The Week of Weir
Since I’m always a sucker for American Impressionism, I’ve chosen one of my favorites for the closing week of August: Julian Alden Weir. His birthday is the 30th of August, so let’s ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
August Gems of the Month: Franz Marc
My own painting and way of approaching color is very much influenced by certain German Expressionists. Their unbridled revelry in color always puts a smile on my face, and I’m willing to bet it ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
An August Painting: Mark Tobey
I know we’re no longer on the “edge of August,” but this painting’s title gives me an excuse to showcase the work of one of the less-hyped New York School artists. Like many of ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
Keep Summer Going with Color: Theodore Earl Butler
Although I guess technically August is the last full month of summer, once August rolls around New Englanders are prone to saying, “well, summer’s over!” The only way an art historia ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
Saying Goodbye to World Watercolor Month 2023
Watercolor can be a very unforgiving medium—boy, don’t I know it! I started out studying for an MFA in painting using gouache and watercolor, but my professors suggested that what I was tr ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
Do Not Deface! Historic Sites to Visit Respectfully
As an art historian and artist, I am appalled by recent incidents of tourists defacing the Colosseum (72–80 CE) in Rome and Toshodai-ji (founded 759 CE) in Nara, Japan, with their initials. It i ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
The Psychedelic Poster
This fabulous poster advertised a rock show at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco that occurred on this date in 1966. The Fillmore was a “temple” to rock music at the time. It is con ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
Gem of the Month: Morgan Russell
As I did with Charles Willson Peale (1741–1827) last week, I'm presenting another American original today: Morgan Russell. Russell was one of the first American artists to exhibit nono ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
An American Original: Charles Willson Peale
In England’s American colonies, it was natural for colonial artists who were eager for a vital school of painting of their own to look to British art for inspiration. By the time of the American ...
Read More
Curator's Corner
Summer's Here: Mary Petty
It always seems a long time coming—and then it’s over before we know it—but summer is here! Let’s mark the occasion with a truly gifted illustrator of books and magazines, Mary ...
Read More