Books

Here's a recent painting (image quality is not amazing... sorry!).  Kind of a departure for me, but I like the results. I'm about to start another one.

Peach with jug

This is part of my collection of (relatively) recent paintings that have not made an appearance in cyberspace yet.

I don't have my own computer at the moment - and my web design software is now obsolete - but I'm working on a solution so I can update my website.  My goal is to address it by the end of the summer.

Work in progress

Happy (somewhat belated) New Year!  My resolution is to paint more pumpkins.  I'm already off to a good start.  This one is nearing completion.

Happy belated Thanksgiving

Manayunk survived Hurricane Sandy without too much trouble, and I have been enjoying my new studio space very much.
I don't have any paintings to show for it yet... but here's a drawing instead:

Preparing for Frankenstorm

I am busy getting things out of the basement and doing some house cleaning in preparation for Hurricane Sandy.  (Can't run a vacuum if the power goes out!)  Assuming Manayunk is still here after the storm, I will be moving into my new studio space next weekend.  Fortunately, I found another painter who wanted to share space with someone.  The studio is only one block from our apartment, so there will be no excuse not to visit frequently and get lots of work done.  I am really excited to start producing some new paintings.  In the meantime, here is a recent figure drawing.

Show Extended / Drawing is Fun

Good news - my work will stay up at Elcy's Cafe for a few more weeks.  If you haven't been able to get to Glenside yet, you still have time!

I had a little fun drawing at last night's figure session... I feel very little pressure when drawing in pencil.  Maybe it's because I spent so much time sketching in pencil when I was a kid, or because it's so easy to erase mistakes!

Then I switched to charcoal and did some more.

Putting it together

I went to a life drawing session yesterday, and was trying to practice some of the things I learned in my summer workshop.  This was a long pose (close to three hours altogether).

September show at Elcy's

Starting this weekend, some of my paintings will be on display at Elcy's Cafe in Glenside, PA.

Elcy's is a delightful cafe inside an old train station. If you're in the area, be sure to stop by, grab a cup of coffee and something sweet, and check out the artwork (some pieces aren't even on the website yet!).  The show will be up through the first week of October. Elcy's is located at:

1 West Glenside Avenue
Glenside, PA  19038
(215) 884-5600

Many thanks to Linda, Amy, Cyndi and Ben for helping to make this happen!
P.S. There is a nifty farmer's market right next to Elcy's on Saturdays from 9 am to 1 pm. Highly recommended!

Continuing Education

This summer, I took an excellent PAFA Life Drawing workshop at the bucolic Historic Yellow Springs location.  We were working in the Chester Springs Studio, and old stone barn that was converted into an art studio.  Our instructor John Horn accurately described it as "art heaven."

The focus of the class was how to use the classic proportions of the human body in life drawing.  Here's John (and his assistant) giving us some guidelines on the major landmarks of the body.

For a short weekend course, I found it to be very illuminating.  We also had some excellent models posing for us.  I look forward to testing out some of my new knowledge the next time I attend a life drawing session.

Like a rolling stone

Much has changed in the past year!  I got a new job and moved to the Philadelphia area.  In July we packed up and moved to a new apartment in Manayunk. Here's our new street:

We found a charming little place with a nice backyard, within walking distance of the train stations, some good friends, and the shops and restaurants on Main Street.

It's too small for my easel, though - so the next step is to find some affordable studio space.  Wish me luck.

Keep on keepin' on

Here is a longer figure drawing - about three hours. That seems like it should be a lot of time, but it goes by so quickly!

Life Drawing

I'm not enrolled in a class this summer, but I am going to be attending a weekly life drawing session at PAFA. Since I haven't taken a life drawing class at the Academy, I feel pretty clueless, but I'm trying to apply some of the techniques I learned in my cast drawing class and muddle through. Here is a relatively short sketch (30 or 40 minutes) of Stephanie.

Homer

The end of the semester has arrived, so this will be my last cast drawing post. I'm really glad I took this class. I plan to stay involved at PAFA one way or another. Here is a three-session drawing of Homer.

Another Venus

Here is an exercise I did on two pieces of paper, so the final drawing is quite large by my standards.

Copying drawings

Part of the homework I do for my cast drawing class is copying some classic drawings by great artists, such as Ingres and Bargue. I'm doing this to help improve my observation skills. Here's a copy of a Rafael drawing in progress.

Venus

I hope everyone had a great St. Patrick's Day. We enjoyed watching the Richmond Spiders win their first game in the NCAA tournament.
Here is a more finished cast drawing of a sculpture of Venus:

Cast Drawing

I am taking a cast drawing class at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. The cast hall is full of beautiful sculptures, mostly copies of Greek and Roman figures. For at least the past couple of centuries now, art students have been dutifully drawing them in charcoal to improve their technique in representing proportion and form. It has been a fun, challenging, educational experience so far. I'll post some images along the way. Here is one I did the second or third class.

Local Lily

Some fantastic double lilies popped up in our driveway this summer.

Local Peony

Even if I live to be 100 years old, I will never get tired of painting peonies.

Local Tulips

These popped up in the yard of the abandoned building next door.