Now Showing

Recent work on view now till August 31st at Kevin's  @ 27 Main Street, North Bennington.

         

One, Cutoff Rd. Acrylic on Panel 18"x24"" 

“When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. I come into the presence of still water. And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light. For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.”
― Wendell Berry “The Peace of Wild Things" from The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry. Copyright © 1998.

Landscape painting traces its name from the Dutch word “landschap” meaning a patch of cultivated ground. My landscape paintings reflect this history, highlighting the margins of nature and culture. These are depictions of the wild and the cultivated. The apple orchard of my youth and the farms I visit weekly have in part, become the subjects of my paintings. It is not my intention to idealize nature or depict idealized pastoral scenes. These paintings are about stopping and appreciating exactly where I am. The smell, the light and the air.  If I can breathe the air, I can visit and revisit these meditative spaces.



Little Pea 5"x7" Acrylic on paper. Gratus series 2012

My current portrait series borrows it’s name from the Latin word Gratus, meaning beloved, dear and pleasing. The format and style of these miniatures initially was inspired by a series of colonial family portraits from the collection of the Bennington Museum.  My subjects are mostly companion animals, some of which are my own family pets. Intended to delight, these mementos humorously honor dear family members. I work from photographs and digital images. I am available to paint a portrait of your choosing.

Give me liberty or give me death!

Recent commissioned work. Portraits of Patrick Henry 2012

Dual

Two portraits of Henry. 

The profile, Colonial style and the 3/4 view Victorian. 

each portrait is  5"x 7" acrylic on paper. 2012

New Work

Sloan Road Goldenrods. Acrylic on Panel. 18" x 24" 2011

I have always found walking in the woods to be a great comfort. To me, my landscapes are a refuge, both while I paint and when they are hung on a wall. If I am successful, I can breathe the space and slip into the shadows. It is not my intention to idealize nature or depict pastoral scenes. The locations I choose to paint are very familiar to me, whether visited weekly as part of my routine or a view from my childhood home. These to me are about stopping and appreciating an unexpected color or magnificent shift of light.  I favor minimally inhabited scenes, while there is some evidence of a human influence on the land; mowed fields, a fence, or a far away barn. To me, the absence of figures within the paintings, frees the space and, allows my mind to wander through the landscape uninhibited.

A number of my paintings are on view at It's All About The Bean, 139 West Main Street

Bennington, Vermont. Also on view are photos by John Giblo. Please stop by and enjoy some fine coffee and artwork.

Gratus

This portrait series borrows it’s name from the Latin word Gratus, meaning beloved, dear, pleasing or agreeable. The style of these miniatures is inspired by a series of colonial family portraits from the collection of the Bennington Museum.  My subjects are companion animals, some of which are my own family pets.  Intended to delight, these mementos humorously honor dear family members. I work from photographs and digital images. Please contact me if you would like a custom portrait. laporteorama@gmail.com

painting landscapes

Lost and found.  I grew up in Bennington and went to college in western New York state then moved to New York City and to Boston. Two years ago I moved back to Vermont. Growing up I spent a lot of time roaming the woods with my dog.  We followed deer runs and looked for owl pellets. Sometimes we walked as far as our legs would take us through fields and woods. I found a lot of comfort in those places. Through these paintings, I am trying to reconnect to that space.

Show at the Diesel Cafe

Diesel Cafe 257 Elm st Somerville, MA.  Opening 7-29-2011 at 7pm. Showing work along with Ortegacy, Princess Die and Rhonda Ratray. I'll be showing my Qualia series and landscapes.