Joe Godleski

Camden Harbor

2011-12-31T15:40:00.001-05:00

"Camden Harbor", Joe Godleski, oil, 2011

Alex and I find ourselves visiting up the Maine coast from time to time and Camden is one of our favorite spots. When we can, we climb up Camden Hills for the view of the harbor and surrounding seascape. It is always a wonderful vista. Well, I finally sketched out a view of the harbor from the visits and resulting photos. I painted the view on DaVinci panel in 24" by 18" format. It's such a seemingly calm, organized locale to be the backdrop for a movie such as "Peyton Place." You never know.

Carlo Pittore - Day of 1,000 Drawings

2011-11-04T14:52:00.001-04:00

Last Saturday, the Carlo Pittore Foundation held a sale and silent auction of 1000 of the late artist's works on paper. It took up the entire area at Fort Andross in Brunswick where the Winter Farmer's Market (see below) is held. It was dizzying in scope, quantity and quality. I first became familiar with Carlo Pittore's work when I submitted "Pastor Philip" for a portrait show at the Merrymeeting Arts Center in Bowdoinham few years back, and they hung my work right next to one of Carlo Pittore's. It was a thrill. He was at the forefront of postcard art and was quite prolific, the 1000 drawings being a small fraction of his total legacy. My personal haul from the the day's event are shown in the pictures above. I am especially happy about getting one of the boxers that were up for sale. It was a good day. To find out more about the Carlo Pittore Foundation, click here.

3 for 3 at 10 by 10

2011-10-06T12:06:00.001-04:00

Across Frenchman Bay, Oil, Joe Godleski

View From Camden Hills, Oil, Joe Godleski

Last Friday night's 10 by 10 show benefitting Arts Are Elementary was really something. Brunswick merchants and restauranteurs donated an abundance of very good munchies that this chow hound "appreciated" to the max. The crowd was festive and generous. The volunteers kept everything moving smoothly. And all three of the paintings I entered were sold - November Morning, Old Pumper, Heading for Cover! So, I've been working on a couple of mountain/waterscapes, and they are shown above. The palette and detail for these were scaled back from my usual work, as a change of pace. Next show upcoming is the Yarmouth Arts Festival at Saint Bart's, October 19 - 22. The Coastal Garden Rhododendron was juried in. I'm looking forward to the artist's reception Oct. 20, 6 - 8 pm.

Hanging Out in Portland

2011-09-20T20:18:00.000-04:00

Dock Fore, Portland Head Light

Dock Fore, Day is Done grouping

A little while ago, Shaun McCarthy of the Dock Fore pub in the Old Port put out a call for artists to show in his establishment and to participate in the Portland Art Walk. That led to my paintings and prints hanging in Dock Fore for the Portland First Friday Art Walk in October through to October 29th. Dock Fore is cozy joint and I think my pictures work there. Plus, it'll be fun to check out the Portland Art Walk. So, with my pictures hanging elsewhere, there's empty spaces in the Brunswick studio that need to be filled. The newly finished "Late November" will help. I had gotten such positive feedback for "November Morn" which will be in the September 30th 10 by 10 show, that I decided to paint a larger variation, and I dig painting those rocks, using a lot of wet-on-wet technique.

Late November, Joe Godleski

November Morn, Joe Godleski

Dogging It

2011-09-13T11:19:00.000-04:00

Maggie, Joe Godleski, Oil on Board

Foxy, Joe Godleski, Oil on Canvas

Here's a couple of portraits of family dogs - Foxy and Maggie. Foxy's portrait was originally a much bigger canvas but upon further review, the interesting part could be distilled down to a 10" by 10" window, and so with scissors and new stretchers, it was. Maggie's portrait is done on gessoed Elephant board, which turned out to be a much smoother medium to work with versus trying to traverse the hills and dales of canvas. I'll be using more board moving forward. On another note, the Bowdoin season has resumed. The lecture / slide presentation by Mark Wethli on his public art documented his efforts to complete a work, Civitas, for the Muskie School of Public Service. Mr. Wethli abstracted Lorenzetti's 14th century fresco, Effects of Good Government on City Life for this work. The walkthrough from idea to design to build for this project provided a behind-the-scenes insight into the soon-to-be finished work of art.

The 10 by 10 September 30th

2011-08-30T10:04:00.009-04:00

"Boothbay Harbor",
Joe Godleski, oil

"Old Pumper", Joe Godleski, oil

This past Saturday morning, the check-in was held for the annual 10 by 10 show at the Curtis Memorial Library here in Brunswick. The web posting of the works submitted gives some indication of the variety and quality to be available at the show. It will be a pretty cool show, preview September 29 and 30, show September 30, 5 to 8. My third 10 by 10, "Old Pumper," is shown to the left. I also finished another work in water-based oil, "Boothbay Harbor." It's the first vertical painting I've done in a while, measuring 24" high by 8" wide. And lastly, kudos to the Thornton Oaks folks for the set up, most wonderful opening and ongoing show (until September 22, 2011) of "Community Paints."

A Week at Chautauqua

2011-08-18T09:54:00.010-04:00

Alex and I recently spent a very active week at Chautauqua NY. Besides lectures, music, dance, and great weather, there was a goodly amount of art to take in. At the Strohl Art Center were three shows: 1) "Out of the Blue" on the first floor which presented works all using blue as a unifier of sorts, 2) "Abstraction in America: Forties to Sixties" on the second floor in conjunction with Albright-Knox which had a heavyweight representation of artists of the period but which left me wondering how the same works would be received today, and 3) "Bilateral Trace: Four Emerging Artists from Iran" which let us in on the recent works of four woman artists from Iran. This third show was the more adventurous and interesting of the 3. One of the artists (work "Tantalized" shown above), Hedieh Javanshir Ilchi, gave an insightful lecture later in the week outlining her accelerating artistic journey and providing shots of fellow artist Roshanak Tehrani on a trip back to Iran. The student show at the Fowler-Kellogg across from the Strohl was as outstanding as last year, with the majority of the art marked sold - always a good sign. I also took a daily figure drawing course at Chautauqua led by visiting artist Antonio Petracca which turned out to be time really well spent. "Focus on the core. Focus on the core." Aye, will do.

Boothbay Harbor

2011-07-21T08:42:00.008-04:00

"Heading for Cover", Joe Godleski, Oil

Alex and I motored with our out-of-town company up to Boothbay Harbor yesterday. We stopped first across the foot bridge at the Joy to the Wind gallery, and had a great discussion with Lynne Seizer, co-owner. We chatted over our recent works depicting herons (my latest 10by10 is shown above), viewed the many and varied works Lynne and Jim Seitzer have hanging and then Lynne pointed us to the Studio 53 Gallery back across the foot bridge. We got there just as Bob McKay, featured artist for the month, was opening up. This is a great space having 3 floors with 8 artists represented showing a great selection from abstract to Maine landscapes. Bob talked about his methods and techniques and then autographed a copy of his book "Percival, the Lighthouse Mouse," for our friends' grandkids. It was a very pleasant visit. As we crossed back and forth across the foot bridge, we noticed a dory in the water that was clearly the finished version of the dory being worked on in my "Harbormaster's Workshop" soft block print. Take a look and see.

"Harbormaster's Workshop", Joe
Godleski, soft block
print

Dory in Boothbay Harbor

The Hopper Exhibit at Bowdoin

2011-07-18T21:27:00.007-04:00

Alex and I attended the opening of the Hopper exhibit at Bowdoin. We had tried to attend the lecture on Hopper and A. Wyeth just before the opening but were turned away from the lecture hall as it was filled to standing room only. So we grabbed dinner at the new Inn at Brunswick Station and found the service and food quite good. Anyway, then off to the Hopper Opening which was a bit crowded. But we still found good access to the paintings and drawings, as the food and wine at the Opening served as a diversion for a good number of folks. Hopper's works were well displayed and were just wonderful, particularly for me, his Monhegan oils. Major props to Curator Diana Tuite and Director Kevin Salatino for their work in putting this together. It will be an exhibit to visit and re-visit.

Two upcoming shows: Community Paints & the 10 by 10

2011-07-06T11:01:00.000-04:00

"November Morning," Joe Godleski,
Oil on Canvas, 10" by 10"

Thornton Oaks here in Brunswick is hosting an exhibit running August 18 through September 22. They are inviting all artists to submit a piece of art based on the theme "Summer in Maine." The quality of the exhibits at Thornton Oaks is very solid and consistent. Also, they have a roomful of Carroll Thayer Berry prints that is pretty cool. For more info on the Thornton Oaks Community Paints show, click here. Of course, the annual Arts are Elementary 10 by 10 show is coming up in late September. I've started working on my 10 by 10s, and the first one "November Morning" is shown above. The photo on which the painting is based was taken Thanksgiving day off Land's End. For more info on the 10 by 10 show, click here.

Study, Study, Study

2011-06-22T22:02:00.000-04:00

Feeder, Joe Godleski, Oil on Canvas

Carnations, Joe Godleski, Oil on Canvas

Reeds, Joe Godleski, Oil on Canvas

Plein air sessions and the Tuesday group at the Harlow Gallery in Hallowell have allowed for working through a number of studies, both indoors and out. The process of selecting a subject, composing a frame, sketching, preparing a palette and then actually painting within a 3 or so hour period has been challenging, and a little frenetic at times. There always seems to be a need to finish up in the studio. Some say the results are more "authentic." I'm not sure about that, but it is a real change of pace. On another note, we took in the latest set of shows at the Farnsworth. The Four in Maine: Drawings show was outstanding. It runs through Sept 11, so if you are up in Rockland, check it out.

Latest Print

2011-06-10T11:13:00.000-04:00

"Mates", Joe Godleski, Soft Block Print, Artist Proof

Between outdoor painting sessions, I went to work on a soft block print of a pair of mallards I snapped in our community pond earlier this spring. I've spotted the male several times since but the female was not by his side, probably nesting away from view. The artist proof is shown above. As usual, the print will be available in an edition of 25.

Diane Dubreuil, Plein Air

2011-05-16T10:59:00.001-04:00

Last Thursday evening, I took a trip up to the Harlow Gallery in Hallowell for the Monthly Art Talk to hear Diane Dubreuil, a master plein air artist, speak about her one-month artist residency in Brittany, France and to see a slide show of her time in France, her finished works, and her sketches and journals which stood quite well on their own. It was a very engaging session. Her web site - http://www.ddubreuil.com/ - does not do justice to her works. They really need to be seen in person. The evening reinforced the urge to get outside to paint, on my own or with the Deb Arter class through Merrymeeting Adult Ed (we are two session into a six session program) or through plein air sessions being set up by Diane D. Now if the darn rain would stop!!

Art2011 at Harlow Gallery

2011-05-03T21:36:00.000-04:00

"Early Spring", Joe Godleski, oil on canvas, 30" X 10"

"Early Spring" has been juried into the Art2011 exhibit at the Harlow Gallery in Hallowell. The exhibit kicks off with an opening reception Friday May 6th 5-8pm and runs through May 28th. Véronique Plesch and Margaret Libby, both professors in the art department at Colby College, judged Art2011, the 16th annual juried art exhibition at the Harlow Gallery. 57 works were chosen out of total of 327 submitted works. Needless to say, I am quite pleased and I am really looking forward to the show.

PMA Biennial and Beverly Rippel Workshop

2011-04-16T12:34:00.000-04:00

Beverly Rippel, Pink Cap Gun I, 2010,
oil and encaustic on linen

The 2011 Portland Museum of Art Biennial is a varied and strong show. Alex and I attended the early opening and were able to find quite a few works that we enjoyed. Although the Sunday paper review of the show made only a scant mention of "traditional landscape painting," the choice of paintings for the show tilted to a realist approach and I found this surprising and in a way reassuring. I also attended a workshop ("Studio Revealed" PMA blog entry of April 5, 2011) led by Biennial artist, Beverly Rippel. We received a spirited, hands-on view into Ms. Rippel's studio approach to subject and technique, and spent some time looking at and discussing her Biennial work, "Pink Cap Gun I." When you go to the Biennial, the work is best viewed from the 2nd floor balcony as opposed to craning one's neck viewing it from the exhibit floor. It is quite striking, beautiful and disquieting at the same time.

Heron

2011-03-25T22:27:00.000-04:00

I took a break between paintings to cut and print a soft block print "Heron." The image is sketched from photos I took on the grounds of the Ogunquit Museum of American Art last fall. It was a bit of luck to catch the great blue heron in flight so clearly. The prints are in an edition of twenty-five, matted to fit an 11 by 14 inch frame. The image itself is 7 1/2 by 9 inches.

Another Blooming Painting

2011-03-20T20:02:00.000-04:00

The latest work, "On the Kennebec," has been completed and is shown below. It is another painting in panoramic format of blooms seen here in Maine, this time from along the Kennebec in Bath. I selected this scene because of the contrast it offers between the tree in blossom and the structures in the background. This makes two paintings in this style, the first being the "Coastal Garden Rhododendron." I plan to make a series of these by doing a third. Alex and I returned from three weeks on the road, most of it in Florida, near St. Augustine. The weather and scenery were a perfect change from this persistent winter here in Maine. Check out the "mall egret" we found strolling the strip mall parking lot where we stopped for Thai food. We also found the Ormond Memorial Art Museum in Ormond Beach, where they had a show focusing on race cars and the Daytona speedway, just down the beach. The photo-realistic works of Colin Carter were particularly grabbing. On a serious note, we hold the people of Japan and Libya in our thoughts and prayers.

Joe Godleski, "On the Kennebec"

A New Painting and a look at Rackstraw Downes

2011-02-11T20:36:00.000-05:00

Casco Bay Ferry

Rackstraw Downes,
Farm Buildings
Near the Rio Grande:
West End of the
Barn, P.M.,

The latest painting, "Casco Bay Ferry," took me in a different direction as far as painterly process. I applied the paint in uniform blocks or dabs, with minimal gestures or lines, using a palette knife to flatten and coalesce adjoining dabs. The over-all effect is an impressionistic one I am told, although I was not sure that was where it would end up. It's something I'd like to try on a larger scale canvas with a freer palette, just to see. On another note, Alex and I took in the Rackstraw Downes show at the Portland Museum of Art. We both enjoyed the show immensely and found the works very accessible and remarkable. Having spent a couple years in Kansas running on desolate roads there with a backdrop of dust, stone, scrub shrub, rusting equipment, lonesome structures and big sky, I felt particularly one with Mr. Downes paintings of the southwest like the one pictured above. They offer a solitary man's view into these corners of our country that have their own character and aesthetic.

Latest Work and a visit to NCMA

2011-01-19T14:04:00.000-05:00

"Coastal Garden Rhododendron", Oil, 30" X 10"

The first new work of the new year has been completed - "Coastal Garden Rhododendron" - shown above. It is from a sketch and photo early last Spring at the Coastal Botanical Gardens. Again, the panorama format seems to work well and I really enjoyed working on this piece.

Bob Trotman, "Girl", 2002

Alex and I returned from a holiday road trip early this month. We had a chance to visit the Norman Rockwell exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh. It was surprisingly enjoyable. While the art critics may not have been kind to Mr. Rockwell, there is little doubt his work is well-composed and executed. The exhibit was quite large, with many, many of his oils spanning 5 decades and a compelling narrative to accompany. Also, at the NCMA was Bob Trotman: Inverted Utopias, a series of life-size carved, painted wood figures in falling, floating, suspended or otherwise unusual poses. These works were impressive in their construction and a little spooky in their connection with each other.

New Work

2010-12-24T14:38:00.000-05:00

Keuka Lake

Around the Bend

"Early Spring" was completed yesterday (see below). For those of you familiar with Brunswick, it's a shot of the Crystal Spring Farm in early spring. The ewes were very close to lambing, snow was still on the ground and the sky was crystal blue clear. Working in the panorama format is very comfortable for me because as someone who wears glasses, that's pretty much the normal range of vision. I also recently completed two works for friends outside Maine - an oil painting of "Keuka Lake" in upstate NY and a mixed media (oil, acrylic, digital image transfer using matte medium) "Around the Bend" from Yorklyn Delaware. Having just finished a 3 month drawing class with Kathie Boldt, an excellent, excellent instructor, I am resolved for 2011 to feature more plein air and from-life work to balance out the work I have been doing from photo. Cheers!!!

"Early Spring", Oil on Canvas, 30" by 10"

Bates Museum of Art - Excellent Shows

2010-11-16T21:22:00.000-05:00

The latest show on the main floor of the Bates Museum of Art in Lewiston is stunningly beautiful. Artist Lalla Essaydi in "Les Femmes du Maroc" combines photography with Arabic calligraphy to present her decidedly non-romanticized vision of Arab women using poses corresponding to the familiar 19th century paintings of Ingres, Delacroix and others. Each picture has a clarity, symmetry and tonal consistency that seem just right for the subjects. The exhibit in total has a resonance that serves to amplify the wonder of each picture.

The Landscapes of Maine show on the lower floor at Bates contrasts 19th century works by Delbert Dana Combs with more modern works by Maine artists such as Weliver (above right), Thon and Babb. My preference leaned toward the modern and the works on display were a very good cross-section. Both shows end December 18th and if you have the opportunity, it is time well spent.

Ogunquit Art Museum

2010-10-29T18:12:00.000-04:00

In Flight

Mildred Johnson Assemblage

Today, Alex and I just barely beat the 2010 closing date for the Ogunquit Art Museum. We traveled down from Brunswick a little over an hour and the fall colors were still very impressive. The Ogunquit Art Museum grounds, as always, were beautiful, this time including a heron in flight. Inside the Museum, the four shows on exhibit were all extremely worthwhile. We were especially happy to see Mildred Johnson's assemblages on display. Mildred's most striking work was a double planed see-through assemblage that allowed one to peer through to the sea. The shot taken from the outside above does not begin to do it justice. Mildred has a studio around the corner from our studio in Fort Andross and she is always a joy. Click here for a link to a photo album of our day at the Ogunquit Art Museum.

Yarmouth Arts Festival

2010-10-18T09:54:00.000-04:00

Sunday was very busy. Between the annual LACO Walk against Hunger and the annual College Guild benefit dinner, I dropped three paintings off at St. Bartholomew's in Yarmouth that were juried into this year's Yarmouth Art Festival. These three paintings are Casco Tug and Barge, Heading to Peaks and Christmas Cactus. In all, art works from 74 artists were selected for the the second Yarmouth Art Festival, Oct. 20-23 at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, 396 Gilman Road, Yarmouth, Maine. The gallery will be open to the public Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, Oct. 20-22 from 10 am to 7 pm, and on Saturday, Oct. 23 from 10 am to 4 pm. In addition, on Thursday, there will be an artists' reception from 5:30 to 8 p.m., with music and refreshments. That should be fun. The full gallery of art that will be shown at this year's Yarmouth Art Festival can be seen by clicking HERE.

Art Show, Jazz, Block Print

2010-10-07T15:56:00.000-04:00

Last Friday night, the 10by10 show took place in Brunswick - an exceptional event. The food and volunteer support were outstanding. Alex and I wished we hadn't eaten dinner before attending, so much wonderful food. And 60 works of art sold, including two of mine - Lobster Buoys and View from West Branch. A very good start to the evening. Then it was on to Bowdoin's Studzinski Hall for an hour of jazz by the Ahmad Hassan Muhammad trio. Ahmad is a recent Bowdoin graduate who plays a very lyrical, rhythmic and jazzy piano. If you haven't heard them, give them a try. The trio is setting off on a tour and was recently featured on MPBN Friday Night jazz. For video and audio from MPBN Friday Night jazz click here. Lastly, I've completed a new block print - Off Wolfe Neck - a view of lobster boats at work off the shore of Wolfe Neck State Park. It presented a different challenge in the variety of detail presented, but hopefully it works. Click the image above for a larger view. It will also be available in an edition of 25.

Salt Water Farm Show at Fort Andross

2010-09-30T13:46:00.000-04:00

The most recent show at the Coleman Burke Gallery (on the left as you are just getting to the Frontier Cafe in Fort Andross Brunswick) is a full room extravaganza of sculpture and found art assemblage that takes some time to digest. The show is titled Salt Water Farm The Quimby Colony: A Collective, and features the cooperative and inter-related works of a number of Bowdoin alumni. A review of the show in the Bowdoin Orient provides further detail and background. On opening night, the gallery space was an absolute zoo and it was difficult to gain perspective and see things. A second walk around during the day two weeks later when all was calm brought a lot of the work into focus, unfolding a whimsical, organic sort of Mad Max experience. The Salt Water Farm show which includes Sam Gilbert as part of the collective, follows a show where Mr. Gilbert's work alone was featured, 141280. Hopefully, we will be seeing more of Mr. Gilbert's work moving forward.

Now Showing - 10 by 10, Town Council, Colby

2010-09-11T10:00:00.000-04:00

The preview jpgs are now available for the upcoming Arts are Elementary benefit 10 by 10 show to be held on October 1, 2010 at the Curtis Memorial Library and St. Paul's Church Hall on Pleasant Street in Brunswick. Click here for the 10 by 10 web site. It is a one-day only sale, public preview 10am - 3pm with reception and opening 5pm - 8pm on Friday October 1, 2010. I'll have three works in the show, Summer Snow, Lobster Buoys and View from West Branch. It is a very popular event with lots of good art available.

If you watched the Brunswick Maine town council meeting on local channel 3 this past Tuesday, you may have seen 8 of my paintings in the background. My works have been selected for display 9/1/10 to 12/1/10 in the new council chambers. Props and much thanks to the Five Rivers Arts Alliance Harriet Mosher and town councillor Benet Pols for facilitating this.

Lastly for now, if you have a chance please make your way to the Colby Museum of Art in Waterville. Two shows in particular there are very worthwhile - Sharon Lockhart: Lunch Break, a film and photo tribute to BIW workers and The Search for Beauty: Whistler and his Time, works in a number of media from the Lunder Collection from the latter part of the 19th century with a clear focus on the aesthetic of the time. Click here for more info on these shows. The Sharon Lockhart show ends October 17 so time is short to experience that show.

Marshall Point Light

2010-08-29T19:31:00.000-04:00

Having been encouraged by a number of folk to work on another block print after "Harbormaster's Workshop," I looked for a suitable subject in my hundreds of photos. The picture needed to have an interesting geometry and to be able to resolve itself into black and white with some accounting for shading. A photo I took last year of Marshall Point Light in Port Clyde (where the Monhegan Island ferry docks) seemed to qualify. After sketching the photo onto the block using the grid method, I took knife to block then ink to block and the initial Artist Proof is shown above. It is very satisfying to see the initial proof run validate the hours of cutting and trimming and all the big and little decisions of where to cut and how to cut. Once cut, there is no un-cut process. This afternoon I trimmed to size the paper for "Marshall Point Light" and prints will be available in an edition of 25.

Cundy's Harbor - Harbor Works Gallery

2010-08-26T19:58:00.000-04:00

The Block and Tackle restaurant in Cundy's Harbor was having their lobster specials again this week, so Alex and I headed down there for the $9.99 lobster platters - very delicious. Once dinner was done, we moved on to the harbor proper and visited the Harbor Works Gallery. There were two outstanding photography shows there - William Anderson's portraits of African-American life in the South in the 1970s and Lesley MacVane (photos) and Roger Berle (words) portraits of fishing life on Cliff Island Maine. Both shows were quite personal and moving. The view from the gallery of the harbor was outstanding as well. The show ends October 3rd so if you can, try to visit it. It is worthwhile.

Ten States + DC in 12 Days

2010-08-19T21:25:00.000-04:00

On a 12 day road trip, Alex and I visited friends and family in NY, VA and NJ, toured lots of good art, and ate just a little too much "good" food. Pictures of our road trip are found here. On our way out of New England at the start of the trip, we stopped at the Worcester Art Museum which featured "pardon our appearance" galleries and only select elevators that worked. We were not enchanted. However we were enchanted by the shows at the Visual Arts Center in Chautauqua NY, where the highlights were Steve McCurry's pphotography and the student art show. Also enjoyable was the North Carolina Dance Theatre who are in residence at Chautauqua for the summer. Then it was on to DC for the Chuck Close show at the Corcoran, an in-depth look at multiple processes of print making used by Mr. Close. The sped-up video of the hand applied ink stenciling process for the Roy Lichtenstein portrait drew a crowd. The Corcoran was free on Saturdays, yay. And as luck would have it, there was another show of Chuck Close work at the VFMA in Richmond VA, some of which were the end product of the processes shown at the Corcoran. The VFMA also had an excellent collection of Art Nouveau and Art Deco. To cap the art portion of the road trip off, we visited the Crossroads Art Center in Richmond and caught a roomful of wonderful found metal and lighted wall sculptures (see picture above) by Kris Krull. A lot of miles and worthwhile art.

A Blackbird and some Blueberry Blast

2010-07-27T20:30:00.000-04:00

I've finished one last 10 inch by 10 inch for 2010 - "Red-winged Blackbird." Alex and I were returning from the Wolfe Neck Arts Festival in June, when we saw the water lily pond roadside with lilies in bloom. I hopped out to take some snaps and Mr. Blackbird just sat and posed as I clicked away. In painting the scene, the lily pond was a bit more intricate than Mr. Blackbird, but hopefully the juxtaposition works. As a sidenote, we found Jack's Relish at Wolfe Neck. I bought a jar of Blueberry Blast - a blueberry jam with harbonero pepper sauce mixed in, excellent on cream cheese and crackers - yahoo!! Alex bought a relish that she claims was the best ever, and has long since been finished off.

Workshop Saturday

2010-07-21T10:18:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday, my neighbor and studio mate, Alan Mast, and I attended on all day workshop at the Maine College of Art (MECA) on Image Transfer and Copies led by Jill Dalton. We spent the day being instructed in, trying out and mostly bungling mechanisms for transferring images from paper copies to various surfaces via oils and artist mediums. The jury is out on whether any of the techniques will prove useful in further work. More experimentation is needed. The image above on the left is a transfer where the inkjet photocopy bled and produced the weird ghostly effect - interesting?? I don't know. Perhaps the highlight of the day was when Alan and I visited the June Fitzpatrick Gallery next to MECA after the workshop was over and viewed the art on display there. The quality and crispness of the work were striking after a day of struggling in the workshop. Noa Warren's pieces (one is shown above on the right) were especially noteworthy, and required a detailed explanation by the gallery manager as to how they were produced - Belgian linen, multiple coats of clear acrylic, pencil drawing of mesh-like image, precise exacto knife work on the drawing and filling in the knife notches with acrylic paint to give the illusion of a folded mesh embedded in clear plastic. No fumbling or bumbling there.

Two More 10 by 10s

2010-07-14T21:24:00.000-04:00

I've completed two more 10 by 10 inch paintings. The flower is entitled "Summer Snow," a type of Japanese Tree Lilac that Alex and I saw at the Coastal Botanical Gardens earlier this year. I really enjoy using the water-mixable oil paints to get the colors to work with and flow into each other on the canvas. The other painting is "The Harp," a scene from the warmup for a MidCoast Symphony performance.

On another note, the Brunswick Art Walk this past Friday was quite busy for my studio mate, Alan Mast, and myself. We had a solid number of visitors and much enjoyable discussion. It was quite energizing.

New York, New York

2010-07-06T12:20:00.000-04:00

Alex and I had a whirlwind Fourth of July holiday weekend in New York City. Click here for pics of our NYC trip. It was exhausting and exhilirating. It left us grateful to be able to return home to Maine. We arrived Saturday afternoon and careened via cab directly to the Metropolitan Art Museum. The Met is huge and confusing. We think we caught everything we wanted to, skipping Picasso and Tut's funeral (not big fans) which were elbow-to-elbow, but doing the Rooftop Garden's installation, the Women's fashion exhibit, the Arms and Armor collection and the standing galleries of 19th and 20th century art. We walked around Times Square which was not-quite-a-mosh-pit and one of NYC's finest pointed us to a Two Brothers pizza two blocks off the main drag for $1 a slice pie - outstanding. On Sunday morning, I took a walk to the Hell's Kitchen flea market - not exactly hopping. Then we went to the Times Square Church - an experience to be sure; the choir rocked. Then we were off to MOMA which was 5 floors well organized. The Women's photography show was very compelling. Concept art seemed the focus for other exhibits - to me, kind of scratchy and not very warm. Then it was fireworks cruise time on the Spirit of New York - singing wait staff, endless buffet, endless DJ, DHS everywhere, cruise up the Hudson and back and twenty minutes of Macy's fireworks from 5 barges. On Monday morning, we found a Gourmet Deli and had them fix us a cheese sub which we ate on the way out of the city - the best sub in years. NYC - nice to visit, plenty left over to see next time.

A Meticulous Ferment - A Beauty

2010-06-25T20:35:00.000-04:00

This past Wednesday, Alex and I attended the opening for A Meticulous Ferment at the ICA on Congress Street in Portland. The two artists, Beth Lipman and Kirsten Hassenfeld, collaborated on this most remarkable show. Ms. Lipman works in glass and Ms. Hassenfeld in paper, although the paper for this show is rolled and painted to look very much like Delft or milk or other types of decorative glass. "The Bride" by Ms. Lipman, pictured on the show's brochure, was the show's centerpiece and we spent quite a bit of time taking it in and enjoying it. "White Treen" by Ms. Hassenfeld was a galaxy of her faux glass suspended from the ceiling, looking cosmic and elegant at the same time. It was our favorite of the show and if we had a huge room and a ton of money, we would have taken it home. We are hoping it finds a permanent public location. We think this show is a beauty, so if one were to need a reason to go to Portland, this would qualify. The show runs through August 15.

Two New Ones

2010-06-22T20:22:00.000-04:00

I've finished another 10X10 painting (on the left) - "View from West Branch" - in preparation for the 10X10 show later this year for Arts Are Elementary. Then I switched gears to cutting a block and printing it (on the right). I think it turned out pretty good - "Harbormaster's Workshop." It will be an edition of 25. Now on to cutting mats and framing for the prints.

Another Beautiful Day

2010-06-18T19:28:00.000-04:00

Wednesday turned out to be another beautiful day on the Midcoast. Alex and I headed up to Rockport to check out the juried Biennial show at the CMCA gallery that had just re-opened. Three separate art reviews - Keyes, Isaacson, Kany - in the Portland Sunday paper had mentioned the CMCA re-opening and Biennial, so off we went. The Biennial was well juried and a very solid show. It was hard to pick favorites. I was taken with Ken Sahr's Seal Harbor paintings. Alex enjoyed Cassie Jones's large installation of drawings on mylar (in contrast to Daniel Kany's discussion of the same work). Different strokes, different folks. We then went out to Owls Head and did some walking. The lighthouse there is in rehab (see snap above). On the way home, we hit Moody's Diner for the first time. Alex had Strawberry Rhubarb and I had Blueberry pie - I can't remember a better pie. Moody's slogan is "Pie fixes everything." Maybe it does.

Just a Beautiful Day

2010-06-15T20:16:00.000-04:00

What a beautiful day here on the Midcoast. Alex says it's the payoff for making it through winter here in Maine. I cut studio time short to go up to Bath Maine with Alex. We walked around town, up to the town park where I snapped the duck taking a shower, into a couple antique shops, along the Kennebec River and then into the Kennebec Tavern for haddock sitting riverside in the shade with a breeze. We discovered the Kennebec Tavern's haddock reuben sandwich, yum yum yum. We then did a little exploration at the Butler Head Nature Preserve off North Bath Road and topped the day off with small ice cream cones at the Dairy Frost stand next to Fat Boy. Their chocolate dip is real chocolate dip. Alex dropped me back to the studio where I snapped the picture of the Lobster Buoys that are just finished and went to work on the next painting. Just a beautiful day.

The Beautiful Game

2010-06-12T11:02:00.000-04:00

World Cup 2010 has started. The game of soccer as presented at the World Cup level is a trance-like experience. The constant drone of the bee-swarm horns. The chess of the most talented players in the world exploiting the geometries and Newtonian mechanics on the field. The color and frenzy and sing-song of the fans. The English as-spoken-elsewhere-in-the-world of the British and African announcers on ESPN. The artistry of a well-passed goal and the over-acting of these same artists when fouled. I can't stop watching.

On another note, I encountered a different type of soccer at the Bowdoin field house a couple months ago. It was the collegiate robotics soccer tournament. The robots were programmed to make their own decisions - no remote control involved. It was not the fastest of games. There were no tools of destruction. But it had its own charm. Clearly the most important thing the robots needed to know was how to stand back up after they had fallen down.

Portland Head Lights

2010-06-10T11:03:00.000-04:00

These paintings of the Portland Head Light are done. Alex and I think they have a "steampunk" look to them, kind of industrial pre-electronic. I am unclear whether to separate them or package them as a diptych, side-by-side single work. If side-by-side, what comes first the sea gull or no sea gull?

Sumner, Maine - Joel Babb

2010-06-04T19:51:00.000-04:00

Alex and I took a day trip yesterday up to Sumner, Maine to visit our friends, Ed and Dorothy. It was misty, drizzly day but since we hadn't been to that part of Maine before, it was still an adventure and a good time. As we toured Ed and Dorothy's stomping grounds, I remarked that it would be nice to come back and plein air paint when the weather was clearer and the mountains were visible. "Oh, you paint," Ed said, "Would you like to meet an artist friend of ours, Joel Babb?" "Well, yes, if it's not an imposition." One phone call later, we were visiting with Joel Babb and his dog, Ruskin, in his studio. Joel had recently come back from Italy and graciously chatted through some of the paintings he had done there as pre-work for a planned, larger scale work. The precision, clarity and balance in his work are wonderful. Click here for much more info on Joel Babb's work.

Ed McCartan - It's OK to Play

2010-06-01T09:20:00.000-04:00

Last Thursday at the Harlow Gallery in Hallowell, Ed McCartan spoke joyfully and reflectively about his art and the art-making process. His "East meets West" painting is shown here. Ed is a proponent of injecting both the sacred and the playful into art. He referred to the "sacred fool" in all of us. It's OK to try, to re-work and to make mistakes. Earlier this year, I took a Saturday morning workshop at Ed McCartan's studio in Fort Andross. We stepped through his process of creating images - setting a boundary, playing within the boundary with color, form, wash, texture, then setting other boundaries within, and playing some more - sometimes inter-connecting or wiping out or covering over prior images. The time flew by. As a change-up to my structured representational work, I find myself doing Ed McCartan exercises - with a smile. It's OK to play.

It's OK to relax.

2010-05-28T21:11:00.000-04:00

From "Voyaging Southward from the Straight of Magellan" by Rockwell Kent, published in 1924:

"We, to whom the struggle for material comfort has become an obsession, have vauntingly named our pathway progress: our struggle may, however, be as well considered to have been a degenerate weakening, under the pressure of material discomforts, of the will toward leisure - a weakening that became a rout, a rout that we to save our pride name purpose - a purpose whose achievement in the denial of leisure we call civilization. And now at last, having become utterly and irretrievably involved in the disaster of materialism and having debauched the human soul with restlessness, we make luxury our glory, and abandon leisure to the childhood of the race."

Kent is quite the travel/(mis-)adventure writer. His block prints that accompany his writing are spectacular. There is something about "disaster of materialism" that strikes a chord today as it did for Kent in the 1920s. It's OK to relax.

Two-fer

2010-05-26T19:40:00.000-04:00

When Alan Mast, my neighbor, came over and asked if I would be interested in sharing his studio space at Fort Andross, it was an offer that just couldn't be refused. It has worked out pretty well. Alan takes the morning shift and I take the afternoon shift. Fort Andross provides most excellent light and it's less than two miles from the house. Click here for some shots of the Studio. As you can see from the shot of my workspace, I'm currently working on two paintings of the Portland Head Light at Cape Elizabeth - one with the sea gull flying by and one without. I couldn't decide whether to leave the sea gull in or take the sea gull out, so I'm painting both. We'll see how that works.

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

2010-05-22T20:48:00.000-04:00

Alex and I went up to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens yesterday and it was a very, very good visit. The Lady Slippers orchids were out. The tulips were still looking good and the rhododendron were looking sharp. There was an art exhibit on display and around the grounds were the most wonderful metal rebar sculptures of animals by Wendy Klemperer. I took a bunch of snaps and click here to view some of them - Boothbay Botanical. We went into Boothbay Harbor and visited the Joy to the Wind gallery across the footbridge. We had a nice chat with Lynne Seitzer and spent some time eyeing the many works on display there.

Fun with Max Beckmann

2010-05-20T18:23:00.000-04:00

Being newly retired from the workplace and having never taken a workshop at the Portland Museum of Art, I signed up for the two session workshop on block printing. I had done linoleum blocks in the past, but it had been a while. The workshop turned out to be an absolute gas. The Portland Museum of Art workshop leader, Julia Einstein, was quite knowledgeable and a good facilitator. We sketched directly onto two small Soft Kut blocks (see above) using the Max Beckman exhibit, Final Days - Modernism and Masquerade: Max Beckmann (1884 - 1950), as inspiration or subject. Herr Beckmann is a little too dark and anguished for me, but his work is definitely "expressive." We then did a white line block cut and a relief cut, and went to press on both rice paper and cotton paper - all in two 2 hour sessions. Ms. Einstein said there will be a watercolor workshop this fall based on an upcoming Winslow Homer exhibit at the Portland Museum of Art. Something to consider.

Bates Senior Art Show at Bates Museum of Art

2010-05-15T22:04:00.001-04:00

By my experience, the Bates Museum of Art falls into the "small but mighty" category. The exhibits that Alex and I have seen there have been well worth the trip over to Lewiston from Brunswick. The recent Joel Babb show was a knock-out. The senior show currently on exhibit is no exception. The slide show available here does not do it justice. Alex was impressed by Alexandra Strada's photos and I must confess to being a bit mesmerized by Samuel Guilford's mandalas.

Art in Education 2010 Scholarship

2010-05-13T22:07:00.000-04:00

The Art in Education 2010 Scholarship event is being spearheaded by Stephanie Hill, a Brunswick High student. There is a silent auction at Gelato Fiasco on May 21 of donated art work. Stephanie has facilitated donations from local and quite accomplished artists, including Ed McCartan and Mildred Johnson. I have my eye on Mildred's work. Three of my paintings are included. For more info -> http://artineducation2010.blogspot.com/