Alice Defiel, friend and fellow artist.
It was during this period that she developed a style all her own, which she called "Peoplescapes", a subject I will address in another post.
Janice in her basement studio doing a portrait. Note the diagonal quilt square curtains made by my mother.
The image for this painting came from a photograph, either on an album or a magazine article. My sister Marjorie was a big Rolling Stones fan. At that time I was more into Dylan. For this painting my mother stretched horsehair cloth used to cover speaker grills. This gave the painting an interesting texture. Note the ribbed sweater, hand knit by Janice.
Nancy in Beatle mode.
Above, an article from the Herald Statesman about the "Art in the Park" fair with a photo of her painting Diane.
Me, sitting in the backyard 1966.
Janice, painting at Wyalusing, PA.
On the fence behind Janice and Moon hung this painting of flamingos.
Life Study in oil, done at an evening class. They often held these classes in a church basement. I remember once a report of a peeping tom who was cought observing the class through a window
Jon Nielsen, artist and good family friend. My mother met Jon when she first moved to NYC after college. I believe that he, too, worked for the Branford Advertising Agency. Jon was born in Denmark and as a good Dane was a pacifist and a contientious objector during WWII. He taught at the Famous Artist's school in Westport, CT, and did many book illustrations. He would use our family as models for his work, taking polaroids of us in posing as needed. I think he paid us .25 per hour. We thought it was fun playng pretend and having our photos taken. When we moved to Dobbs Ferry he was married to his first wife, Pegeen with whom he had two sons, Ian and Kim.
Some Saturdays I would go over to Jon's studio and he would teach me the Famous Artist's School method of figure drawing, which mainly involved using geometric shapes..cylinders, spheres and rectangular solids. The Metropolitan Opera was usually on the radio, which at that age I did not appreciate. It took another ten years for my tastes to change.
Kay Nielsen, was Jon's second wife, with whom he had a daughter, Joneen, for whom I often babysat. Kay was an English teacher and one summer offered to encourage my reading by assigning books which I would read and we would discuss. I remember reading The Catcher in the Rye, and Franny and Zooey. I am sorry to say that they were a bit above me at the time, and that I was a poor student.Robert Borgotta - sculptor and friend. this sketch was likely done at one of those evening life classes.
Another sketch of a fellow artist
John Begg, sculptor.
Portrait of Phil as a toddler
Below, a few trees from her sketchbook
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