Sorolla - Prado

Approximately 100 paintings of Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida (1863-1923) will make up a major exhibition at the Prado in Madrid, May 26 - September 6.

Sorolla is one of my all-time favorite painters - with a style of bravura brushwork unmatched, he created wondrous moments like Just Out of the Sea, captured glorious light in scenes such as Sewing the Sail and Lunch on the Boat, but also depicted pathos in paintings like the devastating Sad Inheritance.

There's not a show I'd rather see of any artist, anywhere. (Alex Kanevsky's new work at J. Cacciola Gallery would be second on the list!)

Also, visit Museo Sorolla here.

Watercolor Artist Magazine - June 2009

I have an article in the Creativity Workshop of the latest Watercolor Artist magazine.

Most artists I've encountered have at least some experience using the computer and programs such as Photoshop, typically working with reference photographs in preparation for a painting. The article deals with using Photoshop to progressively alter not a photograph, but rather a painting, to generate new variations and abstractions. It is another way of extracting more material from an idea, and an interesting collaboration between man and machine. I started with a piece from a couple years ago, La Falda Leventada (see pic from first page), and explained the evolution of subsequent paintings via Photoshop filters and cropping.

(I see DaVinci is giving a free triad sample of watercolors with subscriptions)

Thanks to the twenty people from the Cape Artists in Lewes, Delaware, who attended the workshop last week. I had a blast, and I hope to return sometime! (yes, I made it to the gallery in Ocean View, 5 mins before they closed)

Learning To Live Again

This is an original song I wrote in the 90s, and the lyric is by a friend of mine, Nick Palmieri. The singer is Venetta Smith, a gospel powerhouse who can can do some serious sermonizing on the blues, as you'll hear. Tenor star Richard Elliot trades licks with both of us. Ruben Drake on bass, Ron and Dave Reinhardt on Hammond B3 and drums. I did all guitar work and arrangement, I think it's one of my best tracks. Recorded at Morrisound in Tampa. Crank this one, louder the better!