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Island Art

I’m pleased to announce that Island Art and Boutique, in Matlacha, Florida, is now carrying my work. The selections they have chosen are in keeping with their Florida island and beach themes. If you’re...

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Cleaning Up a Wishy-Washy Painting

While in Italy this past spring, I made a few quick pen-and-watercolor sketches in the mountains where we were staying. One, in particular, has continued to dissatisfy me because of its flatness. I...

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The Value of Counterpoint

Last time I wrote about adjusting values to separate the planes between foreground and far distance, which helps to indicate atmospheric perspective. I was reminded of another use of values as I worked...

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Poetry of Art

As many of you may know, in the years of my “art discouragement,” I concentrated more on writing and photography than on painting. But I did make a practice of seeking out artwork that inspired me to...

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Art and Crafts

It’s a funny thing, but the more serious I become about my art, the more crafts I need to draw upon to supplement it. No, I don’t mean I’m suddenly pouring candles and gluing seashells onto picture...

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Framing My Thoughts

“What kind of framing treatment will show this painting to its best advantage?” It’s a question that arises with every painting I complete. And it’s one that deserves considerable thought.   This time...

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Framing for Optimal Presentation

Although the choice of frame is important when getting ready to display a painting, for optimal presentation, a mat or liner is often incorporated as well. There is a practical, as well as an aesthetic...

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Considering Point of View

Bear with me if I seem to be going off on a tangent here and run a little long this time, but I’d like to share with you a few thoughts that have been influencing my work recently. Many years ago I...

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Happy New Year!

As a New Year gift to my followers, I have decided to begin a newsletter, called “Around and About,” about art (not only my own) and the journeys and experiences that lead the way.  Through it, I...

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2016 Snowbird Classes

After not having taught my usual art classes during the Snowbird Season last year, I wanted to get back to teaching again. Taking a new tack on an old theme, this winter I’ll be offering several...

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Familiarity Breeds Appreciation

Do you like some styles of art but feel turned off by other styles? Most of us are usually drawn to the familiar, those things that we recognize and feel we understand. The less familiar we are with an...

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Seeking the Right Match

What do you do when you realize that your work is not the right match for the gallery that is representing it? There’s really only one good option, to withdraw gracefully and seek a more appropriate...

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Benefits of Partnering

During the past couple months I’ve participated in several discussions regarding partnering with others who share similar interests. By “partnering” I don’t mean collaboration. Most of us agree that...

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Errors Ennobled

Barry John Raybould, author of the Virtual Art Academy curriculum, writes that “by doing something and getting it wrong, you learn much faster than doing something and getting it right! The trick is to...

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Pricing Perplexities

What is a painting worth? Is this a trick question?  No, it’s a question that befuddles both artists and public alike.  I’ll try to explain here what some of the realities are, from an artist’s point...

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Extracting the Essence

As some of you may already know, I was strongly influenced by the art I was exposed to during the three years I spent in Japan while in my teens. In particular, I came to appreciate the simplified,...

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Artist’s Blocks

Have you ever suffered from artist’s block? It may be that you can’t seem to get motivated to paint or draw, or maybe you want to, but you can’t face that blank page or empty canvas. You’re afraid that...

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Casting Light on Lights

When striving to get our lightest values light enough, the temptation is to substitute white for a more accurate color.  Although this practice is both expected and acceptable in watercolor, since the...

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Depicting the Experience

Travel often takes me away from the studio for days or even weeks at a time.  These excursions are fun, informative, and usually provide me with sufficient photographic reference material to work from...

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Handling Hurdles

Those who have been reading my blog for some time know that although travel experiences frequently serve as inspiration for my work, the extended time away from the studio is always very disruptive to...

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