Sargent House Museum August 21, 2011: HERE AND NOW!

Pears from the garden at The Sargent House Museum in Gloucester MA. The black spots on the fruit and leaves:  fire blight?  There is a quince planted within 10 feet, showing same signs. Quince were destroyed in the United States during the 30's or 40's due to extensive fire blight, which can take out entire orchards.  Is there an expert reading this that is willing to take a look?  The museum is in need of some community support through volunteerism and membership.  The garden entrance is on Main Street between La Trattoria and Bananas Vintage, up the granite steps. 

I have lots of work in progress developed from my 2 Sundays in the garden.  Verre Eglomise and metal leaf on panel.  stay tuned.

best,

deb

Sargent House Museum, Sunday July 17

If you are in town, come on down! there will be art making and greeting in the garden of this great historic house museum!

the link will take you to goodmorning gloucester, where there is a great write-up about the artists that will be working in the gardens of the Sargent House Museum this summer.  Some of John Singer Sargent's early 'doodles' are on display this summer.  along with Judith Sargent Murray's little desk, and the shoe that was nailed against the chimney? The Sargent doodles are equated with today's 'refrigerator magnets' in one of the write-ups about the museum.  The gardens face Main Street (up the steps).  Entrance to the museum is on Middle Street.  come on down and say hello!

there is fruit growing in this garden.  it's going to be hot; so wear a hat.  i will bring some glass, some sharpies, some foil, some water, a hat, and see what happens.  oh, yes!  I am one of the artists working in the garden tomorrow!

best,
deb

Building the Empire Show: sneak peek 7

Transferring Hokkusai 'The  Great Wave".  4 panels complete.  Brother Mike notes the images get very dimensional when the voided space of the 8x8" stretchers is considered during the re-construction.  

copyright debbie clarke 2011

gloucester ma

vinyl transfer, packing tape, aluminum leaf, Kanku dye (non-edible, not for human consumption)

Hopskipping through Social Media

If you click the title, it should take you to goodmorninggloucester wherein a discussion about art is going on. 

This all started from my Facebook Friend Paula's link to a video share about art; which I then shared through my  wall.  I then posted the link on Paul Frontiero's Facebook wall, with a suggestion to post it on goodmorninggloucester.  Paul posted the Creature Comfort's video with a question to consider art, thus the discussion thread.  I love the irreverent ending of this video.  

I will now tweet this message.  I don't use twitter often, but would love to see where this post goes. looking forward to seeing where this post gets shared to whether twitter, gmg, facebook, your blog, your friends.


My contribution to the art discussion on goodmorninggloucester is about art as an energy exchange.  This idea was first presented to me through the writings of American artist Audrey Flack.  This little book has been a studio companion for 20 years.  always recommended to my students and artist friends.  She covers vast territory of contemporary art thought, process, the market place, the national juries.  always thought-provoking.  "not everyone can be in New York.  there is a place for regionalism."

more true today, than when American regionalism was the rage.

happy travels post! time for a game of Hop, Skip and Jump!
best, deb.

Debbie Clarke June 2011

Building an Empire Show!

Debbie Clarke

June 2011

Gloucester MA

location:  Public 

The box contains 18 completed packing tape and leaf works.  There are enough stretchers to complete 12 more (2down/1 in process).  This is the work that represents my 'winter' work cycle; which is, usually, spent working with paper, wax, gild.  This year packing tape is the newest material to enter the mix.  

This work is rarely shown as it is experimental, the place of dreams, usually on the studio wall until packed away.  This will be a rare light in Gloucester with a glimpse into my winter world where I demand more and more of my materials.  It is challenging to not work with a figurative intent.   When a figure appears, it comes out of the process, as oppossed to imposed upon the surface.

When this cycle is completed I will set up the outside oil studio and continue the black foil series with a focus on the palimpsest.

best,

deb

Out of Dream Time into Art Time

personal, communal and psychic history are prominent themes in my work.  recent dreams have provided me a framework for the further development of this theme.  the work will be visual, written, spoken, video, whatever and everything i can think of to define a specific family tree.  a tree with a garden that is just the earth beneath it and the sky above it, no more no less, but the volume is vast.  a mandala of sorts... here's the first flush of an outline.

written by me.  all rights reserved, debbie clarke, gloucester ma november 4, 2010

Magnolia boats 2001

The  Magnolia Boats 2001 can now be seen at The Windemere Gallery of Arts and Antiques in Rockport.  The painting is oil on canvas, painted from memory.  it was a white hot day in the milky harbor. 

Art Not Art

another blip in the slideshow with an interesting transposition of color. these images are more interesting to me than the actual painting. maybe i will use these ideas for new work, maybe not.

Art Not Art

This is a pic of a painting of capt joes, that is on my screen saver slide show. this image exists no where except on my computer, and the original pic has reverse values.   from obtuse angles, i see something else. this image above,  that is a resident file on my harddrive, shared here.  i have been tempted to paint it; but, why?  the image pleases me.  what happens when something is closely observed?  it changes.  

"Take an object, do something to it, do something else to it."  Jasper Johns

Art Not Art

a digital pic of my screen saver, which is a slideshow of my digital pics.  the original image refers to capt joe's.  goodmorninggloucester!

Art Not Art

This is a photo of my screen saver.  My screen saver is a slideshow of my digital photographs.  This photo that you see on my screen saver exists no where, except as a resident file in my computer, and now it is shared here.  The original photo is of the steps to my yard with the gardens cool in green.  The colors that are on the computer screen, appear as other colors when the screen is viewed from an obtuse angle.  

moving on

for a brief moment i thought to throw this painting away. and i begin the sharpie series. documentation of drawings to appear on a new tab "Sharpie Drawings"

The wip (work-in-progress): the dry state

I scraped off the paper, washed the panel with fresh 1:1:1 and started again.  maybe i will try again tomorrow.  the tide keeps changing, tomorrow i should have at least 2 horus before it has changed too much.  then, i will have to start another painting.  i need to just look at the painting as painting and realize i will never replicate the beauty and complexity of my source material.  the pic of the view follows.  and no, i don't paint from photographs, although a pic can simplify the masses and bring understanding.  it's the color experience that is wanting in my work today.  tomorrow may be better, or not.  and this panel may need to be trashed.  will see.

best,

deb.

Straight out of Camera: SOOC

Bananas' widow on Main Street.  May 13, 2010

In front of the glass, behind the glass. no edit

copyright debbie clarke 2010

gloucester ma

Cripple Cove, Sunday morning painting class

a reader of this magpie's nest inquired about the plaque attached to the buoy that is moored high and dry at the Cripple Cove Landing (which is where we meet on Sunday mornings ((6:30am!)) to paint.  There are 4 plaques!  This is the seaward side of the buoy. 

and these are the paintings we did.  left 1,2,3:  Paul Frontiero.  center on clipboard:  Liz Bish.  next:  Debbie Clarke demo of a gesture painting reflecting my response to the color and feel of the morning. on right:  Tom Amend.  Last week painter Jeff Weaver stopped by and noted everyone was painting a different view.  This past Sunday we all faced the backlit hill with sun rising behind.  3/4 of the way through the class I introduced pthalo green into each of the students' palette, showing them the cool/warm possibilities.  

Liz wanted to know what I would do next to my painting.  Nothing.  maybe I will sign it.  The gesture is a completely different 'scene' than the one I started with.  When I started to paint I did not know what was interesting about what I was observing.  I made one spot of color against another.  between conversations with students I painted and then 'wham' the dark shape pressing down on the center of the picture plane against the house caught my eye.

"Cripple Cove gesture"

 5/2/10

copyright:  debbie clarke

oil on canvas 

12x16"

PS:  Thank you Joan Mitchell for painting your landscapes.

best, deb.

Artist at Work (training painting)

while the students painted Sunday morning, I started a 'training' painting. i drew with conte crayon and gesso on a small gessoed canvas 10x10".  yesterday i took a pic of the scene at low tide and today i took one at high tide.  the sounds and 'feel' of Sunday morning reminded me of Venice.  yesterday i placed a light blue to establish the large cool and warm shapes.  it feels like Venice.  what struck me most this morning is that the photos tend to flatten and elongate the horizontal shapes.  the vertical shapes don't have the scale that i feel when placed within the 'cube' of space i stand in and use for reference.

My Paintbox

Here's my french easel set-up for painting:  a few big brushes, a few rounds, maybe a filbert, a small brayer.
My colors:

cad yellow light
lemon yellow
cad yellow medium
yellow ochre
raw sienna
burnt sienna
grumbacher red (napthol red)
alizarin crimson
pthalo green
winsor blue (pthalo blue)
cobalt blue
ultramarine blue
grumbacher pre-test white, original formula (titanium white)

medium:  1 part stand oil, 1 part damar, 1 part turp

thinner for cleaning brushes

for beginners I recommend 3 colors:  cad yellow medium, grumbacher red, cobalt blue and white, a small jar of oil painting medium and some gessoed boards, a few brushes (boar bristle is fine)

a portable easel

if you try painting and want to continue, you will want to invest in more colors, brushes, medium and an easel for outdoor painting.

best,
deb.

Refrigerator Bio in 4 Parts

Three refrigerator magnets, courtesy of my friend Brenda support the painting that i am working on.  i did the chalk drawing during the Sunday morning painting class.  the orange chalk is sealed with yesterday morning's application of oil/damar.  today the drawing is refined with a few cool blotches.  also note the refrigerator bio.

detail with ganesh, calculator magnet, howard kline inspirational art card.

another view with refrigerator poetry

the big picture.

Prince Conger!

Domenic Cretara suggested that if I ever had the opportunity to study with Conger Metcalf, that I should.   Within a year of leaving The Art Institute I found myself exhibiting with Conger at Boston's Park Street Church.  I introduced myself, showed him my work and gave Domenic's recommendation.  Conger had a studio above a cleansers on Charles Street.  We would meet on Wednesday evenings during the weekly 'cocktail hour'.  I was placed at a window with a plaster cast of a head.  My instructions were to draw the symmetry of the face.  Several weeks passed this way, I drew at the window, Conger entertained.  On the final night of my lessons (4, 6?) he gave me a plaster cast of a face.  He told me to return when I could draw the symmetry of the face.

20 odd years later my daughter EB and I returned the cast to him.  "Are you here to see the Prince?"  and then "Prince Conger, your audience is here."  then to us, "go on, up the stairs to the top on the left.  we passed stacks and stacks of paintings and books.  His rooms...Venetian tapestries, gilded frames, Venetian Shutters nailed to the walls.  and Conger, "did you bring the pink Ginger Ale?".

I returned the mask to Conger and told him that while the face appears to be symmetrical, there is no real symmetry, the left and right sides are not alike.  "oh, really."  he laughed.  "you know, I gave all of these masks away.  this is the first to return."

He reviewed my work.  suggested I was having a lot of fun with my work and asked if I taught.  me, full of myself, suggested that "I haven't had to" and as soon as the words were out of my mouth, i knew the slap in the face to the generosity of my teachers.  as if whether i taught or not had anything to do with my needs (although teaching is incredibly fulfilling), in that moment the needs of a student entered my thoughts.  3 days later my first student entered my studio.

Conger's painting is up for auction through the Blackwood Auctions in Essex on April 28.  estimate $400-$600.  wish I could.

sleep on sweet Prince.
deb.

artist at work