It’s going to be a long, hot and mostly dry summer if this spring is any indication. So far my gardens have enough plantings (and weeds) to provide for ground cover and good transpiration to survive temporary drought. One tomato seedling sprang up from last year’s plot and is on its way.
‘Consciousness is not something that the painter’s audience can be given, it must be gained, as it is from the painter, from experience. Without ethical consciousness, a painter is only a decorator. Without ethical consciousness, the audience is only sensual, one of aesthetes’. -Robert Motherwell.
I look at paintings and art constantly. A small segment captures emotional content. The artist’s voice, like ethical consciousness, has to be earned.
A recent exhibit at Arts Benicia in their historic 1860 building – my first in the Bay area – surprised me with its range of good work from 60 artists, mostly from California, a few of us from out of state. California continues to produce interesting painters and artists who uniquely respond to their environments. Juror Mark Eanes is Professor Emeritus from the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, where he taught drawing and painting courses for over thirty three years. I’m interested in one of his residencies/workshops offered in the 1947 founded Grand Marais art colony in the northern part of the state bordering Lake Superior. I’d been to Minneapolis in 2005, but never explored points north of the city. My painting has been in a few shows, the box is well traveled.
Quiet Place, oil/Arches oil paper, 16″x12″ 2023
One of my older pieces was in the 2025 exhibit at the McNeese University in Louisiana, curated by Erika Olinger, Owner/Director Cole Pratt Gallery, New Orleans, LA. The link offers a juror’s statement and video of the opening.
Into the Garden, oil/Arches oil paper, 16″x12″ 2022
This recent painting was included at the 2025 exhibit at Shoals Art Invitational Juried Exhibition, Elaine Bailey Augustine Art Gallery, University of North Alabama, AL. Juried by Carlyle Johnson, Professor of art, TN State University.
Foxgloves, oil/Stonehenge oil paper, 18″x24″ 2025
Meanwhile, I’ve spent a couple of months reworking a few older paintings. This one is 20 years old, evidence of the ease of revising in oil.
Spruce, oil/canvas, 32″x24″ 2006-2026
Finally, in an attempt to reduce dependencies on outdated software, I’ve tried out a few AI produced website programs. They all offer clones of other urls, but few can replicate accurately without additional extensive input. I’m still researching, but the AI is lightning fast and if it allows for easy editing, I may go for it.