This is a piece that I really enjoyed doing but for completely different reasons than I usually set out to achieve. I was asked to do a demo at the Utrecht Art Supply store in Carle Place which is not too far from the massive Roosevelt Field shopping mall right smack dab in the middle of the Island. Utrecht was celebrating their first year anniversary in this location and had a number of special events going on as part of the celebration.

If you know this area then you know it cannot be confused with any of the more picturesque places I normally choose to paint. It is flat and lined with strip malls with lots of traffic on a very busy Glen Cove Road. So I decided to demonstrate from a photo I took a number of years ago of my favorite Hewlett House at the Old Bethpage Village Restoration.

Here on Long Island we were having one of the most humid days I can ever recall as Hurricane Bill was passing well to the east but was still pumping a lot of hot, humid air into the vicinity. I was set up out on the sidewalk in front of the store. Being in this kind of location under these weather conditions, painting from a photograph in front of a number of people watching my every brushstroke was, to say the very least, not the sort of conditions to which I am normally accustomed.

However, I am surprised at how much I like the result. I managed to get the canvas covered and did some rendering while I was demonstrating but did clean up a few details in the studio. I’ve never painted from start to almost finish for an audience before and I think the fact that I had to explain everything I was doing helped me to stay focused on my subject. But because I didn’t have a lot of time there is also a looseness or painterly quality in this piece that I find very appealing.

I should also point out that my compensation was a Utrecht Gift Card, which I immediately cashed in for a large umbrella that clamps to my easel. It would be difficult for me to put into words how much this excites me! But if you know me then perhaps you’ll understand.