The Upper Peninsula was voted the winning location in USA Today’s 10Best Destinations for Fall Foliage Readers’ Choice Awards for 2018.
The U.P. beat out 19 other locations to claim the top spot. Almost the entire U.P puts on a dazzling show of blazing fall color during the end of September, and the beginning of October.
Unfortunately, the peak time for most of the area is long past. So please, enjoy some of my paintings from the past depicting the U.P. fall colors!
“Autumn Dirt Road” This painting has been sold. Fleeting Evening Glow, 9″ X 12″ for $165 Click the Image to buy this “October Lake Superior Storm” I gave this one to my grandson. Here’s an older on of Eagle harbor, MI. Contact me if you’re interested in this one “Moon Quarry”, a small experimental. Click on the image to buy for $55.00Here’s one from a few years ago at Presque Isle park in Marquette, MI. Contact me if you’re interested! This one is from many years ago. Contact me if you’re interested. “Hello Lamp Post” This one is sold. “Artist in the Porkies”, from the crown jewel of fall peepin’ places, Porcupine Mountains “World’s on Fire”, also from the Porcupine Mountains
Sometimes, you miss a fleeting moment, or it can’t be captured during a single plein air session.
The painting featured above is a blend of two plein air sketches, crafted into one studio painting, stitched with some fun colors. The resulting studio piece captures the fleeting mood and atmosphere of a scene I had experienced a few weeks before.
I live in a small town that, in its heyday, was a mining community. We’re surrounded by scenery that whispers of the iron mining glory that once was. There are abandoned buildings, half-hewn hills of stone, and old roads and railways that have become trails for bikers, hikers, and artists.
Actually, I’m the only artist I’ve ever seen on these scenic trails.
I’ve biked and hiked them, lately with my Anatolian shepherd dog named Clyde, and my wife Kris.
One warm evening, Kris and I were walking Clyde in a field below a long ridge of granite covered with maple and red pine. The setting sun, reflecting and refracting in the clouds, created a glowing, dreamy atmosphere.
I told my wife that I needed to come back and paint that scene. The next day, we hiked out again, this time with my little plein air kit.
Even though it was the same time of day, the sky was clear, and the light wasn’t the same. But I painted the scene anyway.
The moment was long gone, but I still had a nice little painting.
About a week or so later, our 6-year-old grandson came to visit. It was a rainy, stormy day, and we were out running around with him. I had put my plein air kit in the car, just in case a cool scene popped up. But the day was and just too rainy to paint …until almost the end.
Just as the sun was setting, the clouds broke, and the orange sun lit up the trailing walls of the storm clouds. I whipped out my plein air kit and started painting.
My grandson sat on the trunk of my car a watched me paint. We talked about the different colors in the clouds and on the canvas. He told me I was actually doing a good job.
When I was done, he asked if he could have it. Of course he could have it!
This was the dramatic light that I wanted in the first painting.
So, I combined the two sketches. We artists do crazy things like that. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t.
This time it worked.
I took the opportunity to play with my out-of-the-tube-violets. I also mixed some interesting purples by layering different reds over different blues, and vice-versa.
The warmly lit clouds pop from the cobalt blue sky, casting a beautiful evening glow over the ridge and the field.
Finally, I dressed it up with some Queen Anne’s lace.
The finished painting beautifully conveys the impressions and feelings I had on that golden evening.
I want to tell you about one of my favorite recent paintings. The inspiration for this handsome piece came from a gorgeous little town in Wisconsin.
“Because of the River”
This is a painting of a large, historic gristmill in the city of Cedarburg, WI.
A few years ago, my wife and I were on our way to Milwaukee to pick my son up from the airport. He was flying in from Rehoboth Beach, DE, and Milwaukee had good deals on flights.
Anyway, we decided to take a detour through Cedarburg. I had seen it on a Google Maps, and thought it looked like a nice place to visit.
I was right! What a neat town! We were charmed by the architecture, the shops, the art, and the activity. The streets were bustling with people.
Cedarburg was settled in the 1840’s. A wooden gristmill was built in 1844 on Cedar Creek. In the 1850’s, this structure was replaced by the impressive, five-story, stone gristmill that stands today. The stone building and the creek are the subject of this painting.
Cedarburg is now a destination for tourists. It seems that every weekend there is some sort of festival or event.
Best of all, there’s a great arts scene in Cedarburg. The mills have become shops, studios and art galleries.
There are also galleries throughout the town’s historic buildings, along with specialty food shops, antique stores, cafes, and restaurants.
Cedar Creek, to be more specific. Hence the title.
Own it today!
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Look at the river walk. You can see the pebbles in the asphalt. You can see how the ground has shifted, maybe washed away, causing the surface of the walk to crack and sag a little. The path disappears in a tunnel of trees, leading you to a bridge across the creek. The imposing stone building glows in the diffused Wisconsin light. The road leads to something behind the massive trees. Approaching storm clouds billow and swirl in the background as rays of sunlight manage to get through. The serenity of the scene is reflected in the broken ripples of the gently flowing Cedar Creek.
The painting is composed on an 11X14 canvas. The price is $250.00, unframed.
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For a small amount more, I can frame it for you. For more about that, visit my online gallery entry here.
By the way, this isn’t the first time I’ve painted the gristmill in Cedarburg. My friend Brian M. bought this painting from me last year.
My two paintings “Looking Down Frijoles Canyon Towards the Caldera” and “Will that Rain Come Over Here?” have made it to the walls of the Manzano Mountain Arts Council 23 Years of Enchantment show.
I had shipped the paintings through the United States Postal Service, just making the due date of August 16.
Normally, I get very good service from the Post Office.
This time, there was a careless, idiotic mix-up at the Mountainair Post Office, and my work was shipped back to me because of “Insufficient Address”. Probably because I accidentally put the street address rather than the P.O. Box.
OK, my bad.
Mountainair is a very small town. Apparently, they couldn’t -or wouldn’t- figure out where the package was supposed to go, even though there’s only one Arts Center in town, and it happens to be less than two blocks away.
They could spit on each other, even on a windy day!
So I had to ship them back, two-day guaranteed.
They made it, and the VP of the Board, John Stange, was great enough to hang them the day before the event.
Thanks, John! The folks in Mountainair sure are nice people!
The Jemez are a group of volcanic mountains west of Santa Fe, NM. At the center of the mountians is the beautiful Valles Caldera, a long extinct super volcano.
Entering the mountains from the south treats you to stunning views of red rock mountains and cliffs.
Valles Caldera Painting
John Nieto
Santa Fe artist John Nieto (https://www.nietofineart.com/ was known for painting people and animals in bright and vivid colors, strong lines, and straightforward composition.
Mr. Nieto passed away in July of 2018 at the age of 81.
My wife and I saw Mr Nieto’s work at Ventana Gallery in Santa Fe in 2015. I’m thankful that I was able to see his work.
I won’t post photos of his work out of respect to the artist and his estate. Please follow the link above to see his work.
Let’s Paint New Mexico (LPNM) Group
A few years ago, Albuquerque artist Dee Sanchez (http://deesanchez.com/) started the “Let’s paint New Mexico” blog, to which she would post a photo of a New Mexico scene. It could be a landscape, a still life, a floral, whatever.
The idea was that several artists would paint the scene, and each painting would be posted on the LPNM blog. Viewers can see how how different artists depict the same scene.
It’s not a contest. It’s a fellowship of sorts. We’ve learned from each other and encouraged each other to grow.
Last year, Dee Sanchez decided to back off from the blog, focus on the LPNM Facebook Page, and her own beautiful work.
Perhaps you’re a new art collector. You don’t know where to start, or maybe you don’t live in an artsy area, and galleries are sparse. Where do you go to buy art? Of course, there’s art on the internet.
Or, let’s say you’re a seasoned collector. You go to all the galleries. You shop the art fairs. You’ve adorned your walls with local art for years. Maybe you want to consider something else. Maybe you’re looking for a Southwest scene, but you live in the upper Midwest. Again, there’s art on the internet.
Either way, you may wonder:
Is it safe to buy art online?
Short answer: Yes.
There are dozens of online art galleries, each with thousands of artists to chose from, at several different price points. Sites like Saatchi, Artfinder, and Etsy safely offer work from thousands of artists. Sites such as these have been trusted for many years.
There are also independent artists, like me, who have worked to build, market, and maintain their own small online gallery sites. These artists paint as much as they can, then try to get their work out into the world. These sites are most likely perfectly safe as well.
Still, one must be careful. How do you know for sure if you’re dealing with a legitimate, serious artist?
First of all, art is hard to sell online. In the short term, it’s not a lucrative business. It’s highly doubtful that you’d be dealing with a scammer. It just isn’t a good, fast way to rip anyone off.
There’s still the matter of trust. Can you trust the person behind the artist website?
An active, real artist will have a presence beyond their art site. They will likely be active in other organizations. For instance, an artist friend of mine is the president of the Lake Superior Art Association, the main visual art organizations in my area. I’ve been part of groups and projects as well. Artists who are active in their community can very likely be trusted online.
John French displays at Art on the Rocks in Marquette, MI
You may be able to find that the artist in question shows in exhibits, art fairs, and galleries. Check the artist’s biography or “About” page. It should list some off the events they’ve been part of. You can usually verify this information for yourself. Art fair organizers often keep online lists of participating exhibitors well after the event has passed. Galleries have artist rosters posted on their websites (if they have a website).
I mentioned galleries. Let’s discuss that briefly.
Brick and Mortar Gallery vs Online Gallery
I will always encourage you to shop locally. If you have access to a local gallery with local artists, please spend your time and money there.
If you’re a new collector, just go out and see what you like. Don’t be intimidated because you don’t know much about art. A good gallery will help educate you. If a gallery is snobby with you, leave that negative place and spend your time and money elsewhere.
You may live in a place where the galleries are out of your price range. That’s understandable! Most people living in Santa Fe can’t buy art from many of the galleries there. There will be places where “almost famous” artist will sell at more affordable prices. Seek out smaller galleries, pop-up art shows, or art fairs.
That being said, there still may be reasons for you to shop online. So let’s get into it a little more.
Photographs of the Art Online
A professional art site will have good photos.
One time, a long time ago, a lady bought one of my paintings that she saw online. After she received the painting in the mail, she told me she was shocked, because it was so blue. She loved it anyway, so she kept it.
Why was she shocked? I looked at the photo she had seen, and sure enough, it had an orange tint to it. I hadn’t corrected the colors carefully enough before I posted it.
I got lucky. She could have asked for a refund.
That experience taught me to be more careful when photographing my work. I try to be sure the colors match, the photo is in focus, and there is no glare.
Even so, there may be slight variations between what you see on the screen, and what you get on your wall. This is why a return policy is important.
Return Policy
An online gallery, big or small, should have a fair return policy. If there isn’t one spelled out, ask for one.
What do I mean by “fair” return policy? If you, as a customer, order a painting, but it doesn’t look as good as the photo, you should have your money easily refunded.
On the flipside, if you buy a painting online, but decide you don’t want it after a week, that isn’t fair to the artist.
Payment Processing
Once you’ve found a piece that you love, how do you pay for it? It can be scary putting your credit card information out on the internet.
I have a PayPal button on my paintings, and I know many other artists do as well. PayPal is well known, has a good reputation, is easily used even without an account, and is safe for buyers and sellers. The seller never even sees your credit card number!
Not everyone will want to use PayPal. Artists should offer other payment options. I have a comment form attached to my online art posts. The form can be used to start a conversation about buying the painting. I can process a credit card payment via Square, or I’ll often accept a check. I try to make it easy for someone to purchase my work.
In closing…
Buying art online is generally safe. Beware of sellers with little or no presence in real life, or a seller who wants your credit card information, or one who seems pushy or sleazy. There are many good ones out there, and I’m sure you’ll be pleased.
So you think you have a John French painting or print?
From time to time, I get a Facebook message or an email from someone asking if I’m the artist of a certain painting they have. Sometimes there’s a description of the piece, other times there’s a photo.
Perhaps they inherited the piece, or found it in an attic. These people usually want to know the value of their painting or print. Sometimes they simply want a story about it.
Almost always, I am NOT the John French they’re looking for.
I’m really too young in my career for my work to be inherited, or found in an attic or other storage.
My clientele is more recent, and usually younger.
There is a much older artist named John French from Texas. I’m not even sure if he’s still alive. He was prolific enough that there seems to be people all over the south who have his art in their collections.
I was born in New Mexico, and I live in Michigan. I never lived in Texas.
So, do you have a painting from me, or the older John French? Well, first, look at the signature. Then, look at the heading of my website. My logo is my signature, and it’s been almost the same since 1988.
Then, look at the art here: http://www.swgallery.com/list-of-artists/western/john-french See the differences? He painted a lot of historical, wildlife, and cowboy paintings. I hardly ever include figures or animals in my paintings. He was very meticulous, detailed and tight. My style is more bright, chromatic, sometimes loose. For more information, check his bio here: http://theartistsshowplace.com/john-french/ The galleries I’ve linked to can probably help you way better than I can. Sincerely,The (slightly) younger John French
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