Dear Friends…

I am officially closing out this blog (Art Journal ~ Book #1) and opening up Volume 2.

This will be the last post here but you will be able to follow my quest as usual by clicking on this link…

Artistic Release Art Journal ~ Book #2

All items in this volume are archived in the new blog journal…

See you there…

Bernie

Check out the new blog for the Council for the Arts… a great place to find “What’s going on art-wise” in the area.

 Art Dispatch… The Voice of the Council for the Arts… Dispatching art news, events, and info to artists and art lovers in Jacksonville and Eastern North Carolina…

 Talk to you all next month about some interesting projects…

Bern

 July 20, 2007…

This painting proves that “art is therapy” for me. I woke up dreading the day… nine years ago this day my sister Kristi was killed in a car accident. Anyone who has gone through a similar situation knows the process… you live out that day remembering every detail minute by minute replaying the awful turn of events in your minds-eye like a bad movie that you can’t turn off. The day started in that fashion and I found myself running a gamut of emotions… so I decided to take my paints to work and get lost in painting. This painting of Kristi is the result. I found that as I painted my mind and mood transformed. It was as if I was spending time visiting her instead of replaying the events that happened… art is therapy… thank God…

 Kristi… 8×6″ Oil on canvas, alla prima, July 20, 2007.

As I type this Al has a bid on this painting which will be my 100th painting sold on eBay since I started my art adventure in January. First I’d like to thank artist and friend, Mike Rooney, for his workshop, encouragement, and especially his challenge to paint 100 paintings. Most of all… I’d like to thank you… my patrons for your support and interest in my work. So many of you have become friends and loyal repeat patrons… words cannot express my sincere appreciation for you.  I am honored that each of you owns a small piece of my work as well as my heart!

Thanks again… Bernie

Click here to see those 100 paintings…

Click here to see my artwork currently up for auction at eBay…

I would love to hear your comments… Have a blessed day…

Bernie

Tami, the kids, and I had a blast on our recent ten day vacation in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. We hiked, fished, bouldered, pic-nic’d, played in the Rock River, and I managed to paint on several occasions. Here are some works from the recent adventure…

Click here to see more paintings with stories from our trip to the mountains.

Click here to see the large mouth bass Olivia caught in a nearby lake while I was painting… she caught it with her trusty “Barbie” fishing pole!

Take care…

Bernie

19 years ago TODAY… I married my soul-mate. In fact, we were married at Muddy Creek Falls, Maryland (depicted here), on the flat rock in the foreground.

 I love ya Tami!

Bernie

A “shout out” to all the mom’s out there! Where would we be without you?

Happy Mother’s Day!

Olivia designed this card…

For Mother’s Day I wanted to paint a special series as a tribute to mom’s everywhere. It was my goal to capture that priceless bond shared by a mother and her child… the special intimacy and unconditional love which is hard to put into words and on canvas. Moms know what I’m trying to say. I chose to cover three master artists for this series whose works, with my own flair, conveyed the mood I was looking for. I call this my “Mother and Child” series. You can see the originals and  larger versions of these paintings if you click on the titles below. Thank you moms!

Mother and Child #1 after Bernardino Luini

Mother and Child #2 after Pablo Picasso

Mother and Child #3 after Gustav Klimt

May God Bless each and every one of you…

Bernie

Many of you have followed Olivia’s art work since she was four years old. We have been painting together steadily since Christmas when she got acrylic paints, brushes, and an easel as a gift. Here is her latest work… her first oil painting. I sketched out the scene for her, mixed the paints, she did the rest… honest!

Willy Lott’s Cottage… 3×6″ oil on panel, 4-2007, Olivia (age almost 6)

Here’s dad’s version:

“Willy Lott’s Cottage #2″… 6×12″ oil on panel, 4-2007.

Willy Lott’s Cottage #1″… 6×8″ oil on panel, 4-2007.

An interesting story behind these works:

I am still on my 100 painting quest and just finished #74. I have met a ton of great people from eBay as the majority of these have sold there. Click here to see what is on auction there now…  “My eBay”

Here are a few local scenes that I have painted recently.

Trivia question for my local friends:

Do you know who the statue is of and what was he noted in history for?

answer listed in comments section…

The small coastal town of Swansboro, North Carolina has a quaint friendly atmosphere aptly earning its nickname…”Friendly City by the Sea”. The town was incorporated in 1783, and named for Samuel Swann, a former Speaker in the North Carolina legislature. The town’s main attractions are its beautiful waterfront views and its quaint downtown, filled with boutiques, shops and delicious restaurants. One of its many beautiful spots is “Bicentennial Park” at the base of the Highway 24 bridge. It gives visitors a chance to fish in the White Oak River or relax and watch the water… not to mention a great place for an artist to set up his easel and paint away.

Details (titles, sizes, and descriptions) for them can be found on my “Art for Sale” page… 

Thanks for dropping by….

Bernie

Do you remember service stations? When was the last time someone checked your oil, washed your windshield, and pumped your gas? A few still exist but they are rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Many are abandoned like the one captured in this painting, “Remember When?” which has a nostalgic feel of days gone by… when service meant more than convience… a slower time. I miss that…

Trivia question for my local friends:

Do you know where this scene is?

An artist friend, Mike Rooney, challenged me to paint 100 paintings after attending one of his workshops last September. I have been painting since January 2004 and until his workshop I had finished about 40 paintings… since December 6, 2006… I have painted 56 paintings… most I have sold on eBay. The painting above is #50. 

Here are some more recent “Impressionist” works… Details (titles, sizes, and descriptions) for them can be found on my “Art for Sale” page… 

If you get a chance, please drop by “My eBay” page and see my paintings up for auction… I’m posting these “One a Day” paintings there on an almost daily basis.

A special thanks to all my friends (old and new) who have supported my work through bids and encouragement.

Thanks for dropping by…

Comments always appreciated…

Bernie