Boys will be boys
Boys must be boys The ick factor in art history is compounded by our own era’s obsession with sex and power. The Milkmaid, c. 1600, Johannes Vermeer, courtesy Rijksmuseum During Monday’s class, I zipped quickly through Vermeer’s oeuvre on line, when a sentence about Vermeer’s The Milkmaid stopped me cold. This is one of the most well-known paintings in western …
Romance or reality?
Be honest or sanitize the view? What’s actually there can be a hard sell. Lobster Pound at Tenants Harbor, Carol L. Douglas, available. I painted the above, of a lobster pound at Tenants Harbor, ME, just a few years ago. These days, a backhoe is clearing the property. This is no paeon to a lost …
Monday Morning Art School: paint with precision
We’re all proponents of loose-is-more, but there are times when you have to be able to hit it right. Cremorne Pastoral, 1895, Arthur Streeton, courtesy Art Gallery of New South Wales. There are few details, but the ones that are, are very accurately painted. Detail and precision are not in style right now. “The artist …
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Nothing lasts forever
Wildfire is threatening an area I know and love. It’s a reminder that nothing lasts forever, even the trees and hills. Hermit’s Peak from El Porvenir, Carol L. Douglas, oil on archival canvasboard, available. I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time recently watching the wildfire at Hermit’s Peak in New Mexico. “Much of the fire’s …
What I don’t know
Painting is a solitary journey, but there are times when you need the help of others. Main Street, Owl’s Head, 16X20, oil on archival canvasboard. I’ve fussed and worried about migrating this blog to my website for close to a year now. Blogger has discontinued its subscription widget, which makes maintaining readership almost impossible. I …