Finding what you’re not looking for
An old bridge abutment at Bushnell’s Basin… where “moth and rust” have already destroyed man’s handiwork. Today was my second day walking along the Erie Canal in search of painting sites. It wasn’t as pleasant as yesterday; it was hotter and muggier. Other than the bridge abutment at Bushnell’s Basin (which I’ve painted before), the …
If every plant has a toxic relative, why wouldn’t that be true for people as well?
I’ve painted the Erie Canal all over the place (this one time in Gasport, NY). How much more can it teach me, right? The plein airinstructor has a lot more to do than simply show up and coax brilliance out of her students. She must first reconnoiter: is there a way to get equipment from …
The old folks flit, the young fly home
Drawing by Kamillah Ramos, an architecture student at SUNY Buffalo I’m always a bit shocked when my former students return from college, for every year they come home with more mature features and more adult demeanor. May is the month when seasoned students flit and youngsters fly home, at least for a little while. The …
To each their own, within limits of course…
Look, Ma! No red! The red tones are made of quinacridone violet and cadmium orange. (Finger Lakes marshes in autumn, 14X18, oil on canvasboard) JG writes: What red do you like for plein air painting? Are there any substitutes for cadmium red that work as well but are cheaper? Dear JG: I have pigments I …
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Painting at the Lilac Festival with my young friends
Lilac Festival, Highland Park, 11X14, oil on canvas, by little ol’ me. My Jewish neighbors are celebrating Shavuot, which commemorates the day God gave the Torah to the nation of Israel. We Christians will observe Pentecostthis coming Sunday, when we will commemorate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. The two holidays are closely related, and they are both based on …
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