FASCINATION WITH THE RED BARN

A red barn appears in several of my paintings in different subject matter. The area where I currently reside has several red barns that screamed for me to photograph them! If you visit the areas where I took the photos, you may not see the barns existing in the settings I chose to paint them, as my imagination tends to take over. Several of my photos that I base my paintings on, other than that of the red barns, are used for sources .

I have viewed barns in green, many white, but red seems to be the "thing"-especially in the old restored barns here in Central new Jersey. I learned a few very interesting things about why there are so many red barns.

Centuries ago, European farmers would paint their barns with a linseed-oil mixture, often consisting of additions such as milk and lime. The combination produced a long-lasting paint that dried and hardened quickly. Wealthy farmers added blood from a recent slaughter, or rust to their paint mixture.
In historically accurate terms, "barn red" is not the bright, fire-engine red that we often see today, but more of a burnt-orange red. As to how the oil mixture became traditionally red, there are two  theories:

Regardless of how the farmer tinted his paint, having a red barn became fashionable. They were a contrast to the traditional white farmhouse.

As European settlers crossed over to America, they brought with them the tradition of red barns. In the mid to late 1800s, red paint was the most inexpensive to buy. When whitewash became cheaper, at which point white barns began to spring up.

Here are my paintings where the red barn inspired me:

1. "Observing the Pond"---This barn painting was combined with a scene I observed at a park, where a beautiful Blue Heron was "observing the Pond" hoping for a meal. The barn was from another location, but I imagined them together, and created this serene painting.

2. "Somewhere, Not Here, a Red Barn"--close by my house is a farm dating from the 1700's where stands this red barn. The mountains come from my memory of my travels from yet another place. The plants are unusual and unreal, giving this painting a surreal feeling.

3. "Taking Over"--a view from my window, that is not really there.....the table and the easel are real, but the plant is not.

4. "One Behind the Other"--During this past winter, I photographed the aftermath of the blizzard that was practically up to my waist in the early morning. I obtained the lighting of the sky and snow from that photo taken right outside my front door. The barns come from a place so very far away.

Observing the Pond

Somewhere ,Not Here, A Red Barn

Taking Over

T

One Behind the Other

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Back to my Work---topic SMALL PAINTINGS

I have been posting articles  about Art Work from other people. Now, I would like to get back to posting some of my own paintings again.

These 4 paintings are recently finished pieces. All of them are small-2 being 11 X14, the other two, 8 X10. Did you ever feel that sometimes a small painting does the job in expressing what you want to say? Must state that working small does not necessarily mean you are finishing a painting sooner. If you work with details like I do, small paintings can take more time than a large painting!

"Hovering Over"

"Hovering Over" is back to my Mystical Series,(see my web site www.PaintingsbyLinda.net under "Mystical" where I like to include sprites (elves, faeries,or whatever you want to call them) in landscape situations. This particular painting was created from a Plein Air series that I belong to, where we sit outside and sketch or paint what we see. So, I sketched and photographed these two statues of the Blue Herons, and added my sprite hovering over them.

"The Grey House"

Also in the Plein Air series, the same location, stood a guest house on the property we were working at, and I sketched the structure. "The Grey House" was my result-focusing in on the side of the building, with the surrounding area placed around it. I went for less detail in this painting- a stretch for me.

"Window Reflection"

Also with minimal detail is "Window Reflection", sketched and photographed at the Plein Air series site with the other two paintings were done. Here I sketched it as seen, took the photo, and worked the colors off of the photo.

Added to my recent paintings is the Painting"Surf". Not of the Plein Air Series.

"Surf"

The above painting "Surf", is painted from a photo I took while in Newport, Rhode Island. I have done several paintings from this area, some could be seen on my web site www.PaintingsbyLinda.net   under Aqua. The ocean is always very appealing to me- just had a fun time doing this.



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Article of New Exhibit at Gourgaud Gallery

THIS ARTICLE IS POSTED ON THE  GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG AT WWW.GOURGAUDGALLERY.BLOGSPOT.COM. IT IS WRITTEN BY MY HUSBAND BOB GILBERT, WHO INTERVIEWS THE EXHIBITING ARTISTS EXHIBITING AT THE COURGAUD GALLERY. READ AND ENJOY THE ARTICLE. WE HOPE THAT YOU JOIN THE GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG BY BECOMING A FOLLOWER, SO YOU CAN BE POSTED OF ALL OF THE UPCOMING NEWS.

NEW EXHIBIT FOR JULY AT THE GOURGAUD GALLERY

By Bob Gilbert

Judy Buckley "French Fields'

Judy Buckley "Peru Street"

Judy Buckley "The Bay"

The new exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery opening on July 8, 2011 features the paintings of Cranbury resident Judy Buckley. The show is entitled “Travels – Recent Paintings 2011 – Near and Far”.

I had the pleasure of previewing the exhibit, which includes a variety of landscapes. There are bodies of water, farm fields, countryside, and marshes, all with dramatic representations of the sky. In one painting, the outline of a Ferris wheel can be seen on the distant horizon line of the beach. A Ferris wheel is probably the most impressive, striking, and unique structure associated with beach resorts, and the painting really captured that.

But there are more than landscapes. One painting is a view from within a church looking out. It captures some of the interesting features inside the church and the appealing scene outside. Paintings looking out on something always catch my attention.

Judy has a BA degree in Art from Georgian Court College, Lakewood, NJ, and has studied art in New York City as well. She worked for a period in the art department of a New York City advertising agency, but now spends her time painting as well as teaching art at Princeton High School, the Middlesex Youth Center, and the West Windsor Arts Council.

Judy speaks enthusiastically about teaching art. In adult classes, there is great energy and excitement when a new person begins to paint and discovers the joy within them. It is contagious! With high school students, there is discovery, as you never know what is in a person’s mind until they express it in their art work. Each student brings their own approach to art, and witnessing this helps Judy to keep an open mind and to see things in a new way.

Judy was interested in art as a child, but really got started when, as a high school student, she took lessons from a highly regarded artist in Red Bank, NJ, whom she still remembers fondly as a great inspiration. Judy is especially grateful to her mom who drove her forty-five minutes each way to attend these lessons. This is a great example of how a caring parent and an outstanding teacher can make a difference in a person’s life!

Judy paints primarily landscapes, as she enjoys the challenge of capturing the beauty of the places she has seen, whether it be the Jersey shore or some exotic location halfway around the world. She finds that as her art evolves, she is less concerned with realism and more interested in the play and interaction of color.

In addition to her own paintings, Judy is displaying paintings by some of her students at the Middlesex Youth Shelter. These students earn high school credits in Judy’s art class, which is funded by the Cranbury Arts Council.

Additional paintings may be seen on the Gourgaud Gallery Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068?sk=info

The exhibit can be viewed at The Gourgaud Gallery, Town Hall, 3-A North Main St., Cranbury, NJ 08512. The Artist reception will be held on Friday, July 8 from 6-8 PM. The Gallery is open on the 1^st, 3^rd and last Sunday of every month and during regular business hours of Town Hall, Monday through Friday from 9AM to 5 PM. 

  www.PaintingsbyLinda.net (web site)