There is a lot of superb contemporary realism and figurative art being made these days; this article by Allison Malafronte shines light on a gifted individual.

Few artists have the gumption to explore such weighty topics as death, destitution, and decay, but these are concepts about which Georgia-based painter Miles Cleveland Goodwin (b. 1980) has much to say. With a B.F.A. in painting and printmaking from Portland’s Pacific Northwest College of Art, and many years of additional self-education and practice, Goodwin paints in a contemporary realist manner sometimes compared to Southern Gothic, the literary genre focused on the shadowy, scarred side of Southern culture and history. He brings a heightened level of awareness and philosophical pondering to subjects some artists are afraid to touch.

Born and raised in the South, Goodwin can also put pen to paper to create another kind of artistry; we can detect a preoccupation with darkness and death even in his poetic descriptions of his upbringing. “My painting was born in the cypress swamps of Mississippi, where I was conceived, under a white heron’s wing and a drunken parade,” his artist’s statement declares.

“The stories of slaves and farming, the seasons burning with colors and feelings, that resignation to the idea we were different. I found it later on the bottom of the Chattahoochee River, floating by a bible and a dream. Those brown waters against the warmth of fall leaves would ignite my love for expressionism and poetry.”

He continues, “The American South is hauntingly beautiful; it could supply a person novels, paintings, and songs for eternity. In winter the mountains were on fire with white. White against dark wiry cedars, against the black of my paint. And in the summer endless patches of Queen Anne’s lace, chimney swifts flying just below the old train bridges, the shimmer of brown trout at the surface of the cold river waters. In fall the maples melted between the old brick and wood of abandoned churches. I could start to hear mice in the walls, horses in their stalls fattening up, a whisper of death.”

One of Goodwin’s paintings is the eerily compelling “Beautiful Dying Man” (shown above). Many of his works explore old age and isolation, and here an elderly man figures prominently, this time — we gather from the title — on the brink of death. In Goodwin’s depictions, passing on is a struggle and strain, one that strips us of dignity and humanity.

The man here is naked, and his posture suggests resignation and dejection. To his left is a dog, likely a longtime companion, who seems to be sleeping or dead, and there is a shadowy man lurking in the mirror; one would assume the spirit of death. Why then does Goodwin call him a beautiful dying man if no indication of hope is entertained? As in many of his creations, there is thought-provoking irony in the dichotomy and parallels he sets up and asks us to consider.

Connect with the artist and see more of his figurative art at www.milesclevelandgoodwin.com.

Attention Art Collectors
May 20-22, 2025: Visit the Plein Air Convention & Expo’s robust pop-up art gallery at the Nugget Casino Resort in Reno, Nevada, where hundreds of artists, including our master faculty, will have studio and plein air works on display and ready to purchase. Register for the full event at PleinAirConvention.com now.

View more artist and collector profiles and figurative art here at FineArtConnoisseur.com.

On Collecting Fine Art >

Born in Germany but a U.S. citizen for many years, the New Jersey-based businessman Dieter Weissenrieder became interested in the visual arts as a young adult thanks to a close friend who became a curator at a major German museum. His wife, Eleanor, a retired schoolteacher, grew up in suburban New Jersey, so she has visited New York City’s museums all her life and began bringing Dieter along soon after they met. The couple have always enjoyed traveling, especially in Europe, and have visited many museums there.

“More than 40 years ago,” Dieter recalls, “Eleanor and I made our first art purchase because the small house we were renting needed some art on its walls. From a gallery in Greenwich Village we bought a landscape painted by a French artist, and we still own it today. In the 1970s, we acquired our first sculpture in Taos when we began skiing and visiting galleries there.”

In fact, the Weissenrieders are devoted skiers and have skied out west every year. Those experiences exposed them to what is now called Art of the American West: “We started to develop relationships with gallery owners in various ski resorts,” Dieter explains, “and as we got more hooked on art, we began attending auctions and museum benefit sales,” especially at the Autry Museum of the American West (Los Angeles) and Eiteljorg Museum (Indianapolis). The couple also drew inspiration from a fellow collector: because they have a house in Scottsdale, Arizona, they often visited the enormous and outstanding collection formed by Eddie Basha in nearby Chandler. (Fortunately, Basha’s heirs have donated it to the Heard Museum in Phoenix and Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West so that many other people can enjoy it, too.)

Today the Weissenrieders own paintings and sculpture by William Acheff,  Gerald Balciar, Amery Bohling, John Buxton, John Coleman, Don Crowley, Michael Dudash, Toni Falk, John Fawcett, Deborah Copenhaver Fellows, Fred Fellows, Bruce Greene, Robert Griffing, William Haskell,  Karin Hollebeke, Walt Horton, Doug Hyde, Jerry Jordan, Sue Krzyston, Steven Lang, Mel Lawson, Chul Young Lee, David Mann, Curt Mattson, Frank McCarthy, Denis Milhomme, K.W. Moore, Sr., Paul Moore, Bill Nebeker, Rock Newcomb, Gary Niblett, Don Oelze, Robert Peters, Dave Powell, Heide Presse, Robert Pummill, Alfredo Rodrigues, Scott Rogers, Roseta Santiago, Harry J. Sharre, Tim Shinabarger, Daniel Smith, Matt Smith, Gordon Snidow, Nathan Solano, Ray Swanson, Andy Thomas, Russ Vickers, Curt Walters, and David Wright. Sadly, several artists who were alive when they acquired the work have subsequently died, including Joe Beeler, Glenna Goodacre, Allan Houser, Harry Jackson, and Oleg Stavrowsky. Also in the Weissenrieder Collection are important pieces of Native American pottery by Autumn Borts-Medlock, Eric Fender, Jody Folwell, Susan Folwell, Tammy Garcia, Al Qoyawayma, Maxine Toya, and Alvina Yepa.

“Getting to know the artists has added an exciting dimension,” Dieter remembers. “Eleanor and I feel that collecting art without ever meeting the artist is not as rewarding as developing a relationship.” (Only rarely have they bought work by a deceased artist, perhaps five in total, including E.I. Couse.) “Now” Dieter continues, “we deal primarily with the artists themselves and with galleries. Because we have run out of wall space, we have even told several artists to create smaller paintings if they want us to continue acquiring!”

The Weissenrieders have formed a particularly close friendship with John Buxton and his wife, Noralee. Illustrated here is a painting Dieter commissioned, “Great Falls of the Passaic at Paterson,” a breathtaking site of natural beauty now protected as a national park. Dieter wanted his friend to imagine the falls as they might have looked around 1750, when Native Americans relied on their abundant supply of fish. The Weissenrieders visited this place with Buxton, who had hired a senior Boy Scout to paddle the artist’s canoe deep into the falls so he could get a better sense of scale and perspective.

Dieter picks up the story: “Alas, the current proved too strong, so the canoe capsized and got a big hole in its side. Luckily, the young man was a good swimmer and we were able to pull the canoe out of the Passaic River about 400 feet downstream. The bad news: the canoe was totaled; the good news: John won two major prizes for this gorgeous painting, and we now have a wonderful memory to cherish forever.” In addition, the Paterson Museum located nearby displays a giclée replica of the painting to help visitors appreciate the significance of the falls historically.

Yet another close friend who carefully researches his scenes of Eastern Woodland Indians is Robert Griffing, represented here by “Pushing through the Billows.” Dieter admires how this artist studies elements such as clothing and tools “right down to the smallest detail,” and he recounts with a smile a missed opportunity to acquire yet another work by Griffing: “A dealer offered us one privately, but Eleanor and I balked at its price. Ten months later, that painting fetched a sum 70 percent higher during an auction we attended. It’s the one that got away.”

Dieter tries to have lunch with Buxton and Griffing at least once a year near Pittsburgh, where he owns a manufacturing plant. He and Eleanor are also friendly with the artist John Fawcett and his wife, Elizabeth; during a visit to the Weissenrieders’ small farm, Fawcett painted a portrait of their entire family mounted on horses, a large work that hangs over the fireplace in their living room. The collectors have visited the California home of Denis Milhomme and his wife, Lorene, who were especially pleased when the Weissenrieders loaned three of Denis’s best works to his 2022 retrospective at the Eiteljorg. The sculptor Scott Rogers and his wife, Janette, have visited the Weissenrieders in New Jersey, and Dieter still treasures their visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it was “great to listen to Scott analyze the artworks on view.”

Though the pace of their collecting has slowed, Dieter says that he and Eleanor still aim to acquire art “that is meaningful, tells a story, and will outlast us.” They have succeeded on all three counts.

View more artist and fine art collection profiles here at FineArtConnoisseur.com.

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Surprises await visitors to the RISD Museum in its exhibition “The Art of French Wallpaper Design.” Organized by curator Emily Banas, it explores the vibrant designs that adorned Europeans’ walls in the 1700s and 1800s.

“The Art of French Wallpaper Design”
Rhode Island School of Design Museum
risdmuseum.org
through May 11, 2025

On view are more than 100 rare samples of salvaged wallpapers, borders, fragments, and design drawings, all revealing their creators’ innovations and technical skill. Accompanied by a digital publication, this project celebrates the foresight of Charles and Frances Wilson Huard, who assembled this collection in the 1920s and ’30s.

The online catalogue notes that “in the past, much like today, wallpaper designs typically reflected what was in vogue, so once papers were out of fashion, they were removed or pasted over. It is therefore not surprising that examples of historical wallpapers are few and far between, particularly those in good condition. To assemble a comprehensive collection today would be a difficult undertaking.”

Celebrity Portraits in Print History > Before the 18th century, consumers in Great Britain and its American colonies lacked access to images of famous people other than monarchs. Broad circulation of engraved portraiture changed all that; now people could put a recognizable likeness or caricature with a name they had read about. Soon a market emerged for images of writers, actors, criminals, athletes, politicians, military figures, social climbers, models, and fashionable society women.

This year, the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum — one of the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg — is presenting the exhibition “Celebrity in Print,” which pairs portrait prints with porcelain, silver, archeological fragments, and other artifacts that together illustrate the powerful impact celebrities made.

According to Katie McKinney, Colonial Williamsburg’s curator of maps and prints, “Just as today we use ever-expanding technologies to shape and share our image, so artists, actors, politicians, athletes, and socialites of the past used the printed word and images to expand their influence and fame.”

“Celebrity in Print”
DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum
Williamsburg, Virginia
colonialwilliamsburg.org
through November 8, 2025

Among the most recognizable of colonial government notables was Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790). In a 1763 mezzotint made after a portrait painted by Mason Chamberlin, several of Franklin’s most famous experiments are depicted around him, including the lightning rod. After the print was published in England, his son ordered 200 copies to sell in Philadelphia. Franklin himself greatly enjoyed handing the print out to friends and correspondents, as this was one of his favorite likenesses.

Actors were often depicted in costumes or striking poses from their most famous roles. Their printed portraits often served as inspiration for ceramic figurines and were transferred to handkerchiefs, snuffboxes, and drinking vessels. One example featured in “Celebrity in Print” (and illustrated here) is the British comedic actor Henry Woodward (1714–1777).

This pair includes a print and a porcelain figure showing him as “The Fine Gentleman” in David Garrick’s first play, Lethe, or Esop in Shades, first performed in London in 1740. Woodward’s character, dressed in an absurd outfit, poked fun at the wealthy Englishmen who traveled through Europe on their “Grand Tour.”

Upon their return, it was feared that they would adopt foreign dress, customs, and tastes. Garrick’s play was soon performed to huge acclaim in New York, Philadelphia, Annapolis, and Charleston.

Printed likenesses also celebrated ordinary people who led extraordinary lives. In the 18th century, 50 was the threshold of “old age.” It is not surprising, then, that Margaret Patten, who in 1737 claimed to be 136 years old, attracted attention. The mezzotint engraving of her is based on a portrait by John Cooper that was painted at the request of local officials to commemorate her long life.

The exhibited prints — and also other examples kept elsewhere at Colonial Williamsburg — can be explored in depth on two 65-inch touchscreens available for visitors’ use in the galleries.

Contemporary Paintings for Sale:
“Lisa Breslow: From This Place”
Kathryn Markel Fine Arts
New York, New York
www.markelfinearts.com
February 20 – March 29, 2025

From the gallery:

Lisa Breslow painted this collection of work during a period of immense productivity following the devastating loss of her husband. The act of making became a solace for the artist and she focused this energy to push her painting further than ever before. Each distinct brushstroke is more confident and bold and each scene deeply emotionally resonant. Her rich surfaces reveal the time and care spent with every mark.

Breslow’s paintings are reflective, personal expressions of her everyday surroundings. The process of choosing what to paint is intuitive, as she describes it, “I tend to gravitate toward scenes that are quieter and more meditative. It’s always the lighting that draws me in initially, with its interplay of colors and forms that evokes a particular feeling or mood. When I see it, I know immediately that this is something I would want to paint.”

Each composition sits at an intersection of busy city life and the quiet of nature. The artist distills these experiences into introspective snapshots that feel both optimistic and tender as she captures the memory of a place.

Lisa Breslow has exhibited extensively in the United States, including recently at the Heritage Museum and the Heckscher Museum. She has been awarded two Pollock-Krasner Foundation awards, as well as an award from the National Academy Museum in New York, and was an Invited Artist at the Center for Contemporary Printmaking. She lives and works in New York City.

Attention Art Collectors!
May 20-22, 2025: Visit the Plein Air Convention & Expo’s robust pop-up art gallery at the Nugget Casino Resort in Reno, Nevada, where hundreds of artists, including our master faculty, will have studio and plein air paintings for sale. Register for the full event at PleinAirConvention.com now.

View more fine art gallery exhibitions here at FineArtConnoisseur.com.

Please help us congratulate Chris Bell for winning Overall First Place in the December 2024 PleinAir Salon, for the oil landscape painting “Dawn’s Grace.”

This round was judged by Diane Waterhouse of Waterhouse Gallery. “I liked the composition,” she said, “the light, shadow, and warmth the painting radiates with the late afternoon sun, and I liked all the details in the foreground.”

“As a painter and teacher, I have a desire to share my vision and experiences with others. I want to paint scenes so that they convey a reality filled with emotion and inspire the viewer to observe their surroundings in new ways. We live in a fast-paced world, and I’m afraid we sometimes fail to fully appreciate the light falling upon our town, the towering clouds on a summer day, or the common interactions between people and their environment. I relish the challenge of responding to these moments in paint. My efforts on linen give me an opportunity to savor the splendor of our world and hopefully pass along this joy to others.”

From his website:

Chris’ ancestors settled in the mountains of western North Carolina in the early 1800s, where he was born on his family’s farm along the Little Tennessee River in 1989. Although no one in his family were “painters,” they were people who made things with their hands. These farmers, blacksmiths, carpenters, mechanics, seamstresses, etc. instilled in him an appreciation for craftsmanship and a sentimentality toward the landscape. Throughout his childhood, Chris was constantly drawing and with the encouragement of others, he began to develop his gift. After high school, he forewent a university art education and instead became an apprentice to the English-born artist Julyan Davis in Asheville, NC. Working closely with Davis, Chris received a foundation in studio craft and art history upon which he has applied countless hours in the studio.

As a result of the Great Recession, Chris became a witness to the struggles of artists in the Asheville area and received a unique education as he saw creatives adapting to the changing environment. As his time with Davis came to an end, Chris enrolled at Western Carolina University. He earned degrees in education and history and became both a social studies teacher and art teacher. However, he was determined to continue to paint and build a career as a professional artist. His teaching salary bought paint, supplies, and travel opportunities while he worked to find his voice as an artist.

Today, Chris is a prolific artist who is constantly inspired by his surroundings in the Carolinas and his travels abroad. He is greatly influenced by the various manifestations of Impressionism, from the Russian school to the California Impressionists of the 20th century.

About the PleinAir Salon:

In the spirit of the French Salon created by the Academie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, this annual online art competition, with 11 monthly cycles, leading to the annual Salon Grand Prize winners, is designed to stimulate artistic growth through competition. The PleinAir® Salon rewards artists with $50,000 in cash prizes and exposure of their work, with the winning painting featured on the cover of PleinAir® Magazine.

Winners in each monthly competition may receive recognition and exposure through PleinAir Magazine’s print magazine, e-newsletters, websites, and social media. Winners of each competition will also be entered into the annual competition. The Annual Awards will be presented live at the next Plein Air Convention & Expo.

The next round of the PleinAir Salon has begun so hurry, as this competition ends on the last day of the month. Enter your best art in the PleinAir Salon here.

Watercolors on View:
“Timothy J. Clark: Here & Abroad”
Hilbert Museum of California Art
Orange, California
chapman.edu/arts
Through April 17, 2025

Best known for his sparkling watercolors, Timothy J. Clark is the subject of a solo exhibition at Chapman University’s Hilbert Museum of California Art. Titled “Here & Abroad,” it highlights his interiors, urban landscapes, and portraits, created near home and around the world. The project has been co-curated by Hilbert director Mary Platt and independent scholar Marcus B. Burke.

Clark’s is a California success story. Born in Santa Ana and now based 30 miles away in Capistrano Beach, he was hooked on art from his first class. He found teachers who helped him look at art from traditional and modernist perspectives: at 18, he entered Los Angeles’s Art Center College of Design, and later the Chouinard Art Institute shortly before it merged into what is now CalArts. Clark capped his education with an M.F.A. at California State University, Long Beach.

At age 13, working as a delivery boy for a pharmacy, Clark delivered prescriptions by bicycle to culturally diverse neighborhoods — and he loved it. His forays into the barrios have endured, and his respect for Hispanic culture (plus his reasonable skill in speaking Spanish) have opened doors that enabled him to savor their customs.

In 1970, Clark and his mentor in drawing, Jess Rubio, went to Guaymas, Mexico, to experience the Mardi Gras-type celebration Quema de Malhumor (Burn Your Pet Peeves). They wound up getting arrested on a specious charge, but when they created drawings of every jail guard and the police chief, they were freed. “My ability to focus intently on the drawing grew more in those few hours than in years of training,” Clark recalls.

Clark has brought his brush and easel to many places, including Mexico, South America, the Iberian Peninsula and Europe, India, Southeast Asia, and throughout the U.S. Co-curator Marcus Burke notes, “Prominent in these travels are the Hispanic locations, which have reinforced his experience from childhood… Instead of seeking only the exotic and the picturesque, he seeks to affirm a sense of common cultural values. [He is] a traveler artist in total command of an artistic medium made to travel.”

View more art museum announcements here at FineArtConnoisseur.com.