Sargent Paintings at The Met

The hand of Madame X by Sargent

Dear Art Lover,

     The John Singer Sargent exhibition at The Met in New York City was an absolute pleasure to see.  How lucky I was that I was able to stay in the Big Apple for several days and see this Sargent exhibition before it closed.

     You may already know that Sargent is one of the painting gods in whose artworks most artists today find inspiration and awe.  He was a famous and popular portrait artist and painter, an American born in Florence, Italy, but who made his fame elsewhere first.  I love it that we were permitted to take photos in the museum.  I never use flash and I like to get close.  I have not bothered here to share with you the complete painting of a featured work. [The one shown here included people for your idea of his scale.] JS Sargent is famous enough that you likely know the works anyway. 

     Plus, let us zoom in on the delicious details of Sargent’s work.  I captured these images to help me remember the play of cold and warm, loose vs. more finished/detailed, and edges.  Always edges make the world of difference for the emotion conveyed in a work of art.

      Thank you to those who sent me kind words about my blog and newsletter.  There was so much that I had to accomplish while in the US that my writing had to take a step back.  I thank you for making my art party with Warren Cullar a successful event in Austin, Texas, and that your interest and support make my life as an artist continue.  I am in the process of finding a home here in Italy and anxious to get settled in a new studio space.  I have a lot of creative time to make up for!  Grazie mille.

Peace,

Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

http://BorsheimArts.com

"Blue Madonna" - Painting

Hello again. I had such a good response painting my version of the "Blue Madonna" by Carlo Dolci on Via Calimala in Florence, Italy, last Wednesday. Some examples:
One Italian couple asked me why I was not painting on "tela" -- the Italian word for 'canvas'.
I received a possible commission to create a mural in a small town about 40 km from Firenze.
And one very lovely American girl from New York with big brown eyes (who looked a little like the actress Anne Hathaway) exclaimed that this was the most striking painting she had ever seen here -- and "I live right over there [she points] and I walk down this street everyday to see the art!"
Another man returned to my space around midnight to find me washing my artwork away. He shook his head and said, "I do not know how you can make it disappear. That [artwork] was brilliant!"

Brilliant? Perhaps not, but I appreciated his sentiment just the same. That said, I decided to start painting, now that I am more settled and have finished my application for 'rinnovo' of my 'permesso di soggiorno' -- renewing my 'permission to stay' permit. And why not create something more permanent in this striking blue? Here is a view of my little room above Piazza Santa Croce. You may see my work-in-progress on the right. While I was all gung-ho to get to
work, I realized that I had forgotten to buy some mineral spirits for oil painting -- cannot take THAT with one on the plane. (Oh - yes, my lagging piece of luggage was delivered to me at my friend Jay's apartment last Monday, so all is well on that end.)

Since it was about 1:30 p.m. when I realized I could not oil paint (and most shops in Italia are closed for a long and social lunch), I chose instead to do an under-painting in acrylic. This is what you see here. After 3:30 p.m., I was able to get back to the art supply store and buy some 'trementina' -- turpentine (spirits were not available). I will keep you posted, so stay tuned . . .