Art and Photography Blog

Painting of Silver Boots: Early Stages and Final Version

2010-03-19T03:38:00-04:00

Here is a 14" x 18" acrylic painting of silver boots that belonged to our studio model. I am putting shoes that I feel have some character against a roll of brown paper in the same way that photographers often put people against white paper. You can see the early stages of the painting below the final version. This and many others are for sale at the Artsetter site.

Painting of My Old Black Shoes

2010-03-16T03:06:00-04:00

This is a 14" x 18" acrylic painting of a comfortable pair of old shoes I have had for years. I tried to convey this feeling. This is the first in a new series on shoes. A pair of silver sneakers follows. It is for sale at Artsetter.com.

Painting of Potato Family, on a Blue Cloth

2010-03-12T03:08:00-05:00

Here is a 18" x 24" acrylic painting of potatoes on a blue cloth. I liked the contrast of color and texture between the potatoes and cloth. I was also thinking of Henry Moore's abstract sculptures of mother and child. It is for sale at Artsetter.com.

RARE: Portraits of America’s Endangered Species by Joel Sartore

2010-03-09T03:19:00-05:00

I received a review copy of Joel Sartore's new book, RARE: Portraits of America's Endangered Species. It is published by National Geographic. As you open the book you see a Southern Mountain Yellow-legged frog breaking the surface. The contents are organized by the number of a species left on earth. Many are fewer than a thousand or unknown. I was surprised to find there are only 46 Woodland Caribou, 195 Ocelots, around 300 Wolverines, 330 red wolves, 356 Condors, and 539 Whooping Cranes. I remember as a kid in New Orleans seeing the Whooping Crane stamp released connected to Louisiana.

Even among more animals with greater numbers, it is concerning to see only about 3500 Polar bears and 2,000 American Crocodiles. Joel’s photos really make these animals come alive. There are some plants, as well.

Joel Sartore is a winner of the 2010 North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) “Outstanding Photographer of the Year” award, and award winner at the 2010 Pictures of the Year International (POYi) competition for images that form the foundation of this book. You can visit Joel’s web site to see a video on the book.

This is a highly recommended book on an important issue.

Painting of Brown/Yellow Pitcher and Apple on a Blue Cloth

2010-03-04T03:01:00-05:00

Here is a 14" x 18" acrylic painting of a light yellow/brown pitcher and an apple on a blue cloth. I liked the relationship of the colors within the three objects. It is for sale at Artsetter.com.

Photos of New Orleans Neighborhoods Part Three: Lower Decatur Street Area

2010-02-27T03:44:00-05:00

This is the third a series of images of New Orleans neighborhoods taken in February 2010 the weekend before the Super Bowl victory and two weeks for Mardi Gras. I certainly did not have time to cover them all but this series will provide a glimpse of the city that I hope you will want to visit.

This is a subset of the Lower French Quarter, the quieter part of the French Quarter. On the lower end of Decatur there are some good bars and causal places to eat, such as Fiorella’s and Coops Place, that are much less tourist oriented than what you find in the upper French Quarter. There are also some good coffee shops and late night places. It is close to the music clubs of Frenchmen Street. I also included the adjacent lower French Market. You can click on an image to expand it.

Visit My Art Gallery at the Artsetter Online Gallery Site

2010-02-24T03:37:00-05:00

Artsetter is a Paris based online art gallery. I have now been accepted as one of their artists. I had to go through a voting process and I appreciate those of you who voted for me. Now I put up an initial gallery of 24 paintings. I will add more and perhaps some drawings and photos.

I encourage you to visit the Artsetter site and comment on my work as feedback is really appreciated. When you get to the site you can find my gallery under the gallery tab. For now it is listed in new galleries but that may evolve.

Here is what I wrote in my profile. I paint with acrylics and also do simple line drawings. My focus is directly painting what I see. The goal is not photo realism but an integration of painting and seeing. I primarily do still life or painting from a model at the moment. I have experimented with landscapes from direct observation. I recently did a series on breakfast. These were done from photos. I do not go beyond what I see as I have always imagined paintings as I look at the world. Now I am having fun creating some of these images. I live and work in the Boston area (US) but also paint from my travels. I grew up in New Orleans and it remains a favorite place. I would like to paint there.

Here is a sampling of the initial works in the gallery. You can click on the images to enlarge them.

Acrylic Painting of Woman with a Maroon Hat

2010-02-23T03:33:00-05:00

This is a 18" x 24" acrylic painting of a woman wearing a maroon hat. The woman and the foreground were painted from life and I added a yellow background with an horizon to go with the landscape feel of the painting.

Acrylic Painting of Four Apples Resting on a Blue Cloth

2010-02-21T03:29:00-05:00

Here is a 16" x 20" acrylic painting of four apples on a blue cloth. It was a quick sketch done in a few hours. I bought the apples first and then saw this blue cloth and felt they would work together. It is for sale at Artsetter.com.

Artsetter's Online Gallery - Vote for Me to Join Thanks

2010-02-16T03:51:00-05:00

I am asking you a favor in this post. Artsetter is a Paris based online art gallery. I like their approach as they take the risk out for the buyer and the seller. When you purchase an art work, Art Setter holds the money through a French bank. Then the artist ships to the buyer. Once the buyer receives the art work, Artsetter release the money to the artist taking what is a very modest commission for the industry. You are allowed to arrange your own gallery. They are also setting up a community as members can vote for and favorite other artists. Anyone can apply to join.

I am trying to set up an online gallery for my art on the site. I have applied and now need 50 votes over the next 30 days. Can you vote for me? You have to first register at their site but it is quick and there is nice art by a number of artists. Here is the home page of the site.

My five paintings have been cropped by the site to fit a square format. They are actually all rectangles. However, once I set up my gallery I will be able to display the full painting. You can see the complete images of five I submitted below. You can click on any image to make it large.

Once you get to the site go to the candidates tab. Be patient it takes a few moments for the first one to appear. I have been coming up first as I was the last one when I last looked but someone may have come in after me. In the case I do not come up first, scroll through the others to find my application.

There are quite a few excellent painters and photographers. I voted for a number of them myself. This Is not a competition. You can vote for as many as you want. Thanks for your consideration. Let me know what you think.