Recent Paintings
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| "Gossamer Fog" by Bill Hudson |
| 14" x 20" Watercolor & Casein |
| $1,600 includes custom frame |
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| "The Marsh In Bloom" by Bill Hudson 14" x 20" Watercolor & Casein $1,600 includes custom frame |
I'm often grateful for having been in spectacular scenery at just the right time. To me, an hour of solitude in nature is a valuable departure from our fast-paced, bumper-sticker message, internet-driven, modern lives. Recognizing the significance of such moments, it's important for me to pause and fully absorb every component of the surroundings. Then I document the light, feeling, color, movement, etc. with reference photos from varied viewpoints that I review later in my studio. I'm even more thankful as an artist to relive each location during the painting process.
Gossamer Fog ... Late one morning while walking the southern shore of Point Lobos, California, I came to a rocky peninsula with a view looking inland at the Big Sur coastline. The sun had only a small amount of remaining fog to burn off.
The Marsh In Bloom ... I was fortunate to be on the Eastern Shore of Virginia in October when the marsh is flowering in red and green. This is the shoreline of Franklin City, a once small but prosperous fishing village, where my father was born, and it was famous for supplying Chincoteague oysters to fancy restaurants in Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. But Franklin City is now a near ghost town. There was a huge fire in 1896, the railroad left after roads were built to Chincoteague Island, the oysters died, and the marsh grew deeper after severe storms.
Attitude is Everything
by Bill Hudson
The relentless pressure of Christmas can be tough on a kid. You gotta be good; Santa's making a list who's naughty, who's nice; constantly practicing for the school Christmas Show; the confusion of seeing different Santas at every store; trying to understand how the big, red, fatso with flying reindeer is going to slide down the chimney; and on and on. In spite of a lot of questions there is still an undeniable magic that takes hold of us when the lights go on, people are flocking to church, everything on TV is selling the holiday spirit, and white snow perfectly represents the
purity of it all. But some kids can only hang on for so long before they break.
Last month I was at the high school Christmas show of my two older grandchildren; I was sitting in the audience next to my daughter Kim who teaches second grade at a local elementary school. At intermission Kim told me the unfortunate story of her own school show which was held earlier in the week. With no forewarning, the teachers had to quickly remove one of her students from the stage in the middle of the class
performance.
Seems that 30 well-groomed, six-year-old kids from Kim's class had just marched onto the stage, single-file, forming three even rows to begin their act. The proud parents sitting in the audience were of course capturing every second with videos and pictures. Little Johnny who was near-center in the front row, dressed for the occasion in a new white shirt and red tie was, unknown to anyone, fast approaching a personal limit. With all eyes focused on his class which was now illuminated with spot lights and appearing like angels, Johnny just could no longer find it in himself to join his class singing "Deck the Halls." Rather than sing, Johnny chose sign language and began "flipping the bird" to the parents, teachers, and classmates. He just wasn't in the same Christmas spirit as the rest of his class and it was deemed better to immediately remove him rather than to perpetuate the travesty by having every IPhone document an otherwise perfect event. Kim later told me that she really likes Johnny but realizes that he is one who frequently takes the path less traveled.
"If you don't like something, change it.
If you can't change it, change your attitude."
Maya Angelou
I began thinking about Johnny, artists, rebellion, and attitude. I realized that there's more rebel and attitude in artists than in any other vocation that I know. Why? Because art (both visual and performing) is an outlet that allows, often rewards, those who change perceptions, awareness, and appreciation of our humanity and our
planet. Artists own the freedom to be unique, and rebel from being told how.
I think Johnny may be showing the first signs of becoming a truly great artist.
