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    All images are Copyright Protected and the property of Jamie Williams Grossman. Paintings and photos displayed on this site may not be reprinted, copied, downloaded, displayed elsewhere, or used for any reason without her written permission.

    ------------------------------------- CUSTOMER REVIEWS

    "OMGGGGG, Jamie!!!! It's absolutely amazinggggggg!!!!!! I loveeeeee it!!!!!! This is sooo much more than I could have imagined!!! Thank you!!!!"

    "It's spectacular, Jamie!!! How talented you are! We absolutely love it! And you are right-the frame is just perfect for it! "

    "Happy" with it is an understatement! My sister's husband said, "Wow, it's beautiful!" That's a lot of emotion coming from him! haha. And my adult daughter said, "OMG MOM, ITS GORGEOUS!". You have added to your fan club!

    "Jamie, your painting arrived in perfect condition! And, as I expected, it looks even better ‘in person’ than on the computer screen. Thank you so much for your careful packing and wonderful painting."

    "...Today I finally surprised [my wife] with the actual painting! It is her birthday! And I just wanted to let you know the we both absolutely love it!! She was so so surprised, and just speechless.... Thank you again for being so flexible and good to work with! It was such a joy preparing for today and I appreciated your professionalism throughout the process!"

    "I love the new painting! It's actually a little more golden and fluid than it looks in the pic and I love the movement; everything in my house is a little on the warm and yellow and gold side so it could hang pretty much anywhere. It's going to the framer shortly and I look forward to having it up :-)"

    "Jamie, it's lovely!!! Thank you so much for all the time and love you've put into it! You have no idea how much joy your work is bringing to me. I'm very grateful!"

    "I just wanted to share that my father-in-law absolutely LOVES your painting. He loves the frame and said that he's never owned a real oil painting. ???? But most importantly, he loves the subject matter and he and my husband spent a lot of time reminiscing this morning about hikes they took there years ago. This part of the Hudson is, by far, their favorite! Thank you SO much for making this Christmas gift PERFECT."

    "Your paintings of my beloved Hudson Valley are stunning! I've always loved Hudson River paintings, and can't believe that I've found someone who is following in the great tradition of Cropsey and company! "

    "We received your painting yesterday and it's really very beautiful. Thank you again very much."

    "Your beautiful "Autumn at Rockwood" arrived in perfect condition two days ago. It is even more lovely in person than I ever could have imagined. Thank you so much for your artistry and your many kindnesses to me..... I will treasure both of my paintings very much ..."

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    "It's beautiful. Thank you so much!"

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    "Hi Jamie, I received painting yesterday. It's really beautiful! Thank you for sending so quickly. I'm sure it will give my friend hope and strengthen as she faces this battle with Parkinson's. Thank you!"

    "Jamie, My painting arrived Thursday and I love it. I will definitely order from you again."

    "[They] love the painting. They were so surprised. They really appreciate it and the thought and artistry behind it. They received many [wedding] gifts, and said this was one of their two favorites."

    "[My husband] loved loved loved the painting! It is hanging on the wall in my great room. It's just beautiful!"

    "Hi Jamie! The beautiful paintings arrived safe and sound this afternoon. I love them! (Boy you don't mess around with packing them ;) Thank you."

    "Hi Jamie –I thought you’d enjoy seeing “The Red Barge” framed. Until I give it to my husband on his birthday, I have it hanging in my office. I LOVE looking at it all day!"

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    "Jamie, my wife and I love it. Thank you and great work. It was difficult trying to figure out a special gift for them......I'm very happy that I reached out to you. I know they will love the painting and the special touch you did with the card! "

    "Wow, it looks AMAZING! They are going to love it. I love the name too. Perfect. ... Thanks again!"

    "Your lovely painting of a sweet bird, framed beautifully, arrived last week.... I just adore it!!... I see it and injoy its beauty every day! Thank you so much!"

    "The painting is beautiful! I love it! "

    "Just a quick note to let you know your [miniature] Monet arrived in perfect condition. It looks fabulous!!! Thank you again so much."




    ------------------------------------------ If you haven't seen the two-DVD set, "The Impressionists", you don't know what you're missing!

    the-impressionists.jpg


    I rented it from Netflix and absolutely loved it. It is an enactment of the lives of Monet, Renoir, Manet, Cezanne, Degas, and other Impressionist painters living at that time around Paris. Fascinating and eye-opening!





Archive for July, 2008

Afternoon at South Lake—Hudson River School site

Posted by Jamie on July 31st, 2008

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8×10″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on “Pearl” Canson board
$250.00 plus $15 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.

Hudson River School artist, Thomas Cole, painted from this very spot for his painting, Lake With Dead Trees. All those dead trees around the lakeshore are now gone, and if anything, the lake looks even more pristine than it does in his painting! North and South Lakes used to be separated by an earthen dam, and South Lake was private property. Eventually the land went to New York State. The dam was removed, and the area has since been referred to as North South Lake.

This spot was, gratefully, very easy to get to. It’s right near the Recreation Center for the Catskill Park, run by New York State. Visitors can rent kayaks, rowboats and paddle boats to use on the lakes. There are swimming beaches and campsites. Although there was plenty of activity, there was also a beautiful serenity there.

After our strenuous hike up to Kaaterskill Falls, my husband and I found a shady, quiet spot along the lakeshore to spend a quiet afternoon.

Late Morning at Kaaterskill Falls

Posted by Jamie on July 30th, 2008

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10×8″, Golden OPEN Acrylic on “Pearl” Canson Board
Please email Jamie at JamieWG@aol.com if interested.

This is the second painting that I did at Kaaterskill Falls in my quest to follow the trail of the Hudson River School painters. Just as I was completing the first, the sunlight began to hit the falls. Tempted as I was to move on to another location at that point, I decided to stay and paint the falls from the top while I had the light. There were lots of hikers climbing up at this time. I was surprised that most of the hikers didn’t go early to beat the heat like I did!

Cedar Grove, Home of Thomas Cole

Posted by Jamie on July 30th, 2008

On the first day of our trip, we visited the home of Hudson River School painter Thomas Cole. The house was part of a 100+ acre fruit farm during his lifetime, owned by his wife’s family. She had to sell off most of their possessions after he passed away, so there are a lot of reproduction and period pieces in the house, but few that were actually there when Thomas Cole lived in the home.

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Here is a picture I took of the famous view from the porch of his home. Unfortunately, it was heavily overcast that day, and the wonderful Catskill skyline that Cole had was obscured by cloud cover.

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Adjacent to the house was a barn. Cole converted half the barn into his studio. The interior has great north light from a ground level window and one above. The walls inside it are brick and wood, so even with the cool north light, it has a warm, cozy feel. Many of his things were still there in the studio.

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Between the house and barn is an outhouse. You wouldn’t think it would warrant a picture, but I took one because it has the distinction of having three seats. Why, I can’t imagine.

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I didn’t get a chance to paint there, but they have a fabulous, small exhibit now of his plein air works in the house. Back then, the Hudson River School painters would go out into the field and do these small works to use as references for their huge paintings. One thing that struck me about the small paintings done as “field studies” is the large amount of detail incorporated into the work. I suppose that because they didn’t have small cameras to bring along, the relied only on these studies to produce their large paintings, and needed to include as much information as possible to bring back to the studio with them. They were certainly stunning, complete works in small formats. Here is an example:

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Starting at Thomas Cole’s house was a wonderful start to our trip. It set the stage for all the locations to come. I felt inspired, setting out to visit the spots where he had painted. Having seen the exhibit of his reference paintings for the studio works, I decided that I would keep whatever paintings I did on this trip, and use them as my own references, alongside photos I took, to do studio and commission paintings.

The Base of Kaaterskill Falls

Posted by Jamie on July 29th, 2008

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10×8″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on “Pearl” Canson board
This scene is available as a studio/commission original painting in any size/price range. Please email Jamie at JamieWG@aol.com if interested.

What is the tallest waterfall in New York State? Niagara? Nope, guess again. It’s Kaaterskill Falls!

My first opportunity to paint on our trip, following in the footsteps of the old Hudson River School painters, was after climbing a half mile up to the base of Kaaterskill Falls. You wouldn’t think one would have to climb so far uphill to get to the bottom of a waterfall, but it is indeed far up the mountain. I don’t think I would have made it without my new ultralight painting box in my backpack. I didn’t have to carry a thing, and my pack was nearly weightless. Here’s a photo of the new painting box and my palette for this painting. I’ll be posting more photos of how the box was constructed in the week to come. You can see that I’ve added an extension to it, which can hold my brushes and palette cup.

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In the early morning light, most of the fall was in shadow, so I chose a scene that focused on the waterfall/cascade right at the base, where the light was strongest. By the time I was finishing up this painting, a little light was just beginning to hit other parts of the falls. I stayed to do a second painting that included the top tier of the falls as well. I’ll be posting that one tomorrow, so stay tuned!

Thomas Cole and many of the Hudson River School painters painted from this very spot. There are beautiful cascades all the way up the trail to the base, inviting a series of paintings. In fact, the beautiful Bastian Falls is right at the bottom before the trail even starts to ascend, but it’s definitely worth it to make the climb to the top to experience Kaaterskill. I’m sure I’ll be coming back here many times in the years to come to take advantage of other locations along the way.

We intentionally went the day after a heavy rain, figuring that there would be a significant increase in the amount of water coming over the falls and the drama it created. We were right! Most of the paintings and photos I’ve seen of this waterfall display a far narrower stream of water. We chose the right time to go, even if the way up was a little wet and slippery!

Edit: I just checked the image above on a different monitor and it looks a little too light, so depending on your monitor, this image below may be more accurate:

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Palisades in Morning Light

Posted by Jamie on July 28th, 2008

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12×16″, Golden OPEN on canvas covered hardboard
$495.00 plus $25 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.

A member of our plein air group got permission for us to paint very early in the morning at this fabulous location beneath the Palisades in Nyack, New York. It’s not long before the sun travels high enough to dim and cool the light on the cliff face. Although the sun was in and out of the clouds (mostly in), we did get some good color on the rocks. It was a fabulous location. I’d love to return in fall!

I just returned from my trip up to the Catskills, where I painted in the footsteps of the old Hudson River School painters. I visited the locations depicted in the paintings, and had an amazing trip doing my own versions from those famous spots. I’ll start posting photos and paintings from my trip beginning tomorrow. I’m still photographing the paintings and sorting through images. Please stay tuned!

Time in the Workshop

Posted by Jamie on July 21st, 2008

Dear Viewers,
I’ve been busy constructing a new painting box, preparing for a trip, and painting. I haven’t had a chance to photograph work or post images of the new box, and I’ve got a time crunch on my hands to keep painting while getting everything ready for my trip. I’ll be posting daily again starting next Monday, July 28, and will show you my new painting box then too. Thank you all for your kind comments, support, and appreciation of my work. ‘See you next week!

Jamie

Sailing by the Palisades

Posted by Jamie on July 17th, 2008

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8×10″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on Raymar canvas panel
$265.00 plus $15 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.

I was down painting in Hastings-on-Hudson this morning. The Hudson River view was gorgeous as always. The sun hit the cliffs in the early morning light, giving them a reddish color. As the morning wore on, they became darker and more violet. I am always amazed by how much the color of the cliffs changes so quickly there. I stuck with my early morning version.

After painting, I went to a wonderful exhibit at the Hudson River Museum of the work of Anna Richards Brewster…..highly recommended!

Morning at Locust Grove—home of Samuel Morse

Posted by Jamie on July 15th, 2008

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6×8″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on sealed, primed hardboard
$150.00 plus $10 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.


I spent a wonderful morning painting with friends at the historic home of Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph! His estate, Locust Grove, in Poughkeepsie, NY has exquisite, specimen trees, colorful gardens, and challenging architecture! Although the property overlooks the Hudson River, the area is overgrown, and only a glimpse of the water is visible. I was captivated by the light hitting the house in the morning sun.

Hudson River Haze

Posted by Jamie on July 8th, 2008

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5×7″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on sealed, primed hardboard
SOLD! Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com to inquire about a similar painting.

Today is one of those unbearably hot and humid summer days, so I set out early for Boscobel Restoration in Garrison to beat the heat, and did just one small painting. The Hudson was shrouded in more than its usual share of haze with the high humidity. I found Golden’s Titan Buff color to be the perfect palette addition to capture that atmosphere. I painted the entire panel that color, then painted into it with my other colors. I love the effect it gave!

Sketch from Olana

Posted by Jamie on July 7th, 2008

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I had a meeting up at Olana today, home of Hudson River School artist, Frederic Church. Although I didn’t have time to pull out all my gear to paint, I couldn’t resist at least doing a sketch while I was there. I saw a nice bench under a tree next to the mansion, so I pulled out my sketchbook, fountain pen, and watercolors, and took advantage of the shady spot while sketching. (You can click the image to enlarge it.)

Materials:
4.5×6.5″ Derwent journal
Lamy Safari fountain pen with converter
Noodler’s Bulletproof black ink
Winsor Newton Artist watercolors

Birch Tree by the Pond

Posted by Jamie on July 6th, 2008

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10×8″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on canvas covered hardboard
$250.00 plus $15 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.


This is another painting done on location at Stonecrop Gardens in Cold Spring, New York. This little pond near the entrance not only had stunning birch trees, but beautiful pond lilies as well. Those will have to wait for another painting, hopefully soon!

Mini Monet copy of Poppy Field Near Argenteuil

Posted by Jamie on July 4th, 2008

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1.75×2″ including frame, Acrylics on 4-ply 100% rag bristol
SOLD! Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com to inquire about a similar painting.

This tiny Monet copy of his famous painting, Poppy Field Near Argenteuil, is set with a Coke can for size reference! These little ones can sometimes take longer than a much larger painting, and this one definitely fell into that category. I’ve painted this Monet scene before; it’s one of my favorite Monet paintings, and looks fabulous in this diminutive form! Here’s a picture of the painting alone, about actual size. Unfortunately, my camera doesn’t photograph these tiny paintings very well:

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Here’s a slightly larger version too. I had to use a magnifying glass while painting to get some of the details in on the figures and the house!

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The beautiful gold frame is actually a dollhouse frame. I cut the board to fit the frame, and then did the painting to size. It will be sealed and varnished, and will look just like a tiny oil painting in a frame. These miniatures can be purchased with a pin back so you can wear your art, or a gold thread for hanging from a brass tack, or a miniature easel to stand on a table. I ship them in gold gift boxes (as shown in the first image). They are often done on a commission basis, and you may commission any painting that no longer falls under copyright protection, or I can do an original for you.

Trees Along the Hudson River

Posted by Jamie on July 3rd, 2008

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12×16″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on sealed, primed hardboard
$495.00 plus $25 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.

I had a wonderful excursion to Nyack today to paint along the Hudson River. The day was supposed to be very hot, so I left home early this morning to beat the heat. When I arrived at this wonderful path along the river, I was captivated by the yellow, atmospheric sky over the far hills across the river, and the shapes of the trees. This spot is very close to the parking lot, but I saw no reason to venture further, and set up my easel.

I used more than my usual limited palette for this one, expanding my colors to a whopping seven tubes!
Buff Titanium
Naples Yellow
Cadmium Yellow Primrose
Cadmium Red Light
Transparent Red Oxide
Ultramarine Blue
Titanium White (hardly used it at all)
The buff titanium and naples yellow were great additions to my palette for this particular scene. I think they’ll likely become staples for these atmospheric, early morning paintings.

Stone Bridge at Stonecrop

Posted by Jamie on July 2nd, 2008

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6×8″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on linen
$150.00 plus $10 shipping and insurance within the Continental United States. For local sales, shipping charge will be allocated to NYS Sales Tax. Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com for International purchases or with any questions.

The Lower Hudson Valley Chapter of New York Plein Air Painters gathered at Stonecrop gardens in Cold Spring, New York today. Usually when we paint in Cold Spring we paint along the Hudson, but this beautiful garden presented us with some welcome and varied changes of scenery. I started out down by this beautiful pond, with a stone bridge reflecting in the water.

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Hudson River Morning
8×16″, Golden OPEN Acrylics on canvas covered hardboard
(Click here for pricing information on this piece.)

The painting above was done last August at Boscobel Restoration, and was one of the first plein air paintings that I did with the new Golden OPEN Acrylic paints. I feel kind of sentimental as I think back to my first trip up to the Golden headquarters in upstate New York last summer. I dipped my brush into these paints for the very first time and felt the rush of excitement as I realized the potential of the jars of color before me. Here we are now, several generations of jars and tubes later, and the final product has been launched, and should be available in the stores within a couple of weeks. It’s been an amazing journey for me as an artist. I am delighted that the paint has reached its destination, and happy to have been a part of the process, yet I am sad that the fascinating and exciting development stage has ended. I guess I’m one of those people who loves a great experiment!

I spent much of the morning reorganizing some blog categories here, and added a couple of new ones. Among them is a separate category for my favorites from among my Golden OPEN Acrylic Paintings. The category listings are on the right sidebar —->, and you can click that category anytime to see many paintings done with this special new medium. I’ll continue to add to it.