Land, Sky, Water Series

"Sunset Silence"

6" x 8" encaustic on panel

This is the latest in a series of encaustic paintings I call Land/Sky/Water; the six paintings that make up the series are currently on exhibit at the Hygienic Art Gallery, part of the art = gift show.  (We went to the opening tonight and saw some excellent paintings, etchings, prints and photographs, plus work by Williams High School students in the basement gallery.) All works in the series are available for sale; the show runs until December 23rd.

I posted another painting from the series previously here on the blog, and I'll be posting photos of the others in the coming days.

My Ebay Artwork Auctions Fall/Winter 2011

As the holidays approach I decided to put up more artwork on ebay auctions.  At the moment I have three listed with more to come.  Check out the auctions by clicking on the links below.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of "Mare and Foal" and "Little River, Waterbury VT" will be donated to the Red Cross, Northern Vermont chapter to assist Hurricane Irene recovery efforts. A portion of the sale of "The Thames, CT" will be donated to the Red Cross Charter Oak (CT) chapter.

"Mare and Foal"

                                            SOLD

Little River, Waterbury VT

SOLD


The Thames, CT

oil on board, 5" x 7"

This painting shows the incredibly dramatic skies I saw over the Thames River here in New London while driving along Pequot Avenue.  (You can see the NL lighthouse in the distance to the left.)

Little River

SOLD

Enjoyed painting this view of Little River in Waterbury VT earlier in the summer. I had to work fast with the light changing and a few pesky mosquitos after me.  So I decided to just use a palette knife and go at it.  Palette knife painting appeals to me on many levels because I can get very clean color, very tactile surfaces, and the surface is reflective due to light playing off the ridges of paint. Setting aside my paint brush down now and then is liberating and fun.

Pawcatuck River Sketch at the Malted Barley

 Recently I went to the Malted Barley in Westerly RI for beer and a pretzel, both of which were excellent.  Enjoyed watching the Pawcatuck River meandering under the bridge in the distance from their back patio. Not quite sure of the shape on the bridge standing, but my imagination took off and I sketched in a human form.

Swirling Times

8" x 8" encaustic on panel

I feel that the world climate patterns and economic times are like a whirlwind and sometimes my state of being joins the winds of time.  With no planning, I just started this painting with my heat gun, torch and brush.   My guess is that my subconscious brain was swirling in an ocean of thoughts and feelings. 

Blazing

"Blazing"  11" x 11 " encaustic on panel

This painting and "Winter Heat" (on previous post) will be part of a juried group exhibit called The Crossing. The opening starts tonight, April the 23rd at  The Hygienic Gallery in New London CT on Bank St.  So if in the area come out for some good art and good times.  The show runs till May 21 2011.   For more info visit:  http://hygienic.ning.com/events/the-sixth-crossing-annual  

Winter Heat

Winter Heat 

Encaustic Painting, 11" x 11" panel 

I posted this painting a few weeks ago in a horizontal format.  Eileen Mayhew, founder of Imago Gallery in Warren RI, suggested I rotate it.  I  really liked it once I saw it that way; thanks Eileen  The verticality makes it more dynmic.

encaustic painting on cigar box

This painting is a mixture of an old photo and wax pigment fused, my father and myself with part of a plow in the picture.  The horse is not in the old photo unfortunately. The red pigment symbolizes the red clay of South Carolina that my father  worked so hard.  One could say this painting is an  exploration and reclamation of my past history of childhood, (finding the positive aspects).  

Winter Heat

Winter Heat
11"x 11 " encaustic on panel

This is one of several encaustic ( hot wax + pigment) paintings I have recently started.  Abstracted landscapes of winter,  finding some bright color in what feels like grey monochromatic winters.  Ususally the most colorful part of my day is sunset.  Often the only time during the day I get to see the sky is on my drive to and from work.  Luckily for me, that means being able to enjoy the vivid sunrises and sunsets.

New Year, Clean Studio Air

 Finally, got it together this new year to order and install an exhaust fan for my studio.  The 3 speed fan is from TekSupply and it goes from 555 cfm ( cubic feet per minute) to a high of 1,115 cfm.  So far the fan is working well and I hope it last for a good while.  Also, I think it will work as an all house fan to cool my studio/apt. come summer.  On low it takes most of the fumes out from heating wax for encaustic painting or any other artwork smells and if not, medium takes the fumes out for sure.  When I turn the fan on, the shutters open to take air outside and I usually put on a fan or window behind me to blow air past my face.  But the exhaust fan works so well that it sucks most everything out without the other fan on.  And it passes the incense test also.  I really should have got this fan sooner but I am glad I took the plunge to buy it.  Framing the fan in the hole and bolting it in was a little work but things went fairly smooth.  And I truly recommend a good exhaust fan to take care of one's lungs whether painting in any medium especially encaustics.