Winchester Beach

Winchester Beach, B&W study, oils on canvasboard, 8" x 10"
Winchester Beach, oils on canvas, 9" x 12"

After a very rainy week, Friday dawned beautifully clear so I headed to a different location for my Friday morning class. We were to meet at a place new to me: on the eastern banks of the Severn River there is a small private area called Winchester Beach. From there you can see the Route 50-301 bridge over the river on one side and some cliffs. We painted the view looking upriver opposite from the bridge, where one gets a sense of depth and distance.

We students repeated last week's drill of painting an oil study in black and white using our three value range, and then doing another in full color. Lee's demo was very informative for me, specially in how to mix the colors of the water for an illusion of depth, and the orangey color of the cliffs. These are colors that usually elude me, so I felt great satisfaction being able to achieve them more accurately. I stayed after class to enjoy my lunch at Winchester Beach in the delightful breeze.

Afterwards I stopped at Gallery 1683 to change my stock of paintings there and found out the gallery is having a difficult time during this recession. If any of you readers or your friends are interested in collecting art, now may be the perfect time to buy; I urge you to stop by Gallery 1683 at 151 Main Street in Annapolis. They have many wonderful pieces at reasonable prices and the owners and I would really appreciate your business.

A Birthday Gift From Above

Island, (original sold) digital prints (giclee) available.

An envelope from Gallery 1683 came in the mail yesterday; it was my copy of the gallery's consignment sheet for the two paintings I'd dropped off last Friday. The sale of a small giclee was also listed, and next to it, hand-written, J. Travolta and a smiley face. Could it be for real? John Travolta bought a digital print of my "Island" at the gallery? I called the owner today to verify and here's the story.

Another artist at the gallery also happens to be a yacht broker in Annapolis, and John Travolta was in town to pick up his yacht for a cruise to Maine. He mentioned that he was looking for art for his yacht, so Chris arranged a private appointment for him at Gallery 1683. The owners were out of town, but their daughter and another gallery artist who lives there opened the gallery for him. He bought four original paintings and my little giclee.

So there you have it-- I'm in John Travolta's collection. Island is probably hanging in the head, but whether there or on the poop deck, it's still quite an honor to have my work selected by Travolta, one of three artists from among the many artists at gallery.

My birthday is a little more than a week away, and here I am scheduled to go in for a root canal re-treatment a few days before, so this sale is like a birthday gift from above--just the thing to cheer me up!