Georgia O'Keeffe: Visions Of Hawaii At The New York Botanical Garden

Happy New Year, all!  We're going to file this post under "better late than never".  Last summer, a friend and I road tripped up to the Bronx to see Georgia O'Keeffe's Visions Of Hawaii exhibition at the New York Botanical Garden.  Georgia was hired by the Hawaiian Pineapple Company to spend nine weeks in Hawaii creating paintings of the local flora and fauna to be used as ads by the company.  (Seriously, how can I get a gig like this??)  The results were amazing.  The paintings are so colorful and beautiful.  Looking at them is like being transported to Hawaii.

The grounds of NYBG are beautiful.  A true oasis in the middle of New York City.

After a beautiful walk through the grounds, we got to the exhibition.

And now, the paintings!

Bella Donna with Pink Torch Ginger Bud, 1939

Cup of Silver Ginger, 1939

White Lotus, 1939

Hibiscus with Plumeria, 1939

Untitled (Hibiscus), 1939

Pink Ornamental Banana, 1939

Heliconia, 1939

White Bird of Paradise, 1939

Heliconia, Crab's Claw Ginger, 1939

Pineapple Bud, 1939

Waterfall No.1, lao Valley, Maui, 1939

Waterfall No. 2, lao Valley, Maui, 1939

Waterfall No. 3, lao Valley, Maui, 1939

Waterfall, End of Road, lao Valley, Maui, 1939

I love so many of these, but my personal favorites are the Pink Ornamental Banana and the Waterfall, End of Road.  Some of these paintings were done back in New York City, but many of them were done while in Hawaii.  As someone who is an incredibly slow painter, I'm always amazed when an artist can accomplish so much in a limited period of time.


After the exhibition was over, there was a room set up with maps and other cool memorabilia relating to the trip and the paintings.

I always wonder about things like the telegram.  I wonder if Georgia could have ever imagined that it would one day be part of an art exhibition.

As you can see, this exhibit was huge and it's not done yet.  In addition to the art, the NYBG had a collection of plants and flowers that inspired Georgia O'Keeffe on her trip.  I'll have those for you in my next post.

I hope you enjoyed this look into one of the most interesting shows I've seen in quite some time.

More Painting Updates, Empire State Building and Union Square

Happy first day of spring!  Here in New York City, we are still digging out from last weeks blizzard/ice storm and it feels nothing like spring.  Our insane weather is actually what led me to redo these two paintings.

The Art Guild of Port Washington is having a show celebrating America and I want to enter.  Back in February, my plan was to go down to Battery Park and paint the Statue Of Liberty.  Of course, in February, it was 65-70 degrees every day.  Since March started, it's been nothing but rain, snow, blizzards and freezing temps.  Battery Park is on the cool side most of the time.  There is no way I was going to hang out there for hours painting.   I took these two photos today.  There is a snow mountain at 13th and University and cars all over the city are stuck in blocks of ice.  I knew if I were going to do something for this show, it would have to be done in the studio.

I was about to give up on entering the show, when I remembered that I had two paintings I might be able to use.  One of the Empire State Building, and another of Union Square that happened to have an American flag in the background.  The only problem is that these two paintings were not among my best.  I had worked on each of them twice on location.  I'm not a landscape painter, so two passes are not nearly enough for me to complete a canvas.

I decided to tackle them in the studio.  I figured the worst that could happen would be that I would totally ruin them and would skip entering the show.

This was the original painting of the Empire State Building.  I always thought this painting needed a bit more work, but never got back out there to do it.  It was a little too gray for me.  It was a gray, rainy day when I was there, but I thought I would take a chance and try to brighten it up a bit.  After two sessions in the studio, I'm much happier with it.

Empire State Building, 11x14, oil

 Here is the updated version.  I feel like this one has more life in it and I'm now happy with the painting.

The second painting was done in Union Square.  Unfortunately, I do not have a before photo for you. I neglected to take one when I began my painting frenzy and the originals were lost in the iPhoto to Photos transition (the worst thing Apple ever did, in my opinion).

Anyway, here is what I ended up with.  If you are familiar with Union Square, I entered the park at 17th and Broadway and I was looking across the park toward Beth Israel.

Union Square, Summer 11x14, oil

Now all I have to do is enter these in the show!  Even if I am not chosen, I'm still happy that these paintings are now officially finished.  I'm on a big clean out and every thing that is not suitable for framing and hanging is either getting an update or getting painted over.  I'm glad that these two were able to be saved.

Blog Update

Hi Everyone.  I hope all of you are enjoying the three day weekend.  It's beautiful here in New York today,  though I'm not too happy that the end of summer is right around the corner :(

I know I promised a studio update for my next post, but one key piece has not arrived yet, so it will have to wait a few days.  Instead, I have been doing some blog tweaking.  I've added three new paintings to the drop down menus.

Chinese Lanterns In A Blue And White Vase, 12x16, oil

Monet's Garden At Dusk, 16x20, oil

Lupines In A Blue And White Vase, 16x20, oil

I also cleaned out the drop down menus and got rid of some paintings that I no longer want to save, and some that need updated photography.  My photo skills, while still needing work, have gotten much better since I first started blogging.  As soon as I'm back to 100 percent, I plan to re photograph almost everything.  If there is anything you were interested in that is no longer on the site, just leave me a comment or send an email and I can send you a pic.

I'm also back to work on the lilacs.  I think this one will be done soon, which will make me very happy.  I had three paintings going on at once and that tends to make me a little crazy.  I finished up the wine carafe last week, the lilacs are almost done and I've got one small still life in the works that will probably need about two more weeks.  It's only 9x12 but has a very complicated background.  I will also be helping out with the set up for Gregg Kreutz's workshop next weekend.

So that's what is happening over here.  I'll be back soon with my new studio set up and hopefully a completed still life!

Travel And Destinations Show At The Art Guild Of Port Washington

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick note to let you know that my painting, Monet's Pond At Dusk, will be in the Travels And Destinations Show at The Art Guild Of Port Washington.

Landscape painting is not my usual forte, so I was thrilled to be accepted into this show.  The show will be up from March 5 to April 3, 2016.  The opening reception and awards ceremony will be this Sunday, March 6th, from 3-5pm.  If you are in the New York City/Long Island area, please stop in.  It is a fun show and we would love to see you!

The Art Guild Of Port Washington
200 Port Washington Blvd
Manhasset, NY  11030
516-304-5797