John's Blog — Rufo Art

This is the final piece of the series which was hung yesterday. I’ll post a few shots of the Daniels Gallery as soon as I figure out how to get them off of my new I-Phone.

This piece is entitled “Between Vessel and Passage”. I’ve always wanted to title a piece or a show this way and it suddenly came to me that this is the one! I just started a new series this evening…stay tuned…

October 7, 2010

This is the next to last post of the Daniels Gallery series before the show gets hung on Wednesday. The awning in this composition sat uncomfortably on the centerline of the image that I was working from. I tweeked it just slightly by stepping to … — This is the next to last post of the Daniels Gallery series before the show gets hung on Wednesday. The awning in this composition sat uncomfortably on the centerline of the image that I was working from. I tweeked it just slightly by stepping to the right.

The paint in this piece is meant to be very flat unto itself while the space of the subject pulls you in. The surfaces are highly refelctive starting with the glass storefront on the right and culminating in the polished granite wall supporting the bridge to the left.

October 3, 2010

Here is the official invite to the show at the Daniels Gallery. There is no opening, just go and enjoy if you can find the time. It’s part of the Hebrew Senior Life Center in Roslindale so the hours are pretty much all day, every day and I w… — Here is the official invite to the show at the Daniels Gallery. There is no opening, just go and enjoy if you can find the time. It’s part of the Hebrew Senior Life Center in Roslindale so the hours are pretty much all day, every day and I would think you go early in the evening as well.

September 28, 2010

Third pieces in the series. This is Britanski Trg in Zagreb, Croatia. It’s a wonderful little square with an open vegetable and flower market every day. On Sundays it’s an antique market. When we returned from Croatia three years ago… — Third pieces in the series. This is Britanski Trg in Zagreb, Croatia. It’s a wonderful little square with an open vegetable and flower market every day. On Sundays it’s an antique market. When we returned from Croatia three years ago I really started producing larger format pastels in earnest. Something about that trip inspired me and I am still obviously drawing from it today.

September 24, 2010

This is the second cityscape of the series. It moves quickly beyond the first piece in technique but owes it’s confidence to that effort.

September 20, 2010

This is an important transitional piece for me. I have a solo show coming up in October at the Daniels Gallery in Jamaica Plain which is part of the Hebrew Senior Life Center. There will be nine pieces in total: four 36 x 36 landscapes which I hav… — This is an important transitional piece for me. I have a solo show coming up in October at the Daniels Gallery in Jamaica Plain which is part of the Hebrew Senior Life Center. There will be nine pieces in total: four 36 x 36 landscapes which I have previously blogged and five 36 x 24 ( portrait orientation ) cityscapes.

This is the first of those cityscapes which I started this summer. I was consciously thinking of the work of Liz Gribin when I did this piece. Her approach to surface, line and plane seemed to me a viable way of overcoming my fear of painting surfaces and objects. I incorporate a lot of grease pencil line work, and brush work which is new to me. I think I’ve finally decided that any way you get the paint onto the canvas is okay as longs as it helps achieve the desired results.

In the subsequent efforts, which are actually quite different from this one, I have felt much more comfortable moving back and forth between knife, brush, pencil, oil pastel etc… Those pieces will get posted soon.

September 18, 2010

September 18, 2010

crufoart: Take a look at Caroline’s Blog below regarding the Belmont event last night. What a wonderful time was had! All made possible by my sister Donata and her colleagues at Prudential Prime Realty thanks to all who came and expressed their support! Stay tuned for other one-of-a-kind events.

Art for Your Home and A Home for Your Art was the tag-line last night.

Prudential Prime Realty in Belmont Threw us a really terrific opening! Many many thanks to Sister-in-law Extraordinaire, Donata Barber (who is also a wonderful broker if you are looking for a home in Belmont and the surrounding area).

We sold quite a few pieces, saw some friends (met some new ones), and had an all-around great time. I only thought to pull out the camera before we got started and then again at the end when most folks had left. The work will be up for the next several months, so please do stop in. I can’t say enough great things about Howie and Carol Sager who own the office and were completely behind this brilliant event. Also Nancy Rufo (another relative and great Prudential Prime Sales Associate), and Carolyn Rufo were both instrumental in getting the space set up.

John and I have been looking for new and creative ways to show and sell our paintings. We’ve been looking to connect with interior designers and other folks on the home-furnishings end of things. This was one of the best ideas yet.

And one last time - Donata - you are amazing!!!

This is one of the pieces that will be up at the opening in Belmont this evening. It’s one of a series of three landscapes that experiment with a horizontal, 12 x 36 composition. I did this one while on the cape this summer.

September 17, 2010

Caroline and I will have a rotating series of paintings in Belmont for the next month or two. See the invite above and join us at the opening next Friday!

September 11, 2010

36” x 36” mixed-media oil, oil pastel and grease pencil on canvas. I’ve started to mix in other kinds of media now to push and pull at foreground fauna, middle ground topography and the goings on at the horizon. This feels right.… — 36” x 36” mixed-media oil, oil pastel and grease pencil on canvas. I’ve started to mix in other kinds of media now to push and pull at foreground fauna, middle ground topography and the goings on at the horizon. This feels right. The pallette on this piece is also somewhat different. Pinks are dominating the greens in areas differently from the original study of June 23rd.

July 7, 2010

36” x 36” oil and oil pastel on canvas. At this size the detail at the horizon line becomes far more important as a vehicle to establish scale.

June 29, 2010

Oil on canvas 10” x 10”. This is the last in this series of four studies. Moving on to the big canvases now.

June 25, 2010

10” x 10” oil on canvas. I started the under-painting last night for the 36” x 36”. The two islands of trees in the distance are recurring subjects in many of my recent landscapes. They define the space and scale of the co… — 10” x 10” oil on canvas. I started the under-painting last night for the 36” x 36”. The two islands of trees in the distance are recurring subjects in many of my recent landscapes. They define the space and scale of the composition but their just vague enough to allow plenty of room for interpretation.

June 24, 2010

This series of four, ( yesterday, today and two to follow ) are all from cell phone images. It’s still one of the best ways I’ve found to generate compositions.

June 23, 2010

I’m finally painting again after a long hiatus. End of school year soccer games, dance recitals, piano recitals etc… have a way of piling up. This post is one of four from a new series of studies to eventually create two larger canvase… — I’m finally painting again after a long hiatus. End of school year soccer games, dance recitals, piano recitals etc… have a way of piling up. This post is one of four from a new series of studies to eventually create two larger canvases. I’m not sure which two will ultimately form the larger works.

The square canvas, for the moment, is providing the stability to a horizon line that’s forced to the top while the foreground hopefully becomes both abstract as well as lush with marks and layers of color. We’ll see how it goes. Stay tuned.

June 22, 2010

Needham Open Studios is the first week of May. Come by on Saturday and see all the new work!

April 20, 2010

Oil on canvas 12” x 36”. I’m continuing to explore horizontal compositions. This is from a walk after an autumn family dinner at my sisters house in Jamestown RI. The afternoon light in the cove there is always unique so I usual… — Oil on canvas 12” x 36”. I’m continuing to explore horizontal compositions. This is from a walk after an autumn family dinner at my sisters house in Jamestown RI. The afternoon light in the cove there is always unique so I usually bring my camera in hopes of catching something special. The rutty dirt road provided an array of water filled shapes reflecting the light of the sky.

February 21, 2010

Another larger piece - 36” x 36”. I’m happy with the composition and the Palette also. I’m feeling like it really doesn’t need the buoy. I may try it again with footprints in the foreground. All and all enough of a… — Another larger piece - 36” x 36”. I’m happy with the composition and the Palette also. I’m feeling like it really doesn’t need the buoy. I may try it again with footprints in the foreground. All and all enough of a success to keep on this path. I didn’t realize til now how similar the composition is to the one posted on the 18th. Nothing new under the sun I guess.

February 6, 2010

This is the largest oil I’ve ever attempted - 36” x 36”. All things considered, I’m pleased with the results. I went back to my old cell phone for this image. A few of my favorite pastels and oils are from cell phone image… — This is the largest oil I’ve ever attempted - 36” x 36”. All things considered, I’m pleased with the results. I went back to my old cell phone for this image. A few of my favorite pastels and oils are from cell phone images. I took most of these on the Acela train between Boston and New York.

This painting was an exercise in exploring the scale of marks in relation to the scale of the canvas. There are many many layers of paint here. The first layer is an acrylic under-painting of roughly complementary colors executed with a lot of medium and a large brush. All the subsequent layers are oil with palette knife - with varying amounts and kinds of medium to both speed up and slow down the drying process. My conclusion is that I need to experiment with using a much larger knife if I’m going to continue to work this big.

January 18, 2010

January 9, 2010

Over the holiday vacation I experimented with 1:3 horizontal compositions. I’ve done this a little in the past but have wanted to do it more. These four pieces are oils. The first three are 4” x 12”. The last one is 12” x 36” The larger one was complicated to execute due to the silhouetted Queen Anne’s Lace in the foreground. I’m not really very happy with the overall presence of this piece though I feel the layering of background colors to create the sky at dusk was very successful.

This exercise made me realize that what I want to do in the larger works that I need to produce is let the composition stay quite simple, and explore the potential of the paint in the larger fields of foreground and background. In these areas the space and subject becomes very abstract and the work moves beyond the subject itself.

ORDINARY BEAUTY A Blog of Words, Ideas, Images, Processes and Observations

ORDINARY BEAUTY
A Blog of Words, Ideas, Images, Processes and Observations