Featured Artist: Bethanne Kinsella Cople!

At Days End by Bethanne Kinsella Cople

At Days End by Bethanne Kinsella Cople   30×30″  Oil

Bethanne Kinsella Cople. Nice work. Different! I like that she has texture to her paintings. Wonderful reflections in the water. One of my favorite parts of this painting are the highlighted tree trunks. A small thing like that makes a big diffence.

Though the Winds are Still by Bethanne Kinsella Cople

Though the winds are still by Bethanne Kinsella Cople  8×8″  Oil

This small painting has some feeling going on, doesn’t it? It looks as if a storm might be brewing. Bethanne’s trees are fabulous. I love scruffy trees. It’s how they are in real life, not perfect and symmetrical. I guess that may be why I like the Christmas trees that are a bit different, even “Charlie Brown’ish”. Character. Tons of it! Nice work!

Are you looking for a wonderful workshop in a location that is out of this world? How about Provence, France?? Woohoo! Bethanne will be teaching a workshop in Provence, France this June 19th to 25th 2016. She just finished teaching one the beginning of October and said the trip was amazing. You can read about it in the Huff Harrington Blog!

Read a bit about Bethanne, from her website:

Bethanne’s plein air landscape paintings are known for their lush painterly quality. Loosely painted yet realist, they invite the viewer to experience each painting anew with every observation. This quality gives her paintings a timeless appeal. Using expressive brushwork and a finely honed sense of color, she creates a powerful image with both depth and beauty.
     With a well defined style, Bethanne paints a diverse range of subjects. She fills her paintings with compelling skies and calming landscapes. Her paintings capture scenes of brilliant snow, rich farmlands, and the varied shores of the East and West coasts. Landscapes are her passion and she travels far and  wide for subjects.
     “I love painting the landscape en plein air. In the outdoors you can incorporate not only what you see, but the sounds and the smells of the landscape. All of this lets me convey the sense of wonder that I feel at the subject.” Bethanne has painted in blizzards in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah, on steep cliffs in Monhegan Island, Maine, in strong gales along the rugged northern California coast and the sanctuary of summer and winter on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, the Potomac River in Virginia, and the east end of Long Island, NY. “I love being in the outdoors painting. It rejuvenates me in a way painting in the studio can’t.”
     From the time Bethanne began painting professionally and entering competitions, she has been earning recognition for her work. Most recently, she received “Award of Excellence” at the Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters 2012 National Show, Grand Teton National Park, “Dick Bell Bookmaven Award of Excellance”at the American Impressionist Society National Show 2010, “People’s Choice Award”, at the Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, New York, New York exhibition and “Best Pastoral”, at the Plein Air-Easton 2005 and 2006 Invitational Paintouts, Easton, Maryland.  She also received “Honorable Mention” at the Eleventh and Fifteenth Annual Invitational Paintouts, Carmel, California, and “Best Traditional Painting,” 107th and 113thAnnual Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Open Exhibition, National Arts Club, New York City.  She was also honored as “an artist to watch” by Southwest Art Magazine February 2006 landscape addition and served two terms as President of American Women Artists.
     Bethanne has also succeeded commercially with her wide range of plein air paintings. Her landscapes appear in both public and private collections in Europe and the United States. “I am passionate about painting, admittedly to the point of obsession on occasion.” Her family supports and embraces her passion. “My husband was the first one to encourage me. Before we were married, he saw my work and pushed me to pursue art in college, everything else is history.”
Bethanne lives in Historic Old Town, Alexandria, Virginia and East Hampton, NY with her husband and two daughters. “We love to travel together, which includes skiing in Park City, Utah every winter and exploring beautiful Assateague Island seashore in Virginia, where the wild ponies run every summer. I always manage to paint whenever we travel. My family understands and supports me, though I think they shake their heads at me sometimes.” Bethanne also travels to France every year where she paints and conducts workshops.
    Bethanne is represented by Huff Harrington Fine Art, Atlanta, Georgia;  Principle Gallery in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia; Gallerie Amsterdam in Carmel, California; Carmen’s Gallery in Solomons Island, Maryland; The William Ris Gallery in Stone Harbor, New Jersey.

Images via BethanneKinsellaCople.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

The beauty of Charleston…

Morning Walk...View from a morning walk.

You never know what you will see (or hear),

The turtles sunning themselves,

Church bells chiming on the hour,

Stark white birds having the time of their lives,

Sun on the marsh grass,

This looks so remote, yet it is so near it all.

The beauty of Charleston…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

October Sky – Charleston, SC

October Sky - Charleston, SC

Don’t you just love this time of year?

It starts getting more crisp and less humid. (YAY!)

The mornings are dark, at least for now.

Evening comes quickly. I love that…

The sun sets in the most glorious way.

Enjoy the October skies!

Update: This was written in October, with the intention of being published in October, hmmm, clearly I need to hire help to keep me straight. The October skies are still beautiful in November. That crisp, less humid air… hmmmm, it isn’t happening at the moment, we are warm and humid. I am excited for that to change! The sunrise and sunset each day… exquisite!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist Everett Raymond Kinstler!

Champagne with Dr Seuss by Everett Raymond Kinstler

Champagne with Dr. Seuss by Everett Raymond Kinstler  25×30″
Everett Raymond Kinstler is a gem.  Through email, I have found that he is a kind, warm, interesting individual. It’s like hitting the jackpot when you find paintings that you love AND an artist that is a pleasure. This guy… Nice as can be.
Champagne with Dr. Seuss is a painting with Theodor Seuss Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) in his home with friends. This painting grabbed me right off. The colors, the textures, that beautiful water. It looks to be an interesting group of people, I look at this painting and I wonder what they are talking about. A painting is stunning to me when it holds my attention and makes me think about what’s going on. It doesn’t happen a lot, but wow, something about Everett’s paintings really strike me. He does more than paint, he tells a story through his paintings.
Everett’s words about this painting…
“Champagne with Dr. Seuss“ is a favorite of mine. It depicts the legendary author with guests in his home in La Jolla, Ca. The original painting is owned by Dartmouth College, his alma mater.
Trying to decide which two paintings to show you was a difficult task. I was sure it was some of the images of Katharine Hepburn (so lifelike you won’t believe it), in the end, this painting grabbed me, at first I didn’t see it on the website, I saw it in the video (below), and my jaw dropped… then I found it on his website.
Christopher Plummer as Prospero by Everett Raymond Kinstler
Christopher Plummer as Prospero by Everett Raymond Kinstler
Christopher Plummer as Prospero. Stunningly beautiful. His face… Striking and intent. It’s as if he could walk right off the canvas. I love the thick strokes of paint and the colors in this painting really wow me. The blues and greens together… and then to add stars… ah, the stars do me in! Fabulous. If you look on Everett’s website, it will show Christopher Plummer posing beside the finished painting.
Watch a great interview with Everett called From Pulp to Portraits, it’s fabulous! I can only imagine the stories he can tell!
Then read a bit about the artist, from his website:

EVERETT RAYMOND KINSTLER is a native New Yorker who began his career at age 16, drawing comic books and hundreds of book and magazine illustrations, as well as covers for paper back books. As one of the “golden age” era of comic book artists, his illustrations for magazines, including The Shadow and Doc Savage, have influenced the pop art school.

He studied at the Art Students League, where he later taught from 1969 to 1974. Kinstler ultimately made the transition to portraitist, and soon established himself as one of the nation’s foremost portrait painters. For over four decades, Kinstler also has devoted time to painting landscapes and watercolors.

Among Kinstler’s more than 1200 portraits are such well-known personalities as Tony Bennett, Carol Burnett, James Cagney, Betty Ford, Gene Hackman, Katharine Hepburn, Lady Bird Johnson, Paul Newman, Peter O’Toole, Gregory Peck, and John Wayne. Others include authors Arthur Miller, Ayn Rand, Tennessee Williams, and Tom Wolfe; Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Harry Blackmun; business and government leaders such as John D. Rockefeller lll, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, 6 U.S. Governors, four US Secretaries of State, and the presidents of universities and colleges including Brown, Harvard, Oklahoma, Princeton, Smith, Wellesley, Williams, and Yale.

Kinstler has painted more than 50 cabinet officers, more than any artist in the country’s history. Seven Presidents — Richard Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush — have posed for him. His portraits of Ford and Reagan are the official White House portraits.

He was awarded honorary doctorates by Rollins College in 1983 and the Lyme Academy College of Art in 2002. The National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C., has acquired 75 of his original works for its permanent collection. He is also represented in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Butler Institute of American Art, Brooklyn Museum, etc.

Memberships include: National Academy of Design (N.A.), Allied Artists of America, American Watercolor Society, Pastel Society of America (Hall of Fame), Audubon Artists, Copley Society of Boston (life), National Arts Club.

In 1999, Kinstler received the Copley Medal from the Smithsonian, National Portrait Gallery, its highest honor.

Many PBS stations are airing a recent documentary on his career.

Recent portrait commissions include Tony Bennett, Donald Trump, Sandy Weill (Weill-Cornell Medical Center), Tommy Lasorda for the National Portrait Gallery, Christopher Plummer, and the official City Hall portrait of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

All images via EverettRaymondKinstler.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

House Plan: 54 Wilmington Place by Our Town Plans!

54 Wilmington Place by Our Town Plans

The 54 Wilmington Place house plan is 3,016 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. This plan has so many great features! The look of this house appeals to me so much! Be sure to check out the real images of this home, by clicking on the link above!

Click HERE to see a few images of the interior (real photos). A photo of the front of the house, a few of the Great Room, and one of the bedroom… WOW!

54 Wilmington Place | Our Town Plans

Who doesn’t like a porch? With a porch on the front of the house and a Screen Porch on the back of the house you’re covered! Imagine the amount of living that can be done in these two wonderful spaces?

The Kitchen and Keeping Room (which is a space is like a sitting room in the Kitchen, since most of us tend to congregate in the kitchen), think of it as an eat in breakfast area with comfy surroundings, or just as a sitting area. A great place to visit!

I like that their is a Master Bedroom downstairs, nice closet space and that the Great Room doors open onto the Screen Porch. Let the fresh air in!

 

54 Wilmington Place | Our Town Plans

Upstairs offers two bedrooms with private baths and a sitting room. Perfect to give privacy and people relax and do their thing while you do yours!

Another great plan offered by Our Town Plans!

All images via OurTownPlans.com, used with permission…

Images are not for construction or reproduction, they are property of the architectural firm.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist: Kathy Hirsh!

Welcome Home by Kathy Hirsh

Welcome Home by Kathy Hirsh  8×10″  Oil

Sweet painting, isn’t it? Welcome Home leaves you with a wonderful feeling. Kind of like when you return from a long vacation to your own home which is so inviting. Comfy bed, wonderful shower, pretty flowers… just a good feeling! Nice shadows and colors without being overworked.

If you’re in the Oak Park, Illinois area, check out Kathy’s classes! While you’re there be sure to check out her other paintings!

Read a bit about Kathy, from her website:

Telluride mountains, hay fields in the south of France, rice paddies in Nepal, religious ceremonies in India, sunset in Mongolia-I have been privileged to paint en plein air in remarkable destinations. Living in Nepal and China for 15 years and now back in the states, whether I’m in the studio or out in the landscape-I’m working to capture the stunning color, the light quality and the juxtaposition of form and atmosphere.

As a medical illustrator I worked primarily in black and white for 25 years illustrating surgical procedures. While not exactly coffee table books, I was a best seller on the surgical textbook circuit.  For years I spent my days in operating rooms (like being a courtroom artist, but the defendant is unconscious). Now working in color, it feels like every painting day is a celebration.

Image via KathyHirsh.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

House Plan: Signature plan 536-2 by Bruce Tolar through Houseplans.com!

HP 536-2 by Houseplans.com

House Plan 536-2. This is a wonderful small home plan by architect Bruce Tolar for Houseplans.com. I love the front porch and the look of this house! A house built up high is especially appealing after all the flooding we’ve been experiencing. I think this house has a classic low country coastal vibe – very nice!

When you go to Houseplans.com check out this plan and all the photos, you’ll see some images where it sits on a pier and beam type foundation. Then you have the option to enclose the lower portion or have it exposed, using it as a carport. It depends where you are building and what your needs are. The stock plan shows it open, but the photo above (sent to Houseplans.com from a homeowner) shows that they utilized the space for an enclosed garage. It’s nice to have a great plan with so many options!

HP 536-2 by Houseplans.com

It seems I usually select a house plan with a porch. Front, back or side. I love to be able to sit outside and take advantage of outdoor living spaces. This compact home has a bedroom and a bunk room, which is perfect for either bunk beds or even a sleeper sofa, if it’s only going to be used on occasion. There is a sweet, efficient, galley kitchen, as well as a dining room. Everything you need to call this place home!

You can scroll down to the end of this link to read more about the architect, Bruce B. Tolar!

All images via Houseplans.com, used with permission…

Images are not for construction or reproduction, they are property of the architectural firm.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist: Martha Burkert!

Portland by Martha Burkert

Portland by Martha Burkert  48×36″  Oil

Martha Burkert. A cool perspective and a unique eye. She has a way of making things wonderful with color.

Martha has her “Simple Gifts” show going on now at the Elizabeth Moss Galleries, located in Falmouth, Maine. The show runs through November 14, 2015, so if you’re in the area, be sure to stop in and check it out. It’s going to be fantastic! The painting, Portland, is part of the show!

Read a blip about Martha, from her website:

I am primarily a landscape painter. The landscape and architecture that surround me are my favorite jumping off points. I push and pull color around these forms trying to find combinations that feel right. I am not restrained by local color or the hard and fast rules of perspective. The application of paint, the resonance of colors against each other, the muscularity of shapes and the temperature of light and dark are my guides.

Image via MarthaBurkert.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist: David Arms!

David Arms Gallery

David Arms. An extraordinary artist with beautiful paintings. Meaningful and exquisite. A delight to browse through. Gorgeous paintings, a lovely studio and then… there is the gallery. Wow. Wow. Wow. I think I could live in it! Everything is absolutely exquisite! Could it be any sweeter? When you look through David’s images on his website you’ll see a photo of it at night. Wow!

David Arms Still
Still by David Arms 11×7″

It’s no secret, I love David’s work. This painting, STILL is so perfect for autumn! His paintings are beautiful, many have wonderful messages – you have to see to believe!

David has a wonderful studio click that link to see how beautiful!

Be sure to check out David’s Journal – he has one classy, well thought out website – FIVE STARS! Be sure to check it out!

Read a bit about David from his website (check website for more)!

David Arms was born in 1956 in east Tennessee along with two older brothers who still reside there. His father was a businessman and raised treasured bird dogs. His mother was a homemaker and still enjoys travel and her grandchildren. Growing up, he spent his summers and holidays with a beloved aunt who lived between nowhere and somewhere Tennessee. David had a fairly typical small town childhood – sand lot baseball, church potlucks and an occasional dabbling in art…the soul of the painter however was starting to stir. His mind’s eye was mixing the summer blues and autumn golds on an imaginary palette as he wandered back roads in the shadow of the Smoky Mountains.

After a rather ordinary high school experience, David headed west to Tennessee Tech in an old faded yellow Volkswagen Beetle. Leaving short of graduation, his path eventually landed him in Nashville – the place he has called home since. It was there he was introduced to the world of “special events”, where he soon became known throughout the country for his designs of high profile corporate and social events. His imagination, attention to detail and ability to seemingly create “something out of nothing” resulted in numerous awards for his work.

An ordained, random event then became an intersection in his life.

Having married and moved into their first home, he and his wife needed a large painting to fill a large frame for a large vacant wall. The artist (who had been there all along) suddenly emerged. Almost as if someone else was guiding his hands…a painting filled the canvas.

With a grand leap of faith, his hobby became his calling and his life’s work.

With his wife and two daughters close by, David spends his days in a sun drenched studio filled with Classical and Americana music, french press coffee, books and patchouli. But some days he prefers to paint in the quiet, inspired by the sparrows, wrens and chickadees living at his window. It is here that he creates images that transport you from what you see into that sometimes faraway place of what you feel and what you believe – and his wish is that the viewer look long enough to walk away with a renewed sense of hope.

Let your eyes search his paintings and may you be blessed as you find a place to rest, hope for your heart, light for the darkness…and continue on…as we stumble on…this journey together down Redemption Road.

Wow! What a great story! Catch you back here tomorrow!

House Plan: The TNH B 08C plan by Moser Design Group!

TNH B 08C plan by Moser Design Group

This is the TNH B 08C plan by Moser Design Group. How can they possibly pack so much living into one fairly small space? This plan is 1,157 square feet with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. I love the charming porch, the windows, the transom over the door…

TNH B 08C plan by Moser Design Group

With an open Living/Kitchen/Dining area this plan fits nicely into today’s living. If you’re looking for a smaller plan and don’t need a formal dining room, this may appeal to you! With the Master Bedroom/Bathroom located at the back of the house, that leaves a nice space for a guest or other family member. You could always make it into a sitting room maybe with a pull out sofa if you have infrequent guests and could use that space for other things. I also like the side stoop and Utility Room, so many great features!

All images via www.moserdesigngroup.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Happy Birthday to my better half… Fred!

 

Fred - Pulpit Rock, Monhegan Maine

This photo was taken on Monhegan at Pulpit Rock (which you cannot actually see in this photo)… this is one of our favorite places on the island. To just sit and be… to listen to the quiet that is so loud to me, because I don’t hear quiet THAT quiet. Peaceful. Lovely. The fresh air, the scenic shoreline, the happy times of relaxing, hiking, visiting with friends…

IMG_4369

Today I am wishing the happiest of birthdays to my other half, my better half… my husband, Fred! I’m happy that he caught up with me (age-wise) –

Fred, if I could buy you the perfect gift I would fly you back to Monhegan where we would sit right where you are on this rock. But, for now, we’ll go with memories… and cake!

Thank you for being the sweetest man in the world and I love you more than you can ever imagine!

❤️🎂🎉😍❤️

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Spaghetti & Meatballs – Best you’ve ever tasted, couldn’t be easier!

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Funny how small the world is. We were on vacation and I was reading a magazine, saw a recipe that looked wonderful, from a Bertolli pasta sauce ad. Looked quick and easy and oh so delicious. That recipe came home with me. My friend, Heather, had done the same thing. She told me she made spaghetti and meatballs, they sounded delicious! I told her I tore out a recipe from a Bertolli ad! She said THAT’s the recipe, with a minor change!!

The only thing that she does differently is to bake the meatballs instead of just placing into the sauce. I like that! She bakes hers at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes, turning once. I baked mine 20 minutes, turning once during that time. Not sure if my oven is a little speedy or what, but they smelled just about done. Then pour one jar of sauce (plenty for four people) into a pan (a taller pan would work better than a wide pan so that the meatballs are submerged in the sauce). Heather uses Olive Oil & Garlic sauce, and I used Tomato Basil, just because that’s our favorite.

I’m not kidding you. This recipe is STUNNING. It took about 5 minutes to make the meatballs. Good note from Heather is to not pack the meatballs to tightly. She knew what she was talking about!

Following her direction, I put the pasta (I used whole wheat) and sauce with meatballs into a large bowl and tossed.

Get out! It was breathtakingly beautiful and the aroma in the house was to die for! Fred said he savored every bite! ;) I served it with a small salad of arugula, carrots, cucumber, green onion, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and a little sprinkle of parmesan. Nice!

Next time I will eat 2 instead of 2 3/4 meatballs, ha ha… they were just so good. Click HERE to print the recipe with my notes, or click HERE to click the recipe directly from Bertolli!

Bertolli Spaghetti and Meatballs my vz.png

Thank you Bertolli for the quick and easy recipe, and thank you Heather for making it and passing along the tips!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist: Peter Van Dyck

BP Station by Peter Van Dyck

BP Station  by Peter Van Dyck  40×40″  Oil

Peter Van Dyck. What fabulous paintings. So fresh and different! Peter can even make a BP Station look good enough to paint! Many of his paintings are interiors which are my absolute favorite. I don’t know what it is. They fascinate me.

Peter Van Dyck interior

Studio Still Life

Peter’s interiors blow me away. Many of are his studio space throughout time. Each one is stunning. This painting is absolutely brilliant! Just look at the textures, shadows, etc. etc.!!!

There was a great piece written by Larry Groff (owner of PaintingPerceptions.com) – be sure to check it out HERE.

Read a bit about Peter, from the JohnPence.com (Gallery):

Peter Van Dyck (b. 1978) was drawn to painting as a craft and a profession as a young man. But his urge to immerse himself into painting was strong; compelling him to leave college life and sojourn to Florence, Italy. There he became a standout student and, eventually, an Instructor at the renowned Florence Academy of Art, under the astute direction of Daniel Graves. He studied personally under Graves and Ramiro Sanchez.

Van Dyck was recommended to the gallery by a coterie of his painting peers. All parties are drawn to his haunting, personal paintings of the house he lives in, the studio he paints in, the tools he works with and the simple everyday things surround him. His current body of work is a diary of a year in this young artist’s life. His palette is oriented to the interior, his light and shadows are important to his portrayals, his choices of subjects are modern adaptations of Old Masters’ sophistication, and he handles paint textures with a mastery for an artist so young. Till now, he has shown in Philadelphia and Long Island.

Images via PeterVanDyckArt.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!