Season's Greetings!

Ginger, Twinkle and Lucky

     The year has been a whirlwind!  It has definitely been one of highs and lows.  Although I have much to be thankful for during this holiday season I am very aware of the sadness, despair and pain being suffered by so many others.  It is difficult to feel the joy and peace that the songs of the season extoll.  Somehow we really have to do better.  We have the tools and the intelligence.
       My family (human, canine and equine) is healthy and happy.  I can't ask for more than that!  I hope that many of my readers can say the same.

       My last post was quite some time ago.  I have been busy like the rest of you bustling around getting ready for the holidays.  I have also been busy in the studio with sketching, prepping plein air panels and framing.  I know better than to start anything major until after the first of the year.  I hate working in a stop and go mode and it always shows in the paintings.  I only have a small bit of work to do on the commission I talked about which is a large version of the small plein air painting I showed you "Clouds and Gulls".  As soon as it is finished I will post it.

We are planning to be on the Outer Banks of North Carolina for New Years and if you go back to the posts at the end of December 2011 you can see the plein air work I did there last year.  We had extraordinary weather and I am hoping for the same this year.  I will have plenty to work on in the studio when we come home.
     This will probably be my last post until after Christmas.  I want to wish you all health, happiness, optimism, prosperity, in short...everything good!  We need it.  You deserve it!
www.jeanschwartzpaintings.com

Gypsy

Show Time

"Morning, Washington Square Park" 20x16 oil on gessoboard

This is always a busy time of the year because of the holidays but it is also busy because of the number of art exhibits going on.  There have been plenty all fall and I will be hopping  until the end of January. 

The painting on the left, "Morning, Washington Square Park" is currently on exhibit at THE ART LEAGUE GALLERY in Alexandria for this month's juried all media show. The show opened Wednesday, December 5th and will be on display until January 2nd. You can view the entire show by going to the webpage www.theartleague.org and click on the Flkr symbol. The inspiration for the painting was the same August morning I spent in that park (which is located in Greenwich Village, NYC) and was inspired to paint "5th and Waverly".  That painting was on exhibit last month at the Salmagundi Club, NYC.

     THE 104th ANNUAL THUMB BOX SHOW at the SALMAGUNDI CLUB opened last night and will be on exhibit until January 7th 2013.  This show is one of my favorites.  It is a much anticipated show each year for many New Yorkers as it is an opportunity to purchase a small gem of a painting for a small price!  Perfect for finding the perfect gift for the holidays. No image can be larger than 8x10 inches. This year I sent two 8x10 inch plein air paintings from the Outer Banks as well as an 8x6 inch painting of my granddaughter Jesse knitting.  This 2012 show looks especially good and there truly is something there for everyone.  If you go to the Salmagundi Blog, The Salmagundian www.thesalmagundian.com and go to the December 3rd post you can take a virtual tour of the show wall by wall.  My paintings come up towards the end on frame 69.  Below are the three paintings I have in the show.  I should say "had" in the show as "Clouds and Gulls" sold last night at the opening.  Since the show will be running until January I have the option to send another painting up to replace the one that sold.  I plan to do that.

                                                                    

                                                      

                                                                       "Clouds and Gulls" 8x10 oil on linen panel



               "The Knitter" 8x6 oil on linen panel            

"Deer Track on the Dune" 8x10 oil on linen panel

                  

ALSO ON EXHIBIT:  From my last post..."Storm Clouds Over Morven Park" is on exhibit in the lobby of the Marion duPont Scott, Equine Medical Center in Leesburg, Virginia

Online through December 30th....THE AMERICAN ARTISTS PROFESSIONAL LEAGUE'S 84th GRAND NATIONAL.  "Camelot on the Potomac" is on exhibit there.
www.americanartistsprofessionalleague.org
Also online through December 30th....THE 77th AUDUBON ARTISTS ANNUAL EXHIBIT. "Morning at River Bend" is on exhibit in that show.
www.audubonartists.org

"May Morning Above the Potomac" 24x30 oil on linen

SOLD and off to a wonderful new home "May Morning Above the Potomac" will now be residing above the Potomac down river from where it was painted.  Dick and I had the pleasure of delivering this painting to its new owner and assisting in hanging it.  It is beautifully placed and I am proud to be the new addition to this collectors fine collection of landscape paintings. I have also received an invitation from the owner to come paint from the balcony with a magnificent view of Old Town Alexandria, the Potomac and the Wilson Bridge.  I plan on doing just that this spring!

www.jeanschwartzpaintings.com

A Return to the Virginia Tech Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center

Dr. James Brown and me with "Storm Clouds Over Morven Park"
(Morven Park is the adjoining property and what I was looking towards)

This time I returned to the Equine Center sans horse but with this painting in tow instead.  Gypsy was back home happily munching hay having made a full recovery from her surgery this summer.  Some of you who are long time readers of this blog are familiar with the saga of Gypsy during July, August and September.  Dr. Brown was her surgeon and he performed emergency colic surgery on her on July 11th.  That was the beginning of a 19 day odyssey. If you go back to my July and August entries you can read the story and see this painting progress from the beginning.

      Regarding the painting....I believe it was July 18th when this massive thunderstorm was rolling in as I was preparing to leave the Center.  I knew I needed to get on the road and beat the storm home but I just had to take some photos first.  As I was doing that words went through my head such as, overwhelming, frightening, threatening, uncertain but beautiful.  I was aware that some of those words described what my experience there at the Equine Center was.  When I got home I printed out some of the photos and got to work on drawings as I knew I wanted to paint this. Working in the studio after my visits really helped me to unwind.  The title ,"Storm Clouds Over Morven Park",was clear from the beginning.  I know it is an obvious metaphor but it certainly was not contrived.  The drawing selected, the canvas prepared and the layout oil sketched in, I started the painting in earnest the day Gypsy came home.  It only took a couple of days to complete as I knew exactly what I wanted.  I also knew that I wanted this painting to help me thank and give support back to the Equine Center.
       The painting will be on display in the lobby of the Virginia Tech Marion duPont Scott Equine Center in Leesburg Virginia.  It is for sale and all the proceeds of the sale will go to the Center as an unrestricted gift. We timed the delivery of it to coincide with the beginning of a series of Tuesday Talks which will take place there in the lobby.  Dr. Brown will be giving the first talk this Tuesday evening, December 4th at 7:00 PM and I look forward to attending.
      Anyone interested in the purchase of this painting should contact Richard Gargagliano rgargagl@vt.edu or Sharon Peart speart@vt.edu. at the Virginia Tech Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center.  You might also enjoy an online visit to the Equine Center at www.vetmed.vt.edu/emc/.  You can take a virtual tour and also read about all the state of the art medical assistance available there.

I love this photo of Gypsy taken a couple of days before our discharge.
She looked so wistful, I wonder what she was thinking...