Paintings
What is the Meaning of This? …and my Painting at an upcoming Exposition at Grand Palais, Paris
The other day I was reading an article on the effect of play on children’s brains. It turns out that it’s good for children to play. Who knew! But wait, it’s good for animals to play too. Yes, animals play. People who have dogs know this already. Maybe it’s good for adults to play as well, but let’s not go too far. So this got me thinking about all the programmed activity we provide … Read more
Where I’m Calling From…
Doodling on a page from an obsolete Saint Germain-en-Laye phone book (I keep wanting to say Facebook). It’s obsolete for two reasons. First it was last year’s phone book. Second, who uses phone books nowadays anyway? I wonder about the connection between these particular people on this particular page. They all live in the same town. Their names all begin with the same letter – M. I myself am somewhere in this book but … Read more
Now at Flux Factory, Picturing the Unprintable…
This painting, Fairmount Theater II, is featured in an Exposition entitled “Picturing the Unprintable” at Flux Factory 39-31 29t Street, Long Island City, New York. It was the subject of my post of February 28, 2015 (On Becoming a Serial Finisher). The opening is tonight, October 7, 2016 and the show runs until October 16. The show was inspired by the novel “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Earnest Hemingway. It explores the idea of what … Read more
L’Heure Bleue (The Blue Hour)
I thought the Blue Hour only occurred in France, perhaps because it was here in Paris that I first appreciated it. But in fact, the Blue Hour can occur anywhere on earth, either in the city or in the countryside. In Spain it’s called La Hora Azul. During twilight, when the sun descends between 4 and 6 degrees below the horizon, the Blue Hour can happen. A lot depends on temperature, the amount of … Read more
The Candy Man…
Dear Friends and Family, Candy has always played an important part in my life. My first memory of candy was as a little boy playing in my back yard. Mrs. Nolan would sit in her open window next door, on the second floor. She’d call to me and throw a paper bag filled with candy. It would sometimes get stuck in the grape arbor and I’d have to climb up to get it, but … Read more
How do you find a missing train…?
This is the time of year when people really start traveling in France. The two week school vacation for Parisian children has just ended, and the May holidays are still to come. Train stations and airports have been busy with families going to the north and west coasts, and the south of France, or to other parts of Europe. In a month or two the school trips for springtime will begin. College students will … Read more
Please don’t paint the Monuments…
I never paint the Monuments. There is something about a place, especially Paris, that I prefer to capture by painting the stones, the streets, the waterways, and the light. I’ve painted many pictures of Paris, which you can see here, but this is one exception. This is La Madeleine (Church of Saint Mary Magdalene). La Madeleine was completed in 1828, as a temple to glorify Napoleon’s Army. It doesn’t look like a church to … Read more
Early Morning Drives…
Dear Friends and Family, On trips to Connecticut from France we usually experience jet-lag, but in a good way, waking up early, around 4am. One morning my daughter asked if we could take a drive. Where? Anywhere. Shall we drive north, west or east? We drive east, just drive for a couple of hours, enjoying the sky lightening in front of us. We always drive on secondary roads, this time on Route 1, the … Read more
Night Lights…
This painting is of the early morning light looking west from my bedroom window. Before the recent terrorist attacks on Paris, I would often be awakened at night to the sounds of people making their way uphill from Place Saint George to Sacré-Cœur. My bedroom window opens onto the street which seems to be their direct route. What I miss, (or maybe don’t miss) most is the sound of revelers and the clackety-clack of … Read more