Third place winner Francisco Silva holding his painting titled “Building Blocks 2” When: October 15th, 9am – Noon Where: Dvoor Farmer’s Market Frenchtown-Flemington Road, Flemington, NJ This was the third year of the event and the competition seems to be improving year after year. The day began cloudy but the sun came out at around 11am although it became a bit windy. The juror was Jeff Charlesworth, a reputable painter from the Lambertville/New Hope area, who patiently took his time examining each painting. I was lucky enough to receive third place. After the awards were given out ..read more

Video of Accidental Masterpiece at the Outliers Gallery, JCAST 2023 When: October 11-October 31 Where: The Outliers Gallery, Art 150, #246 157A First Street Jersey City, NJ The Jersey City Art and Studio Tour is always a big deal for the Jersey City arts scene. This year it was combined with Artfair 14C and a week of events leading up to JCAST. At Art150, the Outliers Gallery had an exhibit titled “Accidental Masterpiece”. The Outliers consist of four artists: Dorie Dahlberg-photographer, Ed Fausty-photographer, Brad Terhune-collage/painter and myself-painter. We’re an unlikely comb ..read more

My wall at the Bel Air Armory When: September 15th-17th Reception: September 15th, 6-9pm Where: Bel Air Armory, Bel Air, MD This is the second year that I was lucky enough to be juried into this event. I decided to take the entire week off and create 4 paintings during that week. As I live over 50 miles away, I’m able to bring a plein air painting from my area which gave me a total of 5 paintings. Additionally, we were able to paint at Ladew Topiary Gardens on Tuesday and we had an artist’s taco dinner at the Market Street Brewery in Havre de Grace followed by a nocturne paint out. T ..read more

I was lucky enough to win 1st place at the 2nd Annual ArtVenture Juried Show for my acrylic painting titled “Infinite Overview” When: July 22-August 20, 2023 Reception: July 22, 6-9pm Where: 95 Main Street, Flemington, NJ (formerly Red Vanilla) Roberto Osti, professor of anatomy, drawing and plein air, was the juror for this event which included over 100 works of art. The reception was very well attended by artists and collectors. The event went beyond the typical wine and cheese to include catered food along with a Celloist that enhanced the ambience. I was completely shocked to get ..read more

“Food for Thought” video tour Where: The Outliers Gallery, Art150-#246, 157A 1st Street, Jersey City, NJ When: through May, 2023 Artists Reception: May 11, 5-9pm Here is my artist’s statement from the exhibition: Our society has a strong emotional relationship with food. We celebrate with food during special moments in our lives and even mourn the loss of a loved one with food. We use food as a way of sharing our experiences with others, whether on a first date or a birthday. There are some foods that we have a fondness for because they are attached to memories from our childhood. T ..read more

Coming next month is a series of food paintings that I created during the winter. I started this series as a way to improve my acrylic panting technique but later became fascinated with our society’s relationship with food ..read more

Standing next to my painting “Cow With Attitude” at the Farm to Frame artists reception Where: Somerset County Administration Bldg, 20 Grove St, Somerville, NJ When: March 9 – May 1, 2023 Artists Reception: March 24, 6-8pm This initiative was organized by the Cultural and Heritage Commission of Somerset County. Over 30 artists were recruited and assigned to preserved farms in Somerset county where they had to be inspired to produce two works. I was assigned 2 Rivers Farm in Branchburg. The owners of this working farm were very friendly and invited me to paint plein air in the future ..read more

“Fried Egg on Oat Nut Toast”, 8″x6″, acrylic on canvas panel by Francisco Silva This tip only applies when painting on surfaces that are gessoed. It seems natural to use water to create thin, transparent layers of color while painting with acrylics, especially when creating an underpainting. Unfortunately, adding too much water will break down the acrylic binder that holds the pigment together. What this means is that, over time, the paint will detach (or flake off) from the surface. The general rule is to use a maximum of 30% water to 70% paint. To create thin layers, I use an acrylic airbrus ..read more

Peanut Butter and Jelly on Oak Nut Break, 8″ x 6″, acrylic on canvas panel by Francisco Silva I’m currently experimenting with acrylic paints with the intention of using them for plein air purposes. I believe acrylic’s quick drying time will work better with my paint layering technique as compared to oil paints. Since it’s still cold here in New Jersey, I’m creating small, 6″ x 8″, indoor paintings of food to test out my technique and work resolve any issues I may encounter with the medium. Additionally, these food-themed paintings have taken on a life of their own. I’ll be posting my progress ..read more

View of my paintings currently at Outliers Gallery. Where: Outliers Gallery, Studio 150, #246, 150 Bay Street, Jersey City, NJ When: January 1 – February 28 The Outliers are currently having an exhibition with a “nighttime” theme at our gallery at 150 Bay Street. The four participating artist are: Dorie Dahlberg, Ed Fausty, Brad Terhune and myself. Each of us have our unique interpretation of the theme and and the exhibit is worth a visit. I have 2 plein air paintings and 2 studio paintings as part of the show ..read more