Author Archives: Maureen

A Very Very Oldie by Me + A Wonderful Painter: Chelsea Bentley James

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I was just out of college, teaching in a Jackson, Mississippi Catholic school when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was murdered. Throughout the school, all teachers cancelled regular classes so we could watch his funeral on TV and participate in the grieving.

During commercials and downtime as we watched, I began copying absentmindedly a photo of Bill Cosby from a record album on my desk, using my trusty Bic pen.

Lo and behold, the doodle began to look like a fairly decent representation. I was SHOCKED. That was the first I suspected I could draw a realistic portrait. I kept the little drawing as evidence of this surprising breakthrough, wishing I’d had some better paper at hand — without lines crisscrossing the page.

I came across it the other day while cleaning up some of my old papers. And here it is:

Bill Cosby, copy of album cover

Bill Cosby, after an album photo, pen on scrap paper

I plan to showcase from time to time artists who have caught my eye. Chelsea Bentley James is a recent find. I love her soft, atmospheric palette. Her landscapes are beautiful.

landscape, looking down from a height, misty horizon

Areal

And her domestic scenes are compelling as well. I love her painting of an elderly woman — her grandmother?

oil painting of elderly woman

Roselle 1, oil, 12 x 12"

Chelsea, kudos for your lovely and poignant paintings!

Thank You, Walt Bartman ~~ My Most Recent Yellow Barn Teacher

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Walt Bartman, excellent, indefatigable artist-teacher-mentor and director/founder of the Yellow Barn Studio, is my most recent teacher. I had to wait awhile to build up the courage to face his scrutiny! He’s been great, though. Too bad I waited so long!

Walt has been teaching and painting for more than thirty years. Educated at the University of Maryland and American University, he also studied art in Belgium and the Netherlands through a Fulbright Grant. I like this colorful barn scene by the man aptly termed ‘a breath of plein air’ by the New York Times.

Barnstormer

Barnstormer, oil, 24 x 36"

And here’s another by Walt.

Another Dimensio

Another Dimension, oil, 16x20"

And here’s a nude (from a live model) that I painted during a class of Walt’s.

painting of a nude during 2011 Bartman class with live model

Nude 2011, oil

More Digital Doodles

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I’ve been spreading the word to artistic friends about the fun of roughing out quick sketches, abstractions, and otherwise getting wild ‘n crazy on an ipad. Here are a few more of images.

The first is a little living room scene – another of my early realistic efforts.

the red purse

Every Girl Needs a Red Purse -- at least once in her life

And another abstract. I did a whole series, limiting myself to two dominant colors (plus white), accented by a small amount of a third color.

Red White & Blue

Red White & Blue

And this one was done from the passenger seat of our car as we sped through the Pennsylvania countryside. I loved the colors of the overcast afternoon and decided to try to capture them on the ipad.

Color Note from Car Window

Color Note from Car Window

Next Teacher to Thank ~~ Natasha

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Natasha Karpinskaia is yet another of the outstanding teachers at the Yellow Barn Studio. Educated in her native St. Petersburg, Russia and New York City, Natasha is an exciting abstract artist working in various media: from oils and acrylic to encaustics and printmaking. She sees her art as a logical extension of her studies as an art historian. From analyzing works of art came a desire to physically participate in the process of creating.

Here is one of her original prints.

Natasha Print

Natasha's Print

It took me awhile to get semi-comfortable with the process. Abstractions were hard to imagine and the oil-based inks were hard to deal with. I may try water-based inks next time. Here’s my favorite print from the class.

Tumbling

Tumbling, oil on paper

Comeuppance! Painting isn’t Predictable (at least for me) ~~

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After sharing some of my nicer pieces, I thought I’d bring myself back down to terra firma by sharing a stinker with you.

This was meant to be a cute little 6×6″ still life, like those the daily painter folk turn out so easily. I put a couple of beautiful tomatoes from our garden on the kitchen table and started with vigor.

Three scrape-off & re-do’s later, here’s what I had! Ta-da!!

Tomatoes x 3

Tomatoes x 3

Groan. I’m reminded of my last class with Glen Kessler, who reminded me that I’ve still got things to learn!

Exhibit Mechanics

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Since I’m so new to this exhibit process, I collected a few mementos from the Yellow Barn drawing exhibit last weekend:

the invitation (my drawing is the very last one in the bottom right corner);

Postcard Advertising the YB Drawing Exhibit

Postcard Advertising the YB Drawing Exhibit

a shot of the opening reception last Saturday night;

Everyone Enjoyed the Show & Goodies

Everyone Enjoyed the Show & Goodies

and a picture of my two drawings hung side by side — look, the sunlight is falling on MomMom. Beautiful.

Light Shines on MomMom

Light Shines on MomMom

Next show? Labor Day Weekend in Glen Echo Park‘s Spanish Ballroom. (At least I think so — they never responded to my application!!)

Exhibit #2: Drawings of “Mom Mom”

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This past weekend two of my drawings were in the ‘First Annual Yellow Barn Drawing Exhibition’. Each member of the Yellow Barn was allowed to enter up to three drawings. No paintings allowed this time around.

With some trepidation over sensitivity and propriety, but with my husband’s blessing, I submitted two drawings I had made of his mother toward the end of her battle with cancer. I thought her patience and tranquility in the face of final illness were admirable and moving. We were blessed to host her in her last days.

Mom Mom knew I was making drawings of her, and occasionally peeked over at my progress before carefully resuming her position. She was satisfied with the results of our collaboration. I think she appreciated a record of her stoic suffering.

MomMom Resting, bic pen on paper

MomMom with Red Purse, bic pen on paper

More Thanks

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Glen Kessler is another Yellow Barn teacher from whom I’ve learned a lot. Trained as a classical figurative artist at New York Academy of Art, Glen has a profound knowledge of the human figure in art. Glen teaches at Maryland Institute College of Art, as well as Yellow Barn. He draws high praise for his patience and his ability to coax improvement from his students, no matter how experienced or inexperienced.

Here is one of Glen’s many wonderful pet portraits:

Guinness & Ripley

Guinness & Ripley, oil on canvas, 36x24"

I’ve already posted the first two paintings I did in Glen’s ‘Painting Through the Lens’ class (Even the Skies Cry for Jody and Chef Chaouen’s Red Sea). Here’s a detail from a figurative painting I did from a live model in another class with Glen:

the Jazz Singer

Detail, The Jazz Singer, acrylic and oil on paper

More Gratitude

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I’m learned much and received a lot of encouragement from several talented teachers at the Yellow Barn Studio and Gallery, located at the Glen Echo Park in Glen Echo, MD (right across the street from Bethesda). I’d like to introduce them over the next few postings, in chronological order.

Jordan Bruns is the current artist-in-residence, occupying the second and third floors of the Chatauqua Tower, as well as Yellow Barn manager. He paints and draws large scale quasi-architectural images that are abstract, yet grounded in familiar geometric shapes.

Here is one of his paintings:

Reveille, mixed media paint on panel, 36x48"

Reveille, mixed media paint on panel, 36x48"

And here’s the first one that I did in my first class with him:

Still Life with Apples

Apples, Jar, Pitcher and Plate

Experimenting with iPhone and iPad Art Apps

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We got an iPad for Christmas and I’ve been having a lot of fun (after a fairly steep learning curve), roughing out realistic ‘drawings’ and abstract images. One of my Yellow Barn teachers said I was undercutting our art, while another (the chairman of the facility) suggested that I hold a workshop at ‘the barn’ on these digital media. A lot of the other students have been very curious about the process and the apps I’ve been using (primarily Art Rage and Sketchbook Pro).

Here are a couple of my works:

a realistic one — a still life on our kitchen table after 4 days without power in mid-winter

detritus of a 4 day power outage

What is it with PEPCO?? Inept co!

and an abstract one. Until this past year I’d never tried my hand at abstraction, not having a single clue as to how to approach the task. The iPad apps have let my mind wander and have helped me develop some ideas.

triangles and lines

triangles and lines