Competition Update

My watercolor, EVY, was accepted into Watercolor Wisconsin at the Wustum Museum of Art in Racine, WI. The exhibition opens December 13 and runs through April 4.

My paintings "Medium Rare" and "Bocce on the Beach" were both accepted into the Anderson Arts Center's Winter Juried Exhibition in Kenosha, WI. "Bocce on the Beach" was awarded first place in the competition. I am so honored. The paintings which won second and third place were exceptional. The exhibition is open now and runs through January 3.

I chose not to enter the Wisconsin Museum of Art Members' Exhibition after all. Also, I was informed I could not enter my painting "Looking to the Future" in the exhibition at the Reuss Federal Building in Milwaukee, WI because it was determined that the painting was too sexual for a Federal building. I have to see the humor in this and be pleased with the fact that one of MY paintings caused controversy.

Evy - Watercolor

Evy is my newest watercolor. The image is 12 x 16 inches. The painting is double matted in neutral tones to a final size of 18 x 24. The frame is a espresso colored wood frame which goes well with the tones in the painting. This painting is the result of a challenge I gave myself. As can be seen in my other posts, my paintings tend to be quite realistic and can take a while to paint. I challenged myself to complete the painting from blank paper to signature in two hours. I'm happy to say I succeeded with the challenge. I wanted a loose watercolor that still had bold color, strong light/dark contrast and which was still realistic and captured the character and the look of the model. I feel I achieved all of the goals. This is my first watercolor after a hiatus where I have been painting acrylic on canvas for quite a while. I'm happy with the painting. I particularly like the play with lost and found edges. The right side of the face and the white of the background are the same. There is no shading and no line to distinguish the two yet the mind makes you see the distinction.

This painting is being submitted into the Watercolor Wisconsin competition next weekend. If accepted, the painting will be on display at the Wustum Museum in Racine, WI through mid-August, 2010.

Enjoy. As always, comments are always appreciated.

Toledo Area Artists' Exhibition

My painting "Market and Powell - San Francisco," a photographic acrylic on canvas, has been selected for exhibition in the 91st Annual Toledo Area Artists Exhibition at the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio (http://www.toledomuseum.org/taa.htm). This is my third year being selected. This juried exhibition is presented by the Toledo Federation of Art Societies, Inc. I'm eligible for this show because of my prior residence in Lucas County, Ohio. Previously at one of these exhibitions, I won a Toledo Federation of Art Societies Purchase Award (that collection is housed at the Toledo Museum of Art) and a Third-place Judges Award, both for the same painting. The painting which will be in this year's exhibition previously won first place in the Wisconsin Visual Artists Southeast Chapter Exhibition at the Reuss Federal Building in Milwaukee in December 2007. The painting was also included in the Racine and Vicinity Exhibition at the Wustum Museum in Racine this past Summer and the recent “Go Figure” juried exhibition at Artworks in Kenosha.

"Half Baked" or "Medium Rare"

This is my newest painting. It is the newest in a series titled "Beaches". Last summer, I rented a beautiful home on the coast of Southern Maine. While there, I drove to York Beach to shoot photos for paintings. The series is based on those photos. Currently, there are six painting planned for the series. This is the first completed. There are currently three more in various stages of production. All are acrylic on canvas. The paintings are either 30 x 40 inches or 24 x 48 inches. This one is 24 x 48 inches. The painting are for a group show coming up in June at Lemon Street Gallery in Kenosha, WI. (http://www.lemonstreetgallery.org/
The painting is of a group of tourists sunning themselves. There are three people in the painting though you really only notice two. The man on the right is blocking the view of his wife, lying on the chair behind him. You can see the tie to her bikini top above his chest. The other person is his daughter. While still realistic, I moved away from painting photographically as I have in the past. While the image may still appear photographic I painted with little blending and more blocks of color. I also decided to leave the beach very simple as a graded tone with only simple strokes indicating clumps of sand on the beach. I love the color in this painting and the sense of light. The subject of the blog has two possible titles for the painting. Which do you prefer? Please leave your suggestion in the comments.

Enjoy and I hope you like the painting.

Dan

"Angst" Cello

This cello was painted for my local school district's orchestra program fundraiser. I have seen many instruments and other items painted for fundraisers and auctions and I definitely didn't want to paint my item in their style. I wanted my cello to be true to my paintings and my style. I didn't want what I term "decorative art".

When I heard the instruments for this year's auction would be cellos I was excited. Most people think of symphony orchestras or string quartets when thinking of cellos. I thought of one of my favorite musical groups, Apocalyptica. This group is a cello quartet from Finland most well known for re-interpreting the music of Metallica. They have a very current, grunge or heavy metal feel to their music.

Since I paint portraits, I chose to paint a black and white portrait of a male with the smudged eyes and small beard seen on many grunge artists. I chose black and white intentionally for impact and contrast. The back of the cello was also painted with a black, white, gray blend. On the back, I added a poem I wrote in college painted in a fire red color. The poem had the same tone as the mood of the piece. I searched the web for an appropriate font for the poem. Once found, I typed the poem in WORD with the font and then drew and painted the poem from the resulting printout. I added metal chain through the peg holes at the top of the arm to add to the character of the piece. I then painted the top of the arm with silver paint and edged the front and the back with silver paint to pull the whole piece together. The sides are solid black. Finally, I sealed the entire piece with acrylic gloss medium to add pop to the contrast and to enhance the colors.

I am happy to say the cello went for the highest bid of any of the cellos in the auction. The winner took home the cello for a steal... $205! The cello is now on display in the orchestra room of the local middle school. The instructor told me he placed it there to inspire the students and to encourage them to think outside the box as I had with my design.

I hope you enjoy the images! Dan

Acuity

ACUITY is a rather new painting of a model I hired when I lived in Toledo, OH. Steven was an incredible model. I oversaw a life drawing session at our gallery and was responsible for finding models. Steven knew how to use his body, how to pose and how to use light to its advantage. This is my second painting of Steven. As I looked through my photos, I was drawn to the intensity of this image. The lighting and the facial expression caught my attention. To start the painting, I did something I have never done before... I mixed metallic gold into my mixed black for the background. It gives the background an interesting quality that I feel enhances the image. This painting is small compared to my recent work. The painting is a 12 x 24 acrylic. Once the painting was completed, I was looking for an appropriate name. I felt that the painting showed an intensity of thought or focus. I settled on Acuity, "a quick and penetrating intelligence." I hope you enjoy the painting.

Dan Simoneau Art: Welcome to my gallery. About me and my work...

About Me...
I have been creating art for over 30 years. Art has always been a major part of my life. I make an attempt to work on something creative every day. I have been fortunate to have several of my pieces win awards in major juried shows and to have pieces in several collections throughout the country.

I graduated from the University of Southern Maine in 1984 with a BFA. My majors were painting, printmaking and pottery and my minor was art history focusing on architectural history. I have taught art, primarily intermediate and advanced watercolor, through school programs and privately. In 2005, I was fortunate to be selected for inclusion in Who's Who in American Art.

I am currently gallery director of the Artists Gallery, Racine, Wisconsin's only artist-run cooperative gallery. The gallery is currently celebrating its 10th anniversary.

About the paintings...
I want my painting to make people look closer at the beauty around them. Beauty is present in many forms. In today's fast-paced world I want people to slow down, relax and enjoy the abundance of beauty in the World.

While it appears that I paint a great deal of subject matter, I really only have one subject in all my work. The subect is light. I am fascinated by the way light affects mood and the appearance of objects, whether, they be figures, landscapes, florals, etc. Monet captured the many moods and colors of light in his work and I attempt to do the same in my own style.

All works on paper are matted in neutral acid free mats and framed under glass or plexiglas.