MARCH 2024

 

I am inspired by the simple beauty I find in nature, filtered through constant observation and my interest in light and color. The natural world inspires awe that can evoke common memories and experiences for each of us, it is why we occasionally need to be outside, a shared experience that connects us to each other.

A lifetime of observation has made me acutely aware of change. The experience of each moment is unique, never to be repeated, and it is remarkable how quickly the movement of the sun and changes in weather and atmosphere can occur. I am drawn to the dramatic light at the beginning and the end of the day. 
 
In the mid 80's, in Bucks County, I began painting along the Delaware Canal that parallels both sides of the river. I would make small "plein air" sketches as preliminaries to formal studio paintings.

 

Ten years on, a move to Chester County began the practice of painting from memory, an accommodation to the demands of work and family. For the next twenty years I worked making images recalled from my daily travels. Large paintings were made "alla prima", (at first attempt), in one session. They were experiments in color, teased from my imagination that fulfilled my need to paint in whatever time I could find.

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DAWN ON PINK 20 X 32  Oil on Canvas

 

In 2013, I landed in West Chester and returned to the practice of painting plein air. I was fortunate to discover Stroud Preserve, 570 acres of protected open space maintained by Natural Lands. Stroud sparked my imagination and reminded me of the fields, woods, and farmland where I played as a boy.
 
In 2023, I completed a project to capture this experience; “The Landscapes of Stroud Preserve”, a body of work inspired by the constantly changing light and weather across the four seasons.