An Opening or Painter Saves the Spring Day

Unlike today, yesterday the sun shone brilliantly.  I set up next to the barn by the cow yard to paint the Hopper again.  No one was around except the cows.   The cows were rambunctious.  Two males were constantly butting each other and chasing a female cow.  As I finished my painting, the cows accidentally slammed the large gate to the cow yard, and it swung open.  They all stopped to watch the gate opening grow wider.  As they stepped towards the opening, I moved quickly to grab the gate and close it.  I tied it up very securely.  9x12 oil on panel.

The View Behind You.

A painting I did last year at the Paint Factory at Rocky Neck in Gloucester, MA. It's the view you see if you look at what's behind you when you visit the Paint Factory. 9x12 oil on panel.

How Long?

This awning is located at the intersection of Rue Barillerie and Rue Jules Gilly in Nice old town.  I'm painting broadly in a small space, 6x8 inches, to capture the essence.  Oil on gessobord.

In the book Almost Nothing: The 20th-Century Art and Life of Josef Czapski by Eric Karpeles, the author writes: "Every painting, no matter how slowly or rapidly realized, is always an outpouring of the artist's whole painting history up to that moment.  This is the answer to the perennial query put to all painters, 'How long did it take you to do that?'"

La Pinede at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

It's easy to get to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat by bus from Nice (for 1 euro).  Once there, you can take the walk around the smaller of the two peninsulas.  At the beginning of the path you will encounter a stand of pine trees (as well as the beautiful Mediterranean Sea).

Dean and Washington

Dean and Washington Avenue, Brooklyn.  6x8 oil on gessobord.

Permanent Fixture

Dean Street looking towards Classon Avenue.  I looked at Google Street View and was surprised to see that the blue car was there when the Street View was made in 2017.  It must be a permanent fixture.  6x8 oil on gessobord.

Under the Bridge

A car parked under the shuttle bridge at Atlantic Avenue near Franklin Avenue in Brooklyn.  I liked this one for the abstract shapes.   6x8 oil on gessobord.

Both Sides

A couple days ago I was in Brooklyn, but the sun made a half-hearted appearance.  This view I found on Atlantic Avenue approaching Franklin Avenue.  I liked the sky showing up on both sides of the high wall of a car repair place.  6x8 oil on panel.

In the Barn

This is a view of the backside of the barn at the end of Hopper Road. I've painted it before but what caught my attention this time was the pointed shadow and the ladder, which is usually on the other side.  The ladder, which is the only way to get to the hay loft, would be in the way now that the main door is being used to park a tractor.  The cows were all in the barn when I was painting.  It was so quiet that I could hear their hooves occasionally banging on the floor or walls of the stalls.   9x12 oil on panel.

In the Middle

Resisting the siren call of the abandoned farm trucks, who want me to paint them, I stopped in the middle of the hay field at the first thing that caught my eye, a couple of pine trees flagrantly standing in front of the Hopper.   This is the time of the year to paint from the middle of a hay field, before the grass is two feet high.  9x12 oil on panel.

Trucked Out

The second old, abandoned farm truck from yesterday afternoon's visit to the truck graveyard: 9x12 oil on panel.   I think I'm trucked out.

Truck Day

Today was a two truck painting day.  This is the first one, a 9x12 oil on panel.

Amidst Trucks

It's not raining, so I might as well be painting.  I've included a view of my easel on site amidst the old trucks.  9x12 oil on panel.

Nice and Venice

A late day view from the top of Rue Rossetti in Nice old town.  I remember reading somewhere that Gloucester attracted so many painters because it was on the same latitude as Venice, and therefore the light was similar.  I suppose that Nice and Venice are similar in latitude as well.  Even the names almost match.  6x8 oil on panel.

Dinosaur Truck

The sun came out so I cheerfully set out for the truck graveyard.  This one must have been a terror when alive, with so many teeth.  9x12 oil on panel.

Nice Painting

A small 6x8 studio painting of Nice.  Oil on panel.

One Hundred and Two Years Ago

Five small vertical paintings done in Nice this year.  8x6 oil on multimedia artboard.

I've read that when Henri Matisse first showed up in Nice in 1917, it rained for two solid weeks.   He decided to stay after the sun came out because he loved the light so much.  It's hard to believe that was 102 years ago, and that Matisse was almost fifty years old at the time.

The Story of the Hopper and a Truck

The first painting I did this morning was a view of the Hopper.  People immediately think of Edward Hopper when I say "the Hopper" but the Hopper is the v-shaped valley visible at Haley Farm at the end of Hopper Road in Williamstown, MA.   The sun started to fade away in the early afternoon, so I went to the truck graveyard nearby.  This is a good time to visit since the hayfields are accessible and the truck graveyard is not yet overgrown with the bushes that hide the trucks.  Both paintings are 9x12 oil on panel.

Fidgeting

Here are five small horizontal paintings I did in Nice old town, four from the balcony.  All are 6x8 oil on multimedia artboard.  Have you noticed that once you are done with some large project, it is difficult to pick up again where you left off, or restart something else? You eventually get going, but it takes some fidgeting.  I'm working on a couple small studio paintings, but since the sun is shining, I'm going out painting.

Invisible in Nice

A painting of Nice old town from the top of the Escalier Jules Eynaudi.  I wrote earlier that someone had set up an 'invisible man' on the steps.  This consisted of a cardboard box with a pair of shoes, a sign stating in English, "Invisible Man. 0.50 Euro per photo," and a straw hat to collect the money.  While I was painting, I saw the same person come by on two different occasions to collect the money.  The second time I told him that I could see him.  He only smiled.  9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

A Sky in Old Nice

A quick drawing to demonstrate that sky form that intersects between the two tenements of Rue de la Loge at the corner of Rue de la Croix in Nice old town, which I wrote about the other day.  This piece of sky is what amazed me almost every day when I walked here.   8x10 pen, ink, wash, and pastel on Bristol paper.

At the Top of Road

The view at the top of Montee du Chateau, a wide pedestrian road leading up to Chateau hill in Nice old town.  I am a sucker for yellow buildings with orange roof tiles against a blue sky.    Green trees don't hurt either.  9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

Bravo

The narrow street that goes through these two building is Rue de la Loge.  This is where it intersects with Rue de la Croix.  I walked this way almost every day, on my way to paint, always looking up at the intersection of rooflines and sky.  The color always amazed me.  This painting I did from a tiny spot in a small parking lot at the corner of Rue des Serruriers, a block up.  I preferred the view with the blue sky form cutting down more between the buildings, but for that I would have had to set up in the middle of the street. Not recommended.  At some point, I sensed someone behind me looking on.  When I looked at him, he said "Bravo".  It was great fun painting in Nice old town.  12x9 oil on multimedia artboard.

The Stimulating Backyard

This drawing is an experiment.  When I made it this morning sitting on a deck looking at a typical backyard in a suburban neighborhood in Framingham, MA, I liked what I saw, the white house, garage, and shed, bright in the sunlight, trees, gray, in early April without leaves, a large pine, a dark screen of black branches, etc.  It might look better in color, but all I had was a pencil and a sketchbook.  The experiment is testing my view that art is where you find it, and make it, in response to what you see, especially to the mundane.  I do love visiting exotic places (like Nice) but most of us don't live there, and Nice is probably not exotic to most people who have lived there all their lives.  I think an ordinary backyard can be visually exciting, whether in Nice or Framingham.  Maybe I haven't convinced you with this drawing.  But it's something I think about all the time.

A Passion in Nice

This is the first of four paintings I did at Place Sainte-Claire in Nice old town.  The view between buildings was magnificent and the laundry was always hanging out.  At one point, a lady asked if she could look at my painting  (I was surprised that most people asked if they could look).   She turned to me and said (in French), "I can see it's a passion for you!"   9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

Assimilation in Nice Old Town

This view in Nice old town I found where the Montee Menica Rondelly, a steep set of switch backing steps, meets Montee du Chateau, an uphill road where cars are not allowed.  Actually the view is on Allee Francois Aragon, just below the entrance to the cemetery at that intersection.  As I said earlier, I'm noting these facts while I can still remember them.  On the other hand, the geometry of urban scenes pushes me in the direction of abstraction.  Assimilating long views also has that tendency.  9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

A Sweeping View

When I was setting up for this painting halfway up the steps on Montee Menica Rondelly above Place Sainte-Claire in Nice old town, a street sweeper watched me closely.  He was interested in my equipment.  He was also interested in what I found paintable in an environment he saw every day.  We spoke briefly and wished each other well.  9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

Looking Back in the Canyon

One of my favorite painting sites in Nice old town was what I think is called Place Sainte-Claire at the end of Rue de la Providence.  To get there quickly I climbed I steep narrow staircase at the top of Rue de Sainte-Claire.  The staircase is located in the "canyon" between an old, yet-to-be-renovated convent and a tall tenement building.  This is the view at the top of the staircase looking back. 12x9 oil on multimedia artboard.

From the Top of the Stairs

One of the paintings that I did from the top of Rue Rossetti at the height of Escalier Jules Eynaudi in Nice old town.  The staircase is quite wide so there's plenty of room for a painter. 9x12 oil on multimedia artboard.

Shadow in Nice

A view down Rue Sainte-Claire from Rue des Serruriers in Nice old town.  I thought I'd better record the exact location of where I painted this one while I still can remember.  I usually don't paint too many verticals but was compelled to in this location.  I also found the building shadow compelling.  12x9 oil on multimedia artboard.

Painting in Nice

If you don't follow my Facebook or Instagram accounts, you probably will have noticed that I haven't posted on this blog since late February.  I haven't been idle.  Here's a photo of the 32 paintings I did while visiting Nice, France.