Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
"Leader of the band"
This is a very special post that I am dedicating to my father Charles S. Ferguson who died on April 12th 2013 at the age of 81. I completed this 8"x 10" Oil portrait in just a matter of hours for his memorial service reception. I rushed to get it ready to be displayed. The painting actually isn't even finished yet. It is still in an under painting stage. But I knew my Dad would have wanted me to have done something like this for him. He was always very proud of my artistic endeavors and he always took a keen interest in them.
My dad worked at the Post Office for 41 years before retiring in 1998. But my father was also a great musician. He played the trumpet, drums and a couple of other instruments as well. I remember as a kid seeing him playing the drums in a band featuring my mom on piano and my aunt performing vocals at a local nursing home. As my dad was playing the drums I noticed him dozing off while performing and yet he never missed a beat. ( I am not making that up).
And so in memory of my beloved father I chose a song by Dan Fogelberg titled "Leader of The Band" a song Fogelberg wrote as a tribute to his own father who was a high school marching band teacher. I thought this song was very fitting. Enjoy...
My dad worked at the Post Office for 41 years before retiring in 1998. But my father was also a great musician. He played the trumpet, drums and a couple of other instruments as well. I remember as a kid seeing him playing the drums in a band featuring my mom on piano and my aunt performing vocals at a local nursing home. As my dad was playing the drums I noticed him dozing off while performing and yet he never missed a beat. ( I am not making that up).
And so in memory of my beloved father I chose a song by Dan Fogelberg titled "Leader of The Band" a song Fogelberg wrote as a tribute to his own father who was a high school marching band teacher. I thought this song was very fitting. Enjoy...
My dads panama hat that he used to wear will hang near my easel in my studio.
My next blog will feature an update on the book release "The Art of Caring" and I'll resume telling my corny jokes. See you next time..
Monday, March 25, 2013
BY THE BOOK and (Is that you Aunt Esther?)
Still Life 7"x 5" Oil on woodGreetings everyone. Once again I'm back at the computer with a new blog post update. I've been quite busy and have not been able to post as much as I would like to. For now I'll just have to post when I can and eventually I'll post more frequently again.
I'm just reminding everyone that I still have a number of paintings still showing at The Frame Shop and Westville Gallery 899 Whalley Ave. New Haven CT. Also, I wanted to announce that I was chosen to be included in a book published by students at Yale University. My interview is among others in the book. Some of my paintings will also be featured in the yet to be released publication. There is going to be a special event held for individuals included in the publication on Thursday March 28th 5:00 pm at Cohen Auditorium inside THE YALE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE at 333 Cedar St. New Haven CT. I will also have some of my paintings on display for the event as well. Drop in if your in the area.
I always imagined that if I wrote a book about myself it would be released in to two parts the first book would be titled "CHRIS FERGUSON IS A GREAT MAN-one mans rise to success in the art world" featuring a picture of me on the cover holding a paint brush and palette with an airbrushed............heavily airbrushed muscular build. This would sell two copies. One being bought by me and the other being bought by my dog. Then there would come the inevitable follow up to the first book. CHRIS FERGUSON ISN'T AS GREAT AS HE THOUGHT HE WAS- one man's lesson of humility in the art world" featuring on the front cover a picture of me on the New Haven green on a cold rainy day with a broken down plien air easel pleading with passersby to buy my paintings. Oddly enough the latter book would probably end up on the New York Times Best Sellers List. Anyways I know that the book published by the Yale students will be far better than anything I could possibly write. I'll keep you all posted as to when it is released. I'd like to give a very special thanks to Christine Sunu, who conducted my interview. She made it a very pleasant experience. Thanks again Christine.
And in completely unrelated news, for no reason whatsoever I've posted a picture of Aunt Esther who, according to Fred G. Sanford of SANFORD AND SON, "Has a face that could launch a thousand ships.........................in the opposite direction."
I always imagined that if I wrote a book about myself it would be released in to two parts the first book would be titled "CHRIS FERGUSON IS A GREAT MAN-one mans rise to success in the art world" featuring a picture of me on the cover holding a paint brush and palette with an airbrushed............heavily airbrushed muscular build. This would sell two copies. One being bought by me and the other being bought by my dog. Then there would come the inevitable follow up to the first book. CHRIS FERGUSON ISN'T AS GREAT AS HE THOUGHT HE WAS- one man's lesson of humility in the art world" featuring on the front cover a picture of me on the New Haven green on a cold rainy day with a broken down plien air easel pleading with passersby to buy my paintings. Oddly enough the latter book would probably end up on the New York Times Best Sellers List. Anyways I know that the book published by the Yale students will be far better than anything I could possibly write. I'll keep you all posted as to when it is released. I'd like to give a very special thanks to Christine Sunu, who conducted my interview. She made it a very pleasant experience. Thanks again Christine.
And in completely unrelated news, for no reason whatsoever I've posted a picture of Aunt Esther who, according to Fred G. Sanford of SANFORD AND SON, "Has a face that could launch a thousand ships.........................in the opposite direction."
"Watch it sucker!...........Or the next self portrait you paint will be of you with a black eye and no teeth."
Ooops, sorry Aunt Esther. I'll see you all in my next blog post.
Ooops, sorry Aunt Esther. I'll see you all in my next blog post.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Better late than never
Monday, November 5, 2012
"And now here's something we hope you'll really like"
" Moose Meadow Morning" oil on canvas 34"x 28"
Hello again everybody. I know many of may be thinking what in the world is this? This was a commissioned painting that I completed over the summer for MOOSE MEADOW CAMPGROUND in West Willington, CT. This was definitely a change of subject matter from what I usually do. There are many artists who specialize in wildlife art. Many contemporary wildlife artists are featured in the magazine ART OF THE WEST. Although I don't consider myself a wildlife or western genre artist, I've been buying issues of that particular magazine for ten years now. I'm able to learn about painting just by observing the works of artist featured in each issue. I've read about how some wildlife artists go to great lengths just photograph and sketch from life wild animals in their natural environment and then go back to there studios and develop the paintings. The closest I've ever come to sketching a wild animal in it's natural environment was when I tried to draw a squirrel who was trying to run off with a bucket of chicken from Popeye's on the New Haven Green ( the squirrels in this town are gangsta ) Because I really didn't have the time to study the anatomy or observe these amazing creatures in person, I had to settle for stock photos I found on the Internet. I know that others who have the luxury of really observing and studying these animals in person could probably spot some drawing errors in the painting ( they stand out like sore thumb to me ) but I did the best I could with the time that I had to finish it and folks at Moose Meadows were very, very, very, pleased with the finished painting, so I guess it wasn't that bad.
Also if your interested family campgrounds definitely look them up. I've been going to Moose Meadows ever since I was a wee lad and now I take my family there. My daughter loves it just as much as I did. I'll now leave you with a moose related video. Enjoy.
Hello again everybody. I know many of may be thinking what in the world is this? This was a commissioned painting that I completed over the summer for MOOSE MEADOW CAMPGROUND in West Willington, CT. This was definitely a change of subject matter from what I usually do. There are many artists who specialize in wildlife art. Many contemporary wildlife artists are featured in the magazine ART OF THE WEST. Although I don't consider myself a wildlife or western genre artist, I've been buying issues of that particular magazine for ten years now. I'm able to learn about painting just by observing the works of artist featured in each issue. I've read about how some wildlife artists go to great lengths just photograph and sketch from life wild animals in their natural environment and then go back to there studios and develop the paintings. The closest I've ever come to sketching a wild animal in it's natural environment was when I tried to draw a squirrel who was trying to run off with a bucket of chicken from Popeye's on the New Haven Green ( the squirrels in this town are gangsta ) Because I really didn't have the time to study the anatomy or observe these amazing creatures in person, I had to settle for stock photos I found on the Internet. I know that others who have the luxury of really observing and studying these animals in person could probably spot some drawing errors in the painting ( they stand out like sore thumb to me ) but I did the best I could with the time that I had to finish it and folks at Moose Meadows were very, very, very, pleased with the finished painting, so I guess it wasn't that bad.
Also if your interested family campgrounds definitely look them up. I've been going to Moose Meadows ever since I was a wee lad and now I take my family there. My daughter loves it just as much as I did. I'll now leave you with a moose related video. Enjoy.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Summer Remix
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| Light House Park (oil 8x10) |
Hello again everybody. Once again I must apologize for my blogging break. But this time I'll make it up to you with a special treat at the end of this blog entry. Allow me to now to explain my absence these past couple of months. You see, this is the first year that my daughter has actually had a full summer break from school ( she's a 1st grader now ) And so my wife and I were a bit unprepared as far as a plan for summer activities for her were concerned. Many summer programs for were to expensive to pay for at the last minute. Thankfully we found a place called camp Grandma. Camp Grandma is a fantastic summer camp and the best part about it is that it's FREEEEE!!!! Thanks Mom for watching our chocolaty sweet daughter for us during the weekday mornings this summer.
I've posted a couple of plien air paintings that I did over the summer (yes I have been busy painting) The one above done whilst attending a cook out. The painting you see beneath was done en plien air on Audubon St. in New Haven. While my daughter was attending art classes at the Creative Arts Workshop I figured I'd use that time to brush up on my skills. This was rushed and very, very loose but it's still good to practice.
I've posted a couple of plien air paintings that I did over the summer (yes I have been busy painting) The one above done whilst attending a cook out. The painting you see beneath was done en plien air on Audubon St. in New Haven. While my daughter was attending art classes at the Creative Arts Workshop I figured I'd use that time to brush up on my skills. This was rushed and very, very loose but it's still good to practice.
And now here is what you all have been waiting for the first video featured on my blog. A very moving tribute to Bob Ross put together by the people at PBS. And now may I present to you THE BOB ROSS REMIX. I'll more posts soon Enjoy!
Monday, June 11, 2012
A qiuck sketch
Oil study
This is a small oil painting I did as a warm up for a larger painting that I'm working on. After viewing the blogs of other artists I was reminded of the importance of doing small preliminary paintings and drawings before jumping into the final painting. Many great painters have always done sketches or studies before creating their masterpieces. The benefit of these quick paintings is that they allow you to resolve composition, drawing, color and value issues before you really get into a painting. Then when it is time to tackle a finished painting,the process goes much more smoothly. I'll post the finished painting when it's done.
In other news I will have another solo art show at the Guilford Library in Guilford CT. next month. I'll have more details on that soon.
And now in completely unrelated news here is a list of movies that I hope will make it to theaters next summer
1.Cap n' Crunch The Movie in 3-D
2.a re-release of Popeye the Movie in 3-D ( which in my opinion should've happened in 2010 to mark the 30th anniversiky but maybe there holding out for the 35th in 3 more years.... hopefully)
3.The Adventures of a New Haven Artist the Movie in 3-D (rated G)
Starring Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson as yours truly who was quoted as saying when asked what it took to prepare for the role " Being a former wrestler, I already have a ton of muscles, but I felt in order to do the role true justice I had to spend 2 years of intensive fitness training before I could step in front of the camera for filming."
Just kidding. Stay tuned for my next blog update.
This is a small oil painting I did as a warm up for a larger painting that I'm working on. After viewing the blogs of other artists I was reminded of the importance of doing small preliminary paintings and drawings before jumping into the final painting. Many great painters have always done sketches or studies before creating their masterpieces. The benefit of these quick paintings is that they allow you to resolve composition, drawing, color and value issues before you really get into a painting. Then when it is time to tackle a finished painting,the process goes much more smoothly. I'll post the finished painting when it's done.
In other news I will have another solo art show at the Guilford Library in Guilford CT. next month. I'll have more details on that soon.
And now in completely unrelated news here is a list of movies that I hope will make it to theaters next summer
1.Cap n' Crunch The Movie in 3-D
2.a re-release of Popeye the Movie in 3-D ( which in my opinion should've happened in 2010 to mark the 30th anniversiky but maybe there holding out for the 35th in 3 more years.... hopefully)
3.The Adventures of a New Haven Artist the Movie in 3-D (rated G)
Starring Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson as yours truly who was quoted as saying when asked what it took to prepare for the role " Being a former wrestler, I already have a ton of muscles, but I felt in order to do the role true justice I had to spend 2 years of intensive fitness training before I could step in front of the camera for filming."
Just kidding. Stay tuned for my next blog update.
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