Dusk in the Valley by Jean Schwartz
24 x 36 in.
Oil on linen panel
$3800
Dusk is a favorite theme in Jean Schwartz’s paintings. It is the time of day when the sun is sinking below the horizon and the sky offers a luminous, atmospheric light. Paintings of dusk and dawn have a long tradition in American painting, particularly with the Hudson River school and the Tonalists. Jean is an enthusiast of both.
“I love the way the colors deepen, shadows elongate and details are obscured as the sun is about to set or right after it has dropped from view and the sky glows. Edges are less defined and there is a poetry and sense of mystery to the landscape at those times. It is so fleeting and that is what makes it a challenge when painting on site.
For me observation is the most valuable tool in creating paintings of sunrise or dusk and I often rely on just my memory to create studio paintings. When I do paint this time of day en plein air I find it best to start earlier in the evening, block in the painting anticipating as much as possible and then finish in the moments I am waiting for. Often I prefer to do just small thumb nail sky studies in oil in my sketch book.”
The landscape depicted in Dusk in the Valley is the farmland outside the historic village of Waterford Virginia which is less than an hour from Jean’s home. She spends part of every week in the area and the wide open spaces are a welcome respite in this time of COVID. “I love the way the land gently rolls away toward the Blue Ride Mountains and the many lovely old barns and historic homes.”
In keeping with this theme of dusk, Jean will have a painting on exhibit in the Salmagundi Club’s Moonrise, Sunrise Exhibition from August 31-September 18, 2020. The Club is located at 47 5th Avenue, NYC. Go to www.salmagundi.org for show information or to view the exhibit online.
Besides the Salmagundi Club, Jean is a juried member of the Washington Society of Landscape Painters, OPA, ASMA and is an elected fellow of The American Artists Professional League.
If I Could Walk On Water by Dan Knepper
30 x 40 in.
Oil
Available from DanKnepperArt.com
PEACE, AND CHIPS OF COLORED GLASS. We are all looking for a little peace. Dan Knepper’s work offers quiet, contemplative, and timeless moments of captured light.
He has enjoyed an enviable artistic career with his work appearing in all the major art magazines, winning national and international acclaim, and having representation by six top galleries coast to coast.
Dan tries to maintain a purity and transparency of color as if painting with chips of colored glass in a style that bridges plein air and realism. His landscapes are transportive. You don’t stand before them, you feel as if you are transported to stand within the scene. You can hear the quiet rustling of the grass and leaves, the fall of the water and feel the atmosphere.
He is currently working on a western series with references from his travels thru the Tetons and Yellowstone in Wyoming and Glacier in Western Montana. He has stories to tell of laughter at meeting a bear, a new fascination for ground squirrels, air that smells incredible (pine and sagebrush,) and watching the sun rise to light the tips of the mountains, sliding down into the trees and working its way down into the water.
To hear the stories and keep up with his latest work, sign up for his monthly newsletter at www.DanKnepperArt.com.
Essence of Zion by Roland Lee
21 x 29 in.
Transparent Watercolor
Roland Lee’s Essence of Zion is the featured artwork for the Zion National Park “Art in the Age of Covid” event taking place online from September 3 – November 8 to benefit Zion National Park. For information about this event and to inquire about purchasing, visit https://zionpark.org/2020/2020-art-in-the-park-celebration/.
Roland Lee has explored the National Parks for over 40 years, capturing images with sketchbook and paintbrush. From his cabin on the east border of Zion National Park, Roland has intimately explored the peaks and canyons of Zion and his original paintings can be found in over 1700 museum, bank, corporate, university, and private art collections.
He was recently awarded the Utah Governor’s Mansion Medal for contribution to the arts in Utah. Roland’s paintings have been selected for exhibit by the National Watercolor Society, the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, Arts for the Parks Top 100, and Paint the Parks Top 100 shows which toured America.
Roland’s paintings are featured in his new 160-page hardcover book Discovering Zion, A Pictorial Guide to the Landscape, Geology and History of Zion National Park. Forty of Roland’s Zion Canyon landscape paintings are included in the book Mukuntuweap, Landscape and Story of Zion Canyon. He is also featured in the books Art of the National Parks, Painters of Utah’s Deserts and Canyons, and Contemporary Western Artists.
Roland served on the Board of directors of the Zion Natural History Association and Zion National Park Foundation at Zion National Park for twelve years.
Wounded by Todd Baxter
Oil on canvas
20 X 16 in.
$1,250
Available from the artist
Wounded was inspired by several painting trips to a local farm in Weddington, North Carolina. What grabbed my attention was an old wounded tree. Though scarred from life, it still stands proud, providing beauty, comfort and enjoyment for the benefit of others.
“Everywhere there is something special that needs to be discovered, captured and shared,” says Todd, who believes creating good art is all about learning to see, developing observation skills, simplifying, editing and directing the viewers focus within the canvas. “And yes, technical skills are also a big part of it.”
Todd’s keen sense of design and composition was honed over 40 years as a graphic designer, after graduating from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. In June of 2010, with the responsibilities of raising a family in the rearview mirror, he decided to adjust course to focus on his passion for fine art. He continues his education by attending workshops, studying the works of other artists and painting; lots and lots of painting.
Todd has had numerous shows and awards in the Carolinas. He also teaches drawing and painting workshops, as well as weekly classes.
Gallery representation welcome, contact Todd online or through email.
Also view additional works by Todd on his website and sign up for his e-newsletter.
Canyon Motif by Linda Glover Gooch
24 x 20 in.
Oil on linen
During the 12th annual Grand Canyon Celebration of Art, 23 plein air artists
from around the country will gather at Grand Canyon National Park to face the challenges the canyon presents to those who attempt to capture its beauty, its vastness, and its ever-changing light and weather patterns on canvas. During Plein Air at Grand Canyon from September 12th through September 18th, visitors can watch the artists at work painting along the park’s South Rim.
Arizona artist Linda Glover Gooch is one of these artists, having painted at the
Canyon for many years. This is the 10th year that she has participated in the
Celebration of Art. She won the “Best Body of Work” award in 2014.
All of the participating Celebration of Art artists submit a Grand Canyon themed studio painting prior to the event. Of this year’s studio painting, Canyon Motif, Glover Gooch says:
“Evening along the Canyon creates a magic display for the viewer. As the light begins to fade a golden glow spreads across the canyon creating a buffet of harmonious color. Just a short trip up Hermits Road I came across this scene near Trail View Overlook. I was captivated by the quite mood, the warm colors that were set off by the cool shadows overtaking the landscape. The large shape of the front cliff set the stage for the evening performance. I believe the Grand Canyon is a place on earth that the viewer is never disappointed.”
Erich by Kurt Anderson
Oil on Canvas
$2,800
Featured in the Oil Painters of America National Exhibition, August 17 – September 19, 2020
RS Hanna Gallery, Fredericksburg, Texas
“This portrait of my friend Erich Erving was painted in my studio over two sessions, each about 4-5 hours. He has posed for group sessions, but I was alone when I painted this portrait, so I was able to take my time in lighting and arranging the composition. That made a huge difference and allowed me to really think through those subtle elements of gesture and expression that spoke to this individual’s personality.
“As with all my paintings, I love to work directly from life. Something happens when responding directly to the physical world. I think it is partly due to the loss of perfect control, and the need to continually make choices about exactly what ever-changing nuance of what you are seeing that you want to include.”
This painting is currently hanging at RS Hanna Gallery in Fredericksburg, Texas, as part of the Oil Painters of America National Exhibition. Anderson is just coming off a term as president of the OPA where he has won top honors and served on the board of directors since 2010.
Anderson is an oil painter who works in many genres – floral, landscape, figurative and portrait. He is represented in many major collections and galleries. His 20-foot mural Prairie Sky is on permanent display at the library of Iowa State University. Anderson’s official portrait commissions range from the Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court to the president of Iowa State University.
Anderson is the author or contributing author of eight books on painting, including his most recent book Expression by Design – The Art of Kurt Anderson available through his website.
Gallery Representation
Reinert Fine Art, Charleston, South Carolina
Illume Gallery of Fine Art, St. George, Utah
Cutter & Cutter Fine Art, St. Augustine, Florida
Beverly McNeil Gallery, Birmingham, Alabama
Little King by Addren Doss
Oil on linen panel
16 x 20 in.
$1800
Addren Doss is known for oil and pastel paintings of animals and landscapes which are filled with strong light and color. Her ongoing series, Bodacious Bovines, is a good example of this. When deciding on which bovine to paint she looks for attitude and treats these paintings as portraits with many of her subjects looking you straight in the eye. She is drawn to patterns of strong light and shadow, and color that glows in late afternoon light. Many of her favorite subjects have been painted in both oil and pastel as she explores how one medium affects the other. She usually meets her subjects while on plein air painting trips around the country.
Addren is a Master Member of Women Artists of the West, Founding Member of the Piedmont Outdoor Painting Society, and Member of the Pastel Society of North Carolina. Her work has been exhibited in venues across the country and can be found in public and private collections in this country and the United Kingdom. She is represented by O’Brien Gallery in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Carrie Wild, Amy Ringholz and Caleb Meyer will return to the 2020 Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival QuickDraw with new option for livestreaming and purchasing art through an online auction. Image credit: Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival
The 36th Annual Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival in Jackson, Wyoming has recently announced its plans to hold both in-person and online activities for artists and collectors, September 9-20, 2020.
From the organizers:
In addition to being able to watch top artists create a masterpiece in 90 minutes or less in downtown Jackson, the Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival is bringing the fan favorite QuickDraw into homes nationwide on September 19 with a new livestream feature for the event and the auction that follows. Popular artists returning to QuickDraw this year include elite painters Amy Ringholz, Carrie Wild, Kathryn Mapes Turner, and sculptors Bryce Pettit, Rip & Alison Caswell, and more. As always, spectators can see artists in action in Jackson (at limited capacity this year).
Once completed, QuickDraw pieces go immediately to a live auction that will have an electronic bidding option for the first time in the festival’s history. A limited and social-distanced in-person audience will bid live from the floor of the auction, competing against online bidders on BidSquare in real time. The one-of-a-kind artwork, often accompanied by special stories from the artists, ranges from oil and watercolor paintings to sketches to sculptures, all inspired by Jackson Hole’s spectacular natural surroundings and unique wildlife, with pieces typically selling anywhere from $1,500 – $15,000. The auction will begin promptly at 10:30 a.m. MST, with virtual as well as in-person attendees able to watch and bid on desired pieces. It’s highly recommended for those interested in participating online to register in advance on BidSquare to be ready to bid on auction day.
Sculptor Bryce Petit. Image credit: Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival
“We are thrilled at the opportunity for a virtual QuickDraw Auction, allowing people to participate in this iconic event from the safety and comfort of their own homes if they prefer,” says Britney Magleby, Special Events Manager at the Jackson Hole Chamber. “In my opinion, Jackson has always been a must-know destination for arts and culture. I think even more people will see that after this year’s festival.”
Also up for auction after QuickDraw will be the stunning 2020 featured artwork, “Hunter’s Watch,” by renowned artist Thomas Blackshear. Past years’ featured art has sold for as much as $65,000. Blackshear’s vibrant painting also graces 2020 festival posters, so everyone can bring the award-winning artist’s painting home, with posters available for purchase here.
“Hunter’s Watch” by Thomas Blackshear, Oil on Canvas with Gold Leaf, 30 x 38 in.; Trailside Galleries during Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival
The National Museum of Wildlife Art’s annual “Western Visions,” a signature event of the Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival, this year includes the in-person “Western Visions Jewelry Show” on September 9. The museum is also offering an online artists’ panel, “The Jackson Hole Five: Important Painters from the West,” on September 17, featuring a discussion with five of the most influential painters in Jackson Hole: Amy Lay, Amy Ringholz, Kathryn Mapes Turner, September Vhay and Kathy Wipfler. Additional Western Visions opportunities will continue to be made available leading up to the event; check wildlifeart.org/western-visions for details.
Every year, Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival attendees enjoy browsing and shopping in person at the September 13 Takin’ It To The Streets outdoor art fair. The 2020 fair features over 50 local artists selling an array of mediums on the beautiful and spacious lawn of the Center for the Arts.
Gallery Wild during last year’s Fall Arts Festival. Image credit: Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival
Widely regarded as a top destination for Western and Wildlife Art, Jackson features more than 30 fine art galleries, museums, and centers. During the Fall Arts Festival, galleries display their “best of the best,” with exhibitions of work from internationally recognized artists. While the traditional Palates & Palettes is on pause for 2020, several of the galleries will carry on the gallery walk legacy with local events: Gallery Wild will host artists receptions and events at their downtown gallery space on September 11, 18 and 19. Meanwhile new Town Square gallery New West Fine Art will offer an Evening Reception & Artist Talk from Connor Liljestrom related to his exhibition “Last of the Old West” on September 11 – accompanied by a performance from Contemporary Dance Wyoming.
Adding to the lineup of excellent online opportunities this year, the Western Design Conference Exhibit + Sale, also a signature event of the festival, will go entirely virtual this year with a new interactive digital version of its Sourcebook that will be released on September 10, 2020, on westerndesignconference.com, allowing collectors, design aficionados and anyone who appreciates the finest in American contemporary craft to source, through September 2021. And in addition to this year’s WDC artisans, the special online Sourcebook will include access to top designers from throughout the event’s past 28 years.
Vera Barnett, "Classical Plastique: Rose-Colored Glasses," 2009, oil on linen
Valley House Gallery and Sculpture Garden (Dallas, Texas) has recently announced the exhibition “On Being Human.”
“These last months have reminded us of the importance of our basic humanity and the inherent value of others,” says the gallery. “After isolating, we felt a need to be surrounded by people—hence this invitational exhibition about people seen through the artist’s eye.”
Amy Werntz, “Marjorie,” 2018, oil on birch panel
In addition to Valley House artists, the following figurative artists are also participating:
Deborah Ballard – Vera Barnett – Lu Ann Barrow – Peter Bonner – Curt Brill – Lloyd Brown – Sean Cairns – Jeanne Campbell – Lindy Chambers – John Cobb – Brian Cobble – Robert D. Cocke – Carol A. Cook – Laurie Hickman Cox – Lee Baxter Davis – Laurence Edwards – David Everett – Barnaby Fitzgerald – Scott Gentling – Miles Cleveland Goodwin – Ira Greenberg – Otis Huband – Sedrick Huckaby – Anita Huffington – Kathryn Keller – Sirena LaBurn – Emily LaCour – Rudolf Sotelo Lailson – Jungeun Lee – Laurie Lipton – Jun-Cheng Liu – William B. Montgomery – Philip Morsberger – Fred Nagler – Trish Nickell – Gail Norfleet – Michael O’Keefe – Luke Sides – Hadar Sobol – Ellen Soderquist – Bob Stuth-Wade – James Surls – Chaco Terada – Valton Tyler – Mary Vernon – Donald S. Vogel – Amy Werntz – Jim Woodson – Miguel Zapata
Sedrick Huckaby, “Mary, Mary-Lu, Missionary Parker,” 2013, oil and charcoal on canvas on panelCarol A. Cook, “The Grey Chair,” 2016, raku clay and low-fire texture glazesLindy Chambers, “Home Alone,” 2020, oil and acrylic on canvas
“On Being Human” will be on view through October 31, 2020. Masks are required, and the gallery will observe all guidelines issued by the State of Texas and City of Dallas. Learn more at valleyhouse.com.
Lindsey Kustusch, "Luminance," 36 x 60, oil on panel, 2018
Influenced by the bustle of city life, Lindsey Kustusch paints “the abstraction of how we remember our days.” Go behind the scenes of her contemporary oil paintings here.
I am fascinated by the power of art and its ability to alter the way we see our surroundings…how everyday things can gain exquisite beauty simply because we’ve experienced it through someone else’s eyes.
That is the magic behind the paint brush. It grants us freedom to change how we see the world. It challenges the significant versus the insignificant and all of the shadowy spaces in between. It’s a memory exposed, and a loss for words defined. As the artist and the onlooker, art offers us a chance to see the things we miss.
Lindsey Kustusch, “Ivory Blooms,” 22 x 22, oil on panel, 2019
Since I was a child, my love for art has always held equal importance to my deep connection with animals. I spent several years at art school before leaving to work for rescue organizations, edging towards a career in animal science. As rewarding as this truly was, there was something always holding me back from taking it further: the joy and wonder that comes from creating something from nothing. It was years before I picked up the paint brush again and saw oil painting for the limitless instrument that it truly is. It took following my heart and abandoning the path I was on, only to follow my heart right back to where it all began, but this time with focus and intent.
This led to hours upon hours of experimentation and “trial and error” in the studio that eventually led to a layered approach to building a painting. Making heavy use of palette knives, battered brushes, and hardware store finds, I began painting my everyday experiences in my new home in San Francisco: the impeccable beauty and the unkempt grit, the quiet and the chaotic, the nooks and crannies of my everyday commute, and the people and animals that interlaced the domestic city streets with the wild and untamed landscape of the country.
Having lived most of my life in a bustling, urban environment, my work has always been heavily influenced by city life as a whole. Every day I bring something unexpected back to the studio, fueling the exploration of new ideas, tools, and techniques, one being the abstraction of how we remember our days. Maybe it’s just the lights of the storefront at night that stand out, or the fog wrapping itself around the skyscrapers at dusk, or the sunset illuminating the hillside dappled with houses on the walk home.
We have an emotional filter on all of our memories, so by tapping into how that could be illustrated in a two-dimensional sense is the closest I can come to painting something that “feels” real. Leaving the peripheral details ambiguous forces our imagination to fill in the rest, which for me creates a deeper connection and emotional core to a work of art.
Lindsey Kustusch, “Mission Antique,” 40 x 26, oil on panel, 2019
I also love the mystery of painting in layers and not knowing how each mark was made. It’s a puzzle within the riddle of the painting itself, the bits and pieces where the paint looks like it weathered the same storm as the subject. Most of all, I love the challenge of it. How do I recreate these moments in a truly “realistic” sense? What will make this real to me? That’s when the fun begins.
Lindsey Kustusch, “King of the Farm,” 20 x 10, oil on panel, 2020
I typically start each studio painting the same way. I take a photo of the scene or subject and attempt to recreate the memory by adjusting my photo, giving it a clearer direction on where the painting can go. It’s a quick and easy way not to waste paint but still find the voice and “focal point” of the piece. For me this step has become the most critical. It’s when I decide what should be described with accurate detail or determine if it’s the lack of detail that will highlight its significance.
Lindsey Kustusch, “Secret Keepers,” 18 x 42, oil on panel, 2017
After I’ve successfully picked apart the reference I game-plan my layering strategy . . . Typically each piece starts with an underpainting followed by several back and forth sessions of detail and semi-transparent washes. I have a growing collection of tools I’ve found throughout the years that have become staple mark-makers in my process:
I use soft rubber printmaking blocks I’ve pre-cut into various shapes and sizes to scrape washes over detailed areas to help create atmosphere and richness.
Old brushes, destroyed from improper cleaning work as wonderful foliage makers.
An assortment of knives is useful for detail and controlled chaos, and rubber gloves work well for finger painting.
I use various surfaces, including wood panel and canvas either gessoed and sanded flat or left with texture.
The possibilities with oil paint are endless, which has been my favorite discovery of all.
Lindsey Kustusch, “The Sink,” 12 x 12, oil on panel, 2015
Just as my subjects and use of pigment will be ever-evolving, so is the reason to create something in the first place. The further I explore, the clearer my intention has become: to remain aware, to see the things I might have missed, to immortalize the beauty of life on this planet, and to encourage others to do the same. It’s the little things that are the most important, and it’s the little things that make up our lives.
Lindsey Kustusch, “Mission & 19th,” 10 x 20, 2020Lindsey Kustusch, “Daybreak,” 20 x 30, oil on panel, 2017Lindsey Kustusch, “And Then the Skies Broke,” 30 x 40, oil on panel, 2016Lindsey Kustusch, “Sunshine on the Hill,” 21 x 30, oil on panel, 2018Lindsey Kustusch, “Momentary Stillness,” 28 x 20, oil on panel, 2015Lindsey Kustusch, “Roadside Poppies,” 21 x 12, oil on panel, 2019
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