New Work: The Light in the World III

 

The Light in the World IV

Oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches   Saks Galleries, Denver    $6650 framed

How to make a strip of land and clouds interesting? In my case, color is a first choice and it was used in abundance here. Alongside the color is an intent to bring light into every part of the painting as a continuation of this series. This is the fourth Light in the World oil and after living with them all on the easel for so many months, it has changed the way I view things to some degree. 

Looking up from the computer and out the window right now, I can easily imagine that what I am presently seeing could have more life and joy in it and I'm encouraged to make more oils to that end. What has emerged from the sometimes dark and fearful forces that surround us at this time is a peaceful and loving opposite. The phrase comes to mind, "There is light, in abundance everywhere and freely given to all, if we choose."

A worthy option and there will be more paintings to follow on that beam.

New Work: The Light in the World IV

The Light in the World IV  oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches   Saks Galleries, Denver   $6650 framed  

With these Light in the World series works, my goal is to have the light permeate every part of the scene. In this sunset, the light is not a sun glaring through the clouds but instead, a luminous scene.

The painting went through a number of changes and as it progressed, I worked to add more radiance and interest. Many foreground changes were tried and rejected until I came upon the idea of a diagonal movement. It worked nicely with the horizontal cloud bands and gave the painting the added weight necessary and more depth at the bottom on the oil. It was a solution worth working for.

New Work: Air through the Forest, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches

Air through the Forest, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches $6650 framed

For this painting I developed it in a different way, putting in the foliage first and with a lot of paint on the brush. The leaves set up a delicate, lacy effect and added movement.

The vertical trunk patterns create the horizontal and vertical aspects of this painting. As the tree trunks recede, they are surrounded by the yellow tones and it gives off the illusion of atmosphere. The placement of the tree trunks from left to right complete the composition, filling the space, adding more movement and interest.

The atmospheric effects weren't something I was striving for, but once I saw what the yellow tones were doing, I let the painting develop that way, continuing with thick strokes, layer after layer and it was fascinating to use so much paint and still give the illusion of tinted air. 

Newsletter, May 2020

BLUE WISH
Oil on canvas, 36 X 36 inches $5100 unframed
Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color

May News:

I like what the great American painter, Robert Motherwell said, "Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it." Life continues but for too short a time, so let's endeavor to make it a beautiful and meaningful one.

My essentially living in the art studio has its advantages because nine new oils are in progress. There are no creative limits and it does keep things interesting here!

Thankfully, I will be delivering a 5 foot oil commission this week for a Florida hospital and other commissions are currently in the works. Thank you all for engaging me for your public and private spaces.

Keep in mind that galleries are just now reopening and have also stepped up their services for clients online and by phone. Feel free to browse either way and of course, you can contact me directly.

Due to virus concerns, I have cancelled the Denver Metro workshop for now. It may be that I will host another group workshop later this year but it depends on how safe it will be. I'll make announcements in this newsletter and on my website.

Meanwhile, artists are signing up for my private, in-person lessons and the online, 4-month Art Mentoring Sessions. There are a limited number of dates available each month, so please join in soon. Feel free to contact me and start a conversation about the possibilities.

Take your work to new heights. These workshops and private sessions will focus on strategies for making better paintings, colorist tools, going to new places in your work and making fine art. We will be going deeper into making better and more appealing artworks with a variety of strategies and in some sessions, Photoshop insights made easy. all workshop info


Here's a video about what happens in the Group and Private Workshops

My best wishes for your health, comfort and a life well-lived.
Ken

---

New Works:


SACCADE XII
Oil on canvas, 48 x 60   $10950 framed
Saks Galleries, Denver, CO
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color



BLUE WISH
Oil on canvas, 36 X 36 inches     $5100 unframed
Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color



THE LIGHT IN THE WORLD II
Oil on canvas, 40  40   $6650 framed
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color


Grateful Notices:


THE LIGHT IN THE WORLD I
Oil on Panel, 24 X 24   Private collection, CO
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color


In the Galleries:


SUMMER PATTERNS
Oil on canvas, 40 X 60      $9500 framed
Saks Galleries, Denver
More about this on Ken's blog, For the Color



SUMMER SONG
Oil on canvas, 30 X 30 inches     $3700 unframed
Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color



YELLOWS ON A STILL LAKE
Oil on canvas, 36 X 60      $8450 framed
In the studio
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color



SUN BEHIND THE FOOTHILLS
Oil on canvas, 36 X 60      $7500 unframed
Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT
More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color

Ken Elliott American Landscapes coffee table book:

This large coffee table book reprises 25 years of my works in oil, pastel, monotype, etching and collage. Large, coffee table hardback version, 11 x 13 inches, 94 color pages with essays. Book and a signed giclee print of the cover image: $150 or just order the book for $115.

Also available as an iBook / download on Apple devices for $9.99. You can preview the complete book and how to order your electronic or hardback versions from my website.

My Blog, For the Color

Want to follow along in my studio?
Come across some interesting art bits and intriguing posts from elsewhere? Check out my artist's blog: For the Color and on the right of the blog under Followers, click Join this Site. Right now you can view vintage videos of Renoir, Degas, a Piet Mondrian video montage, comments about my works and observations about museum artworks from some recent trips.

View my newest artworks:
This monthly newsletter is the best way to stay up to date with my new works and events. You can also follow me on Facebook and go more in depth with my blog, For the Color. To view the total of my works in all media and in all my galleries, go to www.kenelliott.comThank you,
Ken

Article: Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, April 2020 / Thrill: An Artist's Perspective on Painting Landscapes

Thrill: An Artist’s Perspective on Painting Landscapes. An interview with Ken Elliott

Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine

By Fine Art Today
April 29, 2020

"Gold Progressions" Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches  Private collection, Michigan

On Landscape Paintings / An interview with Ken Elliott

Over 40 years ago I got a job working in a frame shop and for most of the years since then, I’ve been involved in the art business. More frame shops followed and later, working in and managing art galleries. I had an aptitude for it and enjoyed every aspect of the business: finding the artists and acquiring good works to sell. I came up seeing the arts from a business side and I’m very fortunate for the experience.

As an art dealer I was often asked the question, “What should I be painting?”

I remember the answer that popped in my mind and stayed with me ever since: Thrill yourself.

I’ve been working as an artist for over 25 years now and it’s easy to succumb to the confusion of what to do, market forces, etc. It’s a difficult path, learning how to make art and simultaneously run a small business.

What is it that businesses basically provide? This is an oversimplification but businesses either provide a service or sell something we have been persuaded to want. Art is not something we have to have, but for many of us we like the feeling of artwork in the home or public spaces. I would offer that we create a need in the viewer’s mind by making compelling artworks and ideas that go beyond the commercial clichés.

“Saccades I,” Oil on panel, 24 x 24 inches  Private collection, Denver

In my works I’m not trying to project emotions, tell stories, or represent a scene. Certainly I’ve done these things in the past and they are valuable tools to have, but it wasn’t fulfilling for me. Then I remembered my advice: “thrill yourself.” If the artist is thrilled then many viewers will feel the same.

Some time ago I had a brief conversation with the great landscape artist Forrest Moses. He asked me how my work was going. I replied, “I’m sick of the tyranny of making landscapes.” He wanted to know what I meant by that. I added that I was not happy making pictures of places.

“What do you want to do?” He asked. A phrase quickly came to mind and I told him, “I want to make art objects."


So now I am a painter who wants to make thrilling art objects. Think of those impressionist paintings in their decorative frames. Those works are more like art objects than pictures of things. Okay, that’s a simple goal but when I stepped up to that next blank canvas, it made me realize that the bar for making Art had just gone way up.

When I first started to draw, I put together four reasonably good pastels and showed them to a good friend, a respectable artist and art teacher. He gave me the usual positive comments and complimented me on how quickly I was learning. Then he asked me if I wanted a real art critique. I was certainly ready for that because I thought I was doing very well at the time as a newly minted artist.

He said, “Just because you can draw doesn’t mean you can make fine art.”

There’s truth. I got the tattoo and kept going. Looking back, I could have pushed myself harder but that’s okay, that’s the path I took. However, I often criticized myself for a lack of courage. I felt that if I were attempting braver ideas I would get further quicker. That may be so but I learned much later that it wasn’t courage I needed.

“Soft Blue Progression,” Pastel on sanded paper, 14 x 14 inches  Private collection, South Carolina

On Creating Landscape Paintings

Today I don’t have concerns about doing large-scale works and trying out new ideas. Sometimes I appear pretty daring but that’s not what’s going on. I simply have more experience in solving problems. I’m not shy about getting into difficult positions anymore because I have more solutions.

I’m struggling less now but I find that I’m pushing myself harder than ever before to make those fine art objects.

Although I love all types of subject matter it is the landscape that pulls me the most. I’m not working outdoors so photography plays a role. Typically there is something in the landscape that interests me so I’ll get a shot of it and bring it into the studio. I don’t bother trying to represent the scene but rather explore the composition and other elements that intrigued me.

That initial painting is often the beginning of many more on that theme. My real passion is color, so that initial scene becomes a means to try out more color experiments later. I’m reasonably separated from the photograph so another universe opens up with unlimited potential, and so it goes as I continue through more paintings with those motifs of sky, trees, and land.

“Gathering Light II,” Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches  Private collection

In the oil “Gathering Light II” (above), I took a scene that I see every day, all greens and browns, and I pushed it hard. The strategy was to create a powerful, high-color scene. The stronger colors are not diluted, but magnified because they were not repeated elsewhere. It all comes together in a bright, luminous landscape where all of the elements accentuate the others, setting up the glowing red-orange background as a focal point.

The pastel “Wood at the Lake” (below) was a workshop demonstration on painting landscapes. I wanted to get the basics of this scene down and free myself to try out some color combinations. I got into trouble right away with it (how nice to have an audience when you’re scrambling), but it worked out to be a good lesson for all of us. With time running out, solutions had to come quickly. This pastel needed a lot of clarity so I added the aqua and surprisingly, that was a move that helped on a lot of levels. I had been too focused on the colors elsewhere. Once I added the darks and the complexity of those branches the rest was simple and I finished it out with a series of small chromatic moves. The composition was solid enough that the colors hardly mattered at that point—there were so many color options.

“Wood at the Lake,” Pastel on sanded paper, 15 x 14 inches  Private collection, North Carolina

I do far more oil landscape paintings than pastels these days but the pastel Soft Blue Progression is worth mentioning because it was also done under time constraints. My gallery requested something for a small show and since I had a studio full of larger projects on canvas, I had put this off. Now I was down to the day of the deadline, so I quickly sketched in a pattern of treetops, connecting them to a gently arching bit of land. As I began to fill it in, my concern was how to make it compelling. What I had on the paper was a “soft” start so I continued with that poetic vein. I held everything back and focused on making that background glow. That became the prime idea and from there everything else fell into place. I followed that pastel up with new a color combination in the oil painting “Gold Progression.” I’m very happy the gallery pushed me into doing that small pastel.

Earlier I alluded to creative destruction, and offered two examples of this: “Winter’s Morning” and “View to the Foothills, High Contrasts” (both landscape paintings shown below). These oils are the result of my painting over earlier, completed oils that had been in the studio for too long and it showed. I passed by those oils every day and at some point critical mass was reached and they went up on the easel. I had nothing to lose so I went on a fast attack and began to cover up the original oil creatively, letting some of the older work show through.

“Winter’s Morning,” Oil on canvas, 36 x 48 inches Private collection, Texas

“View to the Foothills, High Contrasts,” Oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches Private collection, Colorado

Things were happening quickly and I didn’t stop for a break. I was determined to make a really good start with new color combinations and I would figure out the rest later. To my surprise, each canvas was finished in less than two hours and required just a few minor tweaks the next day.

A Series of Landscape Paintings

OK, there is a trend unspooling here and it doesn’t require endless studio sessions. I decided to pull out a French word I had been saving: saccades. I wanted a new motif where I could endlessly abstract the forest, keep it fresh and produce thoughtful works (art objects) that would thrill me. A French title would be just the right touch, oui?

With this Saccades series, much is abstracted and the forest motif becomes a place of patterns, color, and light effects. These works take on a life of their own quickly and they make a lot of demands: more shadow, color, light, mass, brights, blacks, in an endless dialog until they are finally in balance with all of their complexity. The Saccades works are designed without a singular focal point. This leads the eye to explore the equally engaging parts of the artwork without coming to rest in an obvious place.

About the word saccades: Since the late 19th century, researchers have been aware of the phenomenon of saccades, the rapid movement of the eye as we shift our attention from one thing to another. As a result, vision itself is discontinuous. We construct a “map of reality” from saccades much as a film editor puts together a scene from individual camera takes. (From an article by the film maker Errol Morris, New York Times, April 10, 2008)

I’ve had some nice successes with the two and five foot Saccades and the freedom they brought me. They made me want to try more of the tree forms I like doing but I wanted to keep that fresh look, something the plein air painters do so well. The result was the oil painting “Trees in Half Shade.”

“Trees in Half Shade,” Oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches Private collection, Castle Rock, CO

That painting was another demo from a workshop. The entire idea was to make a good start and that was the case here. When I came back to the canvas about a month later, I could clearly see a number of good options going forward and happily, I wasn’t bogged down, trying to undo too many problems. That good start gave me the clarity to proceed. I decided to keep it loose and more color was added very directly with open strokes. There wasn’t enough contrast and the painting looked a bit weak so I grabbed a dark blue-green, adding it to the foliage and where the shapes made contact to the ground. The painting came alive with the new darks and now it required some stronger colors to keep up. Adding the brighter color was pure fun and I was a bit disappointed when the oil declared itself finished.

In the studio there are always a number of landscape paintings in progress — that way I never have to worry about being inspired to work. Plenty of puzzles are presenting themselves and I simply work on what seems solvable at the time. It’s all about making compelling, fine art objects by any means possible.

So back to the commerce side, I asked a businessman what was the secret to his obvious success. He said, “If you do something really well, making money is a side effect.”

Let’s go thrill 'em!

About Ken Elliott

Ken is a colorist with landscape paintings as the focus of that interest. His works are not portraits of places but scenes that are subjected to abstraction – still recognizable but infused with colors and values beyond the normal. For over 25 years he has explored his landscape themes, subjecting them to dramatic extremes of light and color combinations that are richly stimulating and at times poetic. His works are direct, showing the lessons of the Impressionist as well as Modern schools. For the past 25 years, he has worked primarily in oils and pastels.

“I am continually drawn to the landscape and its infinite variations. The compositions are a starting point for unexpected things to happen. By pushing what is possible in the scene, new potentials are presented and I’m intrigued to follow. The works never follow a straight or efficient path because I am looking for what is not known and to bring it into form. I am trying to thrill myself and offer something new and precious to the viewer.”

View more landscape paintings by the artist: www.kenelliott.com

New Work: Saccade XII, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches

Saccade XII, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches $10950 framed
Saks Galleries, Denver, CO

It's good to have a number of paintings going in the studio to work with. In this 12th Saccade, a very textural painting developed because I worked over another oil from 4-5 years ago. The heavy impasto that resulted took me back to those Monet works. It was a joy to create a forest with all of that ready-made texture.

The purpose of the Saccades is to create a painting without a singular point of interest. Doing so presents a number of problems, first being that all the areas on the canvas are equally interesting. This is a good practice for most paintings anyway, so this oil puts that idea to task.

There is the additional game in play here and that is depth. The viewer gets the impression of being in the darker part of the forest looking out. The light is there, but nothing much is revealed. 

There is a considerable forest pattern effect across the 4 x 5 foot space. It has an abundance of complexity and just enough depth to be an intriguing presence on the wall.

About the Saccades Series shown here:
"Since the late 19th century, researchers have been aware of the phenomenon of saccades, the rapid movement of the eye as we shift our attention from one thing to another. As a result, vision itself is discontinuous. We construct a “map of reality” from saccades much as a film editor puts together a scene from individual camera takes." From an article by the film maker Errol Morris, NY Times

Video: Ken reviews and comments on some of his works at the Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT

In the studio with works in progress

Ken reviews and comments on some of his works at the Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT

click to view

It's always an interesting exercise to look back on a body of work and take the time to remember the many paths that brought those works to completion. In the studio, there are times when everything falls away and the artist is left with the paints and artistic problems to solve.

Looking at this video, I'm happy to see that all the puzzles were resolved at last and that the paintings are now out in the world to enjoy. After this little break, there are more canvases to make.

New Work: The Light in the World I and II, oil on panel and canvas

The Light in the World
Oil on panel, 40 x 40 inches    Saks Galleries, Denver, CO, $6650 framed

The Light in the World
Oil on panel, 24 x 24 inches
Private collection 

It was a great honor to have recently have toured the Holy Land with a group wonderful people from Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Fortunately, we safely exited the country just before the virus began appearing there. There are so many good memories of the people, places and experiences.

Our guides kept us busy every day and although we took a lot of photos, they were mostly of the sights with very few that were the sort of scenes that I would be painting from. 

An exception to the daily travel photos was an evening in Jordan at a nice hotel on the edge of the Dead Sea. I was sitting alone with this long, unobstructed view across the water to Israel. It was a quiet evening before sunset and I had the long promenade to myself. As the light was changing, I began to shoot the scene. There may be art in this... As it turns out, I did the 24 x 24 study on panel and used to for the larger, 40 x 40 oil on canvas.

After my return to the U.S., I kept thinking about that evening and how to create a compelling painting from that idea. Ignoring the main color from the photos, I was struck by the tiny bit of orange-yellow of the sunset in a portion of the photo and I decided to create a painting exclusively with those glowing colors. I rejected the sunset portion by using a heavy crop on the photos, just leaving a portion of the long shoreline, sea and sky.

Once the painting began, the land mass became the compositional anchor and the place where the colors started to flow. As the painting progressed, the flow became an important part of the sea and sky as well. I didn't catch it at the time, but my insistence on this limited group of colors and movement in every part of the scene is what made it all come together in an interesting way.

As I was adding the last brushstrokes to the work, a title came to me, something that touches us all, "The Light in the World."

Grateful Notices: Soft Forest Blues, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches

Soft Forest Blues, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches
Exhibited: Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT

My thanks to the collector for purchasing my work and to Sorelle Gallery for gracefully making it all possible.

A bit about this oil:

The goal here was to do a forest with blues woven into the composition. I wanted something subtle without the blues being primary. It's easy to use blues to make trees but it's difficult to make them believable.

All of the colors are greyed down, even the darks and lights, allowing the different blues to gently glow in the background. The numerous trunks and branches create a lot of complexity, all to create a veil for the blue hues. The line of trees is bordered with that bit of sky and the muted orange below, a bit of reality to bring it all together.

Finally, the foreground was muted even more, allowing the other subtleties in the painting a chance to be noticed.

Grateful notices: At the Pond's Edge, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches

At the Pond's Edge, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches
Exhibited by: Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT
Video: Ken discusses the making of this oil 

This is a painting that was in progress during three seasons, Fall, Winter and then Spring. Each season was represented here at one time and eventually painted over with the following season. The process was enjoyable and a lot of color work was done but this large oil took up a long studio residence in what seemed like the season of perpetual indecision.

Once Spring appeared in the studio window, green solutions presented themselves. Yes? No? The greens were tried and failed but they did work nicely in the lower portion of the blue trees. Spring with blue trees? In this case yes, and when the blues blended into the greens mentioned earlier, the painting began to come to life.

Add the aqua in the background for more drama and for good measure, the yellow tips catching light at the top of the painting.

In the end, what seemed to make this oil work were the contrasts between the darker trees and the light yellow/greens at the top and bottom. Care was taken to soften the sky and foreground, further increasing the effect of mass in the center trees.

Throughout it all, the oil was telling me what to do and I followed along, not being concerned about the time it was taking.

Grateful Notices: All Over Sunset, Study, pastel on paper, 13 3/8 x 17 7/8

ALL OVER SUNSET, STUDY
Pastel 13 3/8 x 17 7/8 Private collection, Vancouver, Canada Exhibited: Page Waterman Gallery, Wellesley, MA

A very good friend in Florida sent me a photo of a sunset through the trees while on her walk. I kept coming back to that image and finally, I gave it a shot in pastel. The trees had a nice vertical aspect and they were very close together, a great set up for a more abstracted piece.

As the image progressed it became a playground for different colors. At first, it was all in warm tones and as the pastel moved forward, the blues and reds created more interest and interesting contrasts.

When it was done, I wanted more of that composition so, I started a 4 x 6 canvas and it worked out to be a very successful painting.

My thanks to R. who supplied the inspiration and to the collector in Vancouver that contacted me. It was very satisfying to make the sale and the conversation that followed was remarkable. Many thanks to you as well.

Commissions

Bight Patterns    Oil on canvas, 48 X 60     Collection, Columbine Country Club, Denver

Throughout the year, Ken is involved in a number of commissions for a variety of clients, private and public, across the country.

He was worked on sizes suitable for residences and as large as 6 x 18 feet for public spaces. 

His works have also been used in major motion pictures and TV productions.

Email Ken to begin the conversation or call 303-995-1611

6 x 18 ft continuous canvas commission for a prominent East Coast Hospital

Double commission for Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston

For that special and unique artwork, consider Ken for your private and corporate commissions

Collections: partial listing

Hewlett Packard

Coopers and Lybrand                        

Kaiser-Permanente                    

Ritz Hotel, Denver

Four Seasons Hotel, Denver

St. Anthony's Hospital, Denver

Panhandle Eastern                   

National Dairy Board                

Grubb and Ellis, Denver

Marriott Hotels

Holland America Cruise Line

Stanford Cancer Center, Palo Alto

Tufts New England Medical Center

Pinnacol Denver Hospice, CO 

Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota

Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston

Gaylord Rockies Resort & Conference

    Center Aurora, CO

Vail Mountain Club, Vail, CO

Yampa Valley Medical Ctr, Steamboat Springs, CO

Vectra Bank, CO

Blue Shield

Hitachi

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

Glenmoor Country Club, Denver

Project Energy

  St. John’s Mercy Medical Center,

    Creve Coeur, MO

Rose Medical Center, Parker, CO

Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital,

     Grand Rapids, MI

Magnet Bank, Atlanta

Ford, Harrison Law, Atlanta

Lowry Medical Center, Denver

Town and Country Hospital, Houston

Jones and Keller, Denver

Raychem

Birch Hill Investment Advisors, Boston

Avista Hospital, CO

Private Mentoring Sessions

We are all looking to to improve as artists but how do we go about it? How can we be more successful artistically and professionally?

In this 4 month mentoring course you will be given the tools for creating better artworks, open your creativity and career focus.

This is open to all skill levels, media, and styles.

The $600. course will consist of one hour each month over 4 months on a video call. During the length of this course you will be working on your art using strategies for improvement and artistic success.

There will be assignments each month and Ken will be working in the time between for you as well.

You will determine your goals and with Ken's help, you will have the inspiration, confidence and skills to efficiently hit the marks as a professional and successful artist.

IN THIS COURSE:

	As an artist: Setting your goals Determining your artistic direction Styles and motifs Attitude The course fee is paid in advance and your scheduling dates are flexible. Courses will open to a limited number of participants. Contact Ken Register with Pay Pal on the website Mentoring Page What they are saying... "I had a clue what might be in store for my friends, but it went WAY beyond. You have a real gift. FANTASTIC!!!" "Thank you, Ken. I have to confess this is stretching my boundaries farther than they've been pushed in a long time! But I'm excited to go where I've certainly never gone before!" BLUE WISH Oil on canvas, 36 X 36 inches $5100 unframed Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color

March 2020 Newsletter

Ken Elliott's Fine Art Newsletter March 2020 View this email in your browser March News: About the Virus... since we are all up to date, I would like to simply add this. Sadly, one of the great American artists recently passed. Wolf Kahn was a very big influence on many levels to me. I was fortunate to have studied him for a month at a masters class in Santa Fe, NM. He was instrumental in pointing me, a very green artist, in a good direction with solid advice. I do cherish the many times we had together and his remarkable works live on. His wife, the remarkable painter, Emily Mason, passed three months earlier. I hope they are enjoying themselves!   Here are a couple of his videos: Wolf Kahn Landscape Painter, and Wolf Kahn at Niagara Falls. If you watch carefully, you will see secrets revealed. Also, here is his obituary from The Washington Post Now for a joyful gift While we are in our homes, we can virtually tour 500+ cooperating world museums working with Google.The arts touch us on so many levels - breathe deeply here. And now that there are less distractions these days, I'm finding that many artists, including me, are feeling inspired to dig deeper and further enrich the world with art. It's a wonderful motivator! Please note that galleries everywhere are working on reduced hours or by appointment, but all works are available for viewing online and the galleries are available by phone and email. Give yourself a lift and view the remarkable works of art online. Change your view and see the world as the artists do! My workshop in the Denver Metro has been announced - more info below. Feel free to contact meabout having one in your area. Let's embrace the good in the world and be safe. Ken   New Works: FOREST PLACIDO Oil on canvas, 40 X 48 inches     $6750 framed Saks Galleries, Denver, CO More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color In the Galleries:   ALL OVER SUNSET, STUDY Pastel 13 3/8 x 17 7/8        $2150 framed Page Waterman Gallery, Wellesley, MA GLOWING TREE LINE Oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches     $5250 framed In the studio BRILLIANT FOREST Oil on canvas, 40 x 40     $6650 framed Gallery 89, Steamboat Springs, CO More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color WINTER CONTRAST Pastel 15 1/4 x 19 1/8   $2700. framed Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT More about this pastel on Ken's blog, For the Color FOREST SEQUENCE I Oil on canvas, 48 X 120 inches on two 48 x 60 inch canvases. $23500 unframed    Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color Video / Ken discusses this oil SACCADES XIV Oil on canvas, 50 x 50 inches     $9850 framed Saks Galleries, Denver More about this oil on Ken's blog, For the Color About the Saccades Series: "Since the late 19th century, researchers have been aware of the phenomenon of saccades, the rapid movement of the eye as we shift our attention from one thing to another. As a result, vision itself is discontinuous. We construct a “map of reality” from saccades much as a film editor puts together a scene from individual camera takes." From an article by the film maker Earl Morris, NY Times       more on my blog Workshops / Private Sessions /Studio Visits: New 2020 Making it Fine Art Workshop, Denver Metro: Sat - Sun June 6-7 Limited to 6 artists, 2 spaces left More information below. Please inquire $390 per person. Complete info on the Workshops page Private lessons by appointment. Here's a video about what happens in the Group and Private Workshops Contact Ken to arrange a studio visit or Workshop. It is always a pleasure to meet you. Take your work to new heights. These workshops and private sessions will focus on strategies for making better paintings, colorist tools, going to new places in your work and making fine art. We will be going deeper into making better and more appealing artworks with a variety of strategies including Photoshop insights made easy. all workshop info   Ken Elliott American Landscapes coffee table book: This large coffee table book reprises 25 years of my works in oil, pastel, monotype, etching and collage.Large, coffee table hardback version, 11 x 13 inches, 94 color pages with essays. Book and a signed giclee print of the cover image: $150 or just order the book for $115. Also available as an iBook / download on Apple devices for $9.99. You can preview the complete book and how to order your electronic or hardback versions from my website.     My Blog, For the Color Want to follow along in my studio? Come across some interesting art bits and intriguing posts from elsewhere? Check out my artist's blog: For the Color and on the right of the blog under Followers, click Join this Site. Right now you can view vintage videos of Renoir, Degas, a Piet Mondrian video montage, comments about my works and observations about museum artworks from some recent trips. View my newest artworks: This monthly newsletter is the best way to stay up to date with my new works and events. You can also follow me on Facebook and go more in depth with my blog, For the Color. To view the total of my works in all media and in all my galleries, go to www.kenelliott.com Thank you, Ken SaveSave Copyright © 2020 Ken Elliott Fine Art, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. Our mailing address is: Ken Elliott Fine Art Castle Rock, CO  80108 Add us to your address book Contact Ken 303-995-1611 email website Sign up for my Art Blog: For the Color Sign up for this newsletter Image top, cropped here: All Over Sunset, Study Pastel, 13 3/8 x 17 7/8     $2150 framed Page Waterman Gallery, Wellesley, MA American Art Collector Magazine: "Elliott's canvases display the strikingly vivid modern hues in which he chooses to render his contemporary landscapes."  Southwest Art Magazine: Although his paintings loosely reference photographs and plein-air sketches, they refuse to exist within the confines of already-prescribed images. Rather, they stand independent of any specific place or time, the fulfilled pursuits of the artist’s visual and intellectual explorations. Elliott wields color boldly, creating sizzling, vibrant shapes that are at once kinetic and placid, grounded in unifying illumination, and focused compositions. He has a fascination with line structure as well, believing that “edges empower colors.”  Private Lessons and studio visits: I have really enjoyed giving private lessons individually or with groups over the years. It is casual, focused and fun. It is always a pleasure welcoming collectors into my studio, please email me a call to arrange a time. The workshops are very stimulating and you will see a big result in your approach to making fine art and clarity on your career strategies. Let's discuss what works best for you. What they are saying: "I had a clue what might be in store for my friends, but it went WAY beyond. You have a real gift. What a FANTASTIC couple of days!!!’ L. "Your painting demonstrations and the information you gave us  was invaluable- no wonder your paintings are so moving. I so enjoyed meeting you. Thank you for coming to Virginia." S. "Thank you so much for the wonderful, thought compelling workshop. You rekindled my love for making art. Your enthusiasm is contagious and felt throughout the room. You set up a stimulating environment that provided continuous visual images and your generosity in sharing those photos was much appreciated. I found you to be humorous, supportive and kind. I would recommend you as an instructor to anyone who would like to take their art to the next level." "I can't thank you enough for coming to Boulder! Thank you for your clear eye, your hard work, your beautiful color and your careful feedback. I'm now a different Painter...maybe a different person? I loved the weekend. And I can't wait until we get to soak up your love for the work, for Wolf Kahn, for COLOR -- yet again (note that I'm greedy).You are an amazing addition to our lives." M. "Thank you so much for lighting up our lives and our paintings at this past weekend’s workshop! I loved hearing about your time with Wolf Kahn, your thoughts on painting, the beautiful demo, and of course the great feedback you provided us on our own paintings." "You really reignited my desire to paint freely. Thanks also for your generosity in sharing the numerous links." "I hope to spend another weekend painting with you sometime soon." B.H. "Thank you for the workshop! It was a great two days. You are an amazing host and instructor, (two things that don’t always work together). "You pulled something from each of us and it was wonderful to be a part of it. Thanks to the moon and back," V. "Thank you Ken. It was a wonderment! I learned so much." Kathy "I so enjoyed meeting you and being part of the workshop. You got me on fire!!!!!" Ed "Wow! My weekend of private lessons was fabulous! While I was there I stepped into a whole new world that my soul was calling for." "Wonderful conversations, a beautiful time with great art everywhere and artistic success!" K. "It was a fabulous workshop! I know we all had a lot of fun and really enjoyed having you here. We would love to have you come back again next year!" D. "Just wanted to thank you again for a very inspiring, informative, and fun workshop. I worked LARGE today!" M. "Thank you for all your inspiration!" D. "Thanks SO VERY MUCH, Ken, for such a fun, informative, and energetic workshop. Your enthusiasm is contagious. What a wonderful weekend!!" C. "When I signed up for a painting workshop, who knew that it would be so much more.Thank you Ken. For your kindness, generosity of spirit, and sharing your knowledge and skill of painting with us." "Thank you to everyone for making our time together a magical weekend which will be cherished. Fortunately the universe provided me with what I needed, whether I knew it or not." L. "Love the class, you are a great teacher!" B. "I feel so enriched and on fire to paint big and glowing colors. If you ever get a chance to study with Ken Elliott, I highly recommend him. If you need help getting to his workshops just read his bookManifesting 123" F. Website Facebook Twitter Pinterest SHARE THIS EMAIL