Day 7 at Peters Valley

Lower Treible, My Painting Studio at Peters Valley

I've been at Peters Valley for a complete week, though I did spend the night at home with my dog last night since Lee was out of town. But for all intents and purposes, I've been here a week. And, in this amount of time I have completed 4 paintings and am working on my 5th. As I mentioned in my previous post, I stretched/primed two large canvases that have to cure before I paint on them.

In the meantime, I've been working on small paintings both involving appliances and some long-overdue works of Castrocielo, IT. Below you can see the three I've finished over the weekend. I focused my free time reading about the works and intents of artist, Wayne Thiebaud. Part of this residency I'm devoting to thought about my subject matter and compositions; my intent as a painter. I'm interested not necessarily in depicting beautiful objects; for me there is beauty in the ugly. But I'm interested in painting the places that have held great meaning for me; Italy is a place where I lived for an extended period of time and my family originates from there. I find a great amount of energy in these places and hope to convey that as well.

Theibaud's subject matter greatly relates to my own as well as his painterly approach. You can see a hint of Thiebaud in the colored outlines I've employed in the Italy landscapes and in the everyday objects I've chosen to paint.

From left to right (temporary titles): Cheese Slicer, 8" x 8", Oil on Panel, Finished Saturday; Castrocielo Bell Tower, 6" x 12", Oil on Canvas, Finished Sunday; Castrocielo Street, 6" x 12", Oil on Canvas, Finished Monday.