Random color coincidence

Had to share this. This afternoon, I ran into my best friend from childhood, Tet (left), a graphic designer, in center city Philadelphia. He was on his way to taking a lunch break from work when we saw each other. Needless to say, we had a laugh about our coincidental color coordination...

Fresh Paint Magazine, Issue 5

My copy of Fresh Paint Magazine, Issue 5 arrived today and it looks great! My thanks to FPM for featuring my work and words. For more information or to order a print or digital copy, visit: Fresh Paint Magazine

Art Silicon Valley/San Francisco starts up!

Left: "Blind, Mindless Desire", 2014, acrylicn on panel, 48 x 36 inches

Right: "The Hook", 2014, acryilc on panel, 48 x 36 inches

Bridgette Mayer sent me a few shots of two of my new paintings being installed in the gallery's booth (#61) at Art Silicon Valley/San Francisco, happening Oct. 9th through the 12th. If you're in the SF area and going to the fair, visit the Bridgette Mayer Gallery booth (#61) to see them in person. 

Artist profile in Fresh Paint Magazine

I'm pleased to share that Fresh Paint Magazine is featuring my work in their latest issue! Check out the feature on the website, where you can also purchase a copy: Fresh Paint Magazine Studio Visit-Tim McFarlane

My thanks to Fresh Paint Magazine for featuring my work!

Fresh Paint Magazine.com

Pearl of Great Price

Pearl of Great Price, 2014, acrylic on panel, 36 x 36 inches

Art Silicon Valley

I will have new paintings on display in the Bridgette Mayer Gallery booth at Art Silicon Valley, San Francisco, from October 9-12, 2014.

Art Silicon Valley San Francisco

Bridgette Mayer Gallery

Booth #61

San Mateo County Event Center

Expo Hall

1346 Saratoga Drive

San Mateo, CA 94403

Red Bull Canvas Cooler

I’m excited and honored to be one of 20 artists chosen to participate in the 2014 Red Bull Philly Canvas Cooler competition. The event takes place next Thursday, Sept. 25th from 8-11pm at Arch Enemy Arts, 109 Arch Street. If you like my cooler, use #TIMPAINTSPHL to vote for it. Once the event is over, my cooler will be displayed at Tango, 1021 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA.

The Red Bull Curates Facebook event page is here:https://www.facebook.com/events/565370946922211/?ref_dashboard_filter=calendar

Black Boned Angel

Black Boned Angel, 2014, acryilc on panel, 30 x 24 in. 

2014 Benefit Exhibition for Ballet X

2014 Benefit Exhibition for BalletX   On view: September 5 - October 4, 2014   Bridgette Mayer Gallery presents: 2014 Benefit Exhibition for BalletX  On view: September 5 - October 4, 2014 Opening Reception: September 5, 2014 5 p.m. - 8 p.m.  The exhibition will feature work by over 250 artists!    For more information click   For a preview of available works, please contact:  rsvp@bridgettemayergallery.com Gallery hours are Tuesday - Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m & by appointment.    For pricing, images or additional exhibition information please contact   t: 215 413 8893 e: bmayer@bridgettemayergallery.com      Thank you to our 2014 Benefit Exhibition Sponsors                   __________________________________________________________________________

Well, this is late because I had the post in "Draft" mode and had forgotten about it. Anyway, I have two new paintings in this show and will be at the Bridgette Mayer Gallery for the reception. 

Embracing the obvious

Sometimes, what I think of as the easy or obvious solution is actually the best solution. Earlier tonight, I reached a point with a work on paper where I was just shy of a resolution. I took a break, went back to it and still couldn't satisfy myself with the results. Walked away again, came back to it and started tinkering with it more. I needed a decisive mark or series of marks to finish the piece off. The image making techniques that I'd used for the majority of the piece were not going to work for the final layer. I finally stopped avoiding the "obvious" and got on with finishing the piece with the "easy" solution...and it worked.

It was a relief because I'd spent so much time trying to find a way around the obvious solution that I think that I gave myself a dull, throbbing headache in the process.

That's all (for now...)

I don't know if I've mentioned it on this blog, but this summer I had a studio intern for the first time. Her name is Caitlin and she's a student at Moore College of Art entering her senior year. I was approached by a friend of Caitlin's who asked if I would be interested in having a studio intern. I wasn't sure at first because I'd never had an intern in the past and didn't know what I'd have them do. However, once I thought about it a bit, I realized that I did have a project, which was beginning the process of cataloging the works in my studio, starting with the works on paper.

Today was Caitlin's final day as my studio intern. I'm a little bummed, but also very grateful for the wonderful job that she did this summer. At last count, we'd gotten to #1099. Most of the work was accomplished, but there's still a bunch left to be photographed and given inventory numbers.

Having Caitlin's help this summer was invaluable because she was instrumental in getting me to become much more organized with my work. Organizing and documenting the work in the studio had been on my mind for a while and having Caitlin there moved the process from idea to full-on reality in a very short time. I'm very good at procrastination and I would not be even close to where I am now without her help. Thanks, Caitlin!!

My studio as it appeared yesterday (8.05.14) before a studio visit with Bridgette Mayer to show her my new works. 

Four Seasons brochure

Brochure image for my show at the Four Seasons Hotel-Philadelphia. On view until January, 2015. 

Paintings at the Four Seasons Hotel-Philadelphia

(photo: James Miller)

I'm very pleased to announce that several of my paintings are now on view in the Fountain Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel-Philadelphia. The works will be exhibited until January, 2015. This show consists of 7 paintings: 5 completed earlier this year and 2 older pieces from 2010 and 2013.  My thanks to the Bridgette Mayer Gallery and James Miller at the Four Seasons for arranging this show.

New roads

On the studio wall, an as yet untitled new painting, acrylic on panel, 48 x 48 inches. 

I've been developing some new work on paper and smaller panels for the past few months and am at a point where I'm scaling things up a bit. I'm returning to some themes that I started with back in 2010, namely the use of the stencils that appeared in several works on paper and panels from that year. I made a lot of works where I attempted to incorporate the stencil patterns with other imagery-geometric and loose linear forms-with varying results. I chose to put that work aside for a while and continued my focus on the work that would make up 'Presence', my solo exhibition at the Bridgette Mayer Gallery in 2013. 

I finished a few other paintings that will be in an upcoming (August-December, 2014) show at the Four Seasons Hotel here in Philadelphia in the spring of this year. Since then, I've refocused my efforts on making works that incorporate some of the stencil patterns and are monochormoatic. I've wanted to move towards a monochromatic palette for a number of years, but didn't quite feel comfortable with it, but now seems to be the time to dive in. I've had some silver acrylic paint sitting in my studio for a couple of years and wasn't comfortable using it with my color work. I think that when I started experimenting with the silver (plus black and white), I began to see ways that silver could be an asset to the work.

So, I'm off on a new road. I don't know how long it will be, but I'm just going to try and enjoy the ride.

Philip Guston

A great excerpt from "Philip Guston: A Life Lived", in which the artist responds to a question about the seemingly abrupt change in his paintings from abstraction to the cartoonish figurative works that he might be best known for...

I Can See For Miles

I Can See For Miles, 2014, acryilc on paper, 30 x 22 inches

Estate

Estate, 2014, acrylic on panel, 48 x 36 inches

Release

"Release", 2014, acrylic on panel, 30 x 24 inches

Edge of the Deep Green Sea

Edge of the Deep Green Sea, 2014, acrylic on panel, 48 x 36 inches