local color

Two receptions this weekend for area group shows that I have some work in. One is Art of the Automobile at Mamaroneck Library as I reported the other day, and is actually tomorrow Oct 18, 2-4 pm. The other is Reflections, opening at Front Street Gallery in Patterson on Sunday Oct 19, 10-2 pm, which has my Disco Ball painting.

Meanwhile, the  Self-Portrait show continues at Ann St Gallery in Newburgh through Nov 22. Then next Sat Oct 25 is the opening of Small Matters of Great Importance at the Edward Hopper House in Nyack. It's good to get the kids out in the fresh air.

you painted trucks

Some phone calls flew back and forth about work I would contribute to a Westchester group show of cars a friend was organizing.
'You got car paintings?'
'Yes, I sure do have car paintings.'
'Great. What sizes?'
'A bunch of different sizes, 12 or 20 inch…'
'Great. I'll need a few smaller ones as it turns out.'
'No problem', I assure him, forgetting the pivotal word CAR. I have a few large paintings of cars (the Edsel; the Beetle, a couple Fords) that will be too big. I grab two smallish vehicle paintings- one older, one new- and drop them at the venue- the Mamaroneck Public Library. I send off an email.
'You got my pieces, right? Did you hang the show yet?'
'HAUSER!!! Yes you are up.... NO you did not paint cars.... you painted trucks!!! Fear not, all is well. Love how you paint... always have.'
'Oops. Sorry. Trucks aren't cars?'
The show, Art of The Automobile, is up through Oct 27, with a reception Sat Oct 18th 2-4pm.

for the beacon sukkah project

'A sukkah is a house that gives no shelter, a house that parodies the idea of security. It's a Jewish sand mandala of a building, open to the sky and used for seven days around the time of the fall harvest and then dismantled. It's rickety and tenuous, creating the illusion of permanence and highlighting the impermanence of everything… Beacon Hebrew Alliance will contemplate and celebrate these universal themes of ephemerality and transience in Open to the Sky: The Beacon Sukkah Project, which will be at Polhill Park (by the Beacon Visitors' Center) October 8-16.'
I helped install the artwork in the sukkah today, using wood and twine to hang the pieces like scrolls against the sunlit walls of cloth. Above, the roof frame laid with bamboo made soft rustling sounds in the wind.

As for my contribution.. The leaf painting in the center of my piece is from a larger portrait I made many years ago of a dear friend, for a show with the theme 'Influence'. That part, painted beyond her laughing face, was inspired by looking down into dark water at bright fallen leaves swirling on the surface. It became its own painting which I kept for a long time, but it ceased to mean what it once had. The seasonal transition is an obvious example of impermanence, but in this work it also signifies, to me, how a piece of art can shift in personal meaning over time. Holding onto a work to evoke memory or sentiment isn't always necessary. I liked the idea of integrating it into this patchwork quilt-like piece for the sukkah, passing it on to be seen again in a new way for a new purpose.

no small matter

I'm pleased that three of my paintings were accepted to Small Matters of Great Importance, the Edward Hopper House's annual juried show in Nyack, NY. The show will run October 25, 2014 - January 4, 2015, with a reception on Saturday, October 25, 2-4 pm.
I have entered before (see hopper to hauser) but the only time I was in this show was 2006, so it will be nice to see my work there again, in the house where Hopper grew up. The 2014 theme is 'En Route'. It being a theme of mine as well, I had no trouble finding images to submit. Sometimes the juror agrees with me. I did not get selected for the 'Under 40' show at WAAM (in Woodstock), but as the only common link is having yet to complete one's fourth decade, there is no way to know what kind of show it will be, or whether one's work stands a chance. If under 40 means edgy, I suspect I'm always out of the running. Though I got in a couple years ago. The funny thing was that I was one of the few artists who attended the opening, and nearly everyone else in the room was well over 40. Yes, I need to search for new shows to enter, new galleries, probably new cities. Build a house on top of a truck bed and just start knocking down doors.

glove story

Working hands. And these are just from the past month or so, except the taped relic from last winter. 

Sometimes they want it stacked like this.

Sometimes they want it stacked like this. And in the 3rd hour she rested.

Sometimes they want it stacked like this. (This is four units, carted up across the lawn.)

Two paintings at Newburgh Small Works, to coincide with Open Studios.

Cluster of my paintings on my friend's studio wall for the weekend. Met some new people, sold a couple things and drank wine in the afternoons. Now back to my regularly scheduled stacking program.

self portrait

I made a new painting that will be included in a show opening tonight Sat Sept 27, called Narcissism and the Self-Portrait, at Ann St Gallery in Newburgh. 104 Ann St. Reception is 6:30-8:30pm. It will be up through Nov 22. More info about the show and the gallery at the link. 

I will try to replace this with a better photo; this one makes it look all soft and faded out, but in fact it is much darker and the brushstrokes more evident. I guess I am making a point to emphasize this because I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I am pleased in the end by its texture (invisible here) and my ability to create a semblance of my appearance in paint- a rare attempt, and one I was glad to receive the challenge to have. I am lounging against an antique Packard, peach in hand.

The painting, The Rest is History, is 13"x20" acrylic on wood.

newburgh open studios

It's tomorrow and Sunday, September 26 and 27, 11am-5pm. I will have new and recent work installed in my friend Bruno Krauchthaler's studio in the Atlas Industries building at 11 Spring St in Newburgh.  Maps for self-guided tours are available at Newburgh Art Supply, on Grand St (off Broadway), and at most of the studios. Tonight 7pm there is a kickoff party to which all are welcome, at Teran Studio on 119 Broadway. Looks like it will be a nice weekend! I will show some of the ice cream wrapper paintings and a few other paintings/drawings from the past 4 months.

remember your roots

It's been a staggeringly long time- most of September-  since I posted something, and I'm not even sure why, since I've been making work and doing stuff. The irony was that I'd originally planned this to be a make-and-post-a-painting-a-day month- but the required discipline and ability to ruthlessly, efficiently structure my time, eluded me. I made two 8x10" oil paintings right off the mark. But I felt there was a whiff of stagnancy about them. Though if I had persisted and done thirty of them, the number at least would demonstrate some kind of focus.  Nevertheless. It's not too late, as with most self-motivated practices. And I'll post twice a day to compensate.
Two weeks ago I made this painting for my nephew Ben for his 21st birthday. He may be legal now to order real beer- and has been well-versed in the responsible consumption of alcohol, and in fact ordered a flight of small amber-hued drafts at his birthday dinner- but he always liked root beer as a kid.

out of sight

For the final day of August, another ice cream bar wrapper painting (part of this series). Fortunately, September is still a good month for ice cream.

I am noticing now that this is not the best photo. I will replace it shortly. The truth is I have finally gotten an iPhone, so I'm starting to take photos with it and upload them directly, but so far they're not looking so great- I know there's potential for taking decent pics with the phone camera, I just haven't learned how yet and when I sit down to study it, I just.. space out.

Oh, and.. these new paintings (and more) are for sale over in my Etsy shop.
And.. over in my Spreadshirt shop you can get 15% off a dummy light t-shirt through Sept 2. Though even after Sept 2, they're just $25 and are now available in several colors.

I may start an Instagram feed soon, which is something else I need to understand more about, but I think it involves posting work quickly and frequently, collecting oodles of followers and watching as they click links to 'buy this item' over and over. Must look into this. I'm seeing stars.

pop art series

I've been making a series of paintings based on vintage ice cream wrappers. The more of them I paint, the more I understand about why I'm doing it. Some are from a small collection of actual wrappers my friend got in a letterpress shop, for others I found images online-- there are still plenty for sale on eBay, though it's the selecting and translating the designs into painted objects that I am after. So many small ice cream companies across the country once, producing an endless array of treats. Here are six-- acrylic on wood panels 3/4" thick, varying sizes up to 14". All are for sale in my Etsy shop.

my paintings at caffe macchiato

I hung several paintings this week at Caffe Macchiato, a great cafe at 99 Liberty St in Newburgh. All works are for sale and can be viewed larger on my own website. (Some are also available on my Etsy shop.) Open every day except Mondays, the cafe will be closed Aug 25-31, then reopen in September, and my work will be on view for the month. 

The weekend of September 27-28, 2014 is Newburgh Open Studios, and I will show some new work in a friend's studio on Spring St a couple of blocks away. More info about this event as it draws closer!

square hojo's

Here's the painting in the 'Famous for 12 Inches' show at Castle Fitzjohns Gallery (98 Orchard St) now through Aug 22. You're supposed to visit the show in person, then vote (for me!) by sending an email to info@castlefitzjohns.com and putting my name as the subject line. The artist w/the most votes gets a year's representation by the gallery. My friends and I decided that the results could be a bit skewed- popularity vs quality- but it draws attention to a nice gallery and it got me down to the lower East Side to talk to a few people, after fueling up with a pineapple margarita down the block.
There was a large variety of media applied to all those 12"x12" surfaces. Mine is factory-made high-pigment acrylic paint on canvas. Pthalo turquoise, cadmium orange, mars black and palest blue.

famous for 12 inches

I'm in this big group show opening tonight, Aug 8, at Castle Fitzjohns Gallery, 98 Orchard St on the Lower East Side in NYC. Canvases are all 12"x12". I don't have a good photo of mine yet, but it is a variation on my Howard Johnson's painting, and I think it's pretty sharp. But is it sharp enough to win? People can vote on their favorite work, by coming tonight, 7-10 pm, or stopping by any day through Aug 22.

the 2-minute apple

Go here on YouTube to see a time-lapse video of me painting an apple. My 13-year-old nephew Theo made it. I touched up the painting (12"x12") a few days later, since I used oil and there's only so much I could do at once before I had to stop and let it dry. Still, the painting process went pretty fast for me (if a bit longer than 2 minutes). The video compresses 28 min of shooting. I could knock out a bushel in a day!

framework

Five small works of mine that someone had collected over the past few years- she asked if Jon could make a frame for them as a group- I think it looks quite nice, sets the little pieces apart from everything else where they might get lost, and I like how they look in relation to each other.

And these below don't have anything to do with the frame, just some favorites from a classic car show I attended recently in Geneva, NY with my family.
I've somewhat neglected my blog this July- but another month is only minutes away, so I'm sure I'll catch up before the wood-stackings start to fill up my time once more. I've been painting, and will be relieved to share- especially a large-ish (24"x48") oil landscape that occupied my energies for several weeks as I puzzled it out.

the booth is out there

This booth was in Garrison, and was likely the site of late-night cab calls, as it was (is? I haven't been back in a while, but I believe it remains) situated by the train station and a long-shuttered bar. Faded green and phoneless. Here it somehow became a sort of ghostly faded skeletal relic in a gray landscape. Oil on wood, 10"x14".

chalk to the nearest exit, or, the c train

For the 2014 Perry Chalk Art Festival, our 5'x10' chalky interpretation of the theme 'Transformations'. (Click here to see the one I did in 2012)

Jon and I, grubby and relieved at the end of 4-5 absorbed hours chalking in the sun

The MTA's Artificial Reef Project, begun in 2001, involved taking decommissioned New York City subway cars and deploying them to the ocean floor to create new habitats for marine life. These included the old 'Redbirds', which rode the rails from 1964-2003. The cars were stripped of doors & windows and any materials that might leach into the water. Within 3-5 years- usually sooner- the structures were covered with coral and algae, transforming into strange & beautiful places of refuge for fish and providing a feeding ground, increasing catches for fishermen, and enhancing the topography of the otherwise barren floor of the Mid-Atlantic.
(from my accompanying statement taped to the concrete.)

People feared this scheme was a thinly-veiled attempt to turn the ocean floor into a junkyard, but it seems that the cars, chosen for their durability, weight & roominess, show little to no damage or disintegration of materials. You never know the whole story of course, but it appeared to be a successful project, and the scuba diver's photos I'd found online are eerie and magical. A challenge to replicate in chalk, especially as I hadn't done it in two years and Jon never had, so we just dug into it. Somehow we snagged second place. By morning, just as when I chalked 2 years ago, the rain had all but washed it away, rendering the underwater portion even more realistic.

(painting) table-to-farm

More of the signs I've been painting for Fishkill Farms. See strawberries, a sweet memory now- but fortunately the farm produces an abundance of fruit throughout the summer, and I believe the idea is that the signs, once installed, will help guide wandering u-pickers to the correct fields. It's a lovely place to wander.
I have yet to find a perfectly clear exterior polyurethane varnish; it always yellows, and I wonder if it's inevitable. In this case at least, the antiqued look is okay. I do like using the oil-based One-Shot, it creates an easy precision with the lettering, while practically dictating my brushstrokes with its shiny, tacky stickiness when I paint the fruit.

marketing ploy

I've been selling my dummy light t-shirts for over 4 years, either at markets or pop-up shops or the gallery, through Etsy or on the fly. It's been fun, but this might be easier and was fun to set up- I just opened an online Spreadshirt shop, where people can order shirts (& now mugs) directly, choosing colors and sizes- so the inventory is always there. If it works out, I will offer more designs- if I can decide which paintings are ready to wear, or drink from, or spit up on.

resemblages

It's been a couple weeks since my last post and I have an odd but agreeable smattering of projects I did in that time:

I painted this box (which Jon made) as a wedding gift for two friends. I loved mixing these colors and alternating them with the natural wood. What if this was all I painted from now on- patterns and shapes? Between this and the Ellsworth Kelly lightbulb, I'm enjoying it. Paintings as an abstracted arrangement of forms to resemble reality, right? Thing is, I don't really believe it yet, for myself- there's got to be more to the story of a painting. I am thinking about those puzzle toys that look like random shapes until you sort them into a recognizable object of your design.

5"x5". This adorable and recognizable object was a commission. It looks a lot like an unbearably cute beagle. I started with the eyes and worked my way out, so I had only myself to blame for the feeling that the pup was waiting for me to finish painting it, as one might wait to be fed a treat.

Following up on the strawberries sign for the farm, blueberries was next. The large scale makes them resemble blue pomegranates, but the accompanying word should clear up any uncertainty.

A 5"x7" acrylic/collage on canvas, the collage part from a print of my ice machine watercolor.

A 7"x8.5" acrylic/collage on wood, also made from a print of a long-ago painting. This was an old pump I'd pass by for years, until one day, of course, it was gone.