papers, oil on panel, 16 x 20, 2012

kleenex, oil on panel, 20 x 16, 2012

clementines, oil on panel, 20 x 16, 2012

blue studio, oil on panel, 20 x 16, 2012

grey studio, oil on panel, 20 x 16, 2012

plans and measurements

trimming

wafer cuts

gluing

finished cart in studio

Flowers, 4.5 x 9 inches, 11/17/11

Orange in plastic bag, 5 x 6.5 inches, 11/18/11

Studio corner, 9 x 8 inches, 11/22/11

Pink pitcher, approx 4.5 x 6 inches, 11/28/11

Clementines in bag — oil on linen panel, 8 x 8 inches (20 x 20 cm), 2011

Pitcher and oil jar — oil on linen panel, 8 x 8 inches (20 x 20 cm), 2011

Olives and oranges — oil on wood panel, 9 x 12 inches (23 x 30 cm), 2011

Geranium — oil on wood panel, 22 x 15 inches (56 x 38 cm), 2011

Flower on red table — oil on linen, 24 x 24 inches (61 x 61 cm), 2011

Orange on grey table — oil on linen, 22 x 20 inches (56 x 51 cm), 2011

Kimono and flowers — oil on wood panel, 15 x 22 inches (38 x 56 cm), 2011

Apples and teapot — oil on wood panel, 12 x 9 inches (30 x 23 cm), 2011

Pitcher and knife — oil on wood panel, 11 x 15 inches (28 x 38 cm), 2011

In the first image, I did a direct copy of what I saw in the original. There were many beautiful passages but overall it felt fragmented.  In the second version I consolidated major areas so the heads would be less disconnected from other parts of the painting. Traditional gouache mixes with previous layers, losing some vibrancy. It was a tradeoff to see what might happen with fewer subdivisions.

Direct copy, gouache and ink, approx 10 x 12, 11/16/11

Consolidated, gouache and ink, approx 10 x 12, 11/17/11

There is one sculptor in the first year MFA group. Her piece was a multi-storied stack of cardboard boxes with a viewing window cut in the bottom corner and the top story open to the ceiling. Fields of cut paper grass sprouted from the floor on each level. I simplified my response to one room and used sewing pins instead of paper grass. Ouch.

Pin box, grey and black mat board with sewing pins, 9″ x 3″ overall, 11/6/11

Pin box, grey and black mat board with sewing pins, 9″ x 3″ overall, 11/6/11

 10/26/11

10/28/11

10/31/11

Fish — gouache, 6.5 x 10 inches (17 x 25 cm), 11/05/11

Couple — gouache, 11.25 x 15 inches (17 x 25 cm), 11/14/11

Flowers, oil on linen, 22 x 20 inches (56 x 51 cm), 10/28/11

Flowers, gouache, 6 x 6 inches (15 x 15 cm), 10/26/11

Kimono, acrylic on paper, 36 x 22 inches (91 x 56 cm), 10/21/11

Visual critique homework in response to oil paintings by two colleagues:

Demoiselles d’Hollywood — 3 ages of woman; gouache, 10 x 6.5 inches (25 x 17 cm), 10/27/11

Venus Endormie d’Headphones, gouache, 6.5 x 10 inches (17 x 25 cm), 10/27/11 

Our Wednesday night model didn’t show up so students took turns posing for the class.

Pink Jacket and Shoes, gouache, 10 x 6.5 inches (25 x 17 cm), 10/26/11

George Bellows’ lithos of prize fights came to mind as I began ‘Fighters.’ As Bellows’ had done, I increased the distance between the viewer and the main action by adding a row of catcallers in front. The viewer thereby becomes a complicit member of the crowd. I focused the light into a spot light and added an emotional dimension between the figures, making their gestures less like a cartoon and more natural and exhausted.

Fighters, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 7.5 x 10 inches ( 19 x 25 cm), 10/21/11

For ‘Reflection,’ I added a musician playing pipes and a fish in the pond. For the main figure, instead of an ethereal object of contemplation, I turned her into a person who contemplates herself by turning the head to look straight down into the water. Unlike Poussin’s Narcissus who is in a revery of self love, my figure is a good deal more pissed, like a wild animal at a watering hole.

Reflection, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 7.5 x 10 inches ( 19 x 25 cm), 10/21/11

For the previous week’s work, I used a larger size cotton printmaking paper. It was a little too soft and a little too large for a bamboo pen. I added space where the original figure had been cropped at the head and right side. I also added distance between the figure and horizon.

Laken, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 15 x 11 inches ( 38 x 28 cm), 10/17/11

At first it seemed silly to do a line drawing of a large, gestural abstract painting. But as shapes began to emerge in the process of drawing, the painting appeared to be full of content just waiting to be called out. I saw the painting completely differently by the time I was done, resurrecting Ana Mendieta’s remarkable earth works and brief intense life.

River Pods, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 15 x 11 inches ( 38 x 28 cm), 10/17/11

10/14/11

10/13/11

10/12/11

10/11/11

10/10/11

10/07/11

10/07/11

10/06/11

10/05/11

10/03/11

10/03/11

09/30/11

09/30/11

09/28/11

09/28/11

09/27/11

09/26/11

09/25/11

City, acrylic on paper, 26 x 40 inches ( 66 x 102 cm), 10/13/11

The evening figure class instructor changes the context of the set-up each week. This time the wall was covered with colorful posters. Two brilliant silk kimonos were hung on easels along with a vase of artificial flowers. The model sat among it all. It was important to use color, so I ran to my studio down the hall to collect my gouache materials.

Figure & kimono, gouache on paper,  15  x 11 inches ( 38 x 28 cm), 10/12/11

The process of visual critique that we engage in for homework continues to be a fascinating divergence from the sometimes tortured efforts of verbal response in what is familiarly know as “crits.” Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream, an image that launched countless illustration knock-offs, rivaled only by Grant Wood’s American Gothic in frequency, inspired my response to the open fig. I had anticipated doing a natural version of the hamburger; the cows arrived of their own accord. Two days later I developed the idea in oil paint.

Fig Scream, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm), 10/10/11

 Hamburger and Cows, sumi ink & bamboo pen, 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm), 10/10/11

Cows and hamburger, oil on wood panel, 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm), 10/12/11

Geranium with Traffic and Rain, oil on linen panel, 10 x 8 inches ( 25 x 20 cm), 2011

The next series of paintings use only black and white. The white is an unbleached titanium, a warmer color than titanium white. The color variations are due to the camera adjusting to light. It’s all the same paint.

Value palette, five steps, Unbleached Titanium and Lamp Black

Olives and plum, oil on linen panel, 8 x 10 inches (10 x 25 cm) 2011

Olives and plum, oil on linen panel, 8 x 10 inches (10 x 25 cm) 2011

Olives and plum, oil on linen panel, 10 x 8 inches (25 x 20 cm) 2011

Night City, oil on linen, 20 x 22 inches (51 x 56 cm) , 2011

Day City Bridge and Traffic, oil on wood panel, 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm) , 2011

The two figures below are from different classes. The torn paper collage was made from drawings everyone in class made and then were instructed to tear up. One of many exercises that teach us to feel less precious or protective about our work and more generous. All the torn pieces were put in a pile. Then we selected a handful to tear again to make our collage figures. The pencil nude was the fourth session of three hours each of the same pose. I did mine on four separate sheets. Others in class were asked to work on one sheet. Finally got that left leg to turn properly.

Torn paper, charcoal, approx 18 x 24 in (46 x 61 cm), 10/06/11

Female nude, approx 15 x 11 inches ( 38 x 28 cm), 10/05/11

I was loaned a postcard of a painting by the Spanish realist Tomas Yepes, c. 1595–1674. First step to understanding a painting is to draw it. So much is seen in this process.

Copy of Tomas Yepes — pomegranates, figs, pumpkin and quail, fountain pen, 7 x 10 sketchbook (18 x 25 cm), 10/04/11

The only class all the first year MFA candidates have together is Painting Seminar. Each week two people choose one of their paintings to hang in a common room. The rest of the group does a piece in response to help the artist see the original work. It also helps the maker see their own work in a new way. It’s up to the individual to respond visually in any way they choose. Below is my acrylic painting on paper in response to an abstract oil painting. It’s also interesting that many of us end up working at the same time in a communal drawing party. So far it’s been really fun. Much better than verbal critiques.

Yellow, Grey and Orange, acrylic and charcoal on paper, 40 x 20 inches (101 x 51 cm), 9/30/11

The oil landscapes are from my studio window. Cold titanium white was eliminated, or replaced with a warm unbleached titanium, to use it more sparingly and break the habit of adding it to every color.

City, oil on linen panel, 8 x 10 inches (20 x 25 cm), 2011

Nickel City, oil on linen, 22 x 24 inches (56 x 61 cm), 2011 in progress

I am drawing from the figure nine hours a week in three sessions with two different instructors. In one class I am using graphite pencil, an exacting medium, to draw continuous tone. The benefit helps to see and control the overall light and value structure. The second figure class emphasizes visual invention. Each week we’re presented with a new set of challenges to learn to see uniquely. The black paper and white pencil in the photo below is an example. I’m supporting the figure work by copying a complete anatomy book in ink line.

Figure studies: graphite pencil, continuous tone; white general’s pencil on black acrylic paint

Anatomy sketchbook, fountain pen

The first year group, 12 candidates for MFA, have one class together called Painting Seminar. Our first homework assignment was to create a well developed drawing that was unrecognizable as our usual style and approach to art. My primary work involves direct observation of ephemeral or transient subjects. To do something different, I constructed an image based on photo sources with political content. The result is an image of my house from Google Earth enveloped by the shadow of a US military drone. Doing the drawing felt like recovering lost parts of myself. I had the feeling of violating prohibitions and gaining permission at the same time; in style, content and visual vocabulary. Below are four preliminary drawings and one final image.

Drone Surveillance, sumi ink and bamboo pen with wash, 40 x 24 inches ( 102 x 61 cm), 2011

Drone Surveillance development: sumi ink and bamboo pen; sumi ink and metal tip pen; with wash

The route from Bennington through New York is less traveled than Route 7 and therefore a nicer drive. On my return trip in August I turned the car around to stop at the sight of a weathered woman sitting in front of an antiques store. Her shop contained a vast collection of objects in several crowded rooms which she complemented with a robust set of political views sharply critical of recent news. She had enough on her mind in need of sharing for me to have time to find this small yellow ceramic teapot, offered at a significant discount due to our partisan sympathies, stamped underneath with the name Salada.

A week of rain and fog provided soft edges and low contrast for a painting from my new studio. It was rushed between appointments, an image on top of a previous painting. The surface was not absorbent and the paint felt too slippery. After making arrangements for a month it was good to actually paint.

Comm Ave, oil on linen panel, 8 x 8 inches (20 x 20 cm), 09/07/11

Having weighed our decision for a week last month, Drew greeted me with the banner shown above when I returned home from painting in Vermont, celebrating my acceptance into the MFA painting program at Boston University. I am deeply grateful to so many people who made this possible — first and foremost for Drew’s many years of encouragement and support; the artists who recommended and advocated for me; countless teachers, colleagues, friends and family. The success is not so much in the outcome as it is in making the decision to act. We don’t know how it will turn out. We have to start to see how far this direction takes us. It’s back to school!

I am extremely pleased to become a lending artist of DeCordova Museum’s Corporate Loan Program. DeCordova Museum was the first museum I learned about in childhood. My family went there often when I was growing up. Then in my twenties I worked from the figure for several years in night classes at the museum’s school. The main building is high on a wooded hill overlooking pristine Sandy Pond, a near neighbor of Walden Pond. A former private mansion, the house is designed with ivy covered round brick towers surrounding the original main entrance. The location of the entrance has changed several times since then. After delivering my artwork I took a walk around and remembered many years of encountering this magical place full of strange delights. I’m very proud to have my artwork included in DeCordova’s mission to place art where people work. Thank you to the terrific folks who run the program!

DeCordova has written about my participation on their blog here.

Artists interested in applying can read about the program here.

Yellow Cloth, no. 2 — oil on wood panel, 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm), 07/16/11

Paths, oil on linen panel, 8 x 10 inches (20 x 25 cm), 8/13/11