Grab a few Beers at the show – Gleason Fine Art! June 20-27, 2013!

Burton’s Cottage by Kevin Beers

Kevin Beers. Master of painting all things Monhegan. Kevin’s paintings truly make you feel as if you are walking down the road on the island you have grown to love. Every detail is present.

It was always fun watching Kevin walking down the road with his biggee size canvas, setting up to start back where he left off the day before. Exact same time and place, so that the lighting is the same. As you’ll read below, Kevin met his wife (and fellow artist) Amy on Monhegan and they married there a few years later. Very cool story!

Kevin is probably most known for his Monhegan lighthouse scenes, which are incredible, but here is another favorite, and one that will instantly resonate with you if you’ve ever been to Monhegan!

Wharf with Trucks by Kevin Beers

When you arrive on the island, the boat drops you at the wharf. There you’ll see the trucks waiting to take your bags to various hotels or homes. There’s always a lot of action down on the wharf and its a great place to hang out, just stay out of the way!

Here’s are the details about Kevin’s show from Gleason Fine Art gallery:

JUNE 20 – JULY 27, 2013 in Boothbay Harbor

KEVIN BEERS:  Monhegan Island
Oils of Monhegan Island

Reception:  Friday, July 5, 2013, 5-7 PM

Artist Talk:  Kevin Beers, Thursday, July 11, 4-5:30

I found some information about the show in the Wiscasset Newspaper:

Beginning Thursday, June 20, landscape painter Kevin Beers joins ceramicist Tim Christensen for two new shows at Gleason Fine Art’s Boothbay Harbor gallery. For Beers, this will be his 12th solo show at the Gleason gallery, and for Christensen, his second solo show in Boothbay Harbor. A public reception for both artists will be held at the Townsend Avenue gallery from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday, July 5.

Each summer, Brooklyn resident Kevin Beers returns to the rock-bound island of Monhegan to paint for five months. Monhegan has come to mean a lot to Beers. It is where Beers transformed a passion for painting into his life’s work. It is also where Beers met his wife, Amy Raye, who, in a scene right out of a Hepburn and Tracy romantic comedy, literally ran into Beers while admiring a magazine article about Beers painting on Monhegan. Fittingly, Beers and Raye married on their island a couple summers after their serendipitous meeting.

To his many collectors, a Beers painting represents everything they love about Maine: intense blue seas and skies, puffy white clouds and sunlight dancing off neat clapboard houses. To Beers himself, “Monhegan is a dazzling place with incredible, beautiful light. I love to paint the buildings on the island – the color and structure of weathered buildings, the patterns of sunlight and shadow, and the sharp contrast between a red roof, white clapboards, and bright blue sky.” [Read more HERE]

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Image Credits: GleasonFineArt.com

Featured Artist… Margaret Lawrence!

Midday On The Pond by Margaret Lawrence – Image: Greenhut Galleries

Margaret has some fantastically serene paintings. Each is different yet all instill a sense of calm. I like that. The world is hectic enough, it’s nice to look at something and say “ahhhhhh”.

Reading Margaret’s bio, it looks like she was a nurse (or still is?), then studied photography and painting… well done Margaret, your paintings have such interest. They are utterly amazing!

A blip about Margaret from the Greenhut Galleries website:

Inspired by nature and the energy and mystery of the life cycle, my paintings are developed by removing paint as much as by applying it.

Through the give and take of the paint an image emerges that tells a story or marks time.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Have YOU been to Red’s Eats?

This photo almost looks like it could have been taken a decade (or two) ago… some things never change, which is nice… Red’s Eats, a popular spot to get an assortment of food, known mainly for their lobster rolls (and cheap prices) this is one place that always has a line! They don’t have a website, but it looks like their hours are 11AM – 11PM MON-THURS and 11AM-12AM FRI, SAT & SUN. These people aren’t afraid to work hard!

I have yet to stand in line, we’re usually trying to get one place or another… or I’m just too hungry!

Have YOU been to Red’s??

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Featured Artist… Susan Graeber!

“Coco” at the Prud’homme Cottage, Maine by Susan Graeber

I love this happy little dog… Coco is one lucky pup to have this kind of room to run around… Charlie would run until he couldn’t run anymore (if being at the dog park is any indication!). What a sweet painting. You can feel the distance, the light, the happiness…

And one more just because I like it! Don’t you agree??! Fabulous painting!

Seal Harbor Island, Maine by Susan Graeber

Read a blip about Susan from her website:

I have had the good fortune of beginning my life long interest in painting from early childhood attending the Bryn Mawr school where creativity was encouraged. I attended Hobart William Smith colleges for one year and decided to commit to going to an art college rather than a liberal arts program, and then transferred into the Boston Museum School for two years. During that time period my family moved to Brussels, Belgium for three years, and I had the benefit of travel as well as painting programs during the summers in europe and seeing the museums first hand. After this time period I transferred into the Maryland Institute and graduated in 1980. I had a few jobs related to the arts including a gallery position, settled down and married an art dealer who is a works on paper dealer, and had two children.

I always painted plein air when our children were growing up, especially enjoying Maine and the Maryland countryside. I now am a full-time painter, and maintain a warehouse studio in Baltimore, but mostly prefer to paint on location. I love to paint on Monhegan island, Mt Desert island, New Mexico and Maryland. I am influenced by the artists Arthur W. Dow, Fairfield Porter, Wayne Tiebolt, Neill Welliver, Eduard Vulliard and others. I am most attracted to places in nature where light is creating abstract shapes, and color is creating a mood. Capturing fleeting light is always a challenge, and a thrill when occasionally it works in a painting! When painting, or even seeing that spot that pulled my attention, I am drawn to unexpected movements of light and beauty.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Happy Saturday! A gallery opening and a very special birthday wish!!

Well today is the day! The day of the opening of the Lupine Gallery on Monhegan Island, here’s an image and a blip from their Facebook page “Lupine Gallery” – oh how I wish we were there visiting!

Here at the Lupine, we’re looking forward to seeing familiar faces and new, so if you’re on island, stop in and say hello and see what exciting new art we have on the walls! And then join us for our annual opening party on Saturday, May 25 from 5-7, to welcome the 2013 season.

I would also like to wish a very special someone… a very Happy Birthday! Bobbie Stroud, Fred’s mom… one of the sweetest people on earth! We wish her the happiest of all birthdays!! xoxo us

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Monhegan Island, Maine… a peaceful photo…

I thought a peaceful photo would be nice today… Monhegan Island, Maine. Absolute beauty!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

It’s the little things in life…

Monhegan Island, Maine is an island rich in history. There are so many beautiful sites to see, the ocean, cliffs, artists painting, birds, flowers, and of course… the butterflies… they seem to be everywhere!

Have a wonderful weekend, get out and enjoy the beauty all around you… notice the little things that make you smile. Be grateful for them… Life on earth is a short blip on the radar screen… savor it…

Prayers of peace go out to our Monhegan friend, Scott and to his family…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Beep beep beep… I interrupt House Plan Thursday for this important announcement… Colin Page Show…

Colin Page – SPATIAL PERCEPTION / Greenhut Galleries

May 2 – June 1, 2013

Opening Reception: Thursday, May 2, 5-7PM

Artist’s Talk: Saturday, May 11 at 1:30PM

Ok… I’m teasing you with only three paintings… Click HERE to see the entire show online… in case you can’t be there… but if you can… GO! I am blown away by the quality of work in this one show. Remember, you have until June 1, 2013 to see the show in person! Look at these paintings… stunners, every single one. Look at that brushwork, those fabulous colors, the composition… wow!

If you are in the Portland, Maine area, stop by the Greenhut Galleries, located on Middle Street. Colin is an immensely talented (and down to earth) award winning artist and his work continues to grow, just when you think it can’t possibly be any better he adds a twist. I love that! Try not to miss the gallery talk scheduled for Saturday, May 11 at 1:30PM. I’ve never had the opportunity to be there in person, but I have listened to Colin online, and he’s FABULOUS! Trust me, you’ll want to be there!

If you can’t make it to the show, check out his website, it’s a good one, and definitely read his Journal… Colin is full of fabulous work, and his thoughts are wonderful to read through… check it out! One more image to entice you…

Here’s a blip about Colin, in case you aren’t familiar! This is from the Greenhut Galleries email of Colin’s show:

Colin Page was raised in Baltimore, MD and attended the Rhode Island School of Design. He transferred to Cooper Union with a concentration in painting. Upon graduation, he lived in New York City for three years where he was an active member in the art community. In search of a more diverse landscape, Page moved to Maine where he has devoted his time to making art and teaching. Page feels that every painting should be as personal as painting a self-portrait.  His goal  is to capture the spark of excitement that called him to set up his easel whether it is the subject’s vibrant color or the atmospheric space.  Through his paintings, he shares the poetry of experience…..each painting must breathe and have a life of its own. Page states, “I want to balance moments of specific realism, with more intuitive paint handling.  My paintings are based on the subject I am experiencing, sometimes through direct observation, and sometimes through expressive brushwork and color.  My favorite situation is a painting that has both on the same canvas. “ In addition to making art, Colin Page also teaches a number of very popular painting workshops across the state. He was the 2009 winner of the People’s Choice Award at the Door County Plein Air Festival.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

(All Photos via Colin Page)

I bet you would like this about now…

Did you set your clocks forward an hour last night? I’m thinking this breakfast (from the Marston House in Wiscasset, Maine) looks pretty darn good about now… hot biscuits, homemade granola, fresh fruit, fresh squeezed orange juice and coffee, ahhhh, COFFEE!! Go grab a cup! Have a great day!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Bring on the sunshine!

Monhegan Island, ME Sunflower… 

T.G.I.F.!! Am I right? I’m happy that it’s Friday.

I’ll be back to regular posting next week… have a great weekend! High 60′s and sunny this weekend, what’s not to smile about??

Catch you back here tomorrow!