Emily Farish

Quince Branch

2021

Architect and artist, Grover Mouton utilizes hand drawings to illustrate urban design proposals. Mouton's drawings were initially created as part of the design process in a series of...

Architect and artist, Grover Mouton utilizes hand drawings to illustrate urban design proposals. Mouton's drawings were initially created as part of the design process in a series of...

Architect and artist, Grover Mouton utilizes hand drawings to illustrate urban design proposals. Mouton's drawings were initially created as part of the design process in a series of...

Architect and artist Grover Mouton brings utilizes hand drawings to illustrate urban design proposals. Acting as a catalyst to explore design concepts,...

Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...

Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo creates dynamic compositions of people and places that communicate a rich commentary on the world around him. Depicting trees from personal encounters, Surdo’s latest body of work entitled “Tree Spirits” takes us on a foray into the forest, where leaves, branches and burls express something deeply personal. Applying his mastery of figurative realism to the natural world, he experiments with form and texture to uncover the intangible spirits of trees. Entitled “Faith,” this small-scale charcoal drawing depicts a tree trunk carved with two deep cuts in the shape of a cross. The carving has healed over, assimilated into the bark as just another interesting detail. Up close, the work is loosely drawn with a heavy hand, but from afar, the natural scene still achieves a sense of realism. The tree trunk is conveyed through chaotic scribbling and aggressive strokes of light and dark charcoal, resulting in a pattern that simulates the rough texture of bark. Light falls softly on the tree, illuminating its form against the dark, atmospheric surroundings. The striking imagery of this work conveys the strong emotional response elicited by Surdo’s personal encounter with this tree. Restricting the composition to only the scarred portion of the tree trunk, Surdo focuses on symbolism of the cross carved into the tree’s side. The carving was inflicted upon the tree by an individual, whether as an act of graffiti or the object of adoration. Despite this wound, the tree persists and grows, adapting and changing until the mark is but another interesting detail. The tree’s spirit endures and speaks to the strength it takes to heal oneself, whether physically or mentally. Charcoal on paper...

The eerie timeless Flat Iron building stands silhouetted against a winter sky one day in NYC. Tom was struck by the severe geometry of an historic b...

Bridge on the River is a beautiful drawing in pencil and charcoal realized by the French painter Emile-Louis Minet in 1919. The state of preservation is very good, except for a small...