Midwinter Melt by Brian M. Smith / Image: BrianMSmithFineArt.com
I ran across Brian Smith’s work while perusing the Tvedten Fine Art Gallery website. The gallery is located in Harbor Springs, MI, which is on the northwest coast in a beautiful location. This painting captured my attention… I think it was the trees that did it. I love these trees, the colors, the light and shadow, very very nice!
Here’s a blip about the artist from his website, catch you back here tomorrow!
Smith is a talented landscape artist who began drawing and painting at an early age. Largely self taught, Brian has become a recognized plein-aire and studio painter who’s works are included in many private and corporate collections in the U.S. and Germany. Working in oils, he paints frequently on location striving to complete works in a single session, as well as using plein-aire studies as models for larger studio works.“Art follows what I ordinarily do,” Smith says. “Being an outdoors person, I hope my landscapes evoke the sense of a moment in time: light reflecting off wet rocks on a distant shoreline; a sky that as kids made us imagine clouds as objects; reflections in a quiet pond or special mornings and evenings between sunlight and darkness. Painting, especially en plein-aire is as pleasurable as it is difficult. An acquaintance once told me until seeing a show of my work he rarely looked at the sky and now does as a habit. That’s a response I’m very thrilled with.”
"The Joy of Painting" by Robert Lange / Image: RobertLangeStudios.com
To see his work is amazing. You really have to see it to believe it! I captured this image from Charleston Magazine website, you’ve got to go there and click on any image to start a slideshow. Check out the whimsical brilliance this artist has to offer. The above painting is entitled “The Joy of Painting” and to watch Robert paint truly is a joy, you just wonder HOW anyone can be so precise! Robert and Megan (wife) own the RLS gallery… which is nothing short of gorgeous, located downtown Charleston, SC it’s a treat for the eyes!
Here’s a blip about Robert from the gallery website:
Born in 1980 in Colorado, Robert Lange began painting at a young age but was recognized as a mathematical prodigy and subsequently followed his gift to college. It wasn’t until his second year at Northeastern University, which he attended on a full math scholarship that he decided to follow his passion for art and transfered to Rhode Island School of Design, where he was again awarded a full scholarship but this time for his painting abilities. He was most influenced by teacher and painter Julia Jacquette, who taught him new perspectives leading him to become professional in 2003. That year he both graduated from RISD and opened his first gallery, Robert Lange Studios, in Charleston SC.
He first specialized in realist painting, particularly of people, emphasizing narrative moments. In 2010 he opened his second gallery, RLS Gallery and his work became more surreal, following into the category of hyper-realism or surrealism. His most notable bodies of work Measure (2009) and Go (2010) were nationally recognized and internationally collected. Lange has been featured in numerous magazines, including the cover of American Art Collector and Art Magazine, and in New American Paintings.
“Robert’s depiction of a heightened suburbia distances his work from the political commitment and social self-importance of most contemporary postmodern painters. Someplace between Charleston’s cobblestone streets and New York’s stark concrete living rooms, is the work of Robert Lange.” – City Paper 2008
UPCOMING EVENT… THE OBSERVER, Opening February 3 from 5-8pm, 20 round paintings by artist Robert Lange…
Here’s a glimpse into the gallery (located at 2 Queen Street, Charleston, SC), but check it out in person, it’s even better! Catch you back here tomorrow!
I love paintings of interiors and I love how artist Dick Cole captured the light in this watercolor… fabulous! I ran across his work while surfing through a Sonoma gallery (Fairmont Gallery), stunning! This image was entitled SLICKERS, so I’m assuming that’s the name of the painting. I saw this image on Dick Cole’s website (very nice!), if you aren’t near a gallery that represents his work, check out his website, it’s very nice!
A blip about the artist from his website:
Dick Cole is an illustrator / watercolorist with over 30 years experience in the field.
A graduate of U.C.L.A. and the Art Center College of Design, he has worked as a graphic designer, art director, and illustrator in New York, Palo Alto, CA and San Francisco.
A fourth generation Californian, he has traveled widely, has a passion for jazz and classical music, and enjoys fly fishing and writing poetry.
He shares his Sonoma home and studio with his wife, Diane Noyes-Cole, and a small spoiled dog, Max.
Sandra Baggette is a wonderful artist, friend and such an interesting person! Over the years we have collected many paintings, but Sandra’s was our very first “original”. I remember it like it was yesterday but it was over 20 years ago… it was an art show in Mt. Pleasant where channel 2 is located. The painting was a fabulous watercolor of all these gorgeous flowers, it was AMAZING! We went on to collect several more of Sandra’s and during that time she became a good friend. Sandra truly is the neatest person. She has a fabulous studio located in Port Royal, SC. If you’re in the area you must check it out… info is on her website which is also very nice… Her use of color is stunning. No drab paintings from Sandra! The painting above is entitled SPARKLING SUNLIT BOUQUET…
A “painterly colorist” working in oils, Sandra blends what she sees and feels to share a lifelong enthusiasm for color and flowers Her passion for nature and vibrant colors is clearly demonstrated in her first book,
Sandra Baggette: Painting What I Love , a collection of recent works published in 2011.
In 1988, Sandra established the Garden Studio Gallery in Port Royal, SC to pursue her passions for painting and gardening. This peaceful environment, rich with colorful patterns created by flowers and sunshine, is a constant source of inspiration for her paintings.
Studies throughout the United States and abroad have played an important role in Sandra’s artistic development. Her travels in Italy and France, where she enjoyed the privilege of painting in Monet’s gardens and studied a variety of Impressionist masters, and the stirring sights of Hong Kong, Bermuda, Hawaii, and other locales have helped her grow as an artist and fueled her desire to move in new directions. Sandra continues to paint primarily in oils and to learn from nationally recognized instructors at the Scottsdale Artist School in Arizona and workshops throughout the United States. In 2010, she had the rare opportunity to take an oil painting class with acclaimed artist and instructor, Charles Reid. S. Burkett Kaiser, Ovanes Beberian, and Gay Faulkenberry, all students of Sergei Bongart, a Russian Impressionist whom Sandra admires, have also been some of her favorite instructors.
Recent participation in the Clemson University Master Gardeners and Lowcountry Institute at Spring Island programs has deepened Sandra’s knowledge and appreciation of nature and gardening in ways that will enhance her work. Membership in the Lowcountry Plein Air Society affords her excellent opportunities to paint and learn with fellow artists in picturesque outdoor locations. She has also benefitted from participating in the Plein Air Painters of America Paint Outs in Bennington, VT and Old Lyme, CT.
An award-winning artist, Sandra has exhibited in over 100 juried shows in the United States.Juan Logan awarded a Merit award to Sandra’s Seasonal Inspirations Series at Piccolo Spoleto Arts Festival 2011. .Zinnias and Melonswas accepted into the Hilton Head Art League 2009 National Juried Show, judged by Craig Srebnik. Among the Flowers won First Place in the Lowcountry Plein Air Society Competition judged by Jack Morris. Roses and Sweetgrass Baskets and The Arrangement were chosen for the 2009 South Carolina State Fair Fine Art Exhibit. In 2008, her oil paintings received two awards from Tom Lynch at the 48th Annual Beaufort Art Association’s Spring Exhibit and an Award of Merit from Jonathan Green at the Piccolo Spoleto Arts Festival. Affiliations Lowcountry Plein Air Society; South Carolina Watermedia Society; Beaufort Art Association; Arts Council of Northern Beaufort County; and Oil Painters of America Associate.
If you’re in Charleston, SC you will see Sandra at Marion Square each year during the Piccolo Spoleto Arts Festival! Catch you back here tomorrow!
One Red One by Stefan Pastuhov / Image: BayviewGallery.com
Artist to watch… Featured Artist… hmmm… I originally called these posts ARTIST TO WATCH, but I don’t want you to think that they’re all up and coming artists since some are well (very well) established… so I’m changing ARTIST TO WATCH to FEATURED ARTIST… I enjoy featuring both types of artists, since some of the newer ones can be equally amazing! Now… on with the post…
Stefan Pastuhov is an artist who’s work i’ve admired for a long time now… it’s magic how he can simplify a scene and make it so wonderful. I am captivated by his subject matter, since it’s a place I hold dear to my heart. Maine. Say no more…
Stefan shows his work at Bayview Gallery(located in Camden and Brunswick, ME), here is a little blip from their website:
Descended from Russian grandparents who fled to America in 1917, Stefan Pastuhov is a devoted outdoor sportsman and a plein air artist whose paintings capture the landscape he loves.
He has more information on his websiteas well as some pretty fantastic paintings… check it out!
One more for your viewing pleasure… Catch you back here tomorrow!
Burnt Cove Lobster Shack by Stefan Pastuhov / Image: BayviewGallery.com
Drying the Net by Logan Hagege/Image: EgeliGallery.com
Logan Hagege is an artist with a style all his own. Each piece truly is a work of art. I love the way he captures scenes, the colors, the light, the shadows… whoa! Most of the work I’m familiar with is Southwestern. FABULOUS colors, intriguing subjects. This is a bit different, “Drying the Net” is at the Egeli Gallerylocated in Provincetown, MA. If you’re in the area check it out… otherwise check out their website! Logan was one of the uber talented artists that was in a cottage down from ours in Port Clyde, Maine several years ago. We were invited to the cottage the last night and the paintings that we saw were AMAZING! Every one of those guys painted their hearts out and it showed. Being art lovers we were in HEAVEN! If you’re interested in reading a bit about their Paintapalooza trip, Addison Art Gallery has a great little write up… click HERE to read…
Jerome Greene (sold) by Logan Hagege/ Image: LoganHagege.com
Another favorite of mine is a portrait Logan did of fellow artist Jerome Greene. I believe he captured him perfectly and I LOVE how he left the edges unpainted… Check out Logan’s website for gallery information and to see his paintings!
Alison Hill is an extremely talented artist and the nicest person in the world. They just don’t come any nicer. Her house is her gallery, and a fabulous one it is. Paintings fill it from floor to ceiling. If you’re on Monhegan you will undoubtedly see Alison set up somewhere painting, and several hours later she’ll be in another location. She is amazing. This painting is entitled Rope Shed. It’s the little building that you pass on your way through town, where people hang things they’ve found, or you can read about what’s going on where… and we think she captured it beautifully. Check out Alison’s website, it’s a good one! Here’s a blip from her website, catch you back here tomorrow!
Painting has become my way of moving through this world, responding to and expressing what I see and feel. It is my interpretation, using color, stroke, and line, to evoke the mood I am receiving, whether it is a landscape, a person, or a still life, i want to recreate what i am receiving.
Through some fortunate circumstances, i am now living on Monhegan island, Maine. In the summer i run a studio gallery, and off season I spend painting, traveling, doing portraits, and other art related endeavors. Monhegan offers endless inspiration, no matter what the season, and I feel very fortunate to call this home.
Morning Walk by Brian Kliewer/ Image: KliewerStudio.com
Brian Kliewer. A nice guy and a fabulous artist. You can just feel the chill in the air in this painting, can’t you? Brian was a Facebook friend several years ago, and I truly enjoyed his posts, besides the beautiful paintings that he posted he would talk about life in Maine, show photos of the big snow storms and other various subjects. Brian is no longer on Facebook and I do miss his posts, got tired of all the FB changes I guess, heavy sigh… We also ran into his work at Mars Hall Gallery in Port Clyde a few years ago… as fabulous in person as it was on the Internet. Brian has a great website, I urge you to check it out, he lists the galleries he’s in, so if you’re in the neighborhood, pop on in! Here’s a little blip about Brian from his website:
Completely self-taught in painting, Kliewer began showing his work at The Pine Tree Shop & Bayview Gallery in Camden, Maine, in the autumn of 1988. The following year, artist Edward Hergelroth saw Kliewer’s work for the first time and said, “It’s hard to believe that anyone this young and with so little formal training could produce such an incredible sense of drama and atmosphere in his work.” Collectors were soon taken with his paintings and the gallery dedicated an entire show to his work at its Portland, Maine location early in 1991. His show of Maine landscapes was a near sellout. In 1995 the Camden gallery offered “Brian Kliewer-A Full Perspective” to its audience and the show nearly sold out on its first weekend! Another successful show followed in 1996. In 2001, Kliewer showed in “Two Views of New England,” a two-man show at Mast Cove Galleries in Kennebunkport, Maine. In 2005 the artist was selected by curator, Margaret Bodell, to have his first show in New York City.
Self Portrait in Studio by Daniela Astone/Image: AnnLongFineArt.com
I love paintings of artists painting, or of their studios. For some reason those kinds of paintings fascinate me. I love seeing into someones life. How they do things, are they organized or does the creativity flow without order? That seems to be the case for many artists. Maybe I spend too much time getting things the way I want them… then oops… time to make dinner… ha ha… I guess I need to lighten up, or maybe pick up a paintbrush. That’s on the list of things to do this year… didn’t really work out last year, but… Anyway, artist Daniela Astone painted a fantastic piece, a self portrait in her studio. Very nice Daniela!
Locally, Daniela has her work at Ann Long Fine Art in Charleston, SC. If you’re in the area, stop by and check it out, otherwise check it out online, they have a great website! Daniela has the most interesting blog, it’s like visiting Italy! She teaches near Florence, Italy and lives the the nearby countryside. Here is a blip about the artist from her website:
Daniela Astone was born in Pisa in 1980 and raised in the town of Porto S. Stefano in Maremma, Italy. She discovered her passion for drawing and painting at a very young age and thus began cultivating this desire. In 1997, after graduating from the Visual Arts High School of Maremma, her motivation for the arts initiated a move to Florence. The cultural city of Florence provided her with the opportunity to deepen her knowledge and love of the art by both challenging and motivating her. Daniela’s first experience in Florence was working in the illustration school. In 2001, she enrolled in the Florence Academy of Art, one of the most serious art schools of Florence. Upon graduating in 2004, she received the painting award, the highest honor of her class. Daniela’s accomplishments include participation in the exhibition “Realism Revisited” in the Panorama Museum, Bad Frankenhausen Germany in 2003 as well as two successful solo shows with Ann Long Fine Art in 2005 and 2007. Daniela currently teaches at the Florence Academy of Art in Florence and resides in the nearby countryside.
We ran across Kyle Martin, a fabulous artist from Wisconsin, with such a nice loose style, while looking at Daniel Corey’s blog during the Boothbay Regional Art Foundation fundraiser that both artists were involved with back in December. Kyle has a nice blog that you should check out if you get a chance! Here is a short blip from Blue Heron, where you can see Kyle’s work if you’re out and about in Reedsburg, WI:
Kyle is interested in observing and painting the effect of light falling on the landscape. His work is created outdoors, painted en plein air, taking direct inspiration from the subject. By using color to show atmosphere, he will often return to the same location to capture different moods of the same scene. His luminous paintings are created with active brushwork and broken color. Click HERE to see the rest…
I love running across new (to me) artists! Catch you back here tomorrow!
Bedroom Window by artist Douglas Martenson / Image: CourthouseGallery.com
This is a fabulous piece by artist Douglas Martenson, today’s Artist To Watch. I love how the light peeks through the fabric in the curtains, its fabulous! The artist shows his work at Courthouse Gallery in Ellsworth, Maine. If you’re in the area, check it out… otherwise check out their website!
Here’s a blip about the artist from the Courthouse Gallery website:
I have been working from life directly and indirectly from images based on the studio, or the house that I rent with my wife and Daughter for several weeks each August in Blue Hill Maine. This gives me an opportunity to focus on Landscape elements such as light and how it falls, grand vistas, water, structures such as buildings and how they relate to their environment. I also create through the use of domestic spaces both in Philadelphia and in Maine and examination of the interior world consisting of objects and light that help the spaces take form to create a landscape of the interior. While the work has always been substantially representational, this focus has brought a quality of tone and brushwork to the fore. I hope through this examination I have touched on something which is universal.
Martenson, who since 1978 has made his home in Philadelphia , a Graduate of the Pennsylvania academy of the fine Arts, his studio is a three story row house located in the Dickenson square area of Philadelphia, the house he rents in Maine is an old farm house located on seventeen acres facing Cadillac Mountain. Martenson has been the recipient of many grants and awards including a Pennsylvania Council on the arts fellowship and several Individual creative opportunity stipends from the Pennsylvania council on the Arts, a Pew fellowship on the arts grant for study at the Vermont studio center in northern Vermont an a Cresson European Traveling Scholarship from the Pennsylvania Academy of the fine Arts. Martenson has exhibited widely and shown his works regularly in galleries in New York, Philadelphia and Boston.
I ran across this blog a while back by artist Scott Hamilton (Artboy68), a VERY talented artist from British Columbia. I signed up to be a follower because I was intrigued at what he was doing, 100 portraits in 20 weeks. The blog is aptly titled “100 Portraits“, and I enjoy reading the comments back from people like me who have had their portrait done! I urge you to check out Scott’s blog, he’s very talented indeed! This sketch is 2 3/8 x 2 15/16 and he is sending it to me, what a special surprise. Click HERE for the link to this post…
I’ve met a lot of neat people through WordPress, people like Scott, but no one has done my portrait before, ha ha… THANK YOU Scott! I wish you much success, you are talented indeed… AND just so you know, I already had a draft started so that I could feature you, but I was waiting for you to do a SELF portrait… hint hint… maybe the 100th?
"Just Arrived" by artist Ulrich Gleiter / Image: KarenHagan.com
Can’t you just FEEL how deep this snow is? How cold the temperature is? Perhaps smell wood burning from a nearby fireplace? Today’s artist to watch is Ulrich Gleiter who was given this advice… “Paint two small plein air sketches every day. Nothing else will train your sense of color better.”
ULRICH GLEITER was born in Saarbruecken, Germany, and studied at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts in Germany before moving to Rus- sia to study first at the Suricov Institute of Arts in Moscow and then at the Repin Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg. In 2010 he received the Best of Show award and First Place in the Quick Draw Portrait Competition in the Plein Air Rockies 2010 in Estes Park, Colorado; the Award of Excellence in the Wyoming Plein Air in Cheyenne, Wyoming; and the Frank Bette First Prize in the 2010 Alameda Plein Air Paint out in Alameda, California. He will be mounting a solo exhibition of his work at Gallerie Ines Schulz in Dresden, Germany, in the fall of 2011, and will participate in the Door County Plein Air Invitational in July 2011 and the Plein Air Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado, in August 2011 For more information, visit his website at www. ulrichgleiter.com.
HERE is a good article from Plein Air Magazine about Ulrich…
David Scriven Crowley is today’s Artist to Watch! My husband and I first ran across him on a trip to Rockland, Maine… we ran across his intriguing gallery on Main Street and fell in love with his Jack Russell, (I believe her name was Daphne), what a character! David is a very talented artist full of amazing stories, if you get a chance and are in the area, stop by and say Hello! Or… stop by his website to check out his work…
My work is about emotion, the profound sense of a mandate so demanding and so compulsive that the need to make something MUST be satisfied. Even if the lack of time, the lack of funds, and the market do not support the idea, the emotional desperation for a project to be realized is so compelling as to force itself into fruition. These concepts manifest in many forms, usually complete (in my head), before they are begun. The process is, however every bit a part of the creation and through the development of the work, small changes of direction may occur. Usually, these deviations are subtle, but may at times alter the direction of the original idea. The ideas are spiritual, political, social, environmental, humorous, or may simply be about beauty.
This is a two part post… the first part is a quick HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my dad. He’s the best… then, the Artist to Watch… !
Hey dad, I’m wondering how you are old enough to have a daughter my age, ha ha! We wish you the happiest birthday ever… You’re the absolute best! Miss you so much!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday, deeeaaaaar Daaaa-aaaad!
Happy Birthday to you… and many more!
My dad can do ANYTHING… some of the hobbies he’s had that quickly come to mind are… photography/developing photos in our basement, wine making (long time ago, wonder how that turned out?), rock polishing/jewelry making, canoe building, watercolor, oil, pen and ink, woodworking (beautiful jewelry boxes, lamps, wooden bowls, ornaments, you name it…), stained glass making… the list goes on and on… the man doesn’t get bored I can tell you that! A few years ago I gave him a sketchbook for Christmas, and told him one day when he filled it up with doodles, thoughts, etc he could pass it back (nice gift, eh?)… Perhaps this may have been the most stressful gift he’s ever received, ha ha… He gave it back to me less than two years later FILLED with gorgeous sketches, pen and ink and watercolor… I am sharing a few with you. He’s too talented. He needs a website ;)
I will share more with you in the coming months… this sketchbook is precious to me… I LOVE it!
ARTFOODHOME.COM 