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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!!!!"

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    "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."

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    "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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    "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 January, 2009

Stopping to smell the roses, Part II

Posted by Jamie on January 29th, 2009

Yesterday I related the story about Joshua Bell playing in the Washington DC Metro. Only one comment was left on my blog, but I did receive some emails on the subject. Some relate to the perspective of that comment left yesterday (which you can see on the original post in the Comment section), and others related to the story itself. I found all of them to be interesting points of view, well worth sharing. Here are a few of them, which I’m posting anonymously.

“I took the story to mean that context is everything. Our presentations, lessons, dress, demeanor can make a very big statement. True, quality is great, but it has to work in context.”

“The Joshua Bell piece is great. Disturbing, but great…..Interesting that children could see and hear something they wanted to stop for and would have because they are not so imbued with a “schedule”. Yes we could and should smell the roses more and encourage our grown children to do likewise.
Golf helps too, but not very artistic.”

“I’m moved every time I hear the story about Joshua Bell playing in the subway for several reasons. The first is because I’m thrilled to be part of a music movement that teaches people to stop and appreciate beauty. All those awful pop music stations on the radio exist for the same reason bad potato chips and trans-fat frozen dinners do! Bad taste and no time to improve it! The second reason is that all those kids stopping and staring just puts more weight behind Suzuki’s comment “Baby catches everything.” When I was four years old I saw Itzhak Perlman playing his violin on Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood as he toured a luthier’s shop with Fred Rogers. I was awestruck by the sound!!! The next year I started Suzuki Violin Lessons.”

“Here is my two cents on this issue. I, too saw the video of Bell playing in the station. My first thought was: Wow! It’s incredible how people are ignoring him! Almost immediately afterwards I thought: if I were a serious busker, I’d be playing on the platform where people actually have to WAIT to catch the trains. That’s a captive audience and more likely to notice me.”

A few commented on the comment left on my blog post at the bottom:
“Wow that’s a slap of cold reality about life in the big city – make’s me glad I live in a relatively small city with plans to eventually move to a smaller town! A good lesson for us as educators to question whether there are other sides to the story. ”

“I live in the DC area and I know the stop where this took place. I read this story when it came out in the Washington Post. Anyway, it’s not a location where you’d be concerned about getting pick-pocketed if you stopped and listened. It’s an office area stop, and the event took place in the morning as I recall, so people were mostly coming out of the station, not going in, so missing your train was not an issue. Plus, the trains come every five or six minutes during rush hour, so it’s not a concern regardless. The poster’s comments were pretty slick in the abstract, but in this situation they were off the mark.”

“I saw this story last year and I can relate totally to it. When you are coming off the train you are usually in a hurry to get to where you are going. I don’t think the poster’s comments are off the mark. Trains may come in every 5-6 minutes, but they don’t come from everywhere that often. I take the train to doctor’s appointments in Philadelphia. I can either get into Philly 40 min. before my appt. or 10 min. before my appt. It is about a 10 min. walk to the doctor’s office, so that is the best choice, but I don’t have time to dally. Also, since I only do this every 3 months, I sometimes have trouble remembering how to find the right exit from the train station, so I am concentrating on which way to go and trying to not get mixed up in the crowd of people. I don’t pay attention to what is going on in the station. On the trip home, I sometimes have extra time and might stop to listen to a musician, but that will depend on what time I get done with my appointment. Trains going back home only run every hour, so if I don’t have time to kill, I am in a hurry to catch a train. If I do stop and listen to someone playing music in the station, I am going to be careful- “

Thank you all for your points of view. They bring up many factors at work on the scene, and issues I’d not considered.

Does anybody ever stop to smell the roses?

Posted by Jamie on January 28th, 2009

My friend MaryLou Roberts sent along this story today. It is a true story from the Washington Post. I think it says a lot about our society, and it made me realize that one of the things I love most about painting, and plein air painting in particular, is that it forces me to “stop and smell the roses”. How much do we really see and hear of the world around us? Feel free to enter your comments on this post.

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the
violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for
about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was
calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of
them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was a
musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and
then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman
threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him,
but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he
was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother
tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the
violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to
walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by
several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced
them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and
stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk
their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and
silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there
any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best
musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces
ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a
theater in Boston and the seats averaged $100.00 each.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro
station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social
experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The
outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour:
Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize
the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best
musicians in the world playing some of the best music ever written,
how many other things are we missing ?

You can click the play button below to see the YouTube video of the event as it happened. It’s worth the listen if only to hear snippets of Joshua Bell playing the Bach Chaconne!

Love Is In the Air

Posted by Jamie on January 27th, 2009

090127-love-is-in-the-air-7x5-425-2

7×5″, Golden Acrylics on Archival Foam Board
$140.00 plus $12 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.

Love is in the air just in time for Valentine’s Day! Surprise your sweetheart with art from the heart. There’s plenty of time for this to be in your mailbox to give to that special someone.

I just finished struggling with this little painting for two days, but finally got the effect I was after! Doing the gouache study yesterday helped, but achieving a scrubby background that I liked proved to be more of a problem than I’d anticipated. I’m very pleased with the way this turned out in the end. I think I’ll do a series with these little Marilyn Price vases (from the RiverWinds Gallery ) and different flowers, just in time for my favorite holiday.

This is painted on archival foam board, which has archival paper glued to both sides of an inert foam core. It can be popped right into a standard 5×7″ frame and framed like an oil painting, without glass. You won’t even need a backing board for it, since it’s on a sturdy support.

Cleaning the Studio

Posted by Jamie on January 23rd, 2009

I really did want to paint today, but here it is after 9pm and I am still tidying up in the studio. I work in so many different mediums and subjects that after awhile, this place becomes a confusing jumble of still life setups, photo references for landscapes strewn around, oils, acrylics and watercolors out on the tables, jugs of wash water and containers of mineral spirits, not to mention now-dry paintings which will get damaged if they’re not sorted and put somewhere safe.

I guess it’s a day in the life of an artist, even if it’s not painting. However, for your entertainment value, I did take a quick photo tonight of my studio mascots, parrots Lulu and Lucy, as they supervised the process from the playtop of their cage. They are female Jenday Conures, and quite a handful! Although conures don’t usually talk, they both say “kiss” when they want a kiss, and also make kissing sounds. Too cute! Lulu also says “up” when she wants to be picked up.

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Hopefully there will be a painting to post tomorrow, with a clean studio to work in!

Winter Stroll at Sunset

Posted by Jamie on January 22nd, 2009

winter-stroll-darker

18×24″, Oils on canvas
$1,200.00 plus $40 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 a painting done from a photo I took while out for an evening stroll with my husband in winter. It was done with a limited palette of just four colors and white. I love the way this turned out, with the dramatic light, contrast of the snow and branches, and harmonized color. It’s one of my personal favorite paintings.

Red Blue and Green

Posted by Jamie on January 21st, 2009

090121-red-blue-and-green-5x7-425

5×7″, Oils on Ampersand Gessoboard

$140.00 plus $12 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.

These three, small vases were made by my favorite potter, Marilyn Price. Her work is at the RiverWinds Gallery in Beacon, NY, along with many of my own paintings. Very often when I go to the gallery, I see something Marilyn made that I just can’t resist. My latest acquisition was made last Saturday, when I purchased the blue vase in the back of this painting. I set it up with two of her other pieces and played with using a lot of strong, pure color.

Palette:
Cadmium Yellow Medium
Raw Sienna
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red
Permanent Alizarin Crimson
Cerulean Blue
Cobalt Blue
Ultramarine Blue Deep
Viridian
Ivory Black
Titanium White

Dawn of a New Day

Posted by Jamie on January 20th, 2009

090120-dawn-of-a-new-day-6x6-150dpi-425

6×6″, Oils on Ampersand Gessoboard
SOLD! Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com to inquire about a similar painting.

I watched President Barack Obama’s inauguration today. It is the Dawn of a New Day.

My palette for this painting:
Raw Sienna
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red
Permanent Alizarin
Cerulean Blue
Cobalt Blue
Ultramarine Blue Deep
Ivory Black
Titanium White

A Favorite Chair

Posted by Jamie on January 19th, 2009

10 x 8″, Oils on Canvas board, unframed
$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.

The title says it all. This is a favorite reading and napping chair at home beside the fireplace, with the snuggly blanket draped over the top to take off the winter chill. I don’t paint many interior scenes, and I must say I enjoyed this tremendously. The most interesting challenge, from my artist’s perspective, was capturing the combination of cool light entering from a large picture window on the right, with warm light from the incandescent floor lamp.

Catskill Dreams

Posted by Jamie on January 15th, 2009

090115-catskill-dreams-5x7-400

5×7″, Oils on Ampersand Gessoboard
SOLD! Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com to inquire about a similar painting.

This painting is done from a photo I took along Platte Clove Road, between Saugerties NY and Tannersville. The road is narrow and winds around the mountain, with sheer cliffs alongside, and is so dangerous that this portion is closed in winter. The views are breathtaking. My husband and I pulled off to the side of the road to take some pictures. After years of looking for a vacation home, it was this drive around Kaaterskill High Peak that narrowed our search to this dramatic area of the Catskills.

Making Oil Paint

Posted by Jamie on January 14th, 2009

1-gather-materials-400

I started making some of my own oil paint a few years ago when I was in search of a higher quality Ultramarine Blue. In using a limited palette at that time, I was dependent on the ultramarine for providing the basis for the dark side of my palette. I needed the deepest, darkest, most heavily-pigmented ultramarine I could find. The best solution to my problem was to make my own. I stay away from cadmiums and toxic pigments, and just buy those in the store. Some pigments mix up easier than others. Ultramarine is a cinch!

The photo above shows the materials I use for paintmaking. I made this batch of Ultramarine Deep today and took these photos as I went to show my process. Making paint is my version of playing in the sandbox.

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I begin with a nice big pile of pigment (above) on a 1/4″ glass slab, and make a crater in the center. I fill the crater with alkalai-refined linseed oil.

3-initial-dry-mixing-400

I work the oil into the dry pigment particles. I add more oil a little at a time as needed. I suppose I could do this more scientifically by taking careful measurements, but as in cooking, I prefer to adjust as needed rather than following a recipe. Now it’s time to take out the glass muller.

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Contrary to what you might think, the paint becomes runnier as it is mulled. The glass muller crushes the clumps of pigment particles apart, so that the individual particles will be surrounded by the oil binder.

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Since the paint tends to liquify as the oil surrounds the individual pigment particles, you may find it gets too runny and you need to add more pigment. There is actually quite a fine line between too much and not enough.

6-too-dry-400

You may think you need quite a bit more pigment to increase the body of the paint, and then in a flash the entire mass becomes dry and unworkable. (above) A little more oil does the trick.

7-mulled-to-perfection-400

This is what I consider mulled to perfection. The pigment is well mulled into the oil. You can tell from the sheen that there is enough oil so that the paint won’t be underbound. If I add more pigment at this point, it will likely clump together again.

8-done-400

I’m done! I store these small containers of homemade paint in the freezer, and clean up the implements with mineral spirits or Windex. The paint containers will keep in the freezer indefinitely, as the cold slows the oxidation of the paint and the containers are airtight. I could put it into tubes if I preferred. Ultramarine pigment can get stringy when left sitting in oil, and since I don’t use wax or other additives in my paint to counteract that tendency, I find it keeps a better working consistency in the freezer.

Now it’s time to go paint!

Edit: I have removed the step of adding any mineral spirits at all, even in small amounts. I have done it both ways, and I think it is easier to gauge the proportions of oil and pigment without additional ingredients. Mineral spirits can result in underbinding of the paint, and it’s better not to take that risk.

Beaver’s Haven

Posted by Jamie on January 13th, 2009

090113-beavers-haven-5x7-400

5×7″, Oils on Ampersand Gessoboard
$125.00 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.

Welcome to my new backyard! As you can see, it’s going to be a pretty exciting place to paint. It felt great to pull out the oils again and get back to my favorite passion—landscape painting.

Little Box of Secrets

Posted by Jamie on January 12th, 2009

090112-little-box-of-secrets-7x10-wc-400

7×10″, Watercolor on Arches 140# hp
$100.00 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.

This is really the little box in which I keep my miniature paintings, but Little Box of Secrets is a much better title!

Fruit and Flowers No 4

Posted by Jamie on January 11th, 2009

090111-fruit-and-flowers-no-4-600

9×12, Watercolors on Arches 140# hp
$195.00 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.

Stay tuned for my return to oil and acrylic landscape paintings very soon!

Naomi in Watercolor

Posted by Jamie on January 10th, 2009

090109-naomi-400lighter

12×9″, Watercolor on Arches 140# hp
Email me at JamieWG@aol.com if interested in this painting.

Clementine in a Bowl on a Box

Posted by Jamie on January 9th, 2009

6 x 6″, Oils on sealed, primed hardboard
$125.00 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.

This proved to be a much more challenging subject than I anticipated! I had a wonderful time today working through the issues presented by the interesting shapes, angles, and reflected light and color. I got this fascinating little bowl at the flea market last weekend. I have no idea what its original purpose was. It’s hard for me to envision a use for it, but it sure did work well for the painting! The mahogany boxes have also proved to be wonderful props. I love the rich, warm color and the flexibility they offer in positioning subjects .

My palette for this painting was:
Williamsburg Cadmium Yellow Medium
Williamsburg Cadmium Red Medium
Winsor Newton Artist Cadmium Orange
Winsor Newton Artist Burnt Sienna
Homemade Ultramarine Blue Deep
WN Griffin and Classic Artist Oils Titanium Whites mixed together

Susan in Watercolor

Posted by Jamie on January 8th, 2009

090108-susan-600

11×14″, Watercolor on Arches 140#hp
Email me at JamieWG@aol.com if interested in this painting.

When Wishes Come True—Fruit and Flowers No 3

Posted by Jamie on January 7th, 2009

when-wishes-come-true-fruit-flowers-3-600

15×11″, Watercolor on Arches 140# hp
$225.00 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.

Fruit and Flowers No 2

Posted by Jamie on January 6th, 2009

090105-fruit-and-flowers-wc-2-400w-adj

8.5×10″, Watercolors on Arches 140# hp
$145.00 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.

Fruit and Flowers No 1

Posted by Jamie on January 5th, 2009

090105-fruit-and-flowers-wc-1-400

11×13, Watercolor on Saunders Waterford 300#cp
SOLD! Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com to inquire about a similar painting.

I’m taking a watercolor workshop this week with the amazing Charles Reid! I have many of his books and videos, so it’s a real treat to watch him paint and receive his critiques. The class is great, but unfortunately there is no spot-lighting for the still life setups. He did a wonderful demo this morning. We’ll be doing still life paintings again tomorrow, followed by three days of figures with a model. Stay tuned…..