Credit Card Processing
Friends, I just wanted to take a moment to talk about how pleased I am using the Square Card Reader. It has made sales a whole lot faster and easier. Earlier this year I bought my first smart phone specifically so I could start taking credit card payments at the school and when I was out painting, using my phone. What I didn’t realize was that I would also be able to set up an online register and also take orders over the phone. The service is quick, the payments are deposited directly into my bank account within 1-3 days, usually...
read moreGrant Park – Seven Bridges – The End of Fall
I couldn’t let fall pass without going on walkabout with my camera to capture the colors at least once. When I had half a day to myself a couple of weeks ago, I decided to head out to Seven Bridges, one of the places I like to paint. Just South of College Avenue on Lake Drive, you will find the expansive Grant Park. This 379 acre park is the second largest in the Milwaukee County Park system, and within it you will find the famous Seven Bridges hiking trail. The existence of Grant Park and the Seven Bridges trail is largely owed...
read moreTrip to the Bookstore
With some time to spare between classes yesterday, I stopped at a bookstore that I had once visited many years ago, Schroeder’s Books & Music on Greenfield Avenue in West Allis. I had once found a book here that was very rare and hard to find, which was discarded as “used.” The owner of this shop owns the landmark “Renaissance Books” in downtown Milwaukee, and this store is typically a warehouse of old books, magazines and records. I had no idea what I was in for. As I entered, I nearly tripped over a woman...
read moreThe Place Beyond Fatigue.
I dream of a rose the color of eyelids
on a soft lambswool bed amidst a fragrant
cedar forest, damp earth and twinkling leaves
playing with the sun. I feel the warmth on my cheek.
Here drink this it will help you sleep.
I sleep. I must, for I wake each morning
read moreHow to Hang a Show.
Hanging an Exhibition of Paintings. When I was in college, and shortly after, I did a lot of work with several galleries in the Third Ward. I worked for about three years as a preparator, and have installed dozens and dozens of shows in a variety of spaces, each presenting their own unique problems. In order to discuss this topic, we have to use a lot of math. Fair warning: this is going to sound more complicated than it really is. To keep things straight, I will stick to a particular convention when referring to the dimensions of work, that...
read moreLet’s talk about Copyright.
As some of you may know, I often sell photographs and illustrations as stock images on Dreamstime.com. In order to do this, you need to upload high quality images, which must be approved along strict criteria by a panel of editors at the site, a review process that can take days. A few months ago I was notified by Dreamstime.com that seven of my images, including the one above, which had previously been accepted for use on the site, having originally gained the editors approval, would now be rejected for a very odd reason. The images were all...
read moreTruth, Beauty and the Meaning of Art
“Beauty is truth, truth beauty” – That is all Ye know on earth and all ye need to know. – Keats, Ode to a Grecian Urn I thought I’d put together some arguments on the nature and meaning of beauty to the human experience. I hope you’ll spend some time with these presentations and consider their implications. The first is an argument by Roger Scruton, produced for the BBC: One of the arguments that Scruton makes is that the whole concept of beauty and the value of art changed, beginning...
read moreThe Many Hells of Plein Air Painting
“Why the hell won’t the universe let me paint?!!” Over the past few years, I’ve given a lot of thought to the experiences we Plein Air painters share, and I think it’s best described as the Many Hells of Plein Air Painting. This includes: The hell of biting insects The hell of flying swarms of insects The hell of suicide gnats The hell of inquisitive small children with curious hands The hell of annoying inquisitive adults with repetitive questions The hell of the fellow who stands too close and...
read moreA Sense of Place
I think about this presentation every time I travel to a new location to paint. I think Plein Air painters are uniquely qualified to speak about this topic, as we are among the very few who spend so much time immersed in careful scrutiny, and the very nature of what we do documents the changes in our environment. I have painted dozens of places that are no longer what they were, due to weather, road construction or urban sprawl. What do you...
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