Benjamin Lussier

Heading Out

2017

"Monkey Island, Portland, Jamaica 03.23.2021" by Nelson H. White, is a small scale oil painting of a seascape; blues, greens, and white make up the overall tone of the canvas. A hori...

Painting of a painter, painting with watercolor on a beach in Italy. The figure, female, rests in the shade in a chair, beneath a sunhat, she looks ah...

Painted en plein-air in Italy, "Bagno Paradiso" depicts a group of figures sitting beneath a striped umbrella. Nelson H. White was born in New London, Connecticut in 1932. White has been surrounded by art and artists from the time he was born. He received his earliest art instruction from his grandfather, Henry Cooke White (1861-1952) and his father Nelson Cooke White (1900-1989), both important American artists. The family lived in Waterford, Connecticut and the elder White had been an early member of the art colony in Old Lyme, Connecticut. Known for his paintings of the Connecticut landscape and shoreline, Henry Cooke White became a teacher to his son, Nelson Cooke White. Living with his parents at the Florence Griswold house in Old Lyme, he met some of the most important and influential artists of the day, Childe Hassam, Will Howe Foote and Harry Hoffman. Later, Nelson White's father began to take his family to summer on Shelter Island and became friendly with many of the artists of the Peconic colony such as Irving Wiles, an important American impressionist. After graduating from the Tabor Academy in Marion, Massachusetts in 1951, Nelson H. White began to study at Mitchell College in Connecticut but left to pursue studies in the violin, musical theory and composition. At this time, he began to spend more time studying art with his father and grandfather. By 1955, Nelson H. White had decided to devote himself to a career as a painter and traveled to Florence, Italy to become an apprentice to Pietro Annigoni, the world-renowned Florentine master. Within two years, the young White had won two awards for his work. While in Florence he also studied with the great Italian teacher, Nerina Simi. Today, White divides his time between the United States and Florence. Although he has received instruction from some very important artists, White's work is highly individual. He paints with great spirit. Upon seeing his work one quickly senses White’s great love for nature and the outdoors. Through his eyes we are able to view and interpret nature in an intimate manner. Whether Nelson H. White is painting the Connecticut shore...

"Evening West Neck Creek" is a small, horizontally oriented landscape painting by Nelson White. Painted en plein air on Shelter Island, where his family has owned property for genera...