A great week to be from Buffalo
Joseph the Carpenter, by Georges de la Tour, c. 1645, is painted in the style called tenebrism, using exaggerated chiaroscuro with violent contrast, where darkness becomes a dominating feature. Despite that, it’s a sweet father-and-son image. Note the prefiguration of the cross in the auger. Today is a wonderful convergence of two ethnic celebrations—St. Patrick’s Day (yesterday) and …
The world’s longest winter
Happy times in my Saturday class. We’re really plein air painters in my studio, and by late March we are fidgeting and whining to go outdoors. This morning it’s 4° F. out there, however, which is how the whole winter has gone. We’re inside and we still must paint. So what do we do? Fish …
Secret superpower
The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few, by Carol L Douglas. Still in draft form, I’m afraid. I generally feel about clouds the way Winslow Homer felt about rocks: they’re easy to paint. So I wasn’t expecting to be tripped up by this painting. But when I finished my first iteration, I realized it …
Who knows the places you’ll go?
Bo Light, by Matt Menzies, 2014; photo Rob Chron Photography. Those of you who’ve been around my studio for a while probably remember Matthew Menzies, who is now a junior at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). He recently built what he calls a “Bo light.” This is modeled after a very long staff, or …
All Flesh is as Grass
All Flesh is as Grass, 36X48, oil on canvas, Carol L. Douglas. My studio is in my house, so when Winter Storm Vulcan brought blizzard conditions to Rochester yesterday, it didn’t give me day off. Oh, well; I was painting snow anyway. This apple tree was around the corner from my house. The landowner once …