Greetings, Art Lovers, We hope you haven't forgotten us! It hasn't been easy, getting together over the last year or so, to record a podcast, but we hope you are all safe and happy and anxious to tune in to another episode of all things Art. This is our Memorial Day weekend special. Just to bring things up to date, Connie tells us about the progress on her book and her work with the Camera Lucida, and David talks about how important it was to get out into the garden last summer to paint outdoors even during the lockdown. Connie and the Camera Lucida! David 'Looking Back,' o/c, 18x14----more---- Meanwhile, Judy is working with Dale Ratcliff Movalli on putting together a book of Charles Movalli's American Artist articles, 'Conversations with...' featuring many of Cape Ann's best loved painters. Lots of advice and acumen delivered in Charlie's own inimitable style! Coming soon. Connie and David's Sight and Insight Zoom program continues to grow and they talk about the actualization of their teaching, including the Metaphysical Toolbox and what we can learn from Monet.                 Above: From Monet's Grainstack Series Check out their websites lorwenpaintings.com and davidpcurtis.com for more information on the Sight and Insight Zoom Program, and registration. Wishing you and your loved ones a safe, happy and healthy Memorial Day weekend 2021. Cheers, Connie, David and Judy      

Episode 42 Greetings, Art Lovers, We hope you are still all safe and healthy during these trying times. With quarantine, isolation, and sequestration still ongoing, we must take care of our mental health as well as our physical well being. With that in mind, Judy kicks off with how art helps keep her on an even keel. Connie shares her ideas on how to keep going when life is almost at a standstill, and David updates us on how he has been keeping busy.  Connie and David, who both love to paint Plein Air but are currently sequestered in the studio, share images of recent interiors and how to bring a different mindset to working indoors. The three of them also discuss recent books they've been reading on art, art history, and creative psychology. They like to cover all the bases.  The Yin Corner by Lorwen C. Nagle In addition, David discusses artists he has known, including Don Stone, Tom Nicholas, N. A., and T. M. Nicholas and their working methods. The Yang Corner by David P. Curtis Then the discussion moves towards the importance of art history and what we can learn from earlier masters. David talks about George Inness, Connie discusses Klimt, Moll, and the Vienna Secession, while Judy chips in with the importance of local art history and some of the books she has authored over recent years. Need something to read while you are waiting for your paint to dry? Here are some choices recommended to the Sight & Insight crew: From Connie: Here are some books I’d recommend that focus on the connection between art and psychology. Kandel, Eric R., 2013. The Age of Insight. Random House: New York Gombrich, E.H., 2000. Art & Illusion. Bollingen Series XXXV: Princeton University Press. Kris, Ernst. 1965. Psychoanalytic Explorations in Art. International Universities Press: New York. Arnheim, Rudolf. 1974. Art and Visual Perception: A Psychology of the Creative Eye (New Version). University of California Press: Berkley From David: These are some of the books on art that I never tire of picking up and leafing through: From Judy: It's hard to pick a favorite out of all the art books we have around the house, but anyone wanting to know more about Cape Ann's connection to the art world should try: Artists of Cape Ann: A 150 Year Tradition by Kristian Davies Joseph DeCamp by Laurene Buckley Frank Duveneck: Painter-Teacher by Josephine W. Duveneck. And if you are interested, here are just a few of the books Judy has written on Cape Ann art and artists.  Well, that's it for this week's podcast. We hope you enjoy it. Hopefully, Connie, David, and Judy will be able to get back together again soon, so, until then, stay safe and healthy and immerse yourself in ART! Cheers, David, Connie, and Judy

Greetings, Art Lovers! We hope you are safe and healthy during the current social distancing parameters. Having isolated ourselves for the original two weeks and showing no ill effects, we decided to risk a podcast to send our best wishes to all you art lovers out there who are beginning, like us, to feel the cabin fever. Don't worry, we all kept a safe distance from the microphones, but we wanted to share some uplifting thoughts with you and encourage you to get out your paints, brushes, pastels, art books, snacks, and any other paraphernalia you might need to begin creating. Your imagination and creativity can take you well beyond the boundaries to which we must adhere at the moment. Edgar Degas A Ballet Seen from an Opera Box, 1885, pastel 29 ½ x 20, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Phila, PA. People call me the painter of dancing girls. It has never occurred to them that my chief interest in dancers lies in rendering movement and painting pretty clothes. — Edgar Degas Not sure where to start? Tune in now as David, Connie and Judy share thoughts and observations on art in general and what they have been doing to keep busy. Connie begins with the fact that art is a safe haven during troubled times and relates how she has been working on a giant-sized painting (42 x 58?!) to engage her imagination. David has been cultivating Alexander Cozens' 'blot technique' and is fascinated by what can be found by creating a blot or scribble and then pulling a landscape or rocky coastline out of the fog. They also discuss Giovanni Boldini and Edgar Degas both of whom aspired to create the effect of movement in their work; Degas with his racehorses and ballerinas, and Boldini, known as the "Master of Swish", according to Time because of his flowing style of painting. ["Art: Master of Swish". time.com. 3 April 1933]   Giovanni Boldini, Portrait of the Countess Zichy, 1905, no details. Observe how much movement Boldini creates with loose and flowing brushwork to emulate the texture of satin and net, as well as the suggested motion of the Countess. Softened lines contribute to the effect of movement.                   As Connie says, we often find ambiguity in paintings, suggested notes that our minds try to comprehend. Is that flick of white on the horizon a mis-stroke by the artist, or, no, wait, it's a sailboat, a schooner in full sail, perhaps a rider on a white horse in a desert scene. The viewer is instantly engaged with the painting as his, or her, imagination discovers other small details. "We are wired," says Connie, our resident artist-psychologist, "to make something out of ambiguity."  Judy updates us on several art talks and presentations that had to be canceled, including "A Father & Son's Journey in Paint" Tom Nicholas, N. A. and T. M. Nicholas at the Cape Ann Museum, 'Gloucester Through the Artist's Eye for the Cape Ann College Women's Club and a presentation at the Whistler House Museum of Art in Lowell on A. T. Hibbard by both Judy and David. The latter two events are being rescheduled, and will be announced when they finally make it on to the calendar, even if it's next year! Finally, David muses on the 2020 competition for a free workshop. He is still finessing the details but we ask you to stay tuned and, as soon as he has an official announcement, we will let you know. In the meantime, don't forget: Difficulties are opportunities to better things, they are stepping stones to greater experience. Perhaps someday you will be thankful for some temporary failure in a particular direction. When one door closes, another always opens, as a natural law, it has to be, to balance. — Bryan Adams   HILAIRE-GERMAIN-EDGAR DEGAS (FRENCH, 1834–1917) BEFORE THE RACE, c. 1882, Oil on panel, 10 1/2 x 13 3/4 in. The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, MA. Acquired by Sterling and Francine Clark, 1939. Ac. No. 1955.557

Episode 40 [P]erception and thinking cannot get along without each other." Rudolf Arnheim, Visual Thinking, University of California Press, 1972, p. 188 Roger W. Curtis (1910-2000) Break, break, break, on thy cold grey stones, O sea! o/c, 25 x 30 Seasons Greetings, Art Lovers! Join Connie, David and Judy for a chat around the coffee table as they discuss the Paradox of Painting. By definition, a paradox is "a situation, person, or thing that combines contradictory features or qualities." So what are some of the paradoxes we come across in painting? Well, there's the notion of Concept (ie interior thoughts) -v- Percept (external, action-oriented). Or Light -v- darkness. We also have Improvisation, rifting off one thing to come up with another;  winging it -v- a literal, by-the-rules approach. There's also ambiguity -v- the clearly defined and, lastly, just as magnets can both attract and repel, there is the paradox in painting of Attraction, or Forms that Welcome us -v- Repulsion. Too much of anything can also rebuff us. In painting, balance does not necessarily mean equality of elements. In learning to work with these paradoxes, we have to turn to the Grand School of Nature: the artist's greatest inspiration! George Inness, the prominent American landscape painter is a wonderful example of what can be achieved with paint and canvas. George Inness, The Storm, 1885, Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, NC, US We hope you enjoy the conversation. Join us next time for more thoughts on art and the people who make it. Until then: Happy Holidays from Connie, David and Judy       Deck the Halls Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Don we now our gay apparel, Fa la la, la la la, la la la. Troll the ancient Yule tide carol, Fa la la la la, la la la la. See the blazing Yule before us, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Strike the harp and join the chorus. Fa la la la la, la la la la. Follow me in merry measure, Fa la la la la, la la la la. While I tell of Yule tide treasure, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Fast away the old year passes, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Hail the new, ye lads and lasses, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Sing we joyous, all together, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Heedless of the wind and weather, Fa la la la la, la la la la. The music to Deck the Halls is believed to Welsh in origin and was reputed to have come from a tune called "Nos Galan" dating back to the sixteenth century. In the eighteenth century Mozart used the tune to Deck the Halls for a violin and piano duet J.P. McCaskey is sometimes credited with the lyrics of Deck the Halls but he only edited the Franklin Square Song Collection in which the lyrics were first published. The first publication date of Deck the Halls is 1881.

There is No Direct Path to Reality, or Alexander Cozens and the Blot on the Landscape Connie began reading about the psychology of Cozens' work - preceding the Roscharch psychological test by a decade or more - and passed on her findings to David, who also became intrigued. They will be covering Cozens' work in more depth in their upcoming book, In Focus 2020. Judy then picked up the baton and started researching Cozens and was, of course, delighted to find he has English roots, albeit he was born in St. Petersburg, or thereabouts, where his father was working at the time on creating Peter the Great’s imperial navy.  Alexander Cozens, Vale near Matlock, Derbyshire, oil on canvas, 27 1/2 x 35 1/2, private collection Cozens (1717–1786) studied in London from 1727, and by 1733 had learned etching. After his father's death in 1735, Cozens returned to Russia to assist his family who were suffering hard times. In spring of 1746, Cozens sailed for Italy, and settled in Rome. He worked in the studio of the eminently successful French landscapist Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714-89), making Cozens one of the first British artists to study and work in Rome. Sadly, Cozens lost many of his Italian works while traveling through Germany on his return to England in 1749. Interestingly, those paintings that did survive were recovered in Florence by his son in 1776. Want to know more? Here is a great link to further information and images Alexander Cozens - Experimental Painter, His Tercentenary Alexander Cozens (1717–1786), A Blot-Lake with Boat, Surrounded by Trees (date not known), brush and black ink, 16.2 x 21 cm, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1930), New York, NY. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, via Wikimedia Commons. If you have enjoyed discovering the work of Alexander Cozens as much as Connie, David and Judy have, then check out more of his work online. His method of landscape painting is truly inspirational! Alexander Cozens, A Blot: Landscape Composition, c.1770–80. Watercolour and graphite on paper, Tate, London, UK, purchased as part of the Oppé Collection with assistance from the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund 1996Ref.: T08114 Cozens's famous 'blot' technique was fully evolved by the 1750s. However he did not explain it in detail until the publication of 'A New Method of Assisting the Invention in Drawing Original Compositions of Landscape' (1786). The idea seems to have originally been developed by him as a teaching aid, to liberate the imagination of the student who, he felt, spent too much time in copying the works of others. He wrote that the blot was a 'production of chance, with a small degree of design'. The true blot was 'an assemblage of accidental shapes', 'forms without lines from which ideas are presented to the mind'. Blotting was done deliberately, the 'rude forms' which result having been made 'at will'. [Tate, London, UK Gallery label, September 2004] "Everything that is painted directly and on the spot has always a strength, a power, a vivacity of touch which one cannot recover in the studio... three strokes of a brush in front of nature are worth more than two days of work at the easel." — Eugene Boudin Until next time, happy painting, happy art loving, David, Judy and Connie   

Greetings, Art Lovers! Well, it's a while since we were able to gather around the coffee table and talk art. Where did the summer go? Life in the 21st century can be very hectic. Technology is great - while it's working right. When it isn't, it can be frustrating. That's why we really need art, painting, creativity, music, writing and all those things that feed our soul. Join David, Connie and Judy as they catch up with each other after a busy summer. David and Connie, and their friend artist Tom Heinsohn, will be hosting an exhibition in Kittery Point, Maine, on Saturday, September 28 and you are more than welcome to join them for good food, great art, and scintillating conversation. Please park at the First Congregational Church of Kittery Point parking lot, 23 Pepperrell Rd, Kittery Point, ME 03905 and take the chauffeur driven limo to the venue. Cheers, Connie, David and Judy     

Episode 37: Copying the Masters "Perhaps one of the most essential exercises in learning to paint is the copying of master works in the museums." — Igor Babailov Want to paint like a Master? Before you can paint like one whose works have stood the test of time, you have to study their work and comprehend what they did and how they did it. In other words Copy a Master! A. T. Hibbard, Belmont Hills in Winter, 15 x 18, RAA&M Permanent Collection, 12.1.4 This coming weekend, March 23 and 24, David will be teaching a Copying from the Masters workshop at Rockport Art Association & Museum, 12 Main Street, Rockport, MA 01966. Hours: 9.30 - 3.30. Following the time-honored tradition of improving one’s painting skills through the study of master artists, this two-day oil painting workshop will concentrate on replicating masterpieces from the RAA&M Permanent Collection. David Curtis will guide students through the artistic process as students copy works from the Museum Collection. Throughout the day, David will circulate in order to assist students with their understanding of how the selected artists went about creating his or her work while providing insight into the student's individual technique and style. Lorwen 'Connie' Nagle will also be on hand to provide assistance. For sign up, please go direct to Rockport Art Association & Museum: https://www.rockportartassn.org/workshops/painting-from-the-old-masters-with-david-p-curtis Much can be learned through this process and it will enhance your work when you go outdoors to work on your own compositions. And because so many of the paintings in the RAA&M collection are from Cape Ann, many of these scenes may still be available for your to go and paint yourself. Paul Strisik, The Granite Pier, ca. 1960s, 24 x 30, RAA&M Permanent Collection, 02.1.3 Wishing you happy painting days and don't forget to join us in two weeks for some more Sight and Insight with David, Connie and Judy.    

Episode 36: Wagons West or The Texas Two Step This week our intrepid trio discuss plans to head out west to the Lone Star State to paint the early flora and fauna of the Texas Hill Country. "Life is creation – self and circumstances, the raw material." — Dorothy Richardson Julian Onderdonk, Blue Bonnet Field, Early Morning, San Antonio, Texas, 1914, oil on canvas, 30 1/2 x 40, private collection Although a painter should be able to find stimulating material even in his, or her, own back yard, there is nothing like a field trip to stir the creative juices. Of course, you always have to keep your fingers crossed that the weather plays its part, and the flowers bloom at the right moment, but other than that.... Still, if it wasn't for the unknown, life would be boring. The thought of creating the next great painting is what keeps an artist fresh and on their toes. Connie and David talk about what they hope to achieve, and some of the problems artists come up against when traveling with all their gear. One wonders how artists managed it years ago. Jane Peterson, Gertrude Fiske, Frank Duveneck and 'the Boys' traveling throughout Europe, and the intrepid Anthony Thieme, who painted in numerous countries while traveling from his native Holland to Boston. Perhaps they had less rules and regulations to cope with! Jose Arpa y Perea, Verbena, oil on canvas, 24 x 34, Texas Prize, 1927 So, let's cowboy up, and see what gems come out of this trip. Until we talk again, Happy painting to one and all. Connie, David and Judy "Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art." — Leonardo da Vinci            

"The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves." Carl Jung  A. T. Hibbard, Lane's Cove, oc, private collection Creativity, as Jung says, is - or should be - a playful thing. A. T. Hibbard, the noted Cape Ann painter, would tell students that painting is 'hard work,' and that 'if you're not worn out when you're finished, you haven't been doing it right!' However, it is easy to see from any Hibbard painting that despite the hard work aspect, there has also been a playful element included in creating the design. The rhythm seen in a Hibbard scene, especially one of his plein air winter landscapes, shows that despite 'suffering for his work,' he also enjoyed himself immensely. The feeling of excitement and pleasure in the exhilarating moment of creation is easy to discern. So how do we learn to play with our art? Join Connie, David and Judy as they look at different ways to improve your design creativity by changing the way you look and see things. For instance, what do you see below?   Or how about this? Intriguing, right? How easily the mind can play tricks. Hope you enjoy this week's podcast, and it's not too late to sign up for Sunday's critique, February 24, three paintings person, with a brief introduction by Connie on the Voyage of Vision. Come join the fun. Refreshments will be served. Tuition $35. Email davidpcurtis@comcast.net to register. Location will be Gloucester, Massachusetts. Directions will be given on sign up.    Have a great week. Cheers, Connie, David and Judy

"The creative act is not hanging on, but yielding to a new creative movement. Awe is what moves us forward." —Joseph Cambell In today's episode, Connie introduces the two modes of thinking that work together, for an artist, when painting. Understanding how they work will enable you to become even more creative and, thus, more artistic! Connie and David enjoy a great discussion on moving back and forth, from one side of the brain to the other, whereas Judy is apparently stuck in her cubicle and couldn’t even see the bridge from left to right, never mind finder her way to it! Perhaps she’s reading too much. She is currently absorbed in ‘M: The Man Who Became Caravaggio’ by Peter Robb. Michelangelo Meriti da Caravaggio (1571-1610) Martha and Mary Magdalene, c. 1598, oc, 38 1/2 x 52 1/4, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI. PD-US.  All this is a precursor to the Sight&Insight presentation and critique by Connie and David on February 24th. Stay tuned for how to reserve a seat. Space is limited.  Generally, Connie says, the left side of the brain, the language side, dominates our thinking. But, as our resident artist and psychologist, Connie is going to give us some unique ways to help the "silent right side of the brain come out and do it's thing!" Sounds like a plan, Judy, for one, needs all the help she can get. In viewing the cartoon of both sides of the brain, she didn't even notice the bridges!  In the meantime, happy February, and join us the week after next for the continuing saga of working with your brain for greater creativity: Episode 35, Play in the Production of Paintings.  Cheers, Judy, Connie and David "Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. Painting must be impulsive to be worth while." —Charles W. Hawthorne       

Greetings, Art Lovers, we're back! We had hoped to be back right after the holidays but, unfortunately, a case of the sniffles kept us from getting together to record a podcast. However, everyone seems to be healthy again, so here we are to share some more thoughts with you about all things Art. Today, our theme is Sight and Insight. It is the name of our podcast, as well as the idea behind David and Connie's workshops to help students take it to the next level. “It is this perfect accuracy, this lack of play, of variety, that makes the machine-made article so lifeless. Wherever there is life there is variety, and the substitution of the machine-made for the hand-made article has impoverished the world to a greater extent than we are probably yet aware of. Whereas formerly, before the advent of machinery, the commonest article you could pick up had a life and warmth which gave it individual interest, now everything is turned out to such a perfection of deadness that one is driven to pick up and collect, in sheer desperation, the commonest rubbish still surviving from the earlier period.” ― Harold Speed, The Practice and Science of Drawing So how do we, as artists, get more sight, and insight, into our work? We can study some of the great artists and teachers of bygone days. Harold Speed, The Alcantara, Toledo, by Moonlight, 1894, Tate Britain, UK David brings his years of experience as an artist and teacher to help with ways of 'seeing,' while our resident psychologist/artist, Connie, gives us some insight into what the word means in terms of the creative process. Harold Speed, Old Tom, oil on canvas. 63.9 x 51 cm, Southampton City Art Gallery, UK, presented by the artist, 1930, #545 Can't get enough of us? Then look for our next episode two weeks from now. Yes, sorry about that. We know you like your weekly dose of the Sight and Insight Podcast, but various commitments in the upcoming weeks mean it is going to be hard for us to get together as often as we'd like.  Until then, stay warm and happy painting. Connie, David and Judy "There is nothing so terrible as activity without insight." — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

    "The sky is the source of light in Nature and it governs everything." – John Constable   John Constable, Dedham Lock and Mill, c. 1818, oc 27 1/2 x 35 3/4 Private collection Join Connie, David and Judy as they consider the question, "Can you paint an effect of light?" Obviously our two resident artists, David and Connie - as plein air painters - believe that is the whole point of American Impressionism and painting on location, is to capture that rare moment in time: an effect of light. It is the prime motive for any artist wanting to work out of doors direct from nature. Judy waxes lyrical on the attributes of Leeds painter Atkinson Grimshaw, while Constable and Sorolla are also held up as masters of the light effect.   Atkinson Grimshaw, Park Row, Leeds 1882, oc 30 x 25 Leeds City Art Gallery Atkinson Grimshaw, Scarborough by Moonlight, c 1876, ob 11 x 17. Private collection "Light is a thing that cannot be reproduced, but must be represented by something else – by color." – Paul Cezanne David poses the question, does movement represent light, or space? How do you create the optical illusion of an effect of light with color, brush and canvas? What do you think? Of course, when it comes right down to it, perhaps the best purveyor of of Light is the Spanish Master, Sorolla and so we will leave the last word, or rather image, to him.... Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida, The Carob Tree, 1898, oc 19 3/4 x 38 1/2. Private collection

Have you got your Gestalt on?! "There's something happening here. What it is ain't exactly clear." Buffalo Springfield Join Connie, David and Judy as they explore the idea of Gestalt; what it means and how it can help the artist create a better painting. One of the great masters of Gestalt was Johannes Vermeer, who - as early as the 17th-century knew that a composition - or its properties, should be viewed as a whole. Variety within unity is the idea.  Johannes Vermeer (Dutch, 1632 – 1675) The Astronomer, c. 1668, oil on canvas, 20 x 18, Musee du Louvre, Paris Gestalt is a German word meaning form, or shape, and Gestalt theory in terms of art refers to the concept of perception, holding that the whole is more than the sum of its parts.  As human beings, we tend to try and organize our perceptions of a chaotic world. Thus as artists we can utilize several principles of gestalt to improve our painting: 1. Figure-ground - this refers to relationships between an object and its surroundings. Do we see the figure in front of us, or the background? 2. Closure - it is important to keep the viewer involved by completing an image or form. The principle of closure applies when we tend to see complete figures even when part of the information is missing. 3. Continuance - the viewer has a tendency to follow a path, river, beach, fence line, etc. These compositional elements give the viewer numerous ways to enter, and move around a painting. 4. Similarity - things which share visual characteristics such as shape, size, color, texture, or value will be seen as belonging together in the viewer’s mind.  5. Proximity - The Gestalt law of proximity states "objects or shapes that are close to one another appear to form groups." Even if the shapes, sizes, and objects are radically different, they will appear as a group if they are close together. As our resident psychologist explains it is possible to suffer from proximity flow, then we can lose the 3rd dimensional depth, leaving us with only 2 dimensions, which means our painting is all of one plane with no depth of field. Think about your own painting compositions. Do you achieve 'variety within unity?' If not, it sounds like your gestalt needs tweaking. Tune in to learn more from David, Connie, and Judy. "A cloudy sky to make it mysterious and a fog to increase the mystery. Just imagine how suggestive things are..." John H. Twachtman     

Episode 30 Jane Peterson: Artist Extraordinaire “Sex has nothing to do with it at all. Art is one activity where being a woman is neither a help nor a hindrance. Even a woman’s intuition means nothing when she is facing a canvas.” - Jane Peterson [quoted in J. Jonathan Joseph, Jane Peterson, An American Artist (Boston, 1981): 43. This is the primary source for biographical information on Peterson. For information on The Group see Jarzombek, “Mary Bradish Titcomb and her Contemporaries” in Mary Bradish Titcomb (1858-1927) / Fenway Studios (Boston: Vose, 1998). Jane Peterson, Gloucester Harbor, oc, 30 x 40, private collection (Sold at auction for $520k in 2005, after estimated between $250,000-$350,000) Artist Jane Peterson (1876-1965) was active in Massachusetts, New York, Kansas, IL., as well as Europe and North Africa. Born Jennie Christine in Elgin, IL., she changed her name (at the age of 33) to Jane Peterson; a name that now resonates through the art world as a talented and skillful artist of the finest caliber. She studied with some of the best-known instructors of the day, including Arthur Wesley Dow and Frank Vincent DuMond in New York, as well as with Frank Brangwyn in Venice and England. In addition, she learned from the master himself, Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida in Madrid. From Sorolla she learned to lighten her palette and heighten her chroma, while also painting rapidly to capture the fleeting effect of light.  Like many women artists, Peterson went into teaching, becoming the Drawing Supervisor of the Brooklyn Public Schools. She continued to travel and paint as circumstances allowed, frequently working in North African countries such as Algeria and Egypt, until the outbreak of World War I. However, as soon as an Armistice was declared she resumed her travels, sojourning even farther afield in 1924, when she spent six months in Turkey, exploring Constantinople (Istanbul) and Broosa (Bursa), a daring and audacious undertaking for a woman voyaging alone. Jane Peterson, Afternoon at the Market, c. 1910, oc, 24 x 30, private collection Peterson was adept in oil painting, watercolor and gouache, which - being a quick drying medium - was highly practical for a traveling artist.  She has been called an Impressionist, and an Expressionist as well as an Abstractionist, but Jane Peterson is not one to have her talents curtailed by a pigeonhole. She painted what she wanted, where she wanted and, in the recent Strokes of Genius: Women Artists of New England exhibition at the Rockport Art Association and Museum, it was obvious she could work in many styles, with each painting presenting a unique appearance and finish. Often described as a 'vigorous realist,' who favored luscious color and bravura brushwork, perhaps the final word on Peterson's work should go to the critic of the Christian Science Monitor who, reviewing her solo show at Boston's St. Botolph Club on January 23, 1909, was moved to admit, “There is an athletic dash and swing to most of the paintings that is stimulating and captivating.” [quoted in Joseph, p. 27] Captivating, indeed, and none more so than Peterson's oil paintings of Gloucester Harbor, Cape Ann. Jane Peterson, An Old Pier, Gloucester, c. 1919, oc, 24 x 30, private collection And on a final note: Connie will be hosting an Open House at her studio, the weekend after Thanksgiving. Consider this your invitation.... Lorwen, Forsythia, oil, 24 x 20 Thanksgiving Weekend Open StudiosLorwen ‘Connie’ Nagle invites you to see her latest paintings on November 24 & 25, 10am-5 pm, at Art On The Hill, 78 Government Street, Kittery, Maine Art On The Hill

Greetings, Art Lovers, and welcome to another edition of the Sight & Insight Podcast. Well, as we all know Nature is very magnetic, and we aren't just talking about magnetic fields, from one pole to the other, repelling and attracting, but the strong draw that Nature, the great outdoors, exudes toward the plein air painter. George Inness (1825-1894) Lake Nemi, 1872, oc 29 3/4 x 44 7/8 in. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Gift of the Misses Hersey, 49.412 As that great artist, Aristotle, was heard to say, "In all things of Nature, there is something of the marvelous. Whether we are looking at the awe inspiring works of Frederic Edwin Church, who opened the eyes of the public to the great expansion of the American West - sights some Americans would never see for themselves - or the subtleties of nature portrayed by, say, George Inness, Nature exudes an allure - a captivatingness, that can mesmerize us. As Harold Speed once pointed out, trees in nature are much bigger than the imagination conjures up. From the macrocosm to the microcosm, Nature is all around us, seductive and enchanting, whether in a sprawling vista, or the urban grittiness of humanity's effect on the land.  Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900) Niagara Falls, from the American Side, 1867, oc, 101 3/8 x 100 13/16 in. Scottish National Gallery, Presented by John S. Kennedy, 1887, NG799 "Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them. — Marcus Aurelius

Greetings, art lovers, and welcome to another episode of the Sight & Insight Podcast with David and Judy Curtis, and Lorwen 'Connie' Nagle. This week we ask 'Is it Drawing or Painting First? "Drawing is the artist's most direct and spontaneous expression, a species of writing: it reveals, better than does painting, his true personality." — Edgar Degas In the beginning, Judy relates an anecdote about Boston painter, Polly Thayer Starr, who was talented from her childhood with graphite and charcoal. She spent her first year at the Boston Museum School studying anatomy and life drawing with Philip Leslie Hale, but when she began painting in her second year with Leslie Thompson, she found herself adrift, unable to understand the texture, viscosity and application of color and paint.   Polly Thayer Starr, Sketching Polly Thayer Starr, Flat Cat David and Connie, as practicing artists and teachers have their own viewpoints on the subject and, for once, they differ in opinion. Will they come to blows, or agree to disagree? Is it different for individual students. Does drawing ability even matter? Join our intrepid trio to to hear what they have to say. And if you have other thoughts, don't hesitate to let them know! They always love to hear from fans....      Note how French Neoclassical painter Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) made drawings before beginning to paint a larger work. Left: Ingres, Preparatory drawing; graphite and white highlights on paper, 1842. Right: Ingres, Portrait of Comtesse d'Haussonville, 1845, 51.89 x 35.83 in. The Frick Collection, New York So what do you think? Is drawing with a brush too awkward? Can you paint a landscape, or still life, or interior, without a sense of perspective? Perhaps, as Cezanne says, we need a sense of both drawing and painting.  "Drawing and colour are not separate at all; in so far as you paint, you draw. The more the colour harmonizes, the more exact the drawing becomes." — Paul Cezanne Don't forget to click the follow button, so you can be a part of the group. Connie, Judy and David love to know you are out there. 

"Surprise is key in all art." — Oscar Niemeyer The Element of Surprise! Did you miss us?! We hope so. You know what they say - absence makes the heart grow fonder! But we've finished our travels for a while and we are back around the coffee table sharing ideas, encouraging an interest in the Arts and, hopefully, inspiring you to go out and paint for yourself. John Singer Sargent, Dolce Far Niente, c 1907, o/c 16.25 x 28.25 in. Brooklyn Museum, NY  Today we are talking about the element of surprise, or 'the happy accident.' From John Singer Sargent to Bob Ross, the ability to take the odd note, or mis-stroke and turn it into an integral part of your design - an element you perhaps hadn't thought of before - is a vital part of the creative process. So shake off the entropy, get out of autopilot, and let your creative juices run....    Giovanni Boldini (1842-1931) Left: Spanish Dancer at the Moulin Rouge, c. 1905, oil on canvas, 49 ¼ x 40 ⅛, pc Right: Woman at the Piano, 1870, oil on panel, 6 x 5 ⅛, pc. Just look how Boldini uses semi abstract brush work in the beginning from which 'happy accidents' he draws out the reality of his subject. Critics described his his style as 'slashing, rapier-like brushstrokes.' If you have enjoyed this episode, don't forget to join us next week for another edition of the Sight & Insight Podcast with Connie Nagle, David Curtis and Judith Curtis. In the meantime, why not hit the Follow button and help us to greater heights for the good of Art. "In art, the hand can never execute anything higher than the heart can imagine." — Ralph Waldo Emerson          

"You will learn to enjoy the process... and to surrender your need to control the result. You will discover the joy of practising your creativity. The process, not the product, will become your focus." — Julia Cameron     Welcome art lovers, to another edition of the Sight and Insight podcast. Today’s topic: the Sight and Insight programs. Judy begins off topic with an introduction into the insight of  ’21 in Truro,’ a women’s painting group who exhibit together throughout the year and enjoy a retreat for a week down in Truro, sharing five rustic cottages right on the marsh, or as close to as you can get! These 21 women are all individual artists who have been getting together for the last 20 years – next year is their 21stanniversary – and they only need another seven years to catch up with the Philadelphia Ten. The Philly Ten were an early women’s group, which included Theresa Bernstein and Emma Fordyce MacRae, who got together to empower women’s art at a time when many women signed their paintings with initials to disguise their gender from painting juries. The discussion then comes round to David and Connie’s upcoming ‘October Skies’ workshop, October 10-12, as they talk about some of the ideas they will be bringing to their students, such as the ‘line of design,’ the advantage of memory cards, and how beauty and aesthetics are affect a painting.  You want to know how to get more movement and drama in your skies? Stay tuned for more words of wisdom from Connie and David!   Lorwen C Nagle, Mud Flats near Brunswick, 12 x 24, oil "The search for this inner truth is the search for beauty. People whose vision does not penetrate beyond the narrow limits of the commonplace, and to whom a cabbage is but a vulgar vegetable, are surprised if they see a beautiful picture painted of one, and say that the artist has idealised it, meaning that he has consciously altered its appearance on some idealistic formula; whereas he has probably only honestly given expression to a truer, deeper vision than they had been aware of. The commonplace is not the true, but only the shallow, view of things." — Harold Speed, The Practice and Science of Drawing

      Greetings, Art Lovers, and thank you for joining us for another exciting episode of the Sight and Insight Podcast. Today we are talking about a great show currently on exhibit at the North Shore Arts Association, 11 Pirates Lane, Gloucester, MA 01930. Don Stone Comes Home is on view through October 9 and features over 140 works. Bittersweet by Don Stone Don Stone could turn his hand to oil painting, watercolors, egg tempera and more and these skills, combined with an unerring eye for composition and design, helped him become a noted artist and beloved teacher during a long and successful career. Our intrepid trio discuss Don's work, his larger than life personality and the character quirks that made him a legend in his own lifetime!    Winter Trees                       Barn Rafter with Swallows And if you get chance, join Judy and David Curtis, and hopefully, Lorwen, at Judy's presentation on Don Stone at the North Shore Arts Association, 2 pm, Sunday, September 30. Happy listening!

Welcome to another edition of the Sight and Insight Podcast. This week, our intrepid trio, David, Connie and Judy, willbe discussing the weighty topic of copying from the masters. Is it sneaky, as some people think, or cheating; or is it an age old method of learning to paint better by studying closely, and emulating the work of, old masters who have stood the test of time? During today's episode, Connie relates the tale of how she finally managed to get access to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston to copy Monet's Grand Canal. This is her version below. She also made a copy of Antonio Cirino's Peonies from the Rockport Art Association and Museum's Copying the Masters Workshop earlier this year.      As Connie says, it is important to see how a past master has designed and created their work of art, especially their color tones and brushwork. Studying these elements can only make your own work better. While on his Paige Traveling Scholarship in Europe, in 1913, A. T. Hibbard - as a graduate art student from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, was admitted to the Museo del Parado in Madrid to copy from Velazquez, including Las Hilanderas (The Weavers) below. Of course, the criteria for copying another's creation is that it should not be sight size. In Hibbard's case, he did a large painting of the lower right hand side of the painting. Hibbard's version is now a part of the RAA&M's Permanent Collection.  There are many reasons for practicing copying from the masters, not least of which is improving your own art. David teaches an annual workshop at the RAA&M, so if you want to try improving your art by this method, keep checking David's website at davidpcurtis.com for more details. In the meantime, if you would like to view Connie and David's upcoming exhibition, Three With a Brush, with their painting friend, Tom Heinsohn, check out the invitation below. Or view Connie's website at lorwenpaintings.com for further details.  And don't forget, David and Connie are teaching a Sight and Insight workshop, October Skies, October 10-12, 2018. Want to know how to paint better skies with movement and drama? Then check David and Connie's websites for further information on how to sign up. Still a few places available. Don't lose out! And, last but not least, if you have enjoyed this podcast, don't forget to hit the red follow button, so you don't miss out on another episode.  Have a great week! Connie, David and Judy PS. Next week we will be talking about the current Don Stone: Coming Home Exhibition at the North Shore Arts Association, 11 Pirates Lane, Gloucester, MA 01930 Ph. 978.283.1857 or email: arts@nsarts.org This is a great exhibition containing over 100 paintings. Judy will also be giving a presentation on Don Stone and his work on Sunday, September 30 at 2 pm. Come along and join the fun.