Neenah in July

Neenah in July (24 x 36")

February 2012

This is my latest painting.  I've been working on it for the past 8 months.  It's based on a view of Neenah Wisconsin.  Done with alkyds to allow glazing decreased drying time for adding layers.  I've been focusing on photorealism lately so the paintings take much longer, but I'm more pleased with the results.

Richeson 75 Landscape, Seascape and Architecture 2012 Exibition

I am extremely pleased and excited to tell you that my two submissions for the Richeson 75 Landscape, Seascape & Architecture 2012 Exhibition were accepted. Neenah Light Spring Morning won the Meritorious Award and C&NW Circa 1960 won as a FINALIST! Both paintings will be featured in the full-color hard bound catalogue. C&NW Circa 1960s will be displayed in the Richeson Galley from April 16 through June 8, 2012 and will be available for sale.

C&NW circa 1960s

I just completed this one.  It's a study in color, chroma and value done completely in alkyds (other than the oil ground).  I tried to capture the look and feel of an old "Kodachrome" slide from the 1960s.  I enjoyed this one and hope to paint more trains.

Neenah Light Spring Morning

Here is my latest completed painting.  It's another painting of the Lighthouse in Neenah, Wisconsin.  I took a photograph of the lighthouse during a spring morning in 2010.  This painting is based on that photograph.  I actually documented the progress of this painting from a blank canvas with a tinted ground to the finished painting.  Please refer to the tab "Painting Progress-Neenah Light Spring Morning" to see the progressive history of this painting.  I spent a considerable amount of time with this painting to capture the lighting and value of the objects.  It was painted entirely with alkyds and I used glazing in several areas to capture some vibrancy (especially in the grass).

Neenah Light Spring Morning  (2011)

Bouguereau "Little Brother"

In March 2011 I spent about a week in the Missouri Ozarks studying under Portrait Artist Karen Murphy.  I wanted to learn how to capture the look and feel of some of the "Masters" works as well as learning portraits and fabric.  This is obviously not an original painting but an opportunity for me to expand my approach and painting skills.  The Bouguereau painting provided not only one, but two faces to deal with along with the deep shadows, muted tones and fabric folds!   Here is the unfinished painting.  I will be completing it in the future and will post the finished painting.  (Kudos to Karen Murphy and the staff at Dorothy Dent's Studio!)

Study of Bouguereau's "Little Brother" (Work in Progress)

Foamy Shores Revised

After looking at Foamy Shores and the low hanging cloud, I couldn't stand it anymore and got out the sandpaper.  I sanded off the big clouds that looked like a giant cotton balls hovering over the ocean and repainted the sky with more subtle clouds higher in the sky to provide a better perspective.  This exercise also helped to confirm that pigment hues really do vary depending on the manufacturer!!

Foamy Shores BEFORE

Foamy Shores AFTER

I'm much happier with the AFTER version.  The clouds in the first edition were actually done practicing a new technique-Needless to say that technique didn't work for me.....

Waves and a Plane

Here is a seascape painting that I recently finished.  For now I call it "Waves and a Plane" (Until I think of something better).  Once again I tried to capture the depth of the water near the shore with the shadows of the foam.  The plane was inspired by the beaches of Florida.

Waves and a Plane (2011)