Princeton Center

I finally finished my painting of Princeton Common!

In preparation for my exhibit there in October, I have committed to painting several of the buildings/areas of Princeton so that my exhibit will be applicable there. Of course that isn't my only motivation. I love the damn place. It IS both near and dear to my heart - quintessentially New England and a consistent stomping ground of mine throughout my life in Massachusetts. With its winding roads and mountainous terrain, it is an unspoiled haven that has managed to remain in something of a time warp. But best of all is the mountain; Mount Wachusett which looms in the background mute like some Yankee version of Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird. 



Just to give you a point of reference, here is an old photo of the common. The common has a gazebo center stage with the library and Bagg Hall looming above. Unfortunately there aren't any photos availalbe online of the commons with the gazebo but you get the idea from my painting.

Adding in elements

I realized something HUGE the other day! I was updating my Facebook photo album to include my recent work and immediately received responses from friends. One friend remarked that it was a happy experience to see all my paintings at once. I was curious so I went to view the album myself when suddenly it struck me; there before me was a body of work! And there was a physical progression! I don't know why it hadn't occured to me that I would see growth and change there in my paintings. I seem to only think about my work in small increments - when I started doing pine trees or when I stopped making my landscapes flat. The progression I saw in my work was the sum total of all those increments and it was measurable! And it made me wonder - what will I see in 5 years when I look back over an even larger body of work????

Doodling with intent..look up Zentangle if you don't confident in free-flowing doodling

Lately, I have been exploring my "doodling" to try to develop some complexity to my work. There is a local I did a painting of a friend's cat introducing pattern. I can't say I enjoyed it and I definitely did not even like the finished product. But it was an interesting exercise and I walked away with the experience of yet another element added into my skill set as an artist. Whether I can connect the dots and incorporate it into future work doesn't really matter. As with all things, it will either evolve or be assimilated. The point is to aggressively experiment and try new things without being concerned with a final product.

The concept of doodle patterns added to a painting

watercolor paintings

The distant beat of drums - artistically speaking...

Well it's winter and we're getting hit hard. There's not much to do except escape in my mind and paint it on paper. With chin tucked to my chest, my new glasses to help me see the small bits (*sigh*, yes I'm officially old) and my collection of 750 mp3's - I am transported elsewhere.

I've stated previously that I'm in a transition phase - and it's starting to really come through in my paintings lately. I took a jump into "movement" which previously was absent in my work. I also seem to have come away from the subject of architecture as the sole focus of my work, but it is still making appearances.

My first venture into the concept of "movement". The tree still bears my scroll work but is clearly in motion as well as the sky and laundry on the line. I felt really good after finishing this piece because previous works have been static! Believe it or not, the catalyst for the movement in this painting was my latin music collection which I'm now able to listen to thanks to the new iPhone. It literally lightened me up and the swing of the music quickly came into my work. LOVE IT!

My second piece in motion. I am obsessed with scene in my back yard which is this painting! I am constantly watching the night sky through the pines and marveling at how bright the stars are out here where there is no light pollution. Living in the boonies has it's nature based benefits for sure. The undulating landscape, moonlight and trees bending in the wind adequately depict the constant movement of the scene around me. This is to date the piece I am most proud of...

My third piece seems to have dragged back in the architectural theme of previous paintings. However the sky is in motion and the twin hills of Rutland give the painting the true feeling of undulation you experience when you drive through the center of town :) My love for the little houses along Main Street and the cemetery at the base of the hills that beckons me regularly are all present. There are many days when I drive through town and wish I had a soapbox go-cart to ride this course - all the time wondering just how far up the second hill I'd get ;)

I hope you enjoy my latest as much as I am enjoying allowing it to come through me. I'm excited to see what the future holds for my work!!

mountains paintings