June Post

Hello!

Well, the year 2020 is half over and most of us are still trying to process how quickly life changed once we hit the month of March. Melissa and I have been Safe at Home since March 24th, so that's three full months-plus for us. I know there are some who have been in quarantine even longer. Because I'm 80 and have some underlying health issues that put me at high risk, I really don't go anywhere. And Melissa keeps me safe by not going anywhere except to the grocery store once a week.

There are times when the lack of freedom to do things chafes a bit. I'd like to be able to go out to breakfast at our favorite places, like Joe Ski's House of Breakfast or the MacGregor Cafe - or just do something spontaneous. But fortunately, we both spend most of our time on creative endeavors and that keeps our days from being boring. Mostly. Sometimes it's boring.

I painted a lot in June! Many pieces are what I call "Mindscapes," which are landscapes that are partly memory of real places and partly from my imagination. I was so pleased with these and created enough of them that I added a Mindscape Collection on my website. You can check it out HERE.

The mindscapes started with a piece that Melissa named "Ethereal." I painted it during a kind of Parkinsonian episode of "No Mind," - I was in a funk and have no actual memory of painting it. Melissa said I should go into those funks more often because she liked what I created when I was in them. HaHa she thinks she's so funny!

The last week or two, I've been working on small paintings - meaning 8 by 10. These are landscapes and seascapes. I am envisioning a SMALL PAINTING SALE come early fall - so stay tuned.

Here's a whole bunch of paintings from June. I wasn't joking when I said I'd been prolific! Enjoy!

Ethereal

Purple Sunrise

Pink Sky at Morning

Clam Flats

 

Upward Reflections

Path Between the Grasses

Gentle Surf

Tide Receding

Florida Marshland I

Florida Marshland II

Florida Tidal Marshland

Tidal Marshland

In the Midst of the Aspens

Big Sky over the High Country

May Post

Well, my 80th Birthday Month is over, and what a success our 80th Birthday Celebration Sale was! In normal times, we might have gone away for the weekend, and out for a nice birthday meal. But these aren't normal times, so we just tried to do something fun and celebratory. I have to say that I enjoyed celebrating my 80th birthday this way as much as I would have enjoyed doing those other "normal" things - maybe even more.

We sold all the art books that Melissa created, 23 paintings, and some cards and tote bags (which can be created from images of my art work).

Back when I started painting 25 years ago, one of my idols, Judi Wagner, gave me the best advice. She said, "Use paint as if you were a millionaire!" Well, I took that advice to heart! I primarily paint with a palette knife, and I layer paint on thickly to create texture in my work.

Judi lived in East Boothbay, down the road from our house and gallery. She has passed away, but was quite well-known and a major influence on my painting style. Believe it or not, when I started, my style was very tight, and more than anything I wanted to loosen it up. Judi Wagner and Tony van Hasselt were major influences in helping me do that.

I'm not a millionare, so it helps if I can sell my work from time to time to keep my habit going. I'm happy to say that, after the expenses of creating the books and packing and shipping the paintings, I should have enough profit to fund my paint and canvas habit until my 81st birthday.

We also gave away two paintings in a raffle and will make a nice donation to an organization that is near and dear to my heart: The St. Labre Indian School. It makes me feel good to be able to do that from my own earnings and not from the joint checking account.  :D

A big THANK YOU to all who purchased my work - long-time collectors, first-time buyers and everyone in between - it means the world to an artist when someone wants to buy your art. So again, THANK YOU! And to all who simply appreciate the art or the artistic journey, THANK YOU for the kind words and for coming along for the ride.

Despite being very busy filling the orders, I still found some time to paint. Here are some of the paintings I created in May:

Clouds Over Taos

Hill Country

North of Taos

Beginning of Autumn

Shoreline Waves

Tranquil Surf, Boca Grande

April Post (I know - I'm Late!)

Hello!

Well you would think that, what with being at home and having the calendar cleared of outings, events, appointments, etc., I would have gotten my April post up early! Clearly that didn't happen and I'm not really sure why, except that I think there's some universal truth that says that the more time you have to do something, the longer you take to do it. (I think it's one of Murphy's Laws).

In any case, I have been painting up a storm. And, my wife, Melissa, has been managing an 80th Birthday Celebration Sale of my work. That's taken up quite a bit of my time, because I am busy sealing paintings for people who have bought - which they have and I thank them very much!

That's right - I'll be 80 years old this Friday. 2020 also marks the 25th year of my career and exploration as an artist. In honor of this milestone, we created an art book and offered a limited number of them for sale. They all sold - thank you! The celebration sale of my paintings continues through month-end. Some of what I earn from it will buy canvas and paint to keep my artistic efforts going this year, and some will be donated to organizations that are in in special need during this time of the virus.

On Friday, we are doing a raffle to win one of my paintings - all who purchased a book or artwork are entered. With my May post (which I'll try to do on time), we'll have pictures from the drawing.

Here are photos of me signing the book and a few pages from it. We had it done through Vistaprint and are very pleased with how it came out.

The images below will give you an idea of what I was up to in April. Some are in that painterly impressionistic style I've been exploring and others are just regular old impressionism, I added these pieces to my FASO site, where they are for sale - actually a few of them have SOLD in the birthday sale. Anyway, when you see how many there are, you'll realized why I'm a little late with the post. Here is the link to my website if you'd like to see more of my work: JRSecorFineArt. The last piece shown is called Sunset, Boca Grance, and Melissa has confiscated that one for herself!

Enjoy the art, stay home, stay safe and we'll get through this together!

March 2020

 Hello Everyone!

In just the short span of a month since my last post at the end of February, it feels like the planet has turned upside down and gone into a tailspin. We are in the middle of the Corona Virus pandemic, a scary time for the whole world. Being 80 and having some underlying health issues, I have reason to be worried about getting the virus, though it seems that we are all at risk.

For me, staying put at home is pretty much what I do, so social distancing and self-quarantining are not much of a change or a challenge for me. What I do is what I always do: I get up in the morning, have a cup of coffee and a croissant, and go to my studio to paint.

I started the month pretty much as I ended the last in terms of my style. But during March, I came across an artist who was new to me, Mary Bentz Gilkerson. She has a painterly style that is really what I've always wanted to achieve and so her work has inspired me to make that my new artistic exploration. She is also a master at motivating artists, and sometimes I can use a little motivation - not to paint - I'm always motivated to do that - but sometimes I need to break free and try something new.

Here is a quote from Wilkinson that seems especially appropriate right now:

"Get some fresh air- this releases chemicals beneficial to humans. It gives you a sense of peace and connectedness and it will re-energize you. It is one of the best ways to anchieve a peak creative state."

Since we are all keeping close to home these days, getting outside for some air and sun seems like the best thing we can do for ourselves.

Anyway, I've been having fun with this new style and like the results - enough that I've added a new collection to my FASO website: Painterly Impressionism Collection.

Below are examples of what I got up to in March, ending with the new painterly impressionistic style. I hope that everyone will stay safe and well until we meet again in April - stay home, take care of yourself and loved ones - we are all in this together!

Grassy Dunes Boca Grande
12 by 12 on linen canvas panel

Gulf of Mexico Tranquility
18 by 24 on heavy linen paper

New Mexico High Country
18 by 24 on heavy linen paper

Across the River
12 by 16 on linen canvas panel
Painterly Impressionism

Dawn
24 by 18 on heavy linen paper
Painterly Impressionism

Summer Day New Mexico
12 by 16 on linen canvas panel
Painterly Impressionism

FEBRUARY POST

It's Leap Year, so this February is giving me an extra day to paint!

I have been experimenting with using brushes as "mock palette knives." I received three beautiful new brushes from my sister-in-law for Christmas and that inspired me to buy a few more. Believe it or not, I haven't bought any new brushes in about 20 years! We painters become very attached to our brushes, and typically to one or two out of the ten or so we have. Not only that, but in recent years I have mostly been using palette knives to paint. so I haven't really needed to buy brushes.

I have found though, that my Parkinson's makes it a little harder to control the palette knife - sometimes the big swooping clouds in my paintings are not on purpose! So, I'm back to using brushes more, but as I said, using them like palette knives, with quick, directional motion rather than going for precise detail.

Adding a heavy gel medium to the paint makes it quite thick, so I can apply it with a quick directional motion up, down or sideways, leaving as much paint on the surface as desired. The quicker the motion, the more painterly and textural the effect. I'm having fun playing around with the new brushes to see what kinds of effects I can create.

Here's an example of a piece I did using this approach. It's called Llano de San Juan Farm. Llano is a small New Mexican village nestled in the Truchas mountains.

And here are a few more examples of what I've been up to this past month. A little bit of the southwest, and a little bit of southwest Florida.

String of Distant Mesas

Autumn, Low Southwest Desert

Cathedral Rock Semi-abstract

Fog on the Horizon

Three Big Guys