I wrote a post a little while ago about my early November trip to see the Sargent and Spain show at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.  I shared a bunch of images, but only of Sargent.  So I figured I'd share some other goodies here (and maybe one more Sargent..)
  The photos are all captioned with where and what they are.  The Vermeers were stunning, the Zorn was great and I'm always a big fan of Cecilia Beaux.  Definitely check out these works if you're in D.C.  And I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving if I don't write in the meantime.

  Just finished a late night self portrait and it turned out well.  Those nights when I can't sleep, I get a lot of drawing, writing and reading done.

  I was working on another flower painting tonight and had an opportunity to paint a small self portrait.  I could see myself reflected in a back window behind the still life so I used 3 brush strokes to capture the planes of my face; I think it came out to be a good likeness.
  I've also been thinking recently about representational painting and how to really capture a feeling of atmosphere in a painting.  It really goes beyond representation - Sorolla was a master of this.  It's almost like you have to paint the feeling as well as the reality.  And I've found that I can't be too careful about it.  There's a certain rhythm to it and if I go too slowly or too quickly then it doesn't work.  Every time I try to put it into words it just falls apart so I guess I can't even put it into words.  Anyway, I'm feeling very energized and will be painting up a storm.