Somewhere in North Adams

A new biography of the art critic John Berger suggests why I've always been sympathetic to his writings.  The author Joshua Sperling writes "Painting, for Berger, was rooted in the experience of sight, and sight was rooted in the local and particular.  Visibility takes place somewhere."  The somewhere in this small painting is the middle of the incline of North Holden Street in North Adams, MA.  6x8 oil on panel.

Facing The Sun

The corner of Third Avenue and Butler Street in Brooklyn late in the afternoon facing the sun.  More totem poles.  6x8 oil on panel.

Drawing Is Good Exercise

When I go on a walk, I bring a small sketchpad and some pens or pencils to draw anything that strikes my fancy.  These are recent efforts.  It's always an opportunity to experiment and screw up.  Translating something you see in the real world onto a paper pad into something that makes graphical sense is a never ending challenge.

Brooklyn Survivor

This cute house is located on Carroll Street between Third Avenue and the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn.  It is my most favorite building in the Brooklyn I am familiar with.  It pains me to think that many buildings like this have probably not survived, but so far this one is still there.  6x8 oil on panel.

Surreality

The abstract surreality of these building fronts on Third Avenue in Brooklyn I found striking.  6x8 oil on panel.

City and Country

At the top of North Holden Street in North Adams, MA not only does one get a series of houses descending the street, but a vista of mountains that includes Mount Greylock, a nice combination of city and country.  18x24 oil on panel.

Late Afternoon Reflection

Washington Avenue near Park Place in Brooklyn. 6x8 oil on panel.

North Holden Street

This hill street, North Holden in North Adams, MA came into my awareness, no doubt, through the paintings of Thor Wickstrom.  It's obvious why it is so appealing.  The three tenement buildings were built in the late 19th century by the same person, Dennis Sullivan, whose name appears on each building.  18x24 oil on panel.

A Flag in Brooklyn

The flag and pole belong to a high school located on Grand Avenue near Bergen Street in Brooklyn.  The flag and pole diagonals help make a stronger composition.  Funny how whenever I see a flag, I think of … Jasper Johns.  6x8 oil on panel.

Exhibition at Tunnel City

I have a number of paintings on view at Tunnel City on Spring Street in Williamstown, MA.  Also on view are the brilliant photos of @hudsonroadphotography.   See www.hudsonroadphotography.com.

Proverbial Sneakers

Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn offers a wide expanse at the corner of Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn.  The arm holding the traffic light even had the proverbial pair of sneakers hanging on the support cable when I was there.  How does anyone ever do that?  6x8 oil on panel.

Extreme Junction

This particular spot in Williamstown, MA  I visit a couple times a year, at least, because it offers an extreme junction of uphill road and steep hill, usually with amazing light contrasts.  The exposed hill on the left is Sheep Hill, and the tree-lined dirt road on the right is Bee Hill Road.  18x24 oil on panel.

Overactive Sign

Even though there are no people in this painting, it's still quite a busy corner where Nevins and Union meet in Brooklyn.  That sign is doing double or triple duty.  6x8 oil on panel.

Barn and Ladder

A painting that I recently re-worked.  It shows the barn at the end of Hopper Road in Williamstown, MA.  12x16 oil on panel.

Sheep Hill Barns

A studio painting of the barns at Sheep Hill in Williamstown, MA,  viewed from the wet and icy path that goes up the hill.  18x24 oil on panel.

A Dumpster in Brooklyn

It's time for a dumpster painting.  I haven't done one for a while.  Parked dumpsters are a common site in Brooklyn but here's a mystery: how do they get the spot to become free of cars when delivering the dumpster?  This dumpster I found on a side street off of Atlantic Avenue.  Attractive, no? 6x8 oil on panel.

Who's Counting?

If I'm counting correctly this is the 25th small Brooklyn that I've done since the end of November.  But who's counting?  It depicts Nevins Street near Sackett Street in Brooklyn with the sun shining. 6x8 oil on panel.

Two Junes Ago

A painting showing Greylock and the Hopper from Sheep Hill in Williamstown, MA that I did on site two Junes ago.  It needed a couple retouches.  9x12 oil on panel.

One End

One end of Lincoln Place where it meets Underhill Avenue in Brooklyn. 6x8 oil on panel.

Arch and Spaceship

The huge apartment building behind the arch at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn looms like a giant spaceship, especially when the sky is cropped out.  I've always been tempted to do this view.  Here it is.  6x8 oil on panel.

Ingenious Consequence in Brooklyn

One of the ingenious consequences of city blocks is that there are four corners at every intersection providing four different, interesting views to paint at the same location!  This is the corner of Dean Street and Washington Avenue in Brooklyn, a late afternoon view.  I've painted other corners at this intersection, but not this view until now.  6x8 oil on panel.

Happy New Year

Fourth Avenue at the corner of Degraw Street in Brooklyn: a variation on the looking-around-the-corner theme.  Fourth Avenue offers a wide view in both directions if you look up and down and across the street, but here I turned to face some buildings squeezed together.  Fortunately, the path of the afternoon sun lines up nicely with the avenue.  6x8 oil on panel.

Have a happy and healthy New Year!