NICHOLAS SIMMONS

Ni Ko La Shi

2009-07-14T18:33:00.005-04:00

A friend of mine recently returned from China and brought back this for me. I've always wanted to have a "chop" made, but never got around to it. I believe it is carved from soapstone, and when it was made, an onlooker read it as "Nicholas" so I guess it's authentic! Ong Kim Seng read it to me as Ni-Ko-La-Shi. It was a timely, even clairvoyant, gift. More on that soon!

Bloomberg.com

2009-07-13T10:17:00.004-04:00

Thanks to Brian McGee for the reference and link in his Bloomberg.com article today about the Sorolla exhibition in Madrid.

Kanji #2

2009-07-10T00:28:00.003-04:00

Kanji #2

This one is based on the first in the series, but distorted and cropped to fit the different format. It seemed the bamboo didn't really need to be "painted" and the whites (all whites are the paper) balanced the design. Da Vinci on Fabriano hot press, 31" x 44" (79 x 112 cm).

Sorolla Video

2009-07-06T00:53:00.006-04:00

Here is a very good 15 minute video of the current Sorolla retrospective at the Prado, with subtitled comments by the curators. I wish I could see this show! Thanks to Iain Vellacott for putting the link on his blog.

The exhibition catalog is available here.

From Odessa With Love

2009-07-03T16:52:00.003-04:00

Larissa and Olga are spending the summer on the Black Sea. Thanks to Skype, I almost feel as though I'm there. Well OK, not even close.....but it's better than nothing!

женщина в беседке

2009-06-23T17:54:00.004-04:00

Which translates roughly to "woman in arbor." This is a collage of two paintings which I made into a giclée. The image is 30" x 30" on Hahnemuhle paper.

We Miss You Randy

2009-06-20T13:15:00.004-04:00

Randy Kentfield
November 26, 1952 - June 20, 1989

Life hasn't been the same, and nowhere near as funny. We still idolize you, marvel at your brilliance, and think of you everyday. Yes, you were right - reflection is not as painful as it was, but the void has never been filled, and never will be.

By a departing light

We see acuter, quite

Than by a wick that stays.

There's something in the flight

That clarifies the sight

And decks the rays.

-Emily Dickinson

Kanji #1

2009-06-08T02:27:00.013-04:00

Kanji #1 - 24" x 56"

I'm still intrigued with the Japanese and Chinese characters, this time distorted to fit into a horizontal format. All whites are the paper, Da Vinci on Fabriano 140# hot press.

Framed 28" x 60" - sorry for the reflections

Thanks to everyone who participated in the workshop at VisArts in Rockville! I think I'll be doing more there in the fall and next spring, details here and on my website when available.

Economic Crisis?

2009-06-02T17:25:00.007-04:00

Even though I don't have to buy paint anymore, I still hate to waste a single drop. I've been cutting tubes and bottles open for years, and when Da Vinci Paint learned that...well, see for yourself. Best artist quality colors, and they blow everyone away on price!

I have a 3-day workshop starting tomorrow at the gorgeous new VisArts center in Rockville, and Da Vinci is once again giving free samples of their fabulous fluid acrylic to everyone. Thanks Marcello!

Windows Vista

2009-05-21T14:36:00.002-04:00

The two most dreaded words in computerdom. It has put me largely out of cyberaction for the past 6 weeks, might have to finally bite the bullet and go for the Mac. (sorry Maddox!)

American Contemporary Gallery

2009-05-04T14:10:00.013-04:00

I'm sorry to say the new American Contemporary Gallery in Annapolis closed its doors after the March exhibition. I learned about the gallery when Carol Carter showed there, and I was scheduled for this month. John Bodkin opened ACG in November, and it was certainly one of the coolest places in the DC area, and he's one of the coolest guys I've met in this business. I believe he's planning to reopen when the economy improves, and in the meantime will be occupied with other art projects. We wish him luck and look forward to his return!

In the photo are John and my wife Olga at the opening of the March show.

Sorolla - Prado

2009-04-26T18:48:00.019-04:00

Approximately 100 paintings of Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida (1863-1923) will make up a major exhibition at the Prado in Madrid, May 26 - September 6.

Sorolla is one of my all-time favorite painters - with a style of bravura brushwork unmatched, he created wondrous moments like Just Out of the Sea, captured glorious light in scenes such as Sewing the Sail and Lunch on the Boat, but also depicted pathos in paintings like the devastating Sad Inheritance.

There's not a show I'd rather see of any artist, anywhere. (Alex Kanevsky's new work at J. Cacciola Gallery would be second on the list!)

Also, visit Museo Sorolla here.

Watercolor Artist Magazine - June 2009

2009-04-17T19:03:00.004-04:00

I have an article in the Creativity Workshop of the latest Watercolor Artist magazine.

Most artists I've encountered have at least some experience using the computer and programs such as Photoshop, typically working with reference photographs in preparation for a painting. The article deals with using Photoshop to progressively alter not a photograph, but rather a painting, to generate new variations and abstractions. It is another way of extracting more material from an idea, and an interesting collaboration between man and machine. I started with a piece from a couple years ago, La Falda Leventada (see pic from first page), and explained the evolution of subsequent paintings via Photoshop filters and cropping.

(I see DaVinci is giving a free triad sample of watercolors with subscriptions)

Thanks to the twenty people from the Cape Artists in Lewes, Delaware, who attended the workshop last week. I had a blast, and I hope to return sometime! (yes, I made it to the gallery in Ocean View, 5 mins before they closed)

Learning To Live Again

2009-04-05T17:23:00.007-04:00

This is an original song I wrote in the 90s, and the lyric is by a friend of mine, Nick Palmieri. The singer is Venetta Smith, a gospel powerhouse who can can do some serious sermonizing on the blues, as you'll hear. Tenor star Richard Elliot trades licks with both of us. Ruben Drake on bass, Ron and Dave Reinhardt on Hammond B3 and drums. I did all guitar work and arrangement, I think it's one of my best tracks. Recorded at Morrisound in Tampa. Crank this one, louder the better!

Charito

2009-03-31T13:25:00.004-04:00

While on the ship, I had some time to put a few pics together with original music. This piece is a S. American-style acoustic guitar thing, all instruments and arranging by me. Most of the soloing is improvised, played on a Takamine LTD-92. Muchas gracias to Charo Vargas for the inspiration!

York Art Association

2009-03-30T11:39:00.004-04:00

I did a demo for the York Art Association in York, Pennsylvania yesterday. We had a full house, and a very nice group of people it was - I hope to return to do a workshop! Thanks to Debi Watson for organizing it (though it's nerve-wracking having someone that good watching!).

There is a 3-day workshop in Lewes, Delaware, April 8-10. I think it is sold out, but contact Sonia Hunt for details. 302-644-2973

Check out the new slideshow on the Art Escapes Vancouver website with paintings by Joseph Zbukvic and myself.

Tampa-Clearwater

2009-03-25T21:42:00.011-04:00

We stopped in Tampa on the way home and visited Dean Guitars headquarters, where Larissa came away with her first real guitar, and Olga almost drove away on the Dean custom chopper.

We spent last night as guests at Roebling Manor in Belleair. That would be a fantastic place to spend some time painting, with spectacular views of Clearwater Bay. Thank you to Pam and Elliott (check out theTommy Bolin shirt!).

Still Toughin' It Out

2009-03-19T16:28:00.007-04:00

Larissa is an old pro at Adventure Ocean, especially enjoys the Pirate Night where all the kids dress up and take over the ship. I have some good video of that, maybe I can get it posted. Here's a shot of her with remnants of the makeup, she was pretty scary... Arrrrr!

Denys has been showing us a good time, and we have the run of the place. More fun, more friends, lots of Russkies to hang out with, not to mention more food and drink. Trying to keep off the pounds with a couple of sessions in the gym each day, and dancing to a good latin band at night. It's gonna be hard going home!

Got a cool shot of the pool the other night, it really looked like that.

Sun & Fun

2009-03-15T13:48:00.008-04:00

We're on a cruise ship for a couple of weeks in the islands, having a blast. Reunited with Olga's brother, Denys, who is First Officer with Royal Caribbean. (see posts from February 2008) I'm sitting in a Starbucks in Nassau, first decent internet access I've had in days.

Check out the video of Larissa kicking Olga off the dance floor - she doesn't like competition! Another week of this torture, and then seeing lots of friends in Florida. I'll try to maintain radio contact...over and out.

Manuel Barrueco

2009-03-03T01:33:00.088-05:00

After the most recent airing of my segment on Maryland Public Television's Artworks This Week (see this post), I received an email that really astonished and touched me from Manuel Barrueco - the man regarded by many as the greatest classical guitarist of the modern era. Or, as so eloquently stated by Odair Assad about the evolution of the instrument: "We can say that, at one point, it’s before Manuel and after Manuel Barrueco."

It was as a teenager during my first master class in New Orleans that I learned about him. Back in Iowa, I didn’t know much beyond Segovia, John Williams, Julian Bream, and several others such as Michael Lorimer, who was teaching the class held at Tulane University. In preparation for that I was taking lessons with Segovia honor student Elias Barriero, head of the Tulane guitar department, at his shop on South Carrollton. Among the instruments and stacks of sheet music, Elias also sold records, and everyone was buying up the debut recording of a new guy featuring the Villa-Lobos etudes and Suite Breslienne. The photo of the artist sort of looked like a wild Cuban version of Jimi Hendrix, and his name was Manuel Barrueco. I asked Elias about him, and he told me he had actually been of some influence on the young virtuoso in Santiago, but was quick not to take credit for his brilliance, saying it "wouldn't have mattered," as Manuel’s destiny had already been decided. When I got home and listened to the record I understood within a few seconds what Elias and everybody else was talking about.

Like so many others at that time, my life was instantly changed, the benchmark of what was possible on the instrument dramatically shifted, and even with my limited experience, I realized the new apostle of the classical guitar had arrived. It was beyond an issue of technique; there was a musicality, an artistry, a depth of feeling, a tone, that practically burst the bounds of the medium.

My first master class with Manuel was in New York at the Manhattan Institute of Classical Guitar. There were guitarists from all over the place, and I showed up with my $200 Pimentel. I performed Capricho Arabe, and played it pretty well considering the difficulty and who was sitting a few feet from me. I’m sure I was terrified! He was very kind, changed some fingerings, and managed to find just the right complimentary words to say. Whew! A couple of young German guys who played as a duo were there, and they were fantastic. One of them also played the Prelude from the 1st Lute Suite (BWV 996), and aced it, even the presto section. That was the moment I knew that although I adored this music, I loved improvising and playing other styles too much; to play at the highest levels of classical guitar, you really have to do that to the exclusion of everything else. It was good to realize that then. Another guy in the class had the wits to ask Manuel for his fingering of the Villa-Lobos Etude #2 (see #43), one of those pieces he electrified the guitar world with on that first record. I woodshedded that knucklebuster for 20 years!

....................Manuel Barrueco and Nick - New Orleans

I did another master class with Manuel at Tulane, organized by Elias. I played the Folk Song from John Duarte's English Suite, and, incredibly, had the nerve to play about half of the 1st movement from Paganini’s Grand Sonata. What was I thinking??! A very funny moment occurred in front of the class when Manuel asked to see the fingernails on my right hand. While he inspected them, I realized we appeared precisely as that TV commercial, and I blurted out "Madge! Dishwashing liquid?!" Everyone was laughing so hard, I’m not sure whether he managed the rejoinder, "Relax, it’s Palmolive." Manuel helped me select a new guitar that week, and while playing it honored me with a request: the Gigue from the 1st Lute Suite. The last session of the class, pictures were taken, and then followed a houseboat party on Lake Pontchartrain. It was a beautiful summer night, and I recall being alone with Manuel on the top deck. Someone had given him a Cuban cigar, and I smoked a home-rolled variety! He talked to me, like a regular person, like a friend, an equal. I never forgot that.

Over the years these experiences replayed in my mind a thousand times as I followed Manuel’s spectacular international performing career, and the string of recordings that consistently set new standards for the classical guitar. I remember well when the Albeniz/Granados album was released and being floored by his dynamic performance of the Minuetto (#79), not to mention his transcription (previously thought to be impossible on the guitar) of Cataluna (#107). I always considered Alicia de Larrocha as the premiere interpreter of Spanish piano music, but when you hear Manuel play pieces such as Granada (#3), it’s difficult not to believe that those composers were really thinking about the guitar. After that, the stupefying recording of Paganini’s Sonata in A (#115) on the Scarlatti album; his perfect interpretations of Bach; the groundbreaking transcriptions and arrangements drawn from a huge spectrum of composers: deFalla, Ponce, Rodrigo, di Visee, Brouwer, Turina, Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett, Lennon & McCartney, Barrios, Lauro, Piazzolla, and many composers whose music had either been largely overlooked or simply not attempted on the guitar. His collaborations with people such as Placido Domingo, The King’s Singers, Cuarteto Latinoamericano, Al DiMeola and Steve Morse, among others, has broadened the instrument’s scope and attracted new audiences. His famous appearance on commercial television, burning through Leyenda (the linked clip shows a former student of Manuel's, the amazing and beautiful Ana Vidovic) in the back seat of a speeding Lexus, brought some much-needed guitar publicity to the attention of millions. Contemporary composers such as Roberto Sierra, Arvo Pärt, Michael Daugherty (from my hometown!), Gabriela Lena Frank, Steven Stucky, and Toru Takemitsu have been inspired by Manuel to write new solo and ensemble works for guitar, greatly expanding the modern repertoire. Not surprisingly, I'd love to see him collaborate with Pat Metheny.

Besides the unmatched tone and interpretation, Manuel took technique to a startling new level. He is able to hold on to the notes and chords just a little longer, and get to the next note or chord just a little faster, smoother, and more securely than everybody else, thereby conquering the fiendish technical problem of this instrument: producing a sustained, legato sound. Playing his records over and over, a curious phenomenon became apparent: when I would go into another part of the house, and the timbre of the instrument became obscured, I could swear I was listening to a pianist. A really killer pianist. I have proven this a number of times to the amazement of others.

Naturally, the 1000+ guitarists I taught received a crash course in Barrueco 101 (along with Pat Metheny and Tommy Bolin).

As another testament to Manuel’s kindness, in the early 90s I was suffering from tendonitis, and it threatened to shut down my guitar career, which by that time was providing me a very good living, and sponsorship from some major companies such as Ibanez, Laney, Roland, D'Addario, etc. My father happened to see Manuel at a meet & greet event in Baltimore, and told him about my malady. Not long afterwards, while cooking spaghetti in my Florida apartment, the telephone rang. That phone rang about 100x/day, and I let the answering machine take care of it. This time I heard the name "Manuel Barrueco" coming through the tiny speaker, and almost fainted. He gave me some very good advice, and happily that affliction eventually disappeared. How’s that for a person who cares?!

Michael Lawrence’s brilliant documentary film A Gift and a Life, is a wonderful behind-the-scenes glimpse of Manuel in public and private, with a particularly moving account of his early life in Cuba and emigration to America. And the incredible camerawork provides a rare opportunity to see the magic happen up close, where fingers meet strings. It is highly recommended! Mr. Lawrence is also producing an ambitious new film devoted to the music of Bach, and Manuel is featured in that with an amazing array of famous musicians.

An artist’s greatest legacy, besides their body of work, is their willingness to "pass the baton" to future generations. The most promising young guitarists in the world make the pilgrimage to the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore for the opportunity to study with Manuel Barrueco.

Finally, that he reached out from the cobwebbed past to reconnect is a tremendous thrill for me. We are planning on meeting soon, and I can’t wait. Querido amigo...un abrazo!

Manuel Barrueco official website

Facebook page

Youtube clips from A Gift and a Life:

1 (trailer)

2 (slightly different from #1)

3 (party at Manuel's house, check this out!)

4 (with Placido Domingo)

5 (with Andy Summers and Al Di Meola)

6 (with Aaron Shearer)

7 (from new Bach film)

P.S. Guess who....playing a fabulously bastardized Valse Criollo, complete with digital reverb....sorry, Manuel! : )

What's Up With That?

2009-03-02T14:12:00.018-05:00

I'm noticing a trend among some people of not bothering to answer posts on their blog. We all understand the various reasons a person might not post on other blogs, but who the heck ignores people that take the time to post on one's own blog??? I have always tried to be very conscientious about that here and in the forums. A quaint notion, perhaps, but it seems common courtesy to me....and it's part of what makes the whole thing work. (insert scratching head emoticon here)

Flight

2009-02-24T18:09:00.003-05:00

I've been battling a nasty cold and unable to keep up with up with internet stuff. But something needs to be posted here, so check out an instrumental rocker I wrote and recorded some time ago and just put on Youtube. I'm playing a Parker Fly Deluxe, so this was obviously shot well before the Dean "Teaser" guitar came about. The level is a little low, so crank your speakers, the louder the better!

Artworks This Week - Maryland Public Television

2009-02-16T01:49:00.007-05:00

In 2006 I was spotlighted twice on Maryland Public Television's Artworks This Week, hosted by public television celeb Rhea Feikin. The second time they brought a film crew to my studio, and that feature has been re-aired often. I just saw it for the first time while editing it for Youtube - I hate watching myself on these things! Each time this segment has been broadcast, I hear from people in the DC/Maryland area, and after it was aired again the other night, I received an email from a world-famous musician who has been a major influence on my creative life. More on that soon! Thank you to MPT, Rhea Feikin, and producer Katrina Threat for your interest and support!

Joseph Zbukvic

2009-02-11T22:29:00.018-05:00

Thanks to the awesome Janine Gallizia, I was invited to exhibit with her, Joseph Zbukvic, and a number of other European watercolor stars in Limousin, France last summer. (see this post about the show, and another post about Janine) That was a great honor, and at the time I had no expectations of meeting them anytime soon. Well, Janine has organized another major exhibition to take place in Belgium in October with Joseph, myself, and a handful of the best watercolorists on the Continent. I will be going over for that, and will probably also do a workshop. More details soon.

................ Joseph Zbukvic and his 1956 Triumph TR3

All of my communication has been with Janine, until recently when I was stunned to see an email arrive from Mr. Z himself. Anybody not familiar (if that's possible) with Joseph's renowned work, needs to stop reading now and go here. And here. People who are familiar with his work know that he's regarded as one of the all-time masters of this medium. I'm proud to now call him a good friend, and humbled to be considered a colleague. When I picked up the paint brush again in 2003, I had no idea things would take this turn.

Joseph and I are planning on meeting in Seattle in April for some good times, where I'll be doing a workshop at CWB, and he'll be flying in to do a workshop for Art Escapes Montana at the fantastic Glacier Camp Lodge in Kalispell. Through the organizational genius of Jamie Kelley, Joseph and I will do back to back workshops at scenic Granville Island, in Vancouver, April 2010. More details on that soon. By the way, in 2011, Jamie has me doing a dual workshop with one of my cherished mentors, watercolor legend Barbara Nechis. To our knowledge, this has never been done the way we are planning it. I'm excited!

If you followed this convoluted post, you'll see I owe it all to Janine....again. :)

Tvoj prijatelj!

Kanzashi

2009-02-03T14:28:00.005-05:00

Kanzashi 38"x38" 97 x 97 cm

A variation on the Tokyo Express painting. For this one I distorted the drawing to emphasize the hair ornaments ("kanzashi"), and I also distorted the Japanese characters to alter the perspective. All of the whites are the paper. Da Vinci/Fabriano.