Painting in progress last week at Watch Hill RI, Mystic Seaport, and Mason's Island Ct.
|
I am excited to have been elected into signature membership of the American Society of Marine Artists this past spring. I look forward to further involvement in this fine organization. They can be found online at http://americansocietyofmarineartists.com
At the 37th annual International Marine Art Exhibition, held at the Mystic Seaport Museum, I had the honor to win the Rudolph J. Schaeffer III Emerging Artist Award. The winning piece is pictured below: "Mid-Morning Break" 24x48, Oils on Canvas. This painting has recently been sold to a private collection.  I enjoyed the opportunity this past June to spend time painting Plein Air along the coastline of Mystic Connecticut to Watch Hill Rhode Island. I completed 3 small pieces and started another 3. In addition, the dawn surf at Watch Hill has provided a great wealth of inspiration, driving the progress on an additional 4 new paintings currently underway. The images below show the plein air works in progress. This past winter, I’ve worked on completing a number of long-term paintings, most of which were of inland waterways. I’m still working on a couple commissioned works as well. In addition, I have a few seascapes underway that explore surf dynamics from new views and lower angle lighting. This past month, my work has been exhibited in a solo show at the Loomis Gallery at Mansfield University. In conjunction with the opening reception, I enjoyed the opportunity to provide a lecture to members of the art department about the history and impact of the 19th century Hudson River School of American art.
Throughout 2015, I’ve been driven to study the fascinating rock formations along the west shore of Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. Finally, I am excited to have a painting underway that will display these patterns.
 This painting won an award and then sold on its initial exhibit in Connecticut. I find myself glued to the sparkling effects of sun on the surface of water and thoroughly enjoyed studying such dynamics in this piece. I plan to study this more fully in the future, perhaps a number of close-up studies of the surf to highlight the sparkle of sun.
As the weather begins to cool, I find myself torn between the dynamics of coastal surf, and the seasonal effects on eastern woodlands. I’ve been working on a three larger surf paintings (36x72), as well as a number of smaller studies of the sea. However, local streams amid changing forests are always a source of inspiration. I’ve played with sketches and ideas over many years for a large painting of an autumn forest stream. I’ve painted such subjects before, but always on smaller canvases. Small canvases seem restrictive compared to those I can step into. Perhaps this season I will get such a work underway. In the meantime, I continue to explore the dynamics of moving surf on larger canvases. Pictured below, I am holding the painting “Rejuventation”, which can be viewed in greater detail on the “New Pieces” page. 
My painting progress this past spring has been slow, but I have completed a few large seascapes. Currently, two more are underway. I am also continuing work on two stream landscapes as well as a study of an old birch trunk with summer leaves. Shown in the pictures below is the new addition at Sheldon Fine Art in Newport Rhode Island. One of my recent wave paintings can be seen centered on the wall. 
|
AuthorBill Hobbs Archives
May 2025
Categories |
RSS Feed