J. Richard Secor

This is my Blog on which I will be posting photos of my paintings as well as updates on my exhibition activities. I paint in acrylic primarily using a palette knife. I have an obsession for Aspen trees and often paint Plein Air in the Sangre de Christo mountains here in Santa Fe. I hope you enjoy this blog and more importantly enjoy my paintings. Selected works can also be viewed and purchased through Etsy.com. At the end of each page, click on "Older Posts" to view more paintings.

About Me

I am continuously self-taught – meaning that my style is always evolving through curiosity, intense observation, sudden inspiration and experimentation.

My style is primarily impressionistic with a sense of what I call rusticity and looseness.

Plein air painting typically provides me with a more playful and semi abstract-impressionistic style than does a studio piece.

I have studied with a number of fine artists and I do study the techniques of painters whose work I admire. However I take these techniques and convert them into my artistic presentation within my own style.

I am a member of the National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society (NOAPS); American Impressionist Society; New Mexico Plein Air Artist’s Society; The Art Center at Fuller Lodge, Los Alamos, NM; and a Juried Member of Contemporary Water Media Forum and a Juried Artist for the 2010 Nomadas del Arte Exhibit traveling 6 Southwest States for a period of 12 months.

Quotes and Excerpts from Artists Whose Work and Artistic Approach I Admire

Guido Frick: "If you forget your emotions, then you end up with a copy of nature. But combine your visual impression with your emotional input, and you might have a chance to create a piece of art." Judie Wagner: "Use paint like you are a millionaire!" Laura Robb: "I never draw outlines of objects before starting to paint. I perceive and render subjects purely in terms of color and shape. I keep things accurate, yet unrecognizable, for as long as I can. Once you have enough information on your canvas that you can name the object, the wrong part of your brain starts trying to take over and run the show!" Laura Robb: "When setting up a still life, I try to get the objects to talk to each other and then I try to paint that converation." Laura Robb: "My work is always moving in the direction of leaving more of the detail out, as a way of making the real story of the painting more important." Kevin Mac Pherson: "Plein air painting is a method - it is not a sign of quality. A painting has to go beyond a picture, beyond the mere documentation of facts. It must have emotional ingredients." Malcolm Liepke: "I love dramatic gesture."

Sunday, January 9, 2011

The Blues To The Power Of Three - A Demo

Every once in a while I awaken very early in the morning - like 1:30 or so, with words that are stuck in my mind and I always try to relate those words to a future painting. The other morning at 1:45 this happened and the words stuck in my mind were The Blues. Following is a demo of the painting that deveolped because of this awakening:

18 x 24 on heavy linen canvas paper with Chroma Interactive Acrylics

The Blues To The Power Of Three

FINISHED PAINTING

2 comments:

Melissa Ann Goodwin said...: I love the Blues! Amazing you can create an interesting painting with a limited palette. REally neat!; January 10, 2011 at 10:58 AM
Melissa Ann Goodwin said...: Thank you for such a lovely comment on my painting.; January 10, 2011 at 5:09 PM