Signs of Autumn

Temperatures are dropping and the trees are beginning to show the first signs of fall color here in central Pennsylvania. I exhibited at the Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Show in Philadelphia during the last, official weekend of summer and the weather was absolutely beautiful. Since then, things have turned decidedly cooler and rainier and I think I'll be packing my rain gear for my next show in Armonk, New York.

I'm busy right now with visiting area state parks to gather landscape source material. Pictured above is my trusty studio mascot, Annie, in Black Moshannon State Park. You can see the first hints of color in the tree line behind her. Unfortunately, the clouds moved in that afternoon, so it was not the best light for capturing the first red colors in the maples. The real peak of color is not due until the first or second week of October. I'm guessing it will be more like the second week of the month, so I'm looking forward to getting out more as things become more vibrant here.

When I'm not out and about in the parks, I am teaching my class, Color: Its History and Practical Application to adult students at the Art Alliance of Central Pennsylvania. I'm also finishing some new cityscapes that I will exhibit at this weekend's Armonk Outdoor Art Show. My last show in Philadelphia was quite successful and many of my new cityscapes found homes, so this has compelled me to buckle down a bit and finish some ideas that were only partially completed in my studio. I still need to photograph these new pieces and you'll see some of them on my web site later this week. Until then, enjoy this cooler weather.

Fall Preview

Well, suffice it to say that end of my summer zipped past in a whirlwind of travels and I can't believe that it's been so long since I last posted here. I promise to do better during these upcoming months because I'm back in the groove of working both in my studio and in the field now.

August kicked off with a wonderful trip to New York City where I not only collected some fantastic source material for new cityscapes, but I also got my fix of Indian cuisine and fun museum outings. I finally got to the Museum of Arts and Design up near Columbus Circle, where my favorite exhibition was the glass work by Klaus Moje. I always appreciate artwork where creativity and craftsmanship are equal partners.

After the trip to New York, I ventured off to the midwest. Unfortunately, the weather and several commitments to visit old friends didn't really facilitate a lot of plein air painting. I had hoped to post some works here as a log of my travels, but man, oh man, did it ever rain during that trip. Nothing quite like the darkness of night during the middle of the day to signal a heavy rain. For that matter, it rained a fair bit when I was in New York, too. Seems to be the way the summer was. Anyways, the trip to Wisconsin was restorative for my soul even if I didn't get as much artwork completed as I would have liked. Sometimes even artists need a vacation (!).

Since returning to Pennsylvania a few weeks ago, I've visited several new state parks in a quest for the perfect vista for a client who's commissioned me for a large landscape. I've decided that one item on my "bucket list" (things to do before I kick the proverbial bucket) is to visit all of Pennsylvania's state parks. I have a long ways to go toward that goal since there are over 100 state parks here. Only about 90 more to go...

But I've made a good dent in that goal over the past few weeks, with trips to Sinnemahoning, Blue Knob, RB Winter, Leonard Harrison, and Colton Point state parks. Every single one was beautiful. And as an added bonus, the weather was generally fabulous for each outing.

To conclude this long overdue post, I'm offering a preview below of some of the new works I've completed over recent weeks. I'm scheduled for two shows over the next month, the Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Show in Philadelphia and the Armonk Outdoor Art Show in Armonk, New York, so I've been working on several new cityscapes. My final show this year is tentatively scheduled for mid-October in New York City, but I'm a bit uncommitted because I just don't know if I'll have enough artwork to get me through my schedule. I can't offer a good excuse for this shortfall, other than to say that I needed some downtime this past month. And artwork doesn't magically arise out of downtime (!). But I think you'll see that the previews offered here hint at some exciting things to come. I'll post complete images of these new artworks on this web site next Monday. Stay tuned.

Detail, Crimson Rush 8 x 16 original pastel.

Detail, Long, Cool Reflections 16 x 32 original pastel.

Detail, Ah, Summer 6 x 12 original plein air pastel.

Detail, Midnight Dash 16 x 32 original pastel.