Friday, May 6, 2011

Painting Adventures in New England

Well, It's been an amazing month with many art adventures and since this is my first blog post, be prepared for a long one with lots of pictures! Some Sargent's and Schmid's to name a few...
I travelled to Vermont this April to teach a workshop and do some painting with Richard Schmid and Nancy Guzik. Every time I'm there, I feel an immense gratitude for being able to study with these two master artists. Not only do they have an exceptional knowledge of the technical aspects of painting, but they both possess a dedicated passion for the process of creating and what emanates from a steady focus and appreciation of the subject. I am always inspired beyond words at Richard and Nancy's pursuit of the beauty, truth, and authenticity that encompasses great painting...
Actress Jane Seymour and her friend Cheri Ingle (an Emmy nominated costume designer) met me up there to do some painting with Richard and Nancy. Jane, Cheri, and I have been friends for a while and when we paint together, the principles from Alla Prima are always floating about the room verbally so they were both very excited to paint with the master himself.
When we first walked into Richard's studio we were met with the most beautiful painting on his easel that he recently completed...


It was particularly moving considering the recent events in japan..

The head and hands on this painting are so small , but painted with such boldness and the edgework was a delight to the eye...


The light in Richard's studio comes from some large north windows above the easel and is exquisite to paint in...Krisen Thies who represents Richard and Nancy at West Wind Fine Art also joined us for the day...


We watched Richard paint a demo in the morning of his good friend John Adams (who you might recognize from The Captain's Portrait dvd )

                                                                   Richard's Palette




During breaks, Richard often talks about his ideas regarding painting...I hope that one day, he writes another book  expanding upon his insights...something akin to the Art Spirit by Henri


John is such a joyful and thoughtful soul, always with a spiritual insight, an observation on nature, or a witty joke to share..he and Richard get into some great philosophical discussions ...

Which usually end with something humorous!

Jane and Nancy...two beautiful ladies who love art!

Jane, Kristen and Richard looking at some of Jane's work on an ipad...gives a good view of Richard's palette...

A beautiful portrait in the studio...

      This is a portrait of Tim Newton, titled "The Curator". Tim is on the board of directors of the Salmagundi Club in New York  that holds the annual American Masters show. 

                                                     Richard said this is a must have book !

 In the afternoon, all of us painted John in Richard's studio...



Nancy did a stunning little painting that really captured John ...


Nancy's painting


Here is a quick demo Richard knocked out in 15 min from my view to show the importance of a strong initial block in... earlier he stated "Painting is like playing chess, how you begin is very important"


                                            my painting study...a bit of glare on the painting ...



Jane's painting...


Cheri's painting..

Richard, Jane, Cheri and John ( Richard is looking at his lovely wife Nancy here : ))


Happy artists...I can't think of a better way to spend the day : )



After painting, Jane, Cheri, and I went on a walk with Richard. He talked about his thoughts on art...always a treat...


Hearing Richard speak  thoughtfully on the pursuit of art as we walked through the quiet New England countryside at sunset, after a day of painting in his studio, was so enthralling...
As I looked up at the trees while listening, I felt such an immense gratitude and had a profound sense that  I was living in a painting at that moment.. breathing color and moving with painted forms...seeing beauty in each tree's distinct portrait and every shade of grey of the departing winter.
It is a moment I will never forget...


Afterwards, Kristen treated us to a homemade dinner with fresh seafood from Cape Cod...It was a feast and the best salmon I've ever tasted since living in Alaska..thanks Kristen!

The next day we were met with an array of color as we stepped into Richard's studio to find a table pouring with flowers...



Richard graciously did demos for each of us and as I watched him paint a flower for the first time I had an epiphany...I had never painted a flower  until that day...as much as I am intoxicated by the natural world, painting flowers had never appealed to me.They seemed, to me, inanimate compared to painting a person...

Three things happened that morning to change that. First, I saw a small painting that Richard had just finished of wildflowers, they were painted with such expression and so painterly, the way I love to paint figures and nude studies...there was such an immediacy and the painting reminded me of a movement of music... an ascending transition of a Chopin sonata...
The second thing that happened is that I watched Richard paint a pansy.I saw the care and delicacy as he considered and formed the edges and color transitions and when he said painting pansies reminded him of painting children's faces something clicked for me. I saw flowers differently than I had ever seen them before...The last thing that happened was I set up my still life before lunch and when I returned afterwards to paint, one of the flowers was hanging it's head on the table about to die...

I can't quite explain, but at that moment I realized everything is a portrait of something living, something transitory and something precious to behold...


here is Richard's painting of the wildflowers....


 


Detail

My palette with some great colors added by Richard...

Richard painting a demo from my view...


                                                          The view from my easel...

Listening to and watching the master at work...



                                                              Richard's Pansy....

     Richard painting a demo for Jane from her view...

A beautiful small painting by Nancy in Richard's studio


he showed the different ways to blend color....

His favorite palette knives...

Showing us how a palette knife stroke can be laid down and a brush stroke can be placed on top of it without losing the integrity of the initial stroke...

Having fun painting flowers! Nancy walked over and saw what Richard was doing and let out a squeal of delight! : )

Nancy's beautiful start...

I think she did this in about 30 minutes...

Jane did a great job on her flowers...


                                                Cheri also did a fantastic job...

And I forgot to take a picture of mine... It's drying at Richards, but I painted my first flower . I'll post later...

Jane and Richard

A great day of painting was had by all!


 We took a break to go visit Nancy's studio on the other side of the house ...on the way there I photographed this beautiful large painting of hers that was part of the Inspiring Figures exhibition at The Butler Institute of American Art...

the color is amazing in this painting...reminded me of Cecilia Beaux...


Next to it was this waterfall painting of Richards...I saw him paint this from life last May ( for those of you on facebook I have progression pictures of this being painted from life ) This painting is currently being exhibited at the American Masters Show at the Salmagundi Club in New York.

Nancy gave us a look at all she has been working on in her studio, what a treat!
She is as beautiful as her paintings...

Some of her many gorgeous alla prima paintings...

Nancy took the time to talk about composition regarding still life with Jane, Cheri, and me...She is a gifted teacher...

One of her little jems... not finished, she said... I think it's perfect the way it is!


another beauty...

Nancy's alla prima figure paintings resonate with an emotional intensity and always seem to embody a peaceful state of being in the subject...

Jane, Nancy, and Cheri in Nancy's studio : )


A stunning original painting by Dan Gerhartz that was hanging in Nancy's studio...

Detail... It was really hard to tear my eyes away from this...


                                      Nancy and Jane with one of Nancy's recent paintings....





Dinner after a day of painting...we were all so tired, but had fun talking art over a great meal and celebrating both Kristen's and Cheri's birthdays...


Even after a full day of painting and teaching, Richard continued to impart his wisdom in art over dinner....he has such a wealth of knowledge.
On the drive back to the B&B, we talked about how grateful we were for his and Nancy's generosity in sharing that knowledge with us...

   The Birthday girls, Kristen and Cheri

I took these two portraits of Richard and Nancy during dinner and felt that they really captured each of their distinct personalities...Richard, the thinker and very intellectual and Nancy, emanating light and kindness and enveloped by light...






Well, after two fantastic days I felt really warmed up to teach my workshop at the Village Arts of Putney
This is the place where the Putney Painters meet regularly to paint together...a group formed by Richard and Nancy and includes many well known and accomplished artists.
The first time I painted with the group, I was moved by the kindness, humility, and dedication of this close knit group of artists. It's such a special place just to be, I am honored to teach there. I had a great group of students and the three days passed much  too quickly...

Portrait Painting Day


                                                             Figure Painting Day

The view from the barn where the workshop is held...


Thanks to Captain John (model at Richards) and his wife Penelope for organizing and providing this wonderful space for artists to gather and paint together!

John, me, Penelope, and friend, artist Daniel Keys who was also teaching a workshop

Daniel taught a still life painting workshop right after mine. We have been doing back to back workshops for the past couple years in Putney and It's always a lot of fun. It's great for the students, who travel from all over the country and even outside of the US, to get two workshops back to back, one on portrait painting and one on still life. Daniel and I take a very similar approach to painting and many of our principles overlap.I watched one of the demos he did in his workshop and it was lovely...
 Daniel and Lori Woodward Simons are putting together an EBook  of this demo that will be available soon. Lori is a gifted writer, who has contributed articles to many of the major art publications so this is sure to be a great EBook! Here's some more info from Lori's blog 

                                                                         Daniel's demo



The weekend after I taught my workshop was a special two day Putney Painters. Everyone did amazing work. Richard did a large portrait, finishing the face the first day and completing the torso and hands the second day.
Beginning with clean and vibrant color...






               He delineated the necklace with a few deliberate, bold strokes of the brush...

To achieve the initial look of the lace blouse, Richard rubbed out the paint letting the raw canvas show through giving the visual impression of the white lace.

some great brushwork...


We all took time out to watch Richard paint the hands...




Our Lovely model Krystyna...


Sometimes the best poses can be captured when the model takes a break and is unaware that she is being watched...

This is Charlie Hunter's painting, who is a member of the Putney Painters...It had a lovely quality that reminded me of famed illustrator Bernie Fuchs, whose work I really love...



You can see Kathy Anderson's painting on the left side of the picture and artist RoseMary Ladd is painting next to Richard. To the right is Stephanie Birdsall who was visiting from Arizona...
In retrospect, I wish I had photographed everyones work as there were many beautiful paintings, but the blog was an afterthought...

Richard's painting after the two day session...


Richard and Krystyna 

This is my painting from the session, I painted only when Richard was cleaning his palette or putting out paint, I didn't want to miss anything!


Nancy's beautiful painting of Krystyna, which sold right off the easel

Daniel and I studying Nancy's beautiful painting.Artist Lori Larue working on her painting in the forground




Artist Katie Whipple watching Nancy work on her painting...Katie is a 20 year old artist who is studying at the Grand Central Academy in NY...she's amazingly talented. Watch out for her in the future folks!

Katie, Nancy,and me



Although this is a serious group of painters, there's always a lot of fun to be had during the sessions!

Nancy and artist Carol Arnold





After a great couple of days of painting...Nancy, Daniel, me, Katie, and Richard

I had to include this candid shot of Richard and Nancy...they are truly an inspiration in every way
Their love of life, painting, teaching, and of each other inspires us all.
Thank you both for all you give...




My last day was spent in Boston with artist Jeanne MacFarland who whisked me around to The Isabella Stewart  Gardner Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. It was a quick trip as I only had a few hours before catching a plane...

The Gardner is an amazing museum that houses many Sargents including El Jaleo. There is also a whole room of Zorn's etchings...unfortunately, they do not allow photography...



The museum of Fine Arts in Boston just unveiled a new wing that has an entire room of Sargents, where photography is allowed and the paintings are lit wonderfully...Seeing Sargents well lit, I found myself amazed at the vibrancy of color in his paintings.Here are quite a few pictures to enjoy....

       It was wonderful to see this painting with the original vases that Sargent painted  beside it...


Detail


















                                                      The Master and His Pupils


                                                                          Detail





                                                                I LOVE these hands....























I couldn't resist taking a picture of these two girls that were sitting in the museum. I would've loved to paint them ...





Studying Sargent's drawings....


Whew! This was a long post, but I hope everyone enjoys all of the paintings...and may you enjoy each day that you get the wonderful privilege to be alive, appreciate the world and the people around you, and create from the truest part of your being.
Inspirations...
~ Michelle

" Art is the giving by each man of his evidence to the world. Those who wish to give, love to give, discover the pleasure of giving. Those who give are tremendously strong."
~ Robert Henri ( The Art Spirit)

" There are moments in our lives, there are moments in a day, when we seem to see beyond the usual. Such are the moments of our greatest happiness. Such are the moments of our greatest wisdom. If one could but recall his vision by some sort of sign. It was in this hope that the arts were invented. Sign-posts on the way to what may be. Sign-posts toward greater knowledge."
~ Robert Henri ( The Art Spirit )










30 comments:

  1. Bravo on the first blog. Loed the photo essay. You should join us in june in the Adirondacks. Www.ericrhoads.com. I think we have 60 painters coming so far. -eric rhoads

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  2. I have been waiting, with bated breath, for you to be inspired into the world of blogging. Now that you have, Michelle, I can release that breath in one, long, soul-satisfying sigh. And now I sit here searching for the words to describe the impact of all the imagery you've shared, but the intensity i felt in viewing them has left me emotionally drained (in a very good way!). I am going to let your words resonate with me to fill the well. Whew, girl! Amazing!! :)

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  3. Great post Michelle! Like taking a painting class!What an inspiring group of painters! Thank you!

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  4. I enjoyed the many photos and your words, thank-you.

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  5. Michelle,
    Thanks so much for sharing. What a beautiful life you have. I really love how generous you are with your talent, knowledge and experiences. Such an awesome first post! :)

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  6. Michelle...thank you for sharing this incredible and captivating event. You are definitely as gifted in writing and photography as in your beautiful painting style. I very much enjoyed reading through every one of these postings!

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  7. A little piece of heaven. Thank you for sharing. I think I will be back many times to visit.

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  8. Your post has been so inspiring. Thank you for sharing Michelle. I look forward to more... :)

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  9. Great work putting this together Michelle. I hope you don't use up all your blogging energy on your first post. Thanks for sharing your experience and showing us all the photos.

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  10. Michelle I want your talent and life!! :D What a rich few weeks you've had so no wonder you had to blog about it as it must be just bubbling up inside you! You have shown us an insight into your kind personality by blogging about your memorable weeks - you simply wanted to impart to us things the good feeling you've experienced. Thank you so much! I doubt I could ever make it to Richard and Nancy's place in my lifetime! So thanks for not holding back on the size of your photos, they are really so helpful and I enjoyed every one of them! Looking forward to seeing your first flower painting! Take care!

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  11. Thank you for sharing what must have been an experience of a life time for you Michelle! I really enjoyed going through the photos and your comments! Also looking forward to seeing your "first" flower painting in a future post!

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  12. Wow, Michelle! When you start a blog, you do it with zeal! You've done a remarkable job of sharing your experiences with Richard and Nancy! I loved each and every picture and they are all an inspiration to me. Thank you so much!! ;-)

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  13. My God Michelle! thank you for taking what must have a full day to post this once in a lifetime adventure. Wish I'd known about RS when I lived back east!

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  14. great job on your work and blog...
    the content is very inspiring...

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  15. Thank you so much for sharing, Michelle! It seems to me that you are just as kind, generous and gifted as the artists you were with in Vermont! I saw you at the Portrait Society and really wanted to meet you, but was too shy... maybe next year I'll work up the courage. In the mean time, I'm definitely going to continue following your blog. Your photos and insights are inspiring!

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  16. Michelle, thank you for sharing your wonderful images and your thoughts. I really appreciate it. Be well, paint well and keep in touch, Deborah Lazar

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  17. I don't know how I ended up here, but I am glad I did - what a blessed life you have and how wonderful that you have taken the time to document and share it with others - thanks so much!

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  18. I love your blog and I wanted to let you know that your painting of the young girl was my favorite. I don't know how to explain what I feel when I look at it. You captured so much more than what you can see in a young woman - it seems that you painted her spirit.

    Laila

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  19. Thanks guys, I'm really touched by your comments and I'm glad everyone is gathering inspiration from the post...I was recently talking with my friend Allison who writes the 'Art for Thought' column in American Artist ( Great new column! ) and was thinking, how necessary it is to go spend time with other artists and dip your soul into life as you would dip your brush into paint...I try to remember, when I have deadlines and am crazily at work in my studio, that I need to also live spherically and that art needs a life from which to draw from in order to say something relevant and meaningful....
    And thank you Laila for what you said about my painting...That means so much to me and is the hope I aspire to in each portrait...
    Best wishes and Inspired painting everyone!

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  20. W O W - great blog!! thank you! so much eye candy!

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  21. What a great post. So enjoyed seeing all the paintings, (trying to ‘see’ every brush stroke and learn from it!!) and those Sargent photos are just a treat! Great stuff, thanks so much.

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  22. Thank you for sharing with us. I spent over an hour reading everything and looking at the pictures, truly an inspiration.

    greetings from Sweden
    E.Milz

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  23. So inspiring, thanks for sharing!! :)

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  24. Thank you for sharing ....I just cleaned up my garden today ...it is time to paint, your blog had given me much inspiration, can not thank you enough

    Sim

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  25. Fantastic blog! I enjoy all pictures. Above all paintings are awesome and every body looking nice. Here 3-4 painting is very like us. I really appreciate for your work. Thanks for sharing your great ideas with us.

    krylon water based spray paint

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  26. Wow, thanks Michelle! What a great read, and I loved looking at all the beautiful paintings that went with it.

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  27. Amazing post Michelle. I've read it several times and will come back again, there is so much to take in. Thank you for taking time to include all of us in your wonderful journey and world. I loved meeting you at WWM in Sept. I've found my mentor in S.F. and spending a year under study. Have a great year Michelle.

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  28. What a wonderful post, very inspiring!!! Thank you for sharing!

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  29. What a group of wonderful and talented artists you are, Michelle! Thank you for sharing.

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  30. Thank you for sharing such an inspiring post.

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