To Stay or To-Go

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Conca D'Oro, our local pizzeria, has been in business for over 40 years. Word of the restaurant's closing was rumored around town for the past few years, but the official announcement came early this summer. I hear that the new owners are promising to keep the recipes... one can only hope. The look of the business I am sure will change.  So here is my homage to my favorite pizza place and to the wonderful family behind it. They have finally decided "to-go!"

Latham House in Late Spring

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The architecture in the village of Sag Harbor, NY,  is breathtaking and of late, my muse. This is the Latham House, built in 1790. It was designed with a residence above and a commercial story at street level. The structure is typical of a Sag Harbor merchant's house of the Federal Period. Today is stands with so much majesty and continues to grace Main Street.

Sagaponack Farm

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This is the same barn as featured in my last post. However, this is it in early morning light. It continues to astound and at times frustrate me at how dramatically a scene changes as the light changes. The warm glow on the old wooden doors and the cast shadows under the eaves are what drew me to this barn in the first place. By the time I had the sketch done and began to paint, however, the sun had moved behind the barn and I had to stop. The warmth and mood were gone. So, the next morning I went back and there was the barn in the light that initially caught my eye. Only now, there was a tractor parked in front as well - oh, the perils of painting a working farm in plein aire!

Tractor at Foster Farm

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Working farms on the end of eastern Long Island are slowly giving way to big showy houses hidden behind high plantings of privet. So when I happened upon this barn, with its tractor standing in plain sight, I was elated. The day was hot, and humid and bright which only made this beautiful turquoise barn even more enticing to me. I spent a wonderful afternoon under a great big shade tree, painting it. Without that big shade tree, though, I do not think I could have lasted.

Brooklyn Bridge for Jen

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  My wonderful friend, Jen, finds inspiration in the story of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge. Specifically, she is awed by the staggering number of obstacles and bad luck the designers had to overcome during construction. Wikipedia gives a quick synopsis of the daunting events and explains Jen's respect for the process, never mind, the absolute beauty of the finished structure.
  So, it was no wonder that she commissioned a painting of this engineering marvel and architectural masterpiece. What I love about commissioned pieces, is that I end up painting subjects I might never have thought to paint on my own - the Brooklyn Bridge, for example. My thanks to Jen, for giving me this opportunity and for helping me see more than what meets the eye when driving across that spectacular span.

Early Spring Morning, Sag Harbor

This is a recently completed commission of Main Street, Sag Harbor. The challenge here was to get painting before the street filled up with parked cars. That meant getting set up by 6 am. A long run of rainy weather, however, curtailed my plein aire efforts and forced me back into the studio. I finished the painting and delivered it just in time for Father's Day... a favorite town for a favorite dad. 

Farm in December

I am falling in love with painting outside, especially in winter. It is so quiet. I am finding that it's best to be out painting by 10 o'clock in the morning. That gives me steady light until around 2:30. During that span, the light changes, but subtly. Once 3 o'clock hits, the sun starts to take an ever-quickening nose dive into night. I now understand that old cowboy line,"move it along, we're burnin' daylight!"

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Red Farmhouse

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I was back outside with my easel this week. When driving around the back roads of Bridgehampton scanning for a scene to paint, I spied this old red farmhouse. Alongside it was an open field, glowing bright green in the morning sun. The juxtaposition of these complimentary colors drew me in and sealed the deal. It was a glorious painting session, complete with an occasional "cock-a-doodle-do," from the resident rooster!