Landscape painting has its roots in Greek and Roman times when lavish landscapes were painted on the walls of luxurious villas; the subject matter was purely decorative, however. The depiction of the landscape in works of art was primarily used as a backdrop for religious paintings and portraits. During the Renaissance, landscapes gained recognition as subject matter for art. Depicting the beauty of nature as a place to be enjoyed became a popular theme.

Ceil Chapman began her career in New York, her first company was ‘Her
Ladyship Gowns’ started in 1940 with partner Gloria Vanderbilt. The
she went on to another company labeled 'A Chapman Original' which
later became simply ‘Ceil Chapman’. She was a popular, talented
designer through the early 1960's. Known for her exquisite draping
that enhanced the female form, she became a favorite among many stars

One of my most favorite plein air painting groups is located in Newport, RI where they just opened their own gallery called Harbor Fine Arts to showcase their work. There are five members and they have had a fantastic reception from the public. I was invited to join them on several outings while visiting and was intrigued to see that Jonathan McPhillips was recording his actual plein air painting in real time with a camera set up on his easel.

I've always said I wasn't very sentimental.....and for the most part, that's probably true. However, the older I get and the more friends and families I see losing loved ones, the more I find myself thinking twice about what I have that someone else "may" want, rather than me selling it.

Summer 2009, offered me the opportunity to paint with many wonderful artists where I observed new ideas as well as being reminded to use tried and true techniques. I visited private studios and new galleries and even one of the oldest art clubs in this country. All in all, I came away with some basic conclusions of what makes a compelling painting that attracts our attention from across the room, drawing us to it above all others with real excitement.

We all know with the tough economic times that it has been a struggle to sell antique furniture. The bigger ticket items have been a hard sale to push. Customers will tend to go to shows and spend a small amount of money on a treasure but are hesitant to spend a larger sum of money. We need to educate the public to recycle and reuse and put that thought to use when making a purchase toward furniture.

I feel like I do pretty well it when comes to getting bargain prices at estate sales. I’m actually talking about what is commonly known as a “moving sale”, where in some cases, “everything must go”. There are also “downsizing sales”, where the seller is moving and has too much stuff to fit in their future place of residence. Normally those types of sales are conducted by the owner of the goods.

One of my favorite TV shows is "Cash in the Attic" on HGTV, and I'm often amazed at both the process and the turnout of the program. If you've never seen it, the homeowners have some project they want to complete, and have a certain dollar amount they are hoping to gain by selling items in their house that they no longer want or need. Then the items are taken to auction, and sometimes they make their goals or better, and many times don't even come close.

"'Tis now the very witching time of night, when churchyards yawn and hell itself
breathes out contagion to this world." ~ William Shakespeare

This is part of a series of blogs about attending live auctions. We will address auction etiquette here.

When attending live auctions, there are a few basic rules that will help make the auction experience a comfortable and successful one for both new and seasoned attendees: