Author Archives: Judith Reeve

   Two weeks ago, I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see the Frans Hals show. It was quite hard to call it a show since most of the paintings are regularly on display. But there were many … Continue reading →

      Over the past month, I have been teaching a class on Journal Writing and Nature Drawing and in many ways it has been a new experience for me. I have been painting landscapes for almost 20 years … Continue reading →

I love old books. There is something about their inherent history that appeals to me. So when I read about someone like Baudelaire finding a certain text compelling, I find myself searching for the original text rather than accepting a … Continue reading →

The root of creativity, I believe, springs from two things-” keen” observation of the natural world as well as of man and secondly, taking note of what lies within oneself at all times. The artist must be an attentive observer … Continue reading →

Yesterday, I returned from a deeply meditative week along the Plattekill waterfall. This artist-in-residence program, sponsored by the Catskill Center for Conservation, entails a small, simple, rustic cabin at the top of an 80′ waterfall in the Platte Clove. A … Continue reading →

This past week I visited the Freer Gallery at the Smithsonian. Anyone who has been there will know it is primarily a gallery of Asian art and particularly, Japanese paintings. But it also houses the famous “Peacock Room” by James … Continue reading →

Summer is the perfect time to look about one’s outdoor spaces and see one’s self reflected there. In a garden, one’s inner life overflows to the outside world. A gardener allows one’s environment to become affected by the mystery that … Continue reading →

In Baudelaire’s, Salon of 1846, he reflects on the words of E.T.A.Hoffman: “It is not only in my dreams and in the reverie that precedes slumber, but also in my waking thoughts that I hear music, that I find an … Continue reading →

A retreat is always a necessity for an artist. It is so important to have time away and time for contemplation. In the end, contemplation is the labor of the artist and painting is the fruit of that time of … Continue reading →

Memory wells up from an unknown place- dark and hidden, unexpected.  It is a deep spring emerging from an underground source. A place where sight is obscured- things come out of the darkness and return there. One can only see … Continue reading →