Fool for love
Stanley Spencer, Self portrait with Patricia Preece(Fitzwilliam Museum, London), 1936 I would hate to have anyone thing that only women are hoisted on the petard of sexuality. Today, I am writing about the loveliestâand perhaps the strangestâof 20th century painters, Sir Stanley Spencer. Spencer has three distinct bodies of work. They are so unlike each other …
Woman as vegetable, draped in Saran-Wrap
My first successful nude in a naturalistic style, as a student in Cornelia Foss’ class. Foss intentionally arranged the model to make her insecurity apparent. I draw much better now, but I still like this painting. I received an email yesterday asking, âWhat do you mean your house is full of paintings of âwomen commodified, …
When I had No Clothes On
Not our anonymous naturalist, alas, since I haven’t any pictures of her. A nude by little ol’ me. After dusk last night, a shifty-looking fellow rang my front bell and abruptly thrust a sheaf of paper bound in hemp string into my hands. It was a leaked copy of a memoir by a local naturalist. …
Take off your clothes for fun and profit
A post-manifesto painting, and it ended up being my favorite of Michelle ever. âThere are pictures of nude women everywhere, and nobody seems to care,â my son-in-law once said of my home. Heâs right. Iâm passionate about the subject of subjugation, so there are paintings of women leaning on every available space: women commodified, bent, …
Painting by Numbers
That’s not a lighthouse, but the Summerville Coast Guard Station in Rochester. And it sold fast, so maybe they know what they’re talking about with this blue. Maine lighthouses are among the most iconic of images. Does that mean that painting them is a good idea? It depends on what youâre after and how you …