Plein Air à DUMBO

In light of the perfect weather, my Light and Color Design class met at D.U.M.B.O. (down under the Brooklyn Bridge) to paint on the promenade all day. Seriously incredible! I painted shirtless for 4 hours in 90 degree weather - my canvases weren't the only thing that got color (thanks to SPF my hue wasn't red.)

The first painting is a faux representation of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline. The second is a tonal study of the cute surrounding neighborhood.

Our homework is to look at Asian paintings from 700 AD - 1500 AD and do a few reproductions. It looks so silly

And, because I'm pulling an all-nighter with Adam and Laura for my art history final, I'll share an interesting tid bit: This epic Nicholas Poussin painting -  Abduction of the Sabine Woman, 1633 - fits beautifully into an old debate the Florentine Academy held: Is painting a higher form of drawing geared towards the trained eye of intellectuals and aristocrats? Or is painting a simple light and color study that any viewer can relate too?

Poussin's paintings are strongly based on drawing and systematic strategies. He also frequently   referenced antiquity,  for Abduction he viewed Bologna's Rape of Sabine Woman 1583. For anyone living in or visiting N.Y. this painting is on permanent display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art --> Go check it out!!  

As promised, here is my room in zee apartment