He completed his study at the University of Utah in 2002, and has been painting professionally and teaching ever since. Hein has been invited to participate in a variety of international shows and has been written up in numerous newspapers and national magazines. It is very rare for an artist to have both great talent and meaningful content at such an early stage in his promising career. In 2007 he opened the Hein Academy, a small atelier inspired school devoted to academic training. Hein currently lives and works in Salt Lake City with his wife and three children. He is devoted to continual growth as an artist and when not spending time with family he works in his downtown studio where he divides his time between painting, teaching, drawing, sculpting, and filmmaking. “Humanity today is one with, enhanced through, and distorted by innovation and I have embraced modernism and classicism in order to capture this complete modern picture. My goal is also to show the relevance of both classical and abstract art in the modern world by creating work that clearly demonstrates a harmony between them.” – Jeff Hein
All images via JeffHein.com – used with permission from the artist…
The Night Watcher by Thomas Van Stein – 25″ x 30″ Oil on Canvas
Thomas Van Stein is a remarkable artist. He paints some fabulous nocturnes which I just happen to love! When I was looking through his images this one really caught my eye, I saw this and thought… EDWARD HOPPER… Interesting to read his comment on this painting… Crazy story, eh?
This victorian era house flanks the area I call the Twilight Zone, on Hill street in Ventura. It remembered the painting done by Edward Hopper. I set up in the field across the railroad tracks to do the painting. During the painting, the owner of the house came outside and sat on the porch. Someone upstairs peeked out the window, then flashed their red laser pointer on me, making me want to hit the deck. After recovering from the thought of being shot, I gave a holler, and he put it away. I still decided to document the experience by adding that dash of red.
Pilgrim in Port by Thomas Van Stein – 22″ x 44″ Oil on Canvas
What a misty feeling this has to it, I love all the lights, the boat working in the wee hours – another fabulous painting!
Here is what Thomas had to say about this painting:
Richard Henry Dana wrote of his seafaring exploits in his classic novel, “Two Years Before the Mast: The tall ship he was on, the”Pilgrim”, came into Port not too long ago. I grabbed my gear and headed out into the darkness before dawn, and painted this scene from Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara.
Normally, this is where I say “Read a blip about Thomas, from his website” but… instead of providing you with the text, I’m providing you with the link. I promise that its worth the extra click. Thomas is a fascinating guy! I love his ABOUT page.
The paintings above are available for purchase through James Main Fine Art, Santa Barbara, (805)637-8632 – Catch you back here tomorrow!
All images via ThomasVanStein.net – used with permission from the artist…
Fabulous painting right? This guy knows all the little nuances that make a better painting, and guess what? You’re in luck, Ken will be at Plein Air Richmond and he will also be teaching a workshop this October in North Carolina… details for both are below! Can I just say… they just don’t come any nicer than Ken…!
Ken will be painting at Plein Air Richmond (Richmond, VA), so if you’re in the area, don’t miss it!
P L E I N A I R R I C H M O N D I N F O:
A Week-Long “Painting Out”:June 22-26, 2014 Click here to view daily locations Watch the 35 specially juried plein air painters set up easels all over our historic city create hundreds of paintings.
“Fast and Fresh” : June 28 Location: Carytown On Saturday from 9:30 am -11:30 am juried and non-juried artists will start and complete paintings. These “wet” paintings will be available for purchase right off the easels with proceeds benefiting the Symphony.
So if you can make it to Plein Air Richmond, it looks like it will be a good time!
O C T O B E R W O R K S H O P : Upcoming workshop this October with Ken in Aberdeen, NC… here are the details! OOOooohhh, this will be a great workshop!
October 7 – 10, 2014 Essence and Design in Plein Air
4 Day Workshop will be held in the Aberdeen NC area (9:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M.)
I love Ken’s style and how the lines aren’t all perfectly straight, it adds so much character which is why I love them so much! All of Ken’s paintings are wonderful happy looks at life!
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