Nude with Flying Drapery

24 x 25"     Oil on Linen

All of a sudden everything was in motion, it was just a few seconds but there was a sense of wonder, and mystery , and excitement, I gasped as she gently lifted the drapery and it began whirling and twirling in front of her, it all happened so quickly, yet in slow motion, time had no meaning, the air was still, then, as her arm suddenly swept upward the air was set in motion, the drapery began to fly, to sing and dance in front of her, she was there, but not, the drapery was a curtain, yet a veil, the two became one, she leaned into the drapery, then pulled away, it fluttered in front of her, thought of wrapping itself around her, then pulled back, they moved gently, fluidly, in harmony, sweeping in one direction, then another, it was just a few seconds, yet timeless, it was subtle, and beautiful, and…breathtaking…

Melons, Apples and Grapes

16 x 18"     Oil on Linen

Earlier today I delivered a painting to the Hudson Valley Art Association's annual juried exhibit at the Lyme Art Association galleries. The trip from Pawlet, VT to Old Lyme, CT takes about four hours. I live a rather secluded life so I often use this time alone in the car to catch up on popular culture. As I drive I scan the radio to listen to what the rest of the country is listening to. Today there was a station playing classic rock music, where I relived a few tunes from my youth, another playing more current music, where I discovered music by artists I'd never heard of, for a few minutes I found one playing Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte, but that signal was weak and didn't last long. Between Hartford and Old Lyme there was a talk radio station that had an interview with Brian Eno. Truth be told I know very little about him or his music, but he sounded like a interesting person so I listened to what he had to say. Some I agreed with, some not so much. But near the end of the interview he made a wonderful observation, "Children play to learn" he said "and art is how adults play"...

Still Life with Matisse's Red Studio

20 x 24"     Oil on Linen

I have always thought of Matisse’s artistic philosophy as the polar opposite of my own. Day and night, fire and water, life and death. My world is luminous and atmospheric, his is flat and static. My world is inhabited by forms, his with shapes and patterns. His world screams with color, mine is more reserved, with a combination of subtle and vibrant tones. Yet we both live on the same planet and breathe the same air. I became intensely aware of this contrast on a recent visit to the Museum of Modern Art, as I stood in my atmospheric world and stared at his flat world. Before me was his Red Studio, and between myself and his painting there was space and people moving freely in that space. I found it curious and fascinating that these two opposite worlds coexisted without conflict, and that no one else in the museum seemed to notice the contrast at all. I began to wonder if these opposite worlds could exist on the same canvas. When I returned to my studio, I set up a still life in my atmospheric world and used Matisse’s Red Studio as the background. I looked through my space into his flat world. My forms contrasted with his shapes. My vibrant and subtle tones played against his intense color. Our worlds, polar opposites, did not collide, they coexisted. The result is subtle yet dynamic, simple yet intensely lively, playful yet profound…

 Intermezzo

16 x 20"     Oil on Linen

Whistler liked to think about his paintings in musical terms. His paintings were titled Symphony in White, Harmony in Gray and Green, and Nocturne in Black and Gold. I like to say I hear what I’m painting and often give my paintings musical titles. My Symphony in White is a large winter landscape, and I once did an exhibition of paintings that were all night scenes, 21 Nocturnes. An intermezzo in music is a short instrumental composition, often interposed between the acts of an opera or the movements of a musical work. One of the most famous is the intermezzo played between the two scenes of Pietro Mascagni’s one act opera Cavalleria Rusticana. It is often played in concert as a stand alone piece. My Intermezzo was painted after I had finished one large painting and was about to start another. I wanted a break before embarking on the second large piece and arranged this small still life. It is light and airy, with a touch of drama, has beautiful harmonies, rich color, and lovely rhythms in the brushwork. It can definitely be exhibited as a stand alone piece...