This painting of mine entitled "Moderne Life" will be exhibited along with other fine works of art in the Columbia County Council on the Arts 17th annual Juried Art Show. The show will again be held at the Hudson Opera House located at 327 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 from February 23 to March 24, 2013. The opening reception will be on February 23rd from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

Prize winner

Ok! So you're dying to know how I did at the painting competition at Lady Audrey's? If not, I'm dying to tell you! Well...I came in second place with "A Fisherman's Dream". Aren't you excited? I am. It's the first competition I have placed at in a very long time. Curator Deborah Kendig has done a wonderful job providing exposure for emerging artists. There are even a few master works by oil painter Merrill French on display. The gallery is open Thursdays through Mondays 12:00-4:00pm. Why not stop in for a visit?

"You Make My Heart Sing"

With the success of the Hudson Opera House exhibit beneath my wings, I decided to try another juried art competition. Lady Audrey's Gallery in Millerton NY put a call out for artists to paint their favorite subject and enter them in a show with the theme "You Make My Heart Sing". Since I love the outdoors so much, I decided to submit three paintings, this one "A Fisherman's Dream" and two others, each having to do with fishing. The opening reception is Saturday April 14th from 12:00 to 4:00pm. Artwork will be on exhibit until June 15th. Lady Audrey's, curated by Deborah Kendig, is located at 52 Main Street, Millerton, NY. You can also view the artworks on her website: http://ladyaudreysgallery.com/index.php?cPath=1_54&&page=1

Constructive criticism

I recently uploaded this painting of two fly fishermen on Schoharie Creek to Fine Art America. There are some really talented and successful artists that display their works from all over the world. One artist I have really come to admire a lot is David Lloyd Glover. His paintings are just dazzling with lots of bright color and light. Well, in one awestruck moment, I sent him a comment on one of his recent works and asked if he could take a look at my work and give me some pointers on what he thought I could do to improve. His reply was: "Nicely painted with good atmosphere. However, the main fisherman should face into the composition to direct the viewer into the scene."

I have to admit, in the past I would not have taken such correction very well. I would have thought... well, that's his opinion! I painted the scene as I saw it and that is the way the man was standing! But in reality all along there was something nagging me about this painting that I just couldn't quite put my finger on. Have you ever experienced that? Well he hit the nail right on the head. So I went back to my other photos that I took that day and selected a different shot of the main fisherman. Here are the results.

What do you think? A more pleasing composition? I guess that means we all should be open to evaluate criticism. A wise artist is a perpetual student. Thanks David!

To see David Lloyd Glover art go to: http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/David+Lloyd+Glover/all

Due to the extremely high level of artwork submitted to the Bold Brush painting competition, I have thought very carefully about what I would like to enter for January. I recently read an article by an artist that said the painting that you personally have the most to say about will likely have the most meaning and hence, have the most appeal to someone else. With that in mind my choice for January is my "Self-Portrait". To me it is a description of myself looking back over 35 years of my life. Of who I was and who I have become as an artist. There is more that I can say. Ask me sometime. This painting so far has the strongest message and definitely is the most meaningful to me. So, let's see what happens.

Please visit http://canvoo.com/boldbrush/ and cast your vote.

Upcoming Exhibit

The Old Chatham Country Store will be exhibiting my work for the month of October 2011 in their cafe gallery. The opening reception will be held on Sunday afternoon October 2nd from 3 to 5pm. A list of all the artists exhibiting in 2011 will be posted on their website as well as sample images of their work. Just visit http://oldchathamcountrystore.com/gallery.html
This will be my first one man exhibit in a very long time. I need to have at least 25 paintings, so I have a lot of work to do in preparation. I hope you can come in October.

Threads

CCCA's latest exhibit at their 209 Warren Street gallery which will run from January 22nd through March 11th is entitled "Threads". The show features artwork containing some element of fabric or fiber, real or illusion. Initially I thought, being an oil painter, I would not be able to participate. But then the word "illusion" caught my eye and I thought: "Isn't that what I do?" So I went on a search through my house for any articles that had to do with fabric, mending or sewing. My aim was to create a still life of these objects, as if someone was in the middle of a sewing project and was interrupted, and then paint them as realistically as possible. After trying many different arrangements I finally settled on this one. I thought it appropriate to name this painting "Threads" in harmony with the theme of the show. I am happy to announce that it was accepted and will be included in the show. The opening reception will be held on Saturday evening January 22nd from 5:00 to 7:00pm. I'm excitedly looking forward to see what the other artists came up with. I sure would like to see you there.

Art Competition

This painting of my good friend Jim Brady giving me fly fishing instructions near Cashen's farm in Claverack, NY has been by far the most popular painting on my Fine Art America website. So, when I thought of giving Fine Art Studio Online's December Bold Brush painting competition a try, it was a cinch as to which painting I would submit. For information on the contest and to view the entries, go to http://canvoo.com/boldbrush/
There is also a provision for you to vote for your favorite images by liking them from your facebook page. There are truly some breath taking works to look at. I would be extremely honored to even be mentioned among them in the final results. But let's see what happens!