Paint-out with Dan Pinkham

My sketch of Ignat painting "Portuguese Bend".

This last Saturday, the California Art Club had it's first Mentor Member paint out, hosted by Dan Pinkham at his home and studio in Palos Verdes. I stayed at my pal, William Wray's place, and we drove up together. Also in attendance was Ignat Ignatov, Aaron Westerberg, Sergio Sanchez, Stan Prokopenko, Justine Carroll, Leonardo Lambaren, and Ann Lee (who snapped the photos).

I took the opportunity to do a number of sketches while everyone else painted. I posted my favorite sketch above... maybe I'll paint it? Dan Pinkham told us about his method of starting with a sketch, and writing why you want to select a particular view before painting it. It struck a chord in me, the heart of why I paint... to make a connection. What I bring of myself to the painting, and the landscape before me. Dan also made some technical pointers in his demo that will serve as tools to me in my own color mixing.

At Dan's Studio, he showed us boxes and boxes full of his plein-air paintings from the last several decades, all of which he's kept for himself and uses as reference to work up studio paintings. After the paint-out, we we did a critique of everyone's work. Dan then went on to expound brilliantly on painting, and tell colorful stories.

Beyond teaching me some of the mechanics of painting, I felt that Dan, through his example, taught an even greater lesson in humility, and reminded me of the honor in hard work. Nobody wanted to leave at the end of the day, it was totally inspirational. Made me want to get out and work more on location again too!

VIDEO: "Looking In on Tony Peters"

Looking In On Tony Peters from Holly Peters on Vimeo.

An introduction to the artist Tony Peters and his paintings.

William Wendt Sketches

William Wendt Sketch "Girl Under a Tree"

William Wendt Sketch "Haystacks"

William Wendt's painting "Haystack" 16 x 20 inches, oil on canvas.

Keith at my gallery in La Jolla (K. Nathan Gallery) just picked up William Wendt's sketchbook at auction, the sketches in it were done somewhere around 1910. He has taken the drawings out and had them each beautifully framed for display. Keith was generous enough to give me a great deal, and I had the pleasure of being able to add this particular double-sided sketch to my personal collection (above).

I really loved the drawing of the girl sitting under a tree in the shade, especially since I have been focusing so much on the figure lately, plus I admire William Wendt's work so much anyway. It appeared to be the only figure in the entire sketchbook. On the reverse was this drawing of a haystack. I was excited to discover this corresponding image to go with it. The sketch appears to be the preliminary drawing for Wendt's painting, "Haystack".

Television

This is a little 8 x 10 painting, oil on canvas, called "Television". Some of the other paintings I'm working on right now are fairly large, so it's gratifying to execute something quickly for a change.

My wife's little sister, Cortney, posed for this in her parents' living room. I like the color harmony of the image, and it's mood.

"Freeway Exit"

I wanted to either call this new painting "Houses by a Freeway" or "Freeway Exit", it's 15 x 30 inches, oil on canvas. This one involved a lot of imagination, I made up much of the landscape. But it's based on my travels through Detroit.

I laid down some fairly thick impasto on this piece, scraping the paint around with my palette knife, and smearing color around with a rag. I love the surface of this piece in particular, the manipulation of light, and the quiet color. I enjoyed playing with the composition and design too, with the houses on the right, and the lone solitary figure on the bridge to the left. Together, all these things hit on the overall mood I was going for.

Graffiti Bridge

This is "Graffiti Bridge", oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches. With this piece, I invented these young characters making art on the walls of the bridge, like modern hyroglifics. I have wanted to include graffiti in one of my paintings for a long time, since so many of the places that I paint are often old, and usually have graffiti on them anyway. But it then becomes an important part of the image. So my graffiti tells a story.

Waiting

"Waiting" oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches. This is a continuation on my theme from a previous painting, called "Looking Outward". It's inspiration comes from a quote by the famous psychologist and author, Carl Jung... "Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens."

In this piece, I used a turn of the century building as my location, a female model, and more of a focus on the light hitting the building's exterior. "Waiting" is available through K. Nathan Gallery in La Jolla.

Girl Reading, Pacific Beach

"Girl Reading, Pacific Beach" 24 x 26 inches, oil on canvas

A while back, I posted my preliminary drawing for this painting. It's finally finished. The process involved a new method I'm using to help me include the figure within my new works.

But before I get into how I did the painting, let's talk about the why. Every painting of mine includes personal meaning, but I hope that the image resonates with the viewer in an archetypal way. I feel the purpose of my work is to depict my own story, but it's not necessarily important to understand in order to enjoy the work. When I was still a teenager, 18 years old, I moved out of my parent's house and lived close to this particular neighborhood in Pacific Beach. I spent most of my time in study, although I lived in the midst of a party town, and I somehow managed to stay out of trouble... honest! So this painting depicts the kind of ideal fantasy girl that I never met there at the time, a good girl engrossed in her studies.

As for how I did this painting, I was initially inspired when I was visiting the New York Public Library and viewed their WPA era murals... I wanted to do my own library painting. At first, my idea was to depict a girl sitting and reading under a tree, but as I went out in search of the perfect tree to use for my painting, I found this beautiful repetative long line of palms in the old Pacific Beach neighborhood. In this particular view, I liked how the long fence complemented those palms, as well as the long pose of the reclining figure I had in mind. These three elements somehow divided the piece into thirds. Then, I worked up a kind of classical composition creating a big triangle or pyramid as the overall center of the piece... do you see it?

As I transferred my drawing to canvas and began the painting, my friend, Aron Wiesenfeld, pointed out that the palms lining the background were a little too monotonous. I changed them in this final painting, so it does differ from my preliminary drawing.

Speaking of my pal Aron Wiesenfeld, I just got back from his opening exhibition at the Bakersfield Museum of Art... http://www.aronwiesenfeld.com/home.html

GIRL ON BRIDGE

"Girl on Bridge", 24 x 24 inches, oil on canvas.

I have been trying a different approach to my working methods. My next scheduled exhibition with K. Nathan Gallery will be late in the year, and I've been working on 10 pieces all at once. Every painting will include the figure. "Girl on Bridge" is the first one that I have finished.

Last year, I was out with two of my private students sketching on location by the beach close to Del Mar, and we found ourselves seeking shade from the sun under North Torrey Pines Bridge. I drew the old bridge there in my sketchbook from this angle. Later at the studio, in thinking how I might incorporate a figure, I doodled a girl sitting there on the bridge. I liked the graphic quality of the sketch. And I felt that the figure gave the image some tension. The more I thought about it, I felt that the underbelly of that bridge expressed a degree of psychological symbolism... the shadows of the unconscious under this massive structure.

"Coopriders, Looking In"

I have been invited to do a portrait commission for Patti and Coop Cooprider that will be part of an exhibition called "Movers and Shakers": Who's Who in the San Diego Visual Arts World.

The reception will be on Thursday Jan 21 from 6:30 to 8:30, and is organized by the San Diego Visual Arts Network. The exhibition will take place at Art Expressions Gallery: 2645 Financial Court, Suite C, San Diego, 92117

I have spent all of my efforts lately on finishing this piece in time for deadline, it has been nearly two months of continuous work. "Coopriders, Looking In" is a large 36 x 48 inches, oil on canvas. The Coopriders liked my self-portrait, "Looking Inward", and thought it would be interesting to use a similar theme for this portrait of them. We decided to use a gallery space as the setting stage, since collecting art is one of their favorite things.

Patti and Coop are very interesting folks, my wife Holly and I have enjoyed getting to know them in the process of this project. They are heavily involved in the San Diego art scene, and serve on the board of directors of numerous arts organizations. They are collectors of art as well as "doers," Patti also enjoys making art herself. From the work of a little known Italian artist, Diego, to the works of Chagall, Lipschitz, Miro, Picasso, Leger, and Calder among many others, Patti and her husband not only collect the works of great artists, but they live cozily with their pieces in their home to inspire them on a daily basis. For the past several years, Patti and her husband have focused on supporting San Diego artists, occasionally selling some of the work by European artists in order to purchase the work of artists in their own back yard.

I'm in a new book, "100 Artists of the West Coast II"

I finally got my copy of this new book I'm in, 100 Artists of the West Coast II by Tina Skinner
You can purchase your copy on Amazon through this link.

My artwork is profiled in the book, including my painting "Looking Forward" 16 x 20 inches, oil on canvas (pictured above). This piece is depicted inside the book, as well as on the back cover of the dust jacket.

In the back of the book, all of the artists are pictured along with their web links. My self-portrait "Looking Inward", 36 x 48 inches, oil on canvas, is pictured there (but quite small) so I'm re-posting it here. This painting won the 2009 Urban Landscape Award at the California Art Club Gold Medal Exhibition located at the Pasadena Museum of California Art...

Among other images included in the book is my painting, "The Los Angeles Sky", 20 x 20 inches, oil on canvas...

I feel fortunate to be accompanied in this publication along with a couple of old friends from my days at the Mendenhall Gallery. This piece is called "Vesper" oil on canvas, 36 x 48 inches, by William Glen Crooks. Glen is another fellow San Diego painter, and was an early inspiration to my young career through his friendship. His sense of light is unmatched...

Glenn Ness (another old friend and former Mendenhall Gallery artist) is in the book. I used to exhibit with him at Sue Greenwood Fine Art as well. Glenn and I share a fascination for the urban landscape, plus an appreciation for the paintings of John Register. This piece is called "After the Lie", 12 x 18 inches, oil on canvas...

Torrey Pines Nocturne, PCH

"Torrey Pines Nocturne, PCH", 12” x 16” oil on canvas. I donated this new painting to an auction benefiting the San Diego Coast Keepers... http://oceangala.org/oceangala/auctions.html

The San Diego Coastkeeper protects the region's bays, beaches, watersheds, and ocean for the people and wildlife that depend on them. For the second straight year, the Ocean Gala will feature its signature Going Green Live Auction featuring eco-friendly items and outdoor experiences. The Going Green Live Auction will be conducted by professional auctioneers Charles Dreyer and Bill Menish, who have combined to raise tens of millions of dollars for local and national charities.

"Rail Bridge Over the 101 Freeway" and the RAY TURNER exhibition at the Pasadena Museum of California Art

I have been drawn to painting bridges for over a dozen years, all throughout my career as an artist, even before I went to Art Center. This new piece is called "Rail Bridge Over the 101 Freeway", oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches. And I think it's one of my favorites. The actual bridge can be seen while driving up the 101 freeway, between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. I was actually on my way up to visit my new San Luis Obispo gallery during the Labor Day weekend when I was inspired to do this particular piece. I'm now exhibiting work at the Just Looking Gallery on Higuera Street, be sure to check it out if you're in the area... http://www.justlookinggallery.com/

When I was a student at Art Center, as you may know, I was also working at the Mendenhall Gallery in Pasadena. I got to work closely with some great painters who exhibited there, like Richard Bunkall, Sally Storch, R. Kenton Nelson, Raimonds Staprans, Mark Ryden, and many others. I moonlighted as a studio assistant to some of the artists, including Ray Turner, who is having a show right now at the Pasadena Museum of California Art. Be sure to check it out before it closes on January 31, 2010. There is also an impressive Wayne Thiebaud show in the main gallery... http://www.pmcaonline.org/exhibits/_main/index.html

When I worked with Ray, I was fortunate enough to collect some of his original works. Since the current exhibition at the Pasadena Museum includes his portraits, I thought I'd share just a few of those originals that I have (above and below).

Ray Turner's new book that accompanies the exhibition includes a section dedicated to a handful of portraits he did of his friend "Joe". Ray used to paint Joe every day until Joe passed away. The above painting is one such piece from my collection, a small 4 x 5.5 inches.

This piece above is part of his series of portraits of horses and jockeys, done in the 1990's.

Ray is renowned for his monumental landscapes. Here's a Turner landscape hanging over the couch in my living room, I love the industrial image. Nobody can paint a sky like Ray Turner, they are incredible, smokey, hazy, moody... http://www.rayturnerart.com/

Liquor Store Nocturne, El Cajon Blvd.

"Liquor Store Nocturne, El Cajon Blvd." 18 x 18 inches, oil on canvas. This piece, as well as my other new figurative works, are available through K. Nathan Gallery in La Jolla. They have a wonderful selection of early California artists including Franz Bischoff, Edgar Payne, Alfred Mitchell, Maurice Braun, William Wendt, and all the other big names. I feel privileged to be exhibiting in such good company. In addition to these early California artists, K. Nathan handles the works of a select few living contemporary California painters such as myself, Robert Watts, Brian Blood, and Laurie Kersey... http://www.knathangallery.com/index.html My work will be on their website soon, and we're planning an exhibition for the spring of 2010.


This old Liquor Store on El Cajon Boulevard has been a spot that I have long admired for a potential painting, so I have visited it a few times to get the perfect lighting I wanted for the painting. Early one evening when I stopped by, I found this gentleman stepping outside for a smoke.

LONDON HOTEL ROOM and California Art Club Newsletter article: An Interview With Tony Peters on Edward Hopper

This new painting is called "London Hotel Room", 11 x 16 inches, oil on canvas. A couple of years ago, my wife Holly and I went to Europe, I did this painting from a snapshot taken of her in our room... we were jet-lagged on the first morning and woke up a little too early, plus we were excited to see the National Gallery.

This is the first time that I've included Holly in one of my paintings (although I have tried to paint her before). She's a nervous model, so I had to catch her by surprise when I snapped the pic.

Also, I have an article in the California Art Club's newsletter for summer, 2009. It's called ... "The Artist As Critic, Art That Inspires" and it's titled "An Interview With Tony Peters on Edward Hopper". Written by Miriam Noske, I'm really proud of how it turned out. It is an articulate dialogue about my award winning self-portrait "Looking Inward", comparing it to an Edward Hopper painting called "Office In a Small City". You can read all three pages on my website... http://www.tonypetersart.com/enlarge/ca/1/