All the photos taken by students over the last weeks. Today we will choose the best, download them, work on them in Photoshop and post to this gallery and tag them by student name. Students login here. ...

Here are some portrait drawings from my sketchbooks done over the last few years. Most are very rapid drawings, but a few are more carefully rendered. I rarely erase. Usually, I just start out with light scribbles. Some are drawn from direct observation, others are copies of master works, and some are copies from magazines or photos....

I tend to work in different media to the saturation point. I have not be doing much else besides web design lately, and before that, I was doing nothing but photography. I am really getting an itch to paint in oils, so today, in order to prevent web design burnout, I took a little time out to look through my photo files to try to find something worth painting....

My checklist for developing 35mm 400 Tri-X or Ilford HP5: Wire or plastic reels steel or plastic canisters and tops (if using plastic remember to insert center column) scissors can opener Changing bag (if dark room is unavailable) Ilford Ilfosol 3 film developer (1:9 chemistry to water)  Ilfosol3 factsheet Ilford Ilfostop (1:19 chemistry to water) ilfostop factsheet Ilford Rapid Fixer (1:4 chemistry to water) Ilford Rapid fixer factsheet LFN Wetting Agent thermometer graduated beakers rubber gloves goggles film squeegee film clips or clothes pins Developer mix ratio Mixture should be 9 parts water...

Our House-DAC In January 2009 I had two of my photographs shown in the “Our House” exhibition at the Durham Arts Council. Venice Hospital, Venice and Chenonceaux Chateau, Loire Valley, France DECEMBER 19, 2008 – FEBRUARY 15, 2009 OUR HOUSE Works by DAC Board, Staff, Faculty and Students Semans Gallery Public is Invited to a FREE Artists’ Reception, part of Downtown Durham’s Third Friday : Friday, December 19, 2008, 5-7...

Visual Art Exchange I submitted two pieces of artwork for the “Unfettered” exhibition at the Visual Art Exchange, in Downtown Raleigh, April 6-24. The one that was accepted was my Acorn Attic Antiques photo (left), taken in Wilmington. When I saw the dolphin, I was reminded of  William Eggleston’s tricycle image. It took me a long time to learn to appreciate his work because it is so stark and dispassionate. So it is a bit ironic that my first-ever photo accepted into a significantly competitive show was inspired by Eggleston, and is not very indicative of the majority of my...

From 2008-2009 I was in two different studios in the Carter Building and was  open for most First Friday art walks before I decided to design, build and move to a home studio. However, I am still very much a part of the Carter Building community and now manage the  Carter Building...

Breaking Free, Linoleum Cut Print, Edition of 20, $50 unframed. Breaking free was inspired by Picasso and the German Expressionists and was selected for inclusion in the Emulous Exhibition at the Visual Art Exchange, in Raleigh. Exhibition details: Emulous (desirous of equaling or excelling) June 6-27, 2008 First Friday Reception: June 6, 6-9pm This exhibition will be filled with the work of famous artists – recreated by local artists. A tradition in formal art training, reproducing the work of masters is a great way to learn their technique. Artists can mimic an existing work or create original...

When I lived in England I tried to see as many exhibitions as possible. These visits were very formative and have substantially affected my visual arts career. I have only had time to start writing my thoughts on the first two listed. Check back from time to time as I continue to post drawings and reviews. England Citizens and Kings: Portraits in the Age of Revolution, 1760—1830 |Royal Academy of Arts | This was a very difficult show for me to absorb. Quite simply, I was overwhelmed by the volume of works on display; it was a huge collection, I only had an hour and It was quite crowded the day I...

Winslow Homer was a “Yankee to the bone,” during a time when all of America was falling in love with the European aesthetic. American society during the post-Civil-War industrial boom was war-weary and wanted to forget about home for a while so they found solace in European Old World art and architecture. Whistler became an expatriate and America artists followed him en masse. Sargent became the darling of the wealthy on both sides of the Atlantic, but on their return, many American artists could not sell their European style paintings because the wealthy wanted to buy only from authentic...