Worthington Area Art League - Honorable Mention

Studios on High Exhibition

Below is the painting "Easton Fountain Spray" which won the Best of Show this past Sunday. The painting is a 11 x 14 in. oil. As many as 50 artists competed in various media. The award will give me a full month to display my art in the Studios On High, in Columbus, OH. The Studios are located in the "Short North" art district near the convention center.

Easton Fountain Spray, won Best of Show

First Place: Worthington Area Art League

Sunrise: 18 x 24 in Oil

This is Sunrise I see many mornings outside my studio in Pleasant Township.

Three First Place Awards:

Most recently, March 2016,  I won a First Place award at the Studio on High Gallery for their "Hit the Hop" show. This was an open entry for the Columbus OH area.

I won First Place for the Worthington Area Art League show in February 2016 for my oil "Sunrise".

I won First Place for Distinguished Oil at the Grove City OH annual Fine Art Show in September 2015.

Fist Place for Studio on High Gallery Show- "Children Skipping Rope" 11 x 14 in. Oil

Successful Show

Successful Show:

The "Art Lovers for Missions" show concluded November 30. I sold 48 paintings during the show, mostly small paintings. The important thing is all the proceeds are donated to the First Community Church Mission committee to award. This includes local food pantry, homeless shelters, as well as several overseas missions. The overwhelming response was very great full but also making new friends. It is also wonderful to know the people where the paintings will hang. Unlike galleries where you seldom met or even know who bought a painting. 

     The important thing I learned in talking to most of the people who bought paintings were the reasons they purchased what they did. The painting meant something to them. They saw something that connected with them. I did not talk to one person who said they just liked the colors, or it would fit in somewhere. It was always more meaningful to them. 

     I have been a plein-air painter for over 20 years. In the last few years because of two back surgeries I have limited my painting to the studio. Nearly 100 percent of the sold paintings were done in the studio from photographs. I have learned to recompose, change, crop, redraw or do something to improve upon the photo reference. Nobody cared if it was done outdoors. If they liked the painting they bought it. With out question I do better painting in the studio. 

 Below are a small sample to paintings that sold. I would appreciate any comments.

Art Lovers for Missions

The title of my recent solo show at First Community Show, Art Lovers for Missions, was chosen because all the proceeds from sales will go to our Missions Committee. I sold 20 paintings at the reception on October 1, and 4 more that weekend. I had a total of 50 paintings in the exhibit. 40 of the paintings were done for this show during the past twelve months.

Below are a few the paintings in the show. I also included the painting "Buckeye Corner" which was chosen best oil painting at the Grove City annual Fine Arts Show in September.

Ramblings about Painting

Figures and Abstract
My most recent paintings have included more abstract elements than I have previously included in my paintings. I would either paint realistically, usually from a photo I have taken, or purely abstract, a great way to push paint around and find more interesting colors, patterns, or techniques to use in all my work. I find its also liberating and more fun paintings. As with any creative work everything doesn't work. My trash can is full of mishaps, disasters, and really bad paintings. But fun.

By combining more abstract elements into my paintings and letting go has led to some better paintings. To begin this phase I had to ask myself three questions: 1. Why paint a subject? 2. An exactly what am I trying to accomplish? 3. How?

I have answered these questions quite differently at different times in my life. The big difference has been that for most of my life I have done art because I love to. Early on to please my self, then to please others, then to get paid and pay billos, now back at the beginning just to please myself.

At 86 I just want to have fun and any rewards share or give away. With my current work I am having fun, with color, with abstract techniques, and still learning about the "how" but more importantly I would love to sell everything and donate it 100% to our church's missions in Africa, India, and here in the USA to worthy causes like feeding the hungry and helping the poor.I am so blessed.

Below are my latest paintings. I hope you enjoy and if so moved to help others keep in mind I will be selling all these painting in a show this coming October.

Rafiki Orphan

One of the boys at the Rafiki Orphanage in Kenya. Connie took a photo when he received his hand sewn quilt sent by the First Community Church quilt ministry.

Abstract Paintings

I have painted abstract paintings in the past mainly as experimental studies. I recently had a friend of my wife's visited from Florida. She is a very talented painter and wood sculpture artist. She noticed a small abstract painting of mine and wanted to buy it. I was flattered by her praise and agreed to exchange the painting for one of her wood sculptures. I may have gotten the better of the deal but it encouraged me to paint abstractly which I believe can help in my realistic painting. 

Below my most recent efforts. I have also began using cold wax medium in all my oil paintings. 

New Paintings 

Recent Paintings Fall 2014

During the last months of 2014 these are the paintings I have completed. I am working on a series of  paintings in oil of museum patrons. The two paintings here were inspired at the Cincinnati Art museum. They allow visitors to take photos of a majority of their collection.
I am also working on dining room scenes that include art work. The golf scene here was inspired after a visit to the Sciota Country club and noticed a painting of Jack Nicklaus on my way but never noted who painted it. This painting is my own version which doesn't actually exist.
The fall scenes are from Schiller Park in Columbus.

New Works

I just finished three new paintings with the theme "museum visit". This is a idea used many times by artists. I remember Norman Rockwell's paintings for Saturday Evening post: "The Critic", April 1955; "Abstract and Concrete" in January 1962. The latter showing Rockwell's genius of a  man viewing a Jackson Pollack drip painting.
     

The Joint Chiefs of Staff at Itazuke Air Force Base June 1950. The Korean War had just started and the 8th fighter bomber Wing was the first Air Force wing to engage the North Koreans. The JCS from left to right:
Chairman, Gen. Omar Bradley, AF Gen H. Vandenberg, Adm. F. Sherman, Gen J L Collins. At far right is Itazuke Base Commander Col. John Price.

These are old photos from the Korean War. Myself as an airman with the 8th Fighter Bomber Wing at Itazuke Air Force Base in Japan. The second photo is Lt William G, Hudson of Selma, Alabama, left, an F82 pilot and his Radar Observer, Lt Carl S. Fraser of Tampa, Florida, stationed at Itazuke. They were the first to be fired upon the day the war broke out but did not return fire then. On June 27th they returned fire and shot down an IL-2 type North Korean aircraft. This was the first air kill of the Korean war.

I have always enjoyed the work of gifted illustrators. From time to time I enjoy painting those things that I work more as illustrations than fine art. I paint because I enjoy it. 

Veterans Day Parade

This is a 20 x 30 in. oil painting that shows two war veterans, one from the Korean War and one from World War II watching a Veterans Day parade curbside. A Grove City, Ohio memorial to Vets is shown in the background. It is an unoriginal grave-marker type marble column with the various service logos engraved on it that sit in front of the city hall. As a Korean War veteran the expressions on their faces were my inspiration.

This is the Gantz Farm House in Grove City Ohio. It is a 11 x 14 in. oil painting on a canvas panel. I have painted it before but this painting is a different view. It is also less a photographic likeness in the foliage and tree in order to use more interesting color and design. The house is pretty much the way I have painted it.

Portrait of Connie.

Ava

"Ava", 12 x 16 in. oil. This is a model from our Wednesday night portrait painting group. I painted her live but this is from a photograph done in the studio. We paint for about 2 and a half hours which is enough time to get a good likeness but to do a finished painting it takes me much more time.

"Walking with Nordick Poles" is an oil painting that I recently revised for the WAAL show at the High Road Gallery in January 2013. I was not satisfied with the painting and made some minor changes to my face, jacket and edges. This is one of my early attempts to use loose brush strokes in the background. It is 12 x 16 in. I have been using these poles because it not only helps with my balance problems but I can walk much further.

This is painting I finished after returning from Scottsdale AZ. I used a reference photo I took on the Aztec trail. It is an oil, 12 x 24.

This is a painting I submitted to the Worthington Area Art League show in January 2013. It is from a photo I took several years ago of a Race for the Cure in Grove City.

This acrylic painting is titled "Alina painting Carmen", of course inspired by the Carmen painting we purchased last year by Alina Maksimenko. This was entered in the Motorist Mutual show in January 2013.

This painting was inspired by the "Carmen" painting. The model is a good friend.