Rhode Island, reds

fruit tartlet, 4×6in, acrylic on panel

these 3 studies in red are…uhh…fresh off the vine. well, freshly varnished.

i’m still fightin reds - and, armed with a lighter touch & a more vibrant palette, i lost the first few rounds to the cartoonish colors of the tartlet, the soft velvet of the raspberry cake, and the deep deep gloss of the berry.

mini raspberry cake, 4×6in, acrylic on panel

the colors were pure enough, but also to the point of feeling local and unrelated. out of frustration, in spite of the unresolved paintings, i ate my reference and turned the works to the wall to cool their heels.

when i finally came back to them, i decided to work from memory - after all, wasn’t the point of the studies to improve my hand and eye for the imagined bulls and landscapes?

strawberry, 4×6in, acrylic on panel

i’m happy with the results - even if they may lack some of the immediacy and swashbuckling strokes of the ‘from life’ works.

We’re back at the Charlestown Gallery for our second season and the freshly-varnished trio is part of a passel of ‘food paintings’ i’ve just dropped off. we’ll even be showing some of the bulls and farm stuff later on this summer.

The gallery’s in South County, Rhody’s bread basket - if you’re looking for something else to do in the ‘hood, the URI Farmers’ Market takes place ’bout 10 minutes up the road on saturday mornings.

2183 Matunuck Schoolhouse Road,
P.O.Box 1367,
Charlestown, Rhode Island
401-364-0120 :: www.charlestowngalleryri.com

cause(s) for celebration.

quick Ides of May update - 10 reasons to toast.

1. finally completed this champagne bottle. some births are difficult, and this one - slated for the food…glorious food show in december, has been giving me pains for a while now.

champagne, 7×12in, acrylic on panel (click image for detail)

2. we’ve been invited to show in a Portland, Maine gallery starting in june.

3. accepted an offer for a solo show at a fantastic vineyard this sept/oct, during harvest. (details soon on both soon - along with some other gallery happenings)

4. just dropped off this martini, commissioned as a gift from the folks at Powers Gallery to another artist in their stable on his 90th birthday. had a great day in next-door Concord, Mass.

martini(detail), 5×7in, acrylic on panel

5. can’t confirm the final tally just yet, but last i’d heard milkbone piece (new pics here) at the RISD museum benefit had a bid of $400 on it.

6. thanks mostly to the efforts of my studiomates, the open studio was a hit (photo below: ‘gallery wing’, just before my camera ran out of batteries for the day)

7. my work made a cameo in the Macolm Grear exhibit at RICs Bannister Gallery last month - drawings i’d done as a pup for the olympic medal campaign back in 95!

8. shipped boxes of food notecards up to Montpelier, VT, where our friends Josh & Jess just opened Capital Kitchen

9. In Prov, it’s gallery night tonight. if nothing else, go see Dean Richardson’s work at the Providence Art Club before it comes down this weekend.

10. free iced coffee at participating dunks today. nuff said.

iced coffee 2007, 8×10in, acrylic on panel -sold-

Open House: Let there be (north) light

The new studio is finally up & runnin. to celebrate, we’re havin an inaugural open house this saturday afternoon - a chance to meet my new studiomates and see the new digs.

we’ve got north light, great work space, and both gallery and lounge areas.

if you’ve been to my old studio. the new one’s in the same building - now at the 3rd floor, at the opposite end. (take the main staircase to the top floor, make a right, and follow the sign of the bread to the very end of the hall.)

new studio mates, from left: jason brockert, dan sousa, sean thomas.
(click on each for links & work)

we’ll have some cool beverages and snacks - if stoppin by and need wanna check out some great local chow spots, i’ve listed some at the bottom of the post.

here’s the skinny:
sat May 3rd 11-5
560 Mineral Spring Ave #319 Pawtucket Rhode Island 02860
(bet. Lonsdale and Smithfield aves, opp. Lorraine mills)
new to the area, my studiomate jason posted a map here.

(*note: this isn’t the big building- (or pawtucket-) wide open studios - those are in september)
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local chow spots:

wicked good cheap eats, just north of Mineral Spring on Smithfield Ave - Shish Kebeb (lebanese), La Arepa (stuffed corn pies), and Hartley’s Pork Pies.

heading down mineral spring into CF: on Broad - killer mex at La Casa del Pueblo. on Dexter: Stanley’s Famous Hamburgers (RI institution since ‘32) as well as a ton o’ Latin American restaurants

About 2 miles away, on the Pawtucket/Providence East Side: Dougherty’s (140ish beer options to go with great pub food) and the timeless Moder Diner. At the junction of East Ave & Hope St/Blackstone Blvd: LJ’s BBQ, Garden Grille (Vegetarian), Rasoi, India (both Indian), Ran Zan (Japanese) & Chez Pascal (dinner only -think Chez Panisse and Gramercy Tavern)

At Mineral Spring Ave & Charles St - Pinelli’s North End Cafe. (gluten-free!)
About a mile down from the Mineral Spring/Smithfield Ave intersection (heading to Providence) - Chelo’s.

oops - almost forgot. KILLER vietnamese food- Pho Horn’s. bout 1-2 miles away in the Shaws plaza on Main st (leave the studio, make a rt onto Lonsdale, which becomes Main st.)

and, of course, Dunks everywhere. mine’s cream no sugar if you’re driving by.
Hope to see you!

Dean Richardson, Providence Giants.

Dean Richardson The Traveler Hasteth in the Evening, oil on linen
(image courtesy Providence Art Club, click to enlarge)

Dean Richardson’s probably my favorite living painter. Thinking of what he can do with sheets of color and a palette knife, my eyes mist up, just as his did when describing Goya’s work to us as young posturing RISD painter-bees.

His show at the Art Club (with Merlin Szasz, opening Sunday) is a rare return to Providence for the former Providence Giants 3B - he’s been showing up at the Chase Gallery in Boston for the last decade (images here.)

Dean Richardson Night on the River, oil on linen
(image courtesy Providence Art Club, click to enlarge)

As an Instructor, his quietness (shyness, actually - once saw him at an opening of HIS OWN WORK hiding out at the ice cream stand across the street) was intimidating - but with a few deft marks and quiet comments, he could cut to the heart of the painting like none other.

later, when I had not painted for several years, his words again resonated:

“I was not a good painter in school. Painting sense eluded me. It took me years to get a feeling for it. Some of my inability must have come from frustration with that, but mostly it was that I didn’t know who I was.

Art school teaches you a stance. It’s not about art. Art is doing what you feel. I crept up on my sense as a painter, a feeling that I had a point of view. It took me a while to get there, but once I did, I had no choice but to paint.”

more images, and an artist’s statement, here.

Dean Richardson and Merlin Szasz
Opening Reception: Sunday, April 27, 2-4 pm
Providence Art Club 11 Thomas St Prov RI 401.331.1114
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PSA#2 - My work’s still up on the walls at Chez Pascal - and if you needed an excuse to drop in, here it is, gift wrapped: the Knockout combo of their mighty kitchen and Andrew Shotts (Food TV’s top chocolatier in America) come together for their annual chocolate dinner this Monday, Apr 28.

Going to the Dogs

milkbone, 4×6in, acrylic on panel

Last night was the kickoff for Going to the Dogs, (could be the theme of the blog lately, given the lack of updates) a canine-inspired invitational & auction at the RISD Museum.

my contribution was a no-brainer - with a 13yd old mutt, the milkbone (prime vehicle, with PB, for doggie meds) is a staple in our kitchen cupboard.

the mix of invited artists - mostly from RI, too numerous and accomplished to list ‘em all here - ranged from ‘ol hounds with international reps (richard merkin) to risd faculty (melissa ferreira) and younger providence pups like cw roelle. wasn’t just 2d work, either - scott benson contributed a gorgeous maple doggie dining table.

finally got to put some faces to familiar names, including photog traer scott (even if a shelter pup hasn’t already claimed your heart, her b&w portraits are incredibly moving - better still, she also contributes a portion of proceeds from sales of the book to the aspca)

personally, it was a treat to see my work hung on a wall that’s previously hosted the works of degas and picasso - professionally, it was one to be included in such a solid show.
–
one last ‘art & animals’ tidbit - this Creature Comforts video. dare ya not to laugh. (thx gilly & renee)
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Going to the Dogs info:
work can be seen (and bid on) during reg museum hrs -
Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-5pm; third Thursday monthly until 9pm
224 Benefit Street, Providence RI 02903 USA
401 454-6500

the event wraps up on May 3rd, with guest Frank Robinson auctioneer & gala cocktail party 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. For more information 401-454-6505.

lemon.

lemon, 4×6in, acrylic on panel

This lemon is one of 4 pieces selected for a group show opening this weekend at the Courtyard Gallery in Mystic, Ct.

It was an honor to be invited to exhibit alongside fellow artists from the Providence Art Club & the Salmagundi Club of New York.

think it’s the 4th lemon painting i’ve made - no doubt one of 80,000ish lemon paintings throughout the history of the planet. readily available, their simplicity makes em perfect subjects for whatever you’re looking to do with paint.

as always, i’m looking to convey presence. (come to think of it, could be a post about another venerable institution, the mighty Led Zep. Presence ? the Lemon Song ? guess ya gotta be a fan.)

afterwords they’re dynamite in the kitchen (more here.) what’s not to like?

details:
Courtyard Gallery
12 Water St. Mystic, CT 06355
860-536-5059
reception Saturday March 29th 5-8pm
on view thru may 14

can o’ stout

stout can, 4.5×7.5″ acrylic on panel, sold

“it’s our first painting.”

every sale of work is gratifying - but when a painting inspires someone (or, in the case of this old-style stout can, a couple) to make their first purchase, it’s an especially sweet honor. a toast, and thank you.

it’s a school night tonight, so there will be no mayhem for me. (if that’s yer sport, look to Irish car bombs. I’ll be taking my stout in the form of a black cherry - it’s a black and tan made with sam adams cherry wheat.)

if you’re looking for music to set the spirit on st. paddy’s day, i posted some suggestions here.

peppers & bread

green pepper 4×6in, acrylic on panel

i’ve been away from the studio for a few days so it’s back to basics - simple, almost monochromatic objects (without packaging!) against black.

bread4×6in, acrylic on panel

they’re some of the things i first painted when i started the project - and, as kitchen staples - will no doubt paint again.

red pepper 4×6in, acrylic on panel

the color tie-in with Italy’s flag, Il Tricolore, was unintentional - but when in Rome…here’s a chance get a free italian cookbook & support hunger relief at the same time.

it’s simple: click the link, download the cookbook, and Barilla donates $1.00 to America’s Second Harvest.

it’s an offer you can’t refuse.

last bit of chocolate (for now).

chocolate heart 6×6in, acrylic on panel

at the risk of beating a dead horse, yet 2 more ‘red & brown’ paintings - last 2 for now. my sweetie picked up this chocolate heart at local chocolatiers-of-the-gods garrison confections (perfectly rich without being too sugary - AMAZING.)

if you’re in the RI area and haven’t stopped by their east side sweet shop, ya don’t have much time - according to the paper, it’s closing on feb 29th so they can refocus on wholesale & online sales.


chocolate-dipped strawberries 4×6in, acrylic on panel

we saw this pair of stem-on strawberries when we popped into pastiche for some coffee - it’s our usual spot after italian grocery stops on providence’s federal hill. (if you’re new to the hill and are looking for a tour guide, look no further.) it was just after valentine’s but they looked too good to pass up.

valentines hearts

foil heart I 4×6in, acrylic on panel -sold-

the second half of the valentine’s commission, and a belated thanks to the Tetreaults for the candy sweethearts in yesterday’s post. nother thanks, to Ginni, for these foil hearts - they were perfect. thanks guys!

foil heart II 4×6in, acrylic on panel -sold-

so, lookin for a romantic after-dinner movie tonight? 2003’s Love Actually. (no brainer.)

foil hearts4×6in, acrylic on panel -sold-

recommended listening, continuing the UK theme- Nick Drake’s Northern Sky, James Hunter’s Mollena, & Van Morrisons’s Sweet Thing