Johns-Art

FENCE POSTS

2010-01-23T14:03:00.000-08:00

A 12X9 oil painting on the rough side of a Masonite panel.

I like the texture and softness that resulted.

This painting is on display at the Courtyard Gallery in Mystic, CT.

Snowy Road

2010-01-23T14:00:00.001-08:00

A 16X20 oil painting.
A smaller version but similar to a painting that I did that was sold 4 years ago.

Twilight Time

2010-01-23T13:56:00.000-08:00

An 11X14 oil painting of a meadow in late afternoon.

Brook

2009-04-06T15:26:00.000-07:00

8X10 oil
This is the first of my 'Moving Water' series.

I donated this painting to the Alliance For Living auction and it was sold on April 4th of this year.

I liked it but I didn't get to look at it very long.
Sometimes it's hard to part with a painting but it went for a good cause.

Brook II

2009-04-06T15:24:00.000-07:00

11X14 oil painting of an imaginary brook.
Part of my 'Moving Water' series.

It's a little softer and larger version of Brook.

Kentford Farm Falls

2009-04-06T14:42:00.000-07:00

10X8 oil of some of the landscaping at the property.
Bill & Paul have done an amazing piece of creativity in taking an old rocky farm and turning it into a spectacular natural setting.
They have outdone nature.
The farm is located on the left side of Rt 184 in Stonington, CT about a half mile east of the Rt 201 intersection if you are coming from the Groton/New London area.

This painting is part of my 'Moving Water' series.

Kentford Farm Spring

2009-04-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

10X8 oil of the landscaping at Kentford Farm in Stonington, Ct.

The owners are in the landscaping business and have created a spectacular setting for their plants and shrubs.

This painting is part of my 'Moving Water' series.

White Water

2009-04-06T14:09:00.000-07:00

18X24 oil on canvas. Part of my new 'Moving Water' series

White Water II

2009-04-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

14X11. Oil on canvas. Part of the 'Moving Water Series' that I am working on.

Long Road Home

2009-04-06T12:36:00.000-07:00

18X24 oil on canvas of not a place to be.
I was going for total desolation with this painting.
Cold, alone and a long way from anywhere.

Street Vendor

2009-04-06T11:45:00.000-07:00

More imagination than reality in this 8X10 oil painting of what I would hope to see in Italy.

Rose Vase

2009-04-06T11:41:00.001-07:00

A very loose 7X5 oil painting.

Fence Flowers

2009-04-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

A small 7X5 fun oil painting.
The view from sitting on the ground.
What a dull world it would be withouth flowers.

Jetty

2009-04-06T11:21:00.000-07:00

This 18X24 oil on canvas could be anywhere but it happens to be in Jamaica

Spirit of Jamaica

2009-04-06T11:14:00.000-07:00

A change of pace and style.
Here I tried to capture the motion and color of the Jamaican dancers.
A 24X30 acrylic on canvas.

Peonies & Pewter

2009-04-06T11:09:00.000-07:00

16X20 oil on canvas.

It's Winter Again

2009-04-06T11:05:00.000-07:00

10X8 acrylic on panel.
The same barn painted in winter and summer.

Barn In Summer

2009-04-06T11:02:00.000-07:00

10X8 acrylic on panel of a typical New England setting.

Bougainvillaea

2009-04-06T10:57:00.000-07:00

11X14 acrylic on canvas at Royal Decameron Club Caribbean in Jamaica.
Flowers and shrubbery at this resort are incredible.

Waterlilies

2009-04-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

A very serene 8X10 oil painting

FOREVER

2009-04-06T10:45:00.000-07:00

This 24 by 18 acrylic painting was created for the Valentine's Day Show at the Courtyard Gallery in Mystic, CT in 2009.
The initials carved into the heart are of the artists, gallery owners and another couple who are the core "family" of the gallery.
It sold at it's unveiling.

Windham Farm

2009-04-06T10:39:00.000-07:00

An 8X10 acrylic painted after a trip to the Catskills last summer.
An area of rugged mountains and great scenery.

Foggy Cove

2009-04-06T10:34:00.000-07:00

18X24 Oil on canvas
Not a real place. Something I visualized.

PEACH BASKET

2009-04-06T10:28:00.000-07:00

Local peaches in a Longaberger basket
11X14 oil on canvas.

Attic Winow

2009-04-06T10:23:00.001-07:00

ATTIC WINDOW

A 24 by 18 acrylic on canvas of a very untypical post and beam attic.
No clutter!

Trees at Stone Eagle

2008-05-31T09:55:00.000-07:00

Trees from the window of Stone Eagle Studio on a rainy day.

Rain creates a nice soft mood almost washing out the background.

Another quick watercolor.

Shed Stone Eagle Studio

2008-05-31T09:49:00.000-07:00

Ralph Acosta, a very good friend who is an outstanding instructor and watercolorist, recently built a studio on Route i84 in Stonington, Connecticut.

This is a very quick watercolor sketch looking out one of the windows on a rainy day.

Barn Door

2008-05-31T09:46:00.001-07:00

A seres of quickly painted watercolors are a good way to 'loosen up' for painting oils.

Lonely Barn

2008-05-31T09:43:00.001-07:00

Another of several loose watercolors that I have done this month.

Big sky!

Farm House

2008-05-31T09:39:00.000-07:00

A recent loose watercolor of a generic New England farmhouse.

I have been doing a number of quick watercolor scenes this month to 'loosen up' my style.

Kenford Farm Barn

2008-05-31T09:36:00.001-07:00

An acrylic painting which was also painted at Kenford Farm for the Alliance For Living Auction.

Kenford Farm House

2008-05-31T09:27:00.000-07:00

A small oil painting done this month at Kenford Farm on Rt 184 Stonington, CT.

This is a beautifully landscaped property at which guests are welcome to walk the many paths and see the fountains, statuary and koi pond.

This painting was painted for and sold at the auction for The Alliance For Living.

Bottles-III

2008-05-30T14:12:00.001-07:00

Another oil painting on canvas.

This set of three bottle paintings were part of my large one-person show at the Hoxie Gallery in Westerly, Rhode Island during the month of April 2008.

I had 140 paintings on display and I don't feel that I ever want to do a show that large again.

It was a good show though having produced 9 sales.

Bottles II

2008-05-30T14:06:00.000-07:00

I collect bottles and jugs because of the variety of shapes and colors.

When I say I 'collect' I am not exagerating. I have boxes and boxes of bottles in storage in my basement that I intent to paint and photograph.

This and the previous painting are oil on canvas.

Bottles

2008-05-30T13:53:00.000-07:00

Just had a pleasant experience at a new vineyard and winery that recently opened about a mile from where I live so I felt it appropriate to put a few of my paintings of bottles onto the Blog.

The owner of MAUGLE SIERRA VINEYARDS, Paul Maugle, gave my wife and I a tour of the spectacular grounds and 'tasting room'.

The wines are far from the usual and are outstanding.

When we travel we always stop at art galleries and wineries because I paint and my wife conducted tours and 'tastings' at a winery for a number of years.

If you happen to be in Southeastern Connecticut this is one stop that you must put on your map.

The winnery is located at 827 Route 117 in Ledyard, Connecticut.

Fall Colors

2008-02-15T08:48:00.000-08:00

A large oil painting with colors squeezed right out of the tube.

No blending or mixing.

Produces a very vibrant effect.

Rail Fence

2008-02-15T08:46:00.000-08:00

Oil painting of an old rail fence at "The Fantastic Umbrella Factory" in Charlestown, RI.

Icicles

2008-02-15T08:44:00.000-08:00

Typical New England winter day.

Abstract of Brown Still Life

2008-02-15T08:29:00.000-08:00

This is my interpretation of the previous painting, Brown Still Life, as an abstract oil painting.

The view is 'flattened' and presented in a somewhat 'cubist style'.

I have used a repetition of form, line and color to achieve the unity that I feel is necessary in an abstract painting.

Brown Still Life

2008-02-15T08:27:00.000-08:00

An oil painting using burnt sienna, white and black.

Blue Crab

2008-02-15T08:24:00.000-08:00

Whimsical little oil painting on a piece of masonite.

Fish Dock

2008-02-06T09:52:00.000-08:00

A large oil painting with a different perspective. Ultramarine blue, burnt sienna and white.

Swamp Oak

2008-02-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

A lonely watercolor of a lonely tree

Falmouth Marsh

2008-02-05T17:32:00.000-08:00

A watercolor of a marsh at Falmouth, Massachusetts, a town on Cape Cod's south shore

Blue Shutters

2008-02-05T17:29:00.000-08:00

An oil painting of an imagined old coastal town.

Still Life With Books

2008-02-05T17:21:00.000-08:00

A classic still life oil painting.

Rudy

2008-02-05T17:08:00.000-08:00

Rudy Grunwald, owner of the Courtyard Gallery in Mystic, CT and collector of ancient and modern military memorabilia.

Once or twice a year Rudy declares "Uniform Day" and the artists of the Gallery put on authentic full uniforms from his wardrobes of US Civil War, Germany's various wars and campaigns, Russia and England.

This oil painting is the only portrait that I have painted. Portraits are not my favorite subject.

Courtyard Gallery

2008-02-05T17:00:00.000-08:00

This is an acrylic painting of the front of the "Courtyard Gallery" in Mystic, CT.

My work has been on display at this gallery since it opened in November 2004.

When the Gallery originally opened the 'core' group of artists whose work was displayed there became "The Society of Artists & Sculptors".

Every Sunday afternoon since then a group of 5 or 6 artists assemble there to drink wine, eat cheese and talk about art.

Visitors are welcome to the Gallery at any time of the week but coming on a Sunday afternoon is an experience not to be missed.

A Time To Be

2008-02-05T16:58:00.000-08:00

Oil painting of a tranquil evening sail

Campfire

2008-02-05T16:56:00.000-08:00

An unusual subject for a painting.

Acrylic.

Sunset Sail

2008-02-05T16:54:00.000-08:00

Oil painting on the rough side of masonite.

Interesting rough texture.

Rhododendron

2008-02-05T16:49:00.000-08:00

Still life oil painting.

Monhegan Fish House

2008-01-29T16:40:00.000-08:00

Monhegan Island, maine is a painter's paradise.
This building sits on Fish Beach at the harbor.
I have seen this scene painted many times since I painted it but I painted this in 1957.

Poppy

2008-01-29T16:28:00.000-08:00

A watercolor of one of the hundreds that grew in our garden.

Lightning Tree

2008-01-27T12:19:00.000-08:00

This very thick oil painting cannot be appreciated without actually being in its presence.

It is very dramatic.

IHS

2008-01-27T12:12:00.000-08:00

IHS, "In hoc signo vinces".

This is a large complex oil painting depicting the symbols of man.

In it are contained many mathematical symbols, symbols of the physics of nature and symbols of religion.

What else is there?

White Lobster

2008-01-27T12:10:00.000-08:00

Thick oil paint scratched out with the brush handle to represent tiles.

Silver City

2008-01-27T12:07:00.000-08:00

An oil painting using a painting knife and only ultramarine blue, burnt sienna and white.

My favorite colors.

Quiet Harbor

2008-01-27T11:53:00.000-08:00

A large tranquil airbrush painting. The boats are home for the night.

Boats and the sea have been a large part of my life. I have crossed the Pacific six times and have logged over 100,000 miles at sea on a US Navy Destroyer (USS TAYLOR DDE 468).

I have owned sailboats from 8 feet long, that I had built myself, to a 37 foot steel cutter built in Holland.

I had owed two Marinas in Mystic, Connecticut from 1971 to 1986.

The sea enchants; it is never the same twice.

On Ramp Off Ramp

2008-01-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

This oil painting is of the complexity of the city: the buildings, the sky, the water and the bridges that get you in and out of the turmoil.

Kites

2008-01-27T11:41:00.000-08:00

For those of you who have read "The DaVinci Code" this acrylic painting is based on the Fibonacci series.
What appears to be a casual painting of kites is an extremely complex mathematical representation.

Leonardo Fibonacci, or Leonardo of Pisa (1170?-1240?), was an Italian mathematician who established a series of numbers such that each successive number was the sum of the previous two. The series is: 0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21…(nx+nx+1)…

The ratio of adjacent Fibonacci Numbers approaches the number 1.618 as the numbers approach infinity. This number has some very interesting characteristics and has been designated with the Greek letter F, phi. The number is as important in nature as the letter P, pi, is in physics.
The four kites near the center each lie at one of these ‘Golden Points’. Four kites lie at one half that distance from the edges and two lie at one quarter of that distance. The ‘reference’, or starting kite is the red kite in the upper left corner.
Each kite’s length follows the mathematical formula of 1.2X FXL, starting with X=0 where F=1.618, phi, the ‘Golden Number’ and ‘L’ is the ‘unit length’.
Regarding the number of kites. Consideration was given to the ‘magical’ numbers of 7 and 13. Seven would have implied ‘good luck’ while thirteen would have implied ‘bad luck’ so the number of kites was chosen midway between, or 10, implying ‘no luck’ but total intent.
To have used 7 kites would have eliminated the three largest which would have made the painting weak with too much open space. To have chosen 13 kites would not have allowed all the kites to be seen because there would have been three larger kites which would have overlapped and obscured the smaller kites.
As each kite’s length increased, the proportion of width to length (aspect ratio) was made decreasingly smaller so that the longer the kite, the narrower it became.
Each kite’s tail is equal to the length of the kite and is painted in the complementary color of the kite.
The string that tethers each kite is influenced by gravity so that it hangs in an arc, a ‘catenary’, descending from the attachment point of the kite to the ground and becomes progressively straighter as it nears the ground. All the kite strings would appear to be parallel to an observer on the ground but the kites are being viewed from an altitude close to the largest kites.

Being a physicist, how could I not paint this?

Gourds

2008-01-27T11:36:00.000-08:00

An acrylic painting built up with very thick acrylic gel.

The thickness of the paint is as much as 1/2 inch in many places.

Very interesting shadows with some side lighting.

Brown With Leaves

2008-01-27T11:33:00.000-08:00

This is another mixed media oil painting.

Over the painting I have worked encaustic.

I enjoy experimenting as you will notice in much of my work.

All That Glitters

2008-01-27T11:30:00.000-08:00

This is a mixed-media painting.

Primarily air-brush, glass and tungsten chips

and room-temperature vulcanizing rubber.

It's most interesting under intense light.

My Sister

2008-01-27T11:27:00.000-08:00

The is an abstract representation

of the sister that I never had.

Motion in the City--Ferrari

2008-01-27T11:22:00.000-08:00

This abstract oil painting is five feet long.

I feel that an abstract painting should be much more than dripping or splashing paint on a canvas.

There should be a unity with regard to color, a repetition of form and line and the painting should be harmonious.

Squeaker Cove

2008-01-27T11:14:00.000-08:00

This is a very heavy-textured abstract oil painting

of Squeaker Cove on Monhegan Island, Maine.

This island is a painter's paradise.

Every few feet and in any direction you

walk is a sight worthy of painting.

East to West

2008-01-27T11:09:00.000-08:00

This abstract oil painting represents a sweep across the US from lower Manhattan and Battery Park in New York City to the California Golden Gate Bridge.

I spent my early chilhood playing in Battery Park at the edge of New York Harbor and much later I passed under the Golden Gate Bridge on a troop ship bound for Korea.

Golden Castle

2008-01-27T11:03:00.000-08:00

This is an unusual painting.

It is painted in metallic acrylics:

bronze, pewter, copper, silver, gold

and black

Spider

2008-01-23T18:04:00.000-08:00

A change of pace. Acrylic painting.

Durham In Fall

2008-01-23T18:02:00.000-08:00

An oil painting of a

field in Durham, NH.

Rocky Coast

2008-01-23T17:57:00.000-08:00

A composite of a scene of

Monhegan Island, Maine

mixed with some imagination.

The term is 'artistic license'.

Oil painting

Mountain Laurel

2008-01-23T17:54:00.000-08:00

This small shrub survived

a very long time at our

old house which had been

built in 1799.

It only lived another year

after I painted it.

Good timing.

Water color.

Morning Marsh

2008-01-23T17:51:00.000-08:00

The title pretty much tells the story.

A small oil painting

The Cape

2008-01-23T17:48:00.000-08:00

Oil painting of an imagined shore.

Burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and white.

Strawflowers

2008-01-23T17:45:00.000-08:00

A nice combination of weeds

from the yard

in a vase that I made.

Oil painting

Hibiscus

2008-01-20T13:21:00.000-08:00

In Jamaica they grow everywhere.

Snack Bar

2008-01-20T13:18:00.000-08:00

A laid-back scene at Royal Decameron Montego Bay.

This is the sister resort of Runaway Bay.

Same good food

Same good service.

Same good management.

How can you go wrong?

Tropical Beach-1

2008-01-20T12:47:00.000-08:00

This was a small pen & ink sketch that I made on the beach at Club Caribbean then gave it 'life' with watercolor.

A simple way to record your trips.

One Love

2008-01-20T12:45:00.000-08:00

Perfect place to be.

.....with the right one!

Glass Bottom Boat

2008-01-20T12:15:00.000-08:00

This boat makes a number of trips a day from the resort. You don't have to get wet if you want to see fish and coral.

In addition to the SCUBA diving, you can snorkle at the reefs.

Be aware of the need for sun screen on your back, you can get so absorbed in the view that you can get a serious burn.

Dive Shop

2008-01-20T12:13:00.000-08:00

The people at the dive shop are very helpful.

If you want to learn SCUBA diving this is the place.

After an introduction in the pool you can be off to see some of the spectacular fish and coral.

Dive Boats

2008-01-20T12:08:00.000-08:00

The water transparency here ranges between 80 to 100 feet.

The water temperature is always 80 degrees.

This is at the beach at Club Caribbean at Runaway Bay.

A watercolor.

Jamaican Hut

2008-01-20T12:02:00.000-08:00

This was the first watercolor that I did on one of the early trips to Jamaica.

We had been going there for a number of years before I had considered doing anything other than eating and enjoying the sun and beach.

This is the resort at Club Caribbean, part of the Royal Decameron

group of worlwide resorts.

Jamaica Road

2008-01-20T11:57:00.000-08:00

This was a scene in Trelawny, Jamaica which lies on the north shore between Montego Bay and Runaway Bay.
A lot of people walk in Jamaica. Cars are expensive and most roads are bad.
We take owning a car in the US as a 'God given right'. That's not so in much of the world.

Two Gulls

2008-01-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

A pair of gulls having a lazy afternoon

at a fishing port.

Gulls are always hungry so they are

always looking.

A water color.

Outcrop

2008-01-20T11:22:00.000-08:00

This is part of the fortification of the Revolutionary War

fort, Fort Griswold in Groton, CT.

The fort is situated on the east side of the Thames River

across from Fort Trumbull which guarded the west side of the river and the port of New London.

Both forts were taken by the British by Benedict Arnold's

troops after he deserted the American cause.

Lobster Bouys

2008-01-20T11:16:00.000-08:00

New England is home to some fine lobsters.

The lobster 'pots' are dropped into rocky

areas and their location is marked with a bouy

which identifies the owner.

The line from the pot to the bouy can often

be found caught on the rudder of a sailboat

or wrapped around the prop of a power boat.

Beach Rose Path

2008-01-20T11:00:00.001-08:00

This is the scene of the right side of my previous painting,

Poppenesset Beach. I took away the fence andI have made

the path to the beach steeper and more mysterious.

Serenity

2008-01-20T10:58:00.000-08:00

What else could I call this painting?

A soft warm late afternoon oil painting.

Snow Scene

2008-01-20T10:55:00.000-08:00

A generic typical winter scene.

An oil painting.

Scalloper

2008-01-19T15:56:00.000-08:00

This is a small boat used in the Mystic Harbor, Mystic CT.

Mystic is a very picturesque area in southeastern Connecticut.

Some of the fastest clipper ships ever built were built here in the mid 1800's.

The history stills lives on in the Mystic Maritime Museum.

Italian Doorway

2008-01-19T15:47:00.000-08:00

Who lives behind that door?

Are they rich or are they poor?

Are they young or are they old?

Do they have a cat?

Do they have a dog?

Do they have a bird in a cage?

Do they have goldfish in a bowl?

Who knows?

Main's Farm

2008-01-19T15:45:00.000-08:00

A local winter scene of an old farm on Route 184 in Stonington, CT

The Queen Is Down

2008-01-19T15:40:00.000-08:00

Somewhat of an abstract oil painting.

The pawns don't know what to do.

BLUE CITY

2008-01-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

This subject of this large oil painting

.... is open to your interpretation.

BLACK NIGHT

2008-01-19T08:43:00.000-08:00

This oil painting of mine won 2nd prize

at the Mystic Arts Center

in the summer of 2007.

The theme was Red, White & Black

Evening Shadows

2008-01-19T08:34:00.000-08:00

Self-explanatory.

An acrylic painting

Fishing Shack

2008-01-19T08:30:00.001-08:00

The end of a perfect day

An oil painting

Cattails

2008-01-19T08:26:00.000-08:00

The shore--

whether a lake, a river or the ocean

creates tranquility.

an oil painting