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Watercolors
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Computer Painting
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Acrylics
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Window Paintings
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Artist's Commentary
I recently took up watercolors in a big way. "Sunburst" represents the freedom and spontaneity you can achieve with this medium. "The Clearing" makes use of a damp sponge to create atmospheric effects. "The Pear Stands Alone" is a surrealist effort that conjures up De Chirico and Miro. In the solidity of its forms and the formality of its composition, it's also intended as a bridge to my acrylic paintings. Speaking of which, I prefer acrylics to oils because the colors are brighter and more vibrant, and they dry faster. That allows for mistakes to be quickly corrected. Still, "Beach Fences" was carefully planned out, based on a photograph I'd taken of the beach behind our house on LBI. I was struck by the late afternoon shadows cast in the sand by the fences, but I was also deliriously happy to have a house down the shore. I hope that excitement comes across; it's expressed, certainly, in "Beach Reverie," which was painted from imagination. So was "Countryside," though it's meant to be set in Provence. "Lounging Nude" was inspired by Modigliani, with a touch of Matisse in the background. "Sailboats" was a birthday gift to my wife in our courtship days; "Manhattan Sky" was a housewarming gift. In case you're wondering, it was painted several years before 9/11; the Twin Towers dominate the view, and, at least in my mind's eye, they're still out there. The two garden paintings can only suggest the beauty of our backyard in full bloom. A lamppost that used to be out there shows up in "Dining Room View." "The Lighthouse" was the first of my window paintings; my wife trashpicked the frame from a neighbor's house, and I spent the entire summer of '95 painstakingly painting each frame; I wanted each to be a separate composition as well as part of the whole. The same principle applied to "The Garden," an enormous window painting that hangs in our foyer (I've taken closeups of some of the frames to show the mini-painting in each). "Country House Nude" plays up the vouyeuristic element in peering through a window, even if it is only a painting. With "Lighthouse," "Ocean" and "Seasons of the Shore" (above), the paint was applied from behind, a difficult and unforgiving technique (since your first application is the one that shows up, for better or worse). For all the others, I decided to paint directly on top of the glass. Different effect but more fun to do.
I recently took up watercolors in a big way. "Sunburst" represents the freedom and spontaneity you can achieve with this medium. "The Clearing" makes use of a damp sponge to create atmospheric effects. "The Pear Stands Alone" is a surrealist effort that conjures up De Chirico and Miro. In the solidity of its forms and the formality of its composition, it's also intended as a bridge to my acrylic paintings. Speaking of which, I prefer acrylics to oils because the colors are brighter and more vibrant, and they dry faster. That allows for mistakes to be quickly corrected. Still, "Beach Fences" was carefully planned out, based on a photograph I'd taken of the beach behind our house on LBI. I was struck by the late afternoon shadows cast in the sand by the fences, but I was also deliriously happy to have a house down the shore. I hope that excitement comes across; it's expressed, certainly, in "Beach Reverie," which was painted from imagination. So was "Countryside," though it's meant to be set in Provence. "Lounging Nude" was inspired by Modigliani, with a touch of Matisse in the background. "Sailboats" was a birthday gift to my wife in our courtship days; "Manhattan Sky" was a housewarming gift. In case you're wondering, it was painted several years before 9/11; the Twin Towers dominate the view, and, at least in my mind's eye, they're still out there. The two garden paintings can only suggest the beauty of our backyard in full bloom. A lamppost that used to be out there shows up in "Dining Room View." "The Lighthouse" was the first of my window paintings; my wife trashpicked the frame from a neighbor's house, and I spent the entire summer of '95 painstakingly painting each frame; I wanted each to be a separate composition as well as part of the whole. The same principle applied to "The Garden," an enormous window painting that hangs in our foyer (I've taken closeups of some of the frames to show the mini-painting in each). "Country House Nude" plays up the vouyeuristic element in peering through a window, even if it is only a painting. With "Lighthouse," "Ocean" and "Seasons of the Shore" (above), the paint was applied from behind, a difficult and unforgiving technique (since your first application is the one that shows up, for better or worse). For all the others, I decided to paint directly on top of the glass. Different effect but more fun to do.
All photographs on this page ©2007 Mike Lipton
