In the decade following the Civil War, America came to terms with its great loss–both of a generation of young men, and the feeling of high spirited nationalistic pride and belief in itself as the chosen land and the chosen people of God’s creation. The societal underpinnings of religious faith were likewise shaken. The operatic creations […]
The Art of the Garden
In the late 19th and early 20th century the “Garden Movement” in America was greatly influenced by French Impressionist paintings. The move to the suburbs by the middle classes also encouraged this new interest in gardening, and the “American garden”, not as formal as the English or Italian gardens of the Gilded Age, became popular. […]
Why Should Landscape Painters Study Art History?
It’s surprising how many landscape painters don’t have a working knowledge of the art history of landscape painting. With the prevalence of social media today it’s easy to ‘follow’ contemporary artists whose work you admire, and many of us do. But, a far smaller number make the effort to connect with their artistic heritage as […]
Seeing in Shapes
Learning to see the large shapes in Nature as opposed to all the little details is an essential skill in painting and particularly in landscape painting where Nature presents us with, as John Carlson calls it, “an overloaded property room”. Unless we are able to reduce the visual clutter we see to big simple shapes, […]
Happy Anniversary to The Landscape Atelier!
Happy Anniversary to The Landscape Atelier! 2019 marks the 10th year that we have offered online classes for landscape painters! Needless to say, we were one of the first to do so, and over the last ten years we have taught students from all over the world! We hope you will join us this year in […]
The Studio Podcast
Recently I was interviewed by Danny Grant of The Studio Podcast. We had a great conversation about many aspects of the life of a professional artist–studio practice, the pros and cons of solo shows and building an art career. We also talked in depth about how I teach my online classes and my philosophy of […]