Recently, a reader emailed me several questions that I want to share: i am looking for the perfect oil paint and it is not easy to choose and find the one that suits me. it would save me from buying several brands to test. it scares me. I have seen your excellent work on testing…
In an act of savage terrorism Darya Dugina, the daughter of Alexander Dugin, was killed in Moscow last night. A bomb exploded in the car that Darya drove killing her instantly. It is reported that Dugin had intended to travel with his daughter only changing plans at the last moment. It’s believed that the bomb…
I am in the midst of another fiction-consuming binge. When I tire of listening to podcasts I fire up an audio book. Between listening to books and reading them with my Kobo e-Reader, I go through a lot of books. The fantasy novel Lord Foul’s Bane by Stephen Donaldson is the first book in the…
In the past, I trolled titanium white users–zinc white users too. These whites, inferior as they are, provide the only competition for the champion of oil-paint white, lead white. Actually, it isn’t even a contest; lead white wins easily on every metric that matters: blending, body, and all-around handling. Titanium white is so unnaturally bright…
Some artists have goals similar to my own. Among these artists are some I find especially sympathetic–my protectors. My protectors are the artists from whom I learn the most. My protector list is different from the artists that influenced me when I was young. My youthful influences include Rodin, Monet, and van Gogh. Of these,…
Today, I received the sad news that one of my teachers, Ray Must, died. I didn’t cotton to art school. I was a difficult student; actually one of the worst types: impatient, judgemental, and burdened with an extra-large dose of youthful angst. Luckily for me, Ray was an angst-ridden student whisperer. With his patience, kindness,…
I posted yesterday and then realized that it’d been almost three weeks since my last post! I knew it had been too long but I hadn’t realized it had been that long. I’ve been busy working on my long-planned updates. Eventually, this blog will move to the domain hudson.studio and merge with my SubStack site,…
I am testing the excellent Michael Harding brand Cremitz white. It really is good stuff. Along with Kremer’s Cremitz white, it’s among the best lead whites that I’ve used. Of course, the lead whites from all the manufacturers still providing the all-important paint are excellent. By the last count, there are eight art supply manufacturers…
I am embarking on a new series: Amusement Park. After my last visit to Cedar Point, I’ve amassed 1500 photos. I bought a season pass and intend many more visits. Amusement Park joins my two other series: Playhouse Square, and Main Street. I am still have many more paintings in the works in the Main…
After a bitter and scandal-filled election and with an increasingly divided nation, you might think that the Biden administration would move with circumspection and try to heal the country. Not at all. They are dead set on ‘The Great Reset,’ which turns out to mean overturning the social order without changing leadership. Because the ballot…
My Ancestry DNA test contains few surprises. As expected, the results show I am mostly English and Scottish. Also expected is a Northern European connection, pointing to Northern France and Belgium. Family lore maintains that we have Native American ancestors which turns out to be true. But there are a few surprises. 3% Welsh? I…
Art students frequently struggle over how to start a painting. Once started poorly, a painting is hard to correct. I’ve shared the starting stages of several of my paintings for art students struggling with starting a painting. I expected my previous post about the progress of my new painting, Liberty Avenue, to be the final…
As I wrote yesterday, I updated the gallery with two paintings that I finished last year. Here is the second one titled The Singer: The Singer is 40″ x 50.” The WordPress plug-in I use to manage my gallery, NextGen, failed so I opened a support ticket. As with the other times that I’ve had…
Yesterday I noticed that I haven’t updated my galleries for a while. So, I added two paintings that I finished last year. Here is one of them, Woman in Black-stripped Dress: Woman in Black-stripped Dress is 40″ x 54.” While working on the gallery, I noticed that the gallery plug-in, NextGen, wasn’t working properly; the…
I’ve had 4-5 sessions with my new painting titled Liberty Avenue. The painting is still in the early stages: the boat has left the slip and is in the channel but it hasn’t made to the sea. Once at sea, the voyage can take some time–depending on the headwinds. Some parts, such as the right-most…