Capital.

I was in Washington, D.C. yesterday, on my way down to Principle Gallery in Alexandria, VA to drop off work for the upcoming group show, “From What I Remember/From What I Forget,” curated by the fine folks at Broad Street Studios. The opening reception for the show is Friday, January 20, 2012 from 6:30-9pm; please stop by and check it out! American Art Collector magazine has a preview in its current (January2012) issue, check it out at your local bookseller/magazine store.

Some of the images included in the "From What I Remember/From What I Forget" exhibition at Principle Gallery

While in D.C., I stopped by the National Portrait Gallery for a brief bit, which I haven’t visited in faaaaar too long. Imagine my great pleasure when the third painting I encountered once inside the museum was by none other than Philadelphia’s own Alexandra Tyng! The National Portrait Gallery recently acquired Alex’s portrait of her father, the late architect Louis I. Kahn – here’s an image: 

Portrait of architect Louis I. Kahn by artist Alexandra Tyng

Cambridge Street Studios!

Hey, you! As you're welcoming in 2012, don’t forget to check out (and maybe lend some monetary support to?) a wonderful new art academy here in Philadelphia – Cambridge Street Studios!

As a resident of Philadelphia interested in high-quality artistic training, I'm so, so thrilled that artist Angela Cunningham and her colleagues have come to the city to start up this great school (which offers part- and full-time options, as well as Open Studios sessions for local artists to come work from the live model) – it's a great place, and needs your help! There are many improvements which need to be made to the physical space, which are outlined in their fundraising page, at the following link:

http://www.indiegogo.com/CambridgeStreetStudios

Here's a sample of a painting by school founder Angela Cunningham:

Jazmine by Angela Cunningham

2012.

Happy new year everybody!!! Been busy, updates on recent paintings and upcoming shows soon!

Art viewing, paintings brewing.

A couple of extremely brief trips up to NYC of late have rewarded with some excellent painting-viewing – though, of course, there’s a lot going on up there right now, and I didn’t even get around to half of it. A couple of weeks ago I caught the opening for Julio Reyes’ show at Arcadia Fine Arts. It was a fantastic show – his work is really quite amazing. Also, I had the pleasure of finally meeting in person Candice Bohannon Reyes (married to Julio), whose own paintings knocked my socks off at the Women Painting Women exhibition last November in Charleston, SC. Two very talented and hard-working painters, check out their work ASAP.


Dominion, 2010, oil on panel, 36" x 69", by Julio Reyes

I also finally got up to see the most recent show of friend and fellow Philly painter Alex Kanevsky, whose show at J. Cacciola was having a second opening reception, thanks to a mid-exhibition relocation on the part of the gallery. The space is great, and the work even better – check it out, it’s up through the end of December.


J.F.H. with Pigs, 2011, 5”x16”, oil on board, by Alex Kanevsky

 And as for me, I’m hunkered down here in the studio with my Liquin and my winter hat… finishing up commissions, and taking absolutely forever to work through some other painting projects. I do feel like it’s been a really long time since I’ve posted much of anything, though, so let me post a little sneak preview of a painting I’ve started of fellow Philadelphia artist Steve Layne, sculptor extraordinaire. This is a detail of a larger (18”x24”) piece I’m working on – stay tuned, folks. More Steve ahead:


Detail of an in-progress painting of sculptor Steve Layne

More soon!

Still here. Chuggin' along.

Hey there! You'd never know it from the lack of posts here, but yes, I have been busy and doing stuff lately - pardon the long blogging absence. This year is flying past us all with a big WHOOOOOSH, here it is already December of 2011 and all WHOAH. Crazy! Time's a-flyin'. I've been busy here in Philadelphia, painting and looking at art and giving thanks and cat herding and whatever else. I'll have some updates soon on exciting shows for 2012 and such - including some sneak previews of paintings - but for the moment, let me leave you with a quick little eye sketch I did a couple of weeks ago of my friend Alia:

eyeball sketch - 6"x6", I think?

Arnot.

Just wanted to let you know, dear Internet, that I have some pieces showing up in New York state at the Arnot Art Museum, as part of their 73rd Regional Juried Exhibition - and one of them even won a prize! Yipeeee!! Here are the two pieces which will be hanging in the show until the beginning of February 2012:

 leaving California (2), oil on linen, 12"x9", 2011 by me, Diane Feissel

the uncertain silence, oil on linen, 12"x9", by me, Diane Feissel

Currier post.

John and I made an extremely pleasant day trip up to Manchester, NH this past Wednesday to visit some family; while there, we checked out the Currier Art Museum. It's a pretty small little collection, but a nice one - here's the photo recap of some of the highlights from the museum:

Did you know that Alma-Tadema's second wife was also a painter? I didn't. Live and learn! This is a painting by Laura Alma-Tadema, "A Knock at the Door":

 I have recently become aware of Joseph DeCamp, and I realize that I love his work. This one above is "Carnation and Black"

 Robert Henri, always a delight.

 A somewhat unusual-seeming (to me, at least) Edward Hopper painting - entitled "The Bootleggers." Shady stuff going on here.

 My father with a painting by William Merritt Chase.

 I've only ever seen one other painting by Lilla Cabot Perry at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, in DC... it was nice to see another. This one is called "The Black Hat," though maybe it should be called "The Surreptitious Middle Finger," given the funny position of the subject's right hand... 

 Raeburn! I love me some Sir Henry... let's hear it for the Scot.
 

 Rothko! I lked this one less that most Rothko paintings I've seen, but it was still nice to see, nonetheless.

 Sargent! Jackpot. From the description, it sounds as though this was the last portrait Sargent completed before his death.

 A close-up of that groovy Sargent painting, of "Grace Elvina, Marchioness Curzon of Kedleston" (that's quite a title, no?)

 Another close-up of that groovy Sargent painting, of "Grace Elvina, Marchioness Curzon of Kedleston"

 A painting by Philadelphian John F. Francis, entitled "A Squirrel Eating a Nut." SQUIRREL!

 Edmund Charles Tarbell - "Mercie Cutting Flowers"

 Edmund Charles Tarbell - "Summer Breeze." I challenge you to not get that Seals & Crofts song stuck in your head.
 

WYETH!!! Boooyeah. Andrew, that is. Beautiful. Haunting.