ArtExpertOnLine

 Dear Viewers, due to a death in my family, I will not be able to post this week, as I am out of town. I will be back next Monday, so please return.  I will try and find something exciting and wonderful to show you. Pat 

     Future of this blog is in question as I may have to take off a few weeks for my viewership is down for the summer.   Also, this past week I lost a dear viewer, but, at the present, as long as I have images to show and my dear friend, Char is still with me this blog will go on.    I have showed you a Egon Schiele (1990-1918) landscape before this one, but it has been a while.  I am not drawn to a large majority of his work, but his landscapes are always a unique experience.  This one attracted my attention because of the color and then the media.  It is an oil and pencil on cardboard.  Give that some thought.    Today's cardboard is not considered a suitable surface to work on or even mount a paper on because of the acidity, but hopefully in 1907 cardboard was constructed differently.      I do not work in oils.  It is a marvelous media but it does have a distinctive odor and it takes months for it to dry completely.  So oil and pencil?  I am interested to read what Char has to

     I have always considered art photography a beautiful and mysterious means of expression.  It's biggest problem is that unlike many other forms of Art, photograph is often used for a wide variety of purposes, so the pure Art does get lost, tossed and mixed up in advertising, self promotion, and a host of other things.   This is not necessary bad, but simply only a product of it's success.    When a painter selects his/her subject, sketches are made and vistas can be arranged and rearranged to suit the all important composition.   A photographer does not have that luxury.   When  Ansel Adams (1902-1984) took this photo he didn't just reach in his pocket and whip out his phone.  I have no idea how far he walked to see this landscape, but realize, it was necessary for him to set up a tripod, connect the large, heavy viewfinder camera to it, determine the correct camera settings, and then wait for the natural lighting to be perfect.   Not an easy task.  But he was not done

 This week I am waiting for a friend to send me one of her paintings so I am posting an old collage of mine. It is one of my favorites.   I have done collage for many years and have collected a large variety of papers and images.  It is a fun, but difficult process.  I find it a great way to express myself, but it is time consuming.     I probably spent three to four months on this image.  It is not large, but complex.  I love looking over it and rediscovering designs, and mini images.  After looking small, look at the whole and see the flow of one paper into another, the rhymn from top to bottom, left to right, and diagonally down.    This is one of the few monochromatic works I have ever done.  My memory is that I saw this as a challenge and I wanted to tell a little story with it.  So, if you want to, scan the image and imagine.    I used a large variety of paper.  Some photo paper, some tissue, magazine images, as well as a large number of simple lined, pattern paper.  All of the p

     I first saw this last week in my favorite art calendar.  Isn't she beautiful! I had read about the artist before, but knew little about him, however just by looking at this painting I knew it was a commissioned portrait.   We often forget that most career painters need to make money, a living.  And, portraits of society people (who could afford it) was often an artist's choice.   Looking at this beautiful image, it almost makes me wish I was a society lady in France, 1870.  I would want James Tissot to make me look this wonderful!      Looking closely at this painting poses a few practical questions.  First, James Jacques Joseph Tissot (1836-1902) was French and generally knew and accepted with the Impressionists, but he never exhibited with them, or the Post-Impressionists.  A year after this painting was completed, in 1871 he moved to London where he continued an active portrait business.  I will note here, that Tissot painted a variety of other subjects throughout his c

We haven't looked at a still life in a long time so when Sandra sent me a series of paintings to use, I selected this one. Isn't it beautiful!      Sandra is one of those people who you know young, send many years apart and reconnect later in life.  She had a great career as a junior high art teacher and since has taken many painting classes perfecting her craft.           I like this work for many reasons.  One is the background. Without a division line she has created space and light.  We don't know what is in the rear, for she insists we focus on the flowers and vase.  Pay attention to the transition of color in the foreground.  We can tell immediately light is coming from the upper left.  Notice the beautiful transition from white/pink to soft blues.  Skillfully done!     As I have written before knowing when to stop is often a difficult dilemna.  Here Sandra has done a perfect job with the flowers.  They have a soft, quick quality allowing us to identify them, but

     Watercolor painting is a great skill often achieved after years of practice.  This week we have a friend of mine whose work I have long admired.  Just like Char two weeks ago, Grace has a definite style and way of working that gives her paintings a unique appearance.     Here is what Grace says about this painting:       I painted this watercolor from a reference photo taken from outside my hometown in Indiana.  I just completed an art exhibit there that was in conjunction with the Bicentennial of the county.  I painted 30, 8 x 10 inch watercolors of historic homes and buildings in the area, and this was my favorite of the paintings.     The subject is an old abandoned one-room school house.  I like the composition and the feeling of loneliness of a building that once held a lot of life and happiness.  The old tree in the foreground adds to the drama.     Working from a photograph is often an essential tool and most artists have used photos, especially for reference. The dange

     The guest artist for this week has had technical issues and so for several reasons this week we will look at this wonderful landscape by Vincent Van Gogh.  A week ago I wrote at length about Char's skill plein aire painting in watercolor.  Van Gogh painted out-of-doors, too, but in oil paint.  His technique was to execute the drawing and establish all color outside by thinning the paint to an "oil wash".  He would then go indoors to complete the painting with heavy layers of paint until complete to his satisfaction.    Oil paint is considerably different to work with from watercolor.  Both have their own challenges. Watercolor dries quickly and artists usually work in fine, thin layers as the paint is transparent color. Oil dries very slowly, so color can be mixed and adjusted on canvas if necessary and as needed.      Next week I will introduce you to Grace who will demonstrate her method of creating a painting.     But now, Vincent!  My imagination can see him sitt

   One of my fun memories was summer months plein aire painting with this week's artist. Since that time, I have met others who have  painted outdoors.  While Char and I set up chairs and easels in the grass, others have worked in their cars so as not to attract public attention.  I remember one specific day we were in an area park and a woman saw Char and was so curious she had to come visit and watch.   Although it was a friendly, sweet thing to do, it broke our concentration and we were unable to continue.  I know Monet painted in a boat on the river, maybe, also, to avoid the friendly public.       The painting Char has selected to share is beautifully executed.  It is perfectly balanced.  Notice how important the light post and small red tree to balance off the right side from the left.  The blue shadow, below, establishes a nice "base, off setting the heavy left top.  The curve of the road, is almost an exact duplicate of the curve of the visible sky.      When an artist

   When I moved to my new home five years ago, I wanted a couple of flower paintings to brighten  up an outdoor deck for summer months.   I ended up doing a whole series in different sizes, simply because they were fun to make.   Of all of them, this one is one of the ones I enjoy the most.  It now hangs in my dining area year round.     Do not try and give a name to it, as I did not look at a specific flower. This one grew out of my imagination.  Unfortunately when I took the photo I could not remove the glare visible in the upper left, so please excuse.     I "read" several things into this image.  To me, it has a slight "Georgia O'Keeffe"  quality.  I was very pleased with the colors, especially the blues.  There was no attempt at creating foreground or background, only please shapes of color.  I have no problem with art created simply to decorate a space.  Actually, I have come to believe it is a honest and worthwhile endeavor.  This painting brings me joy,

 Dear Readers,     I think it is time to give this blog some new life.  I am considering asking painters and artists I know to contribute work.   The work would be published just as the great masters have been, in a very positive, supportive environment.  The artist would be asked to write a few lines about the work and tell a little about themselves, with nothing confidential.  This blog would not sell work, but if the artist desired, they could include an email address so they could be contacted if readers had questions.       Old Master work would still be included, especially when no "local" painters are available or interested.        I am going to begin this week by including one of my own paintings and hope that next week a friend will consent to submitting. Pat 

    This week we are returning to one of my favorites.  We last visited this artist and this series back in September of last year.  His name is Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858).   He was a Japanese wood block artist who created a huge inventory of prints featuring Japan, his homeland.   After traveling along one of the five main roads linking the cities of Japan, Hiroshige made prints of the stations along the one called the Tokaido Road.   This road linked Shogun capital, Edo to the imperial capital, Kyoto, so it became the main travel and transport artery of old Japan. The road had 53 stations offering food, rest and lodging to travelers.   There are 55 prints in the series because Hiroshige created one for travelers starting their journey and a final for ending it.       When this series was completed, it was immediately popular.   They were very small, a mere 6 11/16 inches high by 9 inches wide,  so they were reasonably priced, making them a popular record of a traveler's journe

  I always feel the first week of June marks the real beginning of the first week of summer.  So let's look at a very summer painting.    And, isn't this an ideal, idle activity.  We know little, only see the profile of a woman leisurely reclining in a boat on the water.  Has she fallen asleep?  Is she reading? Is she waiting for someone to join her?   She only looks relaxed, and easy for us to envy her.      This is an oil painting by American expatriate artist, John Singer Sargent.  We don't know the location, but best to assume it is in Europe, or Britain as Sargent spent most of his life there.      The composition is pretty straight forward.  Our white subject is just below center,  framed in orange/red against a complementary green setting.  The tree on the right forms a nice structure and the direction of leaf structures help to point the way down to our relaxed lady.   I find the water a joy to admire as I see sunlight and shadows of the trees, boat and red color. 

   This week I give you some heavy eye candy!  This is probably a poor choice as there are a lot of unknowns about this painting, possibly more unknowns than knowns.  But this painting has always interested me.    I first learned of Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) as a student, many years ago, but it wasn't until recent reading that one author called a spade a spade. He acknowledged that Klimt was not a major artist, he broke no ground, did not further any art movement.  He just made pretty pictures.    But, his paintings were so "pretty" Hitler and the Nazi's snatched them up and held on, thus creating new post war conflicts on ownership.    Klimt's family was in the gold business, so it was a natural extension for him to incorporate the metal into paintings, of which this painting is a prime example.  Our figure is positioned straight center, and looking out at us. Obviously, her beautiful porcelain skin has never seen the light of day, and she looks very composed, ple

   This week let us look at an artist who lived a very short life, but has been on the forefront of art history for a long time.  When I think of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901),  I think of an artist, with Vincent Van Gogh, who was enough of an unusual person, that somehow their collected image came to illustrate the stereotype of the artist.   Toulouse-Lautrec was an outsider who because of physical abnormalities never fit in with other persons of his class, and so, he found comradeship in the dance halls and brothels of Paris.   Much has been written about his short life, for he was a dedicated artist, creating a huge number of paintings, drawings, and posters.  His mother was a large influence providing him with a living long before his art began to sell.  Eventually, it was income off posters that gave him money of his own.         Our painting this week is a typical one for him.   We see a group of people, mostly women. Other than the two seated, we have no knowledge of wha

           I am sure most of you have realized that this week we are not looking at a painting, but rather at a photograph.   In seeking new works for this blog, I came across this work and knew I had to include it.  Some of you may know I used to teach photograph at the high school level, so have always been drawn to the medium as an Art form and view it no differently than a painting.  The artist simply created the image using a different process.   In the expanded world of photograph there are several classifications and Art photograph is simply one, and that is the one we discuss this week.       I did not know of Piergiogio Branzi, and since have discovered he was born in 1928 and is still living.  He was born in Florence, Italy, the very location where this image was created.   Since discovering this artist I have looked at many of his creations from this period and have been amazed.  In reading, I learned he was influenced by many but especially Henri Cartier-Bresson and Ansel A

   Let's go back a few years and find a scene of unspoken drama.  Edward Hopper is our artist (1882-1967), a man who lived in New York City and spend many hours going to the movies. Maybe he picked up the idea for this painting from one of them?     Let's pick out some of the elements of the painting that help create this dramatic scene:    First, the window shade, it's moving!  The window must be open and a breeze is coming in to cool a warm room, without air conditioning.  Looking on the floor, beyond and a little behind the desk, we see a paper has blown to the floor.      On the lower left corner is another desk. Since it contains the typewriter, and the man's desk does not have one, it is safe to assume this is the woman's desk and he is her boss or supervisor.  Having both desks in the same room indicates it is a small firm.   Notice her desk is not luminated as his is.     The lighting is very strange.  There appears to be light coming in from outside the win

     It has been a long time since we looked at an American landscape, so that is our topic for this week. Our artist is Asher Brown Durand (1796-1886).  He was a member of the Hudson River School, who were a group of artists devoted to painting the Hudson River Valley, the Catskills and Adirondack areas of the American East. Although each painter adopted his own set of objectives, basically they romanticized the area, making it lusher and more idyllic than actual life. They also included everything!   Far more than a person's eye can absorb if on the actual scene.     One thing that is interesting about this is that it was very popular.   This painting was completed in 1847, long before photography, so a landscape painting was the only means city people could see the great wilderness out there, beyond their homes.  So to study all of nature in one image was wonderful.      In 20 plus years, especially in France, this style was exactly what artists rebelled against.  Artists went o

    Ready for a mystery?   Unfortunately I must present one today.  Our artist this week is Arnold Rice and I could not find any information about him!  It is known that he created this work in 1995 and it is now in a private collection.  So this is all the information I can provide.  It is a mystery.     Yet this painting is compelling.  I find it amazing.  Symmetrically designed compositions are very difficult to find.  Often an artist does not use this system of balance because it is considered to confining, limiting freedom of expression. . But obviously and happily, Mr. Rice didn't get that memo!     Let's look at color first:  Blue, brown/orange and yellow (in paint, black is considered the total of all color, white the absence). Rice uses them almost flat, meaning little attempt at creating depth, shape.  The yellow dress is the perfect example. Only under, behind the girl do we see the curves and light shading that tell us where the woman's legs are.  No shadows on

     A dear family member sent me an article last week about Winslow Homer (1836-1910) and this painting.  The article tossed out several theories of what Homer intended in this work.   There was enough discussion of it's meaning while he was still alive, so he wrote an answer, an answer I loved!   The thrust of it was disappointment, feeling that between the title he chose, and the image, if the painting was successful, then the meaning should be clear.      As I have often written, we must come to Art from out own feelings, background and experiences.  It is possible to interpret this painting in several very valid ways.   It is a great work of Art, and has been recognized as one of America's finest paintings.  Allowing it to have significance beyond Homer's original intent is just fine, but please do not confuse the two.       To consider Homer's meaning we should examine his title:  "The Gulf Stream" Since I do not live or regularly vacation anywhere near

        I find it pretty hard not to appreciate Marc Chagall (1887-1985), and especially at the present when there is war and hardship in his native area.   He was born in Liozna, a small Jewish community near the city of Vitebsk, which is in Belarus, part of Russia.  It was here that he grew to love his Jewish heritage and met and married his life partner and wife.  Life as a Jew was difficult almost everywhere Chagall lived as he was always considered an outsider, even in his native Russia.   When deciding to become an artist in his youth, he was told to have any kind of success he would either have to deny/hide his background or cherish it and make it public.  He decided to express it and for the rest of his life he committed his Art to bringing Liozna, Vitesbsk and the Jewish culture to the world.       And so, today, Marc Chagall is one of those artists whose work is easily identifiable.   Although he understood modern movements in his day, he used them effectively for his own ind

   Wind!   It must be Spring if there is wind.  If you are a regular blog follower, you may remember a very similar painting I reviewed a year ago.  Our artist is Claude Monet (1840-1926) and it was typical of Monet to make several versions of the same basic subject,  making alterations in the time of day and pose of the model.   But, I selected this for this week simply because I felt it was time for an artwork that was truly beautiful.       The model for this painting is Suzanne Hoschede, the daughter of Monet's second wife, Alice Hoschede.  It is considered by some to be a portrait, but there is obviously no attempt at creating a likeness.  This is a painting of the wind, the land, the air   It is so strong we can almost feel the breeze.    While the upper two thirds are figure and sky the bottom third is blowing grass.  Pull it up and look close.   Is there a color in the rainbow not depicted?      We can see the figure has on a white dress, but Monet paints it in yellow, rose

    Oh how I love to switch gears.  Last week we a had  mysterious mid-twentieth century landscape and this week let's   jump forward a few years to a subject many will find reasonably familiar.   Our artist is Wayne Thiebaud (1920-2021).   It has been a long while since we looked at one of his paintings. We studied a landscape back in September, 2019, and now we turn to an entirely different subject.   On first look it would be easy to assume that a painting of three objects simple, but let's see what we find.     First it is good to remember that Thiebaud was a teacher.  He taught for most of his adult life at Sacramento City College and University of California.  Looking closely at the painting we see a female student at a desk with a clock behind her.  She  is looking straight at us!   We are part of this scene!   She must be listening to us, we must be the teacher.   Thiebaud has painted a scene he saw everyday, commonplace for him.  The only thing I find completely confus

    This week I am taking us briefly back to winter, but I think for good reason, so stay with me.   I want to review this painting slightly different than normal.    Our artist is Grant Wood (1891-1942).  As many Americans remember, Wood was an American artist who was considered a Regionalist because most of his subject matter was drawn from his native state, Iowa.   His most famous painting is American Gothic, an image of a farmer and his daughter which is part of the permanent collection of the Chicago Art Museum.  That painting appears one thing on the surface, but deeper examination uncovers a more complex artistic statement.   I believe the same can be seen in our painting for this week.   What we have here are:   stylized haystacks, uniformly spaced, and each exactly draped with a layer of snow.   Notice the snow covers the whole top, the uncovered side is in shadow, with only a sliver of light on the right.  Our center of attention is the front stack where a triangle has been r

    Welcome to the Netherlands!  Not only have we traveled across an ocean, but also back in time.  It is 1673 and our artist is Adriaen van Ostade, (1610-1685).  This style painting is called, genre, meaning showing the daily lives of ordinary people, and van Ostade made a profession of it.   One of the interesting things about this period and location in history, is that many people had a high standard of living and there was a strong demand for paintings inside reasonably average homes.  But the populace van Ostade portrayed, generally escape much of this prosperity.   Here we have a relaxed moment of leisure for peasants.        Van Ostade was a prolific painter.  Hundreds of his paintings survived and are spread across many museums around the world.   They are popular because he displayed peasants without social comment, often in a moment of fun and humor.     I find the composition of this work interesting.  Notice it is divided in half, with the people/scene on the bottom portio

   My apology's to any readers as I am coming in a little late on Monday.   This week is my 150th blog post, so in order to celebrate, I thought I would show you a couple of my own works.      The first is a small watercolor done on site some years ago, but I always liked it.  Back then a group of friends painted together every Wednesday.  Great weather was spent in locations such as this, outdoors.   I can't remember the exact location, but it doesn't matter.      To me this is simply two small out buildings sitting in the sun.  My memory is that it was morning, hence the yellow/green foreground.   The three lines stretching between the trees are probably power lines.     I know the painting was done in an hour or less, one seating and I have always liked it's freshness, which is why I kept it.         Now here is something else entirely! This is a mixed media work, often considered a collage. It is made out of paper and paint.      It has no special meaning, only my a

      Since most of my readers are living in the depth of a very cold and frozen winter, I thought a fun summer image would be welcome this week.  So now we turn the clock back to 1912, here in the United States.   Our painter is George Benjamin Luks (1867-1933) and this is a very atypical work from him.  He is noted for being from the Ashcan School, or The Eight,  a group of rebellious artists intent on showing the gritty side of life, primarily in New York City.  They were committed to realism and direct observation of life.      So "Holiday on the Hudson" is almost like a "holiday" painting for Luks.   Here we see a reasonably large group of people climbing into boats, about  to spend a day on the river.   There are 5 or 6 women and 9 or 10 men. Some of the men could be escorts and some hired to row the boats.  But, Luks has situated them in an interesting row right across the upper middle, beginning with the yellow/gold pier across to the far left boat..   The s

    Katherine Schmidt (1899-1978) is an American artist new to me.  I discovered this painting when paging through an old book about the collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art. I was drawn to it because of the strong composition and what I love the most:  it gets our mind wondering.   I have no idea who Broe and McDonald were, but after reading as much as I could find, I discovered that Mr. Broe is the gentleman in the front.  Looking closely it appears Schmidt has given us only a few feet of space.   Broe is leaning on a table or counter, while McDonald maybe standing behind him, and the back wall is very close.  Both men are completely engaged, listening, as the title tells us.   Schmidt offers no clues as to what they are listening to, so we the viewer can decide for ourselves.        This is a very American painting, completed in 1937.  The two men seem to be very average joes.   I keep looking at Broe's white shirt.  It looks like it could be to large for him and may

   To examine great works of Art is often a study in history.  It is looking back at another generation, another time.  One of the essential components of Art which rises above the average, is for it to reflect the time it was created.  Then, giving us, the viewer, the opportunity to see beyond history's calendar events, into the true life, emotions, tasks, and challenges of average people.       Our artist this week is Fernand Leger (1881-1955).  He was a French artist beginning his life with training as an architect and supporting himself as a draftsman.  Moving to Paris he met young artists involved with the new trend of cubism.  HIs prior education encouraged a new career as an artist, with solid structures of rectangles, tubes, cones and cubes.  World War I interrupted his life and he saw service on the front lines.  Shortly after, in 1919 he married, and he resumed his art career.    Our painting for this week was completed in 1920.  Here the key to understanding the painting

          This week we have a truly amazing and dynamic painting.   The artist is Umberto Boccioni (1882 - 1916).  From just this information you maybe able to guess two correct things:  he was Italian and his early death was a result of World War I.  But, his life was interesting and he made a huge impact on Art, especially painting and sculpture. I think it fair to consider him an intellectual.  He spent his short life traveling and studying.   He visited Russia and many of the countries of Europe, gleaning ideas and formulating his theories on art.   His principle contribution is called Futurism.  Futurism is difficult to explain as it involves the deconstruction of solid mass and showing movement, and it was certainly an outgrowth from the work of Picasso and Braque - cubism.         Many years ago, I had the pleasure of seeing an exhibit in Paris which contained many works by Picasso.  I had seen reproductions of his monochromatic collages done mostly in browns and always consider

    This week we are a long way from the streets of Paris, where we were last week.   Our artist is Frederick Remington (1861-1909) who made a career memorializing the American West.  He was an interesting man with a colorful history.  He lived in several areas of our country, but grew up and eventually returned to the East, mainly New York and Connecticut.  I was unable to locate any specific information about the exact location of this painting.   It was done very late in his career (1905) so it is likely he drew from former sketches.   As an artist he dipped into many areas.  During his life his illustrations were published in magazines, but he also wrote novels, and today he is often remembered for his bronze sculptures.       I selected "The Smoke Signal" for this week, because Remington has successfully created a drama, just as Manet did last week.   As captivating as the men and horses are, I am drawn to the landscape on the left side.  Why?  Because every thing is poi

   Our artist for this week is Edouard Manet (1832-1883). He is often listed as a French Impressionist, but he doesn't fit nicely inside that label, and I have read that he personally rejected the idea.   The true Impressionist, such as Claude Monet, painted outdoors and focused on instantly capturing the quality of light striking objects.  This was never Manet's intent. And, Manet used black, Monet never did.  But they did have a lot in common, particularly painting similar subjects such as the couple here:  the beautiful, well dressed people of Paris out enjoying a sunny day.      If I was able to go back and meet just one of the French painters of the 19th century, I think it would be Manet.  Not only is this painting beautifully constructed, but aside from that, he has created such drama!  It is possible to read about who these people were and the location of this setting.  But, why know?  Manet presents us with a scene heavy with intrigue.   Let us insert our own meaning.