Speed of Life

by Gregg Chadwick   Generosity of Eye: Art Transformed into Education from brad hall  (Full Film) Generosity of Eye: Art Transformed into Education is a must watch documentary by Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall that documents William Louis-Dreyfus, Julia's father,  as he explains why he decided to sell his bountiful art collection to benefit the Harlem Children's Zone - an educational program in New York, created by Geoffrey Canada to break the cycle of generational poverty for the thousands of children and their families in the Harlem community.  Julia is often on screen with her father and their scenes together are rich with familial affection. As Julia interviews her father about the art that William has collected over the years and the artists who have created it, she is often overcome with emotion as she discovers the depth of her father's passion for art and for justice. Geoffrey Canada, William Louis-Dreyfus, and Julia Louis...

Today's Google doodle honors the groundbreaking environmentalist Rachel Carson, whose book  Silent Spring sounded one of the first alarms about the detrimental effect of pesticides on the eco-system. The natural world was my first love as a kid and reading Carson's work was instrumental in spurring me on to look deeply at and respect the complexities of our endangered environment. Carson's interest in conservation began with her early work as a marine biologist, which led to her award winning book, The Sea Around Us . Subsequently, nature writing provided a powerful vehicle for Carson to bring mainstream attention to the chemicals being dumped daily into our streams and rivers. Her work inspired global bans of the pesticide DDT  and helped foster the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States. I encourage you to honor Rachel Carson's legacy by spending some time today on the Audubon Society's website , the US National Park Servic...

Gregg Chadwick Buddha of the Adriatic 24"x18" oil on linen 2014 My heart breaks for the families who have lost their daughters and sons during this weekend's senseless massacre in Santa Barbara. There is so much to discuss, to argue over, to ponder. But tonight, I will continue to mourn and ask that attention be focused on the six University of California, Santa Barbara students who were stolen from us.

Gregg Chadwick Dogtown 17"x17" oil on panel 2014  My painting  Dogtown  will be featured in the Silent Art Auction at the  35th Anniversary of the Venice Art Walk and Auctions  which will take place on Sunday, May 18, 2014 at Google Los Angeles in the Frank Gehry designed Binoculars Building. The painting is available for pre-bidding on the auction site Paddle 8 with a select group of donated artworks.  http://paddle8.com/auctions/veniceartwalk   100% of the proceeds from the sale of my painting go to help fund the Venice Family Clinic’s comprehensive health care program for the low-income and uninsured.  Direct Link at:  https://paddle8.com/work/gregg-chadwick/31720-dogtown More at: Sunday, May 18th, Celebrate 35 Years of the Venice Art Walk &amp ; Auctions!

by Gregg Chadwick “Memory has become a sacred duty of all people of goodwill.” -Elie Wiesel   Last night in Los Angeles, President Obama gave a beautiful and powerful speech after accepting the Shoah Foundation ’s Ambassador of Humanity Award from Steven Spielberg during a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza . I want to thank the President, Steven Spielberg and all those involved with the Shoah Foundation for recognizing the importance of remembering. The Shoah Foundation gathers and preserves the stories of those who experienced the Holocaust and other atrocities across the globe. Over the past two decades, the Shoah Foundation has recorded tens of thousands of interviews. Researchers and documentarians have traveled to dozens of countries, interviewing survivors of the  Holocaust, and documenting historical evidence of the Armenian Genocide, and other atrocities. The first person accounts that have been gathered are an invaluable resource for future ...

Gregg Chadwick Mulholland Blue 24"x30" oil on linen 2014  Currently, my painting Mulholland Blue is hanging in the 50th Anniversary Pasadena Showcase House of Design in a wonderful room designed by Ederra Design Studio's Cynthia Lambakis and Samantha Williams.   Standing on Mulholland above Los Angeles, a blurred trio contemplates the mystery of existence. Does the woman in the green dress meet her double and the memory of her lover? Or has time allowed past, present and future to coalesce? The Pasadena Showcase runs from April 13– May 11, 2014 Saatchi Art  ‏ @ SaatchiArt     21h Great seeing this original work by one of our artists, Gregg Chadwick, at the Pasadena @ ShowcaseHouse ! pic.twitter.com/po9NOb3p8Q PasadenaShowcase  ‏ @ ShowcaseHouse     1m @ greggchadwick @ SaatchiArt It's a beauty! More at: Eleanor Schapa On Ederra Design Thanks to MaryLinda Moss for making all this possible!

by Gregg Chadwick  Oracle of Milan 40"x30" oil on linen 2014   Oracle of Milan is the first in an upcoming series of time lapse videos that document the stages and alterations inherit in my painting process. The first impression is key in the formation of an artwork and the opening frames of the video show that something dynamic is present in this new painting. I allow the painting to speak to me with visual clues that lead to new paths. Oracle of Milan was begun in June 2013. Over the past year, I have added and subtracted figures, colors, and elements to arrive at the last frames of the video which show the painting today. Is it finished? Is anything ever finished? Only time will tell.   The video is backed by The National's haunting song England, which has been on a National heavy playlist that has played throughout my painting sessions for Oracle of Milan .  

by Gregg Chadwick Gregg Chadwick Joshua Tree 24"x24" oil on linen 2014 My recent paintings are taking me to times and places that have deep resonance. This newest body of work is marked by time and memory and  explores our present reality in the context of the sometimes hauntingly real shadows that come and go in our daily existence.  At times  spiritual echoes find their way into my art. Sometimes this sense of something bigger or deeper than ourselves is found in the images and locations created within the paintings. At other times this numinous quality is carried by the light within the work. Recently in the studio, I have been thinking about the works of Caspar David Friedrich in  the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin. Many of Friedrich's paintings depict what I see as an Easter light - a light of promise and redemption.  Caspar David Friedrich Village Landscape In Morning Light 21 5/8 "x28" oil on canvas 1822 Nationalgalerie...

Salish Sea   Gregg Chadwick 30”x24” oil on linen 2014

Gregg Chadwick Sea and Shadow (Mare e Ombra) 30"x20" oil on linen 2014 Courtesy Sandra Lee Gallery, San Francisco Last night Italian pianist Giuseppina Torre gazed attentively at  my painting   Sea and Shadow (Mare e Ombra) and said to me,"La luce a Venezia è magica ." I agreed, the light in Venice is magic. And there is light in Giuseppina Torre's music as well. Earlier that evening in the Arena 1 Gallery at the Santa Monica Art Studios she gave us a taste of her haunting piano compositions at the opening of an  Italian cultural event entitled All Roads Lead to LA, presented in conjunction with the Istituto Italiano  di   Cultura  in Los Angeles. The celebration continues tonight with  poetry, music, fashion and the visual arts. The evening will begin with a poetry reading at 5 pm to be followed by an hour-long performance by Giuseppina Torre. A presentation of contemporary Italian fashion will round out the evening. ...

I was struck by this poignant video posted today on the New York Times site and thought how perfectly the Okinawan duo  Isamu Shimoji and Yukito Ara's song captures a longing for a distant home. Sung to the tune of "Danny Boy" their song reinterprets and reframes    Frederic Weatherly's classic and makes it both more personal and more global.  Isamu Shimoji and Yukito Ara's lyrics are below: Beloved child of mine, From beyond the skies is heard the voice of the flute calling to you. Summer has passed, the flowers of the season have fallen. You are preparing for the journey to distant lands. Through the summer when the grasses and flowers bloom and peak, Through the winter when the north winds bluster and blow, here on this island I’m always waiting for you. Beloved child of mine, o beloved child of mine! I’m watching and waiting for you to return, gentle and brave. As the seasons turn and you finally come home to the island of your b...

Gregg Chadwick The Emperor's Train 68"x144" oil on Japanese screen 2014 and   Empire State (Grand Central ) 72"x36" oil on linen 2013  Courtesy Sandra Lee Gallery As part of the Santa Monica Airport Artwalk 2014, my installation "Trains and Stations" will be on view in the Hangar West Gallery at the Santa Monica Art Studios. My studio #15, directly across from the screen, will also be open and will include new paintings on this theme. Opening reception - Saturday, March 15, 2014 from 12 - 5pm "Trains and Stations" was inspired by the powerful music of Michael McDermott and his band The Westies and the memory of my Grandfather Arthur Desch who made his living as a train engineer on the Jersey Central Line. Listen to Trains here:  https://www.facebook.com/westiesmusic/posts/10151723507858995 More at:   The Emperor's Train   http://www.smgov.net/Portals/Culture/content.aspx?id=15034   http://www.smgov...

Gregg Chadwick Pennsylvania 4901 54”x54” oil on linen 2014                                                  Recent Events: Winter 2014 1. My paintings were featured in the Sandra Lee Gallery booth  at  the  Palm Springs Fine Art Fair -an international art fair held Feb 13-16, 2014  at the Convention Center in Palm Springs, California. 2. From January 9, 2014 until February 28, 2014, at the Sandra Lee Gallery in San Francisco, California, my paintings were included in a group exhibition along with work by Kathryn Arnold, Henry Jackson, Irena Kononova, Jeremy Morgan, Jeffrey Palladini, Hyun Su Park, Daniel Phill, George Rivera, Jungsan Senim and others.  3. I was recently interviewed by the  Los Angeles Business Journal   for an article about the Saatchi Art Gallery....

Gregg Chadwick The Golden Hour 10"x8" oil on panel 2014 Happy Valentine's Day! I thought I would feature a new painting and Bruce Springsteen's haunting version of his song For You to honor lovers across the globe.

by Gregg Chadwick Gregg Chadwick     Deerhead  Diner 24”x36” oil on linen 2014 Like a scene pulled from a Scorsese film or lifted from a Sopranos’ episode, my painting “Deerhead Diner” evokes an American scene of tough guys and two bit joints. Inspired by an actual diner I would visit in Queens near LaGuardia airport, “Deerhead Diner” depicts a timeless yet vanishing world.