February 2010 ~ Blog of an Art Admirer

Sunday

David Ligare Fine American Painter

Figure Painting by American Artist David Ligare

Hercules Protecting the Balance between Pleasure and Virtue

Figurative Painting by American Artist David Ligare

Symmetria

Diver

David Ligare (b.1945), American contemporary realist artist, paints in a neo-classical style.

"...my paintings have always been about light - about sunlight. Really and truly - we talked about style - my style is sunlight.
...sunlight has always been a symbol of radical knowledge. In his famous allegory about the cave, Plato calls the sun "the guardian of everything in the visible world." I've painted candles several times and each time I've been reminded of the contrast between the fire-lit illusions in Plato's cave and how they, as well as my burning candles, are surpassed by the clear sunlight of the upper world. Diffused light, say, from a window or an electric light has a conditional aspect to it. Sunlight is specific. But the larger meaning of the allegory is that we see what we know. For me, sunlight - especially late afternoon sunlight - is simply the most beautiful source of illumination. That period of liminal time, just before sunset, has long been called the "the golden hour" for its beauty as well as its metaphorical richness." (from the artist's interview)

the artist's site

Landscape Painting by American Artist David Ligare

View of Corral de Tierra

Painting by American Artist David Ligare

Penelope

Achilles and the Body of Patroclus

Shepherd in the Ruins of Delphi (Et In Arcadia)

Areta, (Black Figure on a White Horse)

Broad Landscape with a River

Hercules at the Crossroads

In Praise of Italy

Landscape Painting by David Ligare American Artist

Landscape with a Specific View (Veritas, Utilitas, Venustas)

Landscape with an Archer

Painting by David Ligare American Artist

Perspectiva, 2000

Still Life Painting by David Ligare American Artist

Still Life with Figs and Rose(Egyptian Style)

Still Life with Peaches and Water (Aparchai)

Landscape with a Red Pony

Luminous Mediterranean Painting by Pierre Boncompain French Artist

Pierre Boncompain's painting vividly evoke a uniquely Mediterranean sensibility, opening the door to a world of beauty, abundance and sensual pleasure. For over 40 years his art has transported us to Provence, a region of rolling hills, warm evenings, reach colors and the bounty of the earth. His paintings are filled with the pure and unfiltered light unique to this region, weather they depict bucolic landscapes, vibrant still lifes, quiet interiors or women in contemplation the artist's site

Figurative painting by Pierre Boncompain French Artist

Relaxed

Pierre Boncompain French artist,figurative painting,still life oil painting

Chaise longue

Still Life Painting by French Artist Pierre Boncompain

Water-melon

Beautiful Landscape Painting by Louis Aston Knight (1873-1948) American Artist

Landscape Painting by American Artist Louis Aston Knight

View of a Chateau

Beaumontel

Along the River, Beaumontel-le-Roger

Louis Aston Knight, the American artist born in Paris, was the son of a famous landscape painter Daniel Ridgway Knight.
As his father, he mostly painted French landscape scenes and was exceptionally successfull in his career.
At the Paris World Fair of 1900, Aston Knight received a bronze medal, which followed with gold medals of honor at Geneva, Nantes, Rheims, Lyons, Cherbourg. The artist was awarded the 3rd gold medal of the Paris Salon in 1905, and the 2nd gold medal the following year.
In 1907 Aston Knight married his distant cousin from Rochester, NY. The couple lived in Paris and extensively traveled in Europe. They made regular trips to US, where the artist frequently exhibited.

During the WWI Aston Knight and his family lived in the US; after the war they returned to France, where the couple bought a house at Beaumont-le-Roger and planted loveliest flower gardens on the property. Aston Knight offered prize of $1000, encouraging his neighbors to develop their grounds. During WWII the house and gardens were distroyed.
In 1924 the French government awarded the painter a knight of the Legion of Honor.
Meanwhile, the artist's works reached high popularity in the United States, especially when President Harding purchased his painting "The Afterglow" for the White House. In the 1920s Aston Knight also held a private showing for President Coolidge there.