Dutch Boys

"The Lacemaker"
Oil on Canvas, 90.6 x 8.3 inches
Johannes Vermeer

Exciting news for those who love the Dutch masters: a major new exhibition has opened in Paris and is coming to Washington, D.C. this fall. It is titled "Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry", and it shows how Vermeer and his Dutch contemporaries influenced each other. In the words of one reviewer, they "riffed off of", "cribbed from", and even "copied" each other.

"The Milkmaid"
Oil on Canvas
Johannes Vermeer, c. 1660

As a painter, I love to see how one painter influences another. The relationships among these Dutch painters of the 17th century has been described as a "dynamic rivalry". Some suggest that they spurred each other on to greater heights in their artistry. I always think

My French Kitchen

It's been a while since I posted about what I am working on in my studio, so I thought I would remedy that situation. Lately I have blended my love for fabrics with my love of cooking and vintage kitchenware (especially French wares!). The result is a new series that I am calling the "French Kitchen" series.

"French Kitchen with Hotel Silver"
Oil on Linen, 12 x 16
(c) Lesley Powell 2017

I have hauled a number of favorite  things to the studio: "torchons" (French dishtowels), hotel silver, antique pewter vessels, and a crusty old French cutting board, to name a few. Then the work begins--arranging and re-arranging, until finally there emerges a pleasing

Zorn Palette

I recently posted about the great Swedish painter Anders Zorn. A true virtuoso, Zorn is said to have accomplished all of his work with only four paint colors. Those four colors were a white, a yellow, a red, and a black. They are now known as the "Zorn Palette". Today, there is some difference of opinion as to exactly which of these hues are the ones actually used by Zorn, but most people agree that that they are Flake white, yellow ochre, vermillion (red) and ivory black. 

Painting by Anders Zorn

I am a huge fan of the limited palette. It makes the painter's job both easier and harder, in good ways. It is easier, because over time you come to know the colors extremely well. You