Click Here for Quidley & Company’s 2012 Exhibition Schedule 

Neville was born and raised in a fishing village on the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia.  His family, were boat builders and fishermen, and he grew up hearing the tales of deep sea adventure, sailors’ rivalries, and legendary catches.  Like everyone else in Halls Harbour, he understood there are three primary elements in that world; community, hard work, and the sea.  Even as a child, John was compelled to visually record it all.

After studying printmaking and photography at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, and earning a BFA from the Centre Gravure de Contemporaine in Geneva, Switzerland, Neville returned home and set up his studio.

He continues to capture the seafaring community that has barely changed in generations.  His paintings follow the stylistic interpretations of his etchings, which made up the first half of his career.  Simplified forms and space force the content to the forefront.  His narratives are simultaneously archetypal and deeply personal.  By eliminating unnecessary details and flattening space the paintings take on a folk or primitive feel that elevates his scenes to a universal level.

Often capitalizing on the use of pattern Neville express the workmanlike task that happens day after day, generation after generation, as fishermen haul in their catch of uniform fish and row through an endless repetition of waves.  Neville also paints scenes of solitary fishermen going up against the elements, as well as fishermen working together as a unit, and as a community, one that his family has been a part of for six generations.

View available works by John Neville on our gallery webpage here.

First we have to mention that there is an exhibition of drawings by our very own Anthony Panzera.  65 drawings by Panzera examine the scientific understanding of human anatomy and proportions developed by Leonardo in his notebooks.  A professor of anatomical drawing at Hunter College in Manhattan, Panzera has been studying Leonardo’s drawings for over 3o years, and has completed a full year independent study in Florence.  ”This is one of the most beautiful exhibitions of drawings by a contemporary artist that I have ever seen.” raves Raymond Steiner of the Art Times in his review of Panzera’s show.  The exhibition is up thru April 15th at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, The State University of New York at New Paltz.

Continue for more news . . . The Mona Lisa’s birthday being questioned, Vasari’s fresco gets an endoscopy looking for Lost Leo, The Prado Mona Lisa reveals her secrets, Ferragamo at the Louvre, a rediscovered masterpiece?,  the art and technology of attribution. . after the break…  

The Mona Lisa’s date is being reconsidered.  It is well documented that Leonardo started the painting in 1506, however, the year of completion is now being questioned by as much as 13 years later.  Due to a newly discovered drawing matching the landscape in La Gioconda.

A hidden masterpiece?  Scientists are drilling through a fresco masterpiece by Vasari (pictured right) in search of Leonardo’s “The Battle of Anghiari.”  Leonardo started his fresco for the Hall of 500 in the Palazzo Vecchio with experimental methods, and when it began to fall apart he abandoned the project.  It is believed that because of Vasari’s great respect, when he was commissioned by Cosimo de’Medici  to renovate the hall and paint a mural fresco on the same wall, he may have first built out a new false wall to protect Leonardo’s work.  Research and controversy continues on this project.

The Prado’s Mona Lisa reveals her secrets.  This version was thought to have been a copy painted decades after da Vinci’s death.  The background had been blacked out in the 18th century, assumably to meet the trends of the day.   but now the Madrid museum has cleaned away the black background to reveal a landscape very similar to the original, leading conservators and experts to now estimate that this copy was actually painted by one of Leonardo’s direct students around the same time as the original, perhaps even side by side the master in the studio by his assistant and reputed lover, Salai.

the headline says it all – Ferragamo Backs Leonardo Exhibition, Gets Louvre Fashion Show

A renaissance portrait that sold for $20,000 15 years ago, if proved to be by Leonardo, could be worth over $100 Million.  NOVA on PBS did an entire show looking at high tech analysis of a could-be da Vinci.  And you can watch the entire show for free on their website watch ‘Mystery of a Masterpiece‘.

Another good article about the science of attribution of Leonardo’s works surrounding the blockbuster show held by the National Gallery in London over the winter which featured “around half of the 15 or so paintings by Leonardo which are known to be in existence, as well as 50 of his original drawings.”  The show also brought together the two versions of “Virgin of the Rocks,” explored here in exceptional depth.

Along with the exhibition, Leonardo Live HD was a project to show the exhibition around the world through select screenings in movie theaters world wide.  Unfortunately it really wasn’t promoted well and had very limited screenings, even in major cities. Hopefully the video will be released in a more accessible way soon.

Experience the new face of Quidley & Company Fine Art at 38 Newbury Street in Boston.  Continue for images of the new gallery, and new artists . .

We hope you are able to visit our new Boston gallery.  Quidley & Company is now located at 38 Newbury, on the 5th floor.  We are open Monday – Saturday, 10am – 6pm.  In addition to the new space, we are adding some new artists to our roster.  The Boston gallery will showcase work that is more contemporary in style and attitude as well as the artists you know and love.  The new artists chosen all work at a level of thoughtfulness, and quality craftsmanship that you trust Quidley & Company to represent.

Check our website and blog frequently to see new works from all of our great artists.

We have new comitments from the following artists;

This painting gives the Royal Family’s collection instant credibility and will help to establish Qatar as an important cultural city.  They have also been opening American university campus’s, museums and more over the last decade.  Get a sense of Qatar in this 60 Minutes segment from January.  One of the driving forces behind the country’s spending spree on western art is the Emir’s 28 year old daughter.  Over the  past six years Qatar has acquired loads of  museum quality work including Warhol’s, Hirst’s, and the ‘Rockafeller Rothko.’  The Art Newspaper recently reported that Qatar is the biggest buyer in the art market over the last six years.  In addition to building a world class permanent collection, the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar is opening a Takashi Murakami exhibition this week.  Qatar is rapidly making a name for itself in the art world, and as host of the 2022 Fifa World Cup, don’t expect it to slow down any time soon.

Descending Light - 18 x 30"

To any painters out there who follow the blog, here is an opportunity to learn from one of the finest landscape painters in New England.  Sergio Roffo will be holding a painting workshop at the Duxbury Art Association (Mass.) June 7 & 8, 2012.

Each day will begin with a painting demonstration where Roffo will explain and discuss many of the challenges, techniques and tips for plein air painting as he works.  After students observe Roffo’s painting, they will then have the day to create their own plein air paintings, while Roffo will give personalized critics and advice to the students as they paint.  The workshop will focus on the interplay of natural light and shadow, learning how to see, color mixing, and helping artists get comfortable working en plein air.

for more information visit the workshop website.  Or call the Duxbury Art Association at 781-934-2731

view more paintings by Sergio Roffo

Reblogged from an afternoon with...:

First off, hats off to a very cool blog that is new to me, anafternoonwith.com Personally I'm in love with studio shots, and getting a glimpse into artists' environments and working procedures. Great video at the bottom of this post. We are very excitted to have Duncan Hannah on board with Quidley & Company. His paintings show his great visual sensibilities. We will have some paintings in our Boston gallery in a couple weeks. Cant wait to see them in person. http://quidleyandco.com/Artist/Duncan_Hannah.aspx

Whirlwind and Weetamoe - 30x48"

The painting depicts the scene as it may have looked from the transom of Yankee, on one of the races in Long Island Sound, in the first summer of the J Class.  With Weetamoe to the left and Whirlwind to the right.    On the far left is  J.P. Morgan’s motor yacht Corsair and on the far right Mr. Vanderbilt’s motor yacht Vara.

   WHIRLWIND AND WEETAMOE

America Cup defence contenders 1930 sailing in Long Island Sound

In 1930 four syndicates called on the cream of American designers to create contenders for the honour of defending the Cup.  Enterprise came from the drawing board of W. Starling Burgess and was built at the Herreshoff yard in Bristol.  Her sponsors were a group of seven including Winthrop W. Aldrich, Harold S. Vanderbilt, Vincent Astor, and George F. Baker, Jr. Junius S. Morgan and George Nichols formed a group to finance Weetamoe, designed by Clinton H. Crane and also built at the Herreshoff works.  Paul Hammond, Landon K. Thorne and George M Pynchon engaged L Francis Herreshoff, son of the famous “Nat”, to design Whirlwind for construction at the Lawley yard in South Boston.  And in Boston the fourth group, headed by John S. Lawrence and Charles Francis Adams, went to Francis C. Paine, whose forebears were responsible for Puritan, Mayflower and Volunteer, to design Yankee, also built by Lawley.  All four would be racing against each other along with Resolute and Vanities in the summer.

Enterprise, Yankee, Weetamoe and Whirlwind were launched in April and May 1930.  Variations in their measurements were slight –less than one per cent in sail area.  Designers’ individuality was evident to the practiced eye above the waterlines.  All the boats had steel frames with bronze plating, except Whirlwind, which had a double-planked wooden hull.  Below decks they were bare, all bulkheading omitted.  Instead of having the spacious furnished staterooms and quarters of earlier boats they were fitted with winches, racing gear, and lockers for the many sails they used.  Above decks they were not unalike.

On June 17^th the four “J” boats, along with Vanitie and Resolute, met for the first time midway between Mattinicock Point and Peningo Neck on Long Island Sound for a 23.1/2 mile triangular race.  It was the beginning of a long struggle that lasted through ten weeks.  Before the defender was chosen, five series and twenty-seven races tested the contenders in all kinds of weather.  Weetamoe, skippered by George Nichols, won the first race in which all four contenders participated.  For the rest of the season, it was a hard fought duel between Nichols in Weetamoe and Vanderbilt in Enterprise.

The final trials, sailed over the same Newport water where the Cup races were later held, started on August 20.  After two races in which the contenders were paired – Enterprise with Weetamoe, Yankee and Whirlwind – Enterprise was chosen to defend.  During the second race Vanderbilt set an all time record for the 30 mile course, averaging 10.64 knots.

……..Excerpt from “Pictorial history of the America Cup races”  – W.H. Allen

A special thanks to all who helped organize, participated in the event and helped get the word out.  Thank you to our sponsor, Cape Cod 5, and to Frame Center who donated frames for the cause.

And of course, a huge thank you to the artists who contributed original works to this great cause.

100% of the proceeds go to the Marla Ceely Lamb Fund, a Cancer Patient Transportation Fund for Nantucket, helps to defray the costs of transportation and lodging for patients who must travel off-island for the treatment of cancer.

Over 80 artists from and associated with Nantucket, including our roster of artists, have contributed an original 8 x 10″ work of art.  Everyone is welcome to join us and help support this great cause.  Starting at 6pm, guests will buy a numbered ticket (based on the order they arrive/ in line) and will get to select their work of art.  The artists’ names will be hidden until each piece has been selected.

RSVP on Facebook and invite your friends!

Full Event details here..