In the studio with artist, photographer and instructor Robert Louis Caldwell

It seems that this painting took a long time but it is now finished and ready to be framed. I will be taking this with me to the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition. "Reeds at Rice (Song Sparrow) ," Oil, 13" x 20" "Reeds at Rice" is the first piece that I have completed where the subject matter along with the environment that the subject is set in came from the VCU Rice center. I have done several other pieces where the subject came from my adventures at the Rice center but none that included the wonderful habitat that is the Rice center. You have heard me talk about the Rice center a couple of times before but to help refresh your memory about the center and all the wonderful things that they do please visit http://www.vcu.edu/rice/ . I hope to get back out to the center in the spring to recharge my reference library and to just enjoy being in such a great environment.

The "What, where, and when... News from RL Caldwell Studio" newsletter went out yesterday via e-mail. Those of you who are on my mailing list will have noticed that I have started to move from the traditional mail delivery methods to using e-mail. If you are on my mailing list but did not receive a newsletter that probably means that I don't have your e-mail address or that my wonderful typing skills have failed me yet again. Please take a moment to sign up at the right using the link for "sign up for our e-mail newsletter". I will be sending out show invitations and announcements this way as well. If you would like to see the winter 2009 "What , where, and when..." issue please click on the link below to see it. What, where, and when... News from RL Caldwell Studio Winter 2009 I would like to thank all of you who responded back to me about the newsletter and all that is going on with me and my work.

I just have the final layer on the bird to finish and then I can wrap this one up. All the reeds are done and I am happy with the way they came out. I'll work on the bird tomorrow and should be able to post the completed painting by Wednesday.

In any and all professions we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. Not all of us know who's shoulders we stand upon, I do. I have certain people that I admire for their talent, people who have created work that when I look at it, it makes me stop. It makes me stop and ask myself how did they do that, what kind of effort, knowledge, and risk did it take to create something so amazing. I don't like to discuss often those who I admire or look at for creative inspiration because often you will then be compared to those individuals. On the other hand it is an honor to be compared to or grouped with those that you admire when the person comparing you doesn't know that you admire the other artist. With that said I like to say goodbye to an amazing artist, Andrew Wyeth. If you don't know Andrew died Friday January 16th, 2009 at his home in Chadd's Ford, Pa at the age of 91. Unfortunately I did not know Andrew personally but have spent many many hours pouring ...

Well the holidays are over and I am back to work in the studio. Actually I have been back working for awhile now, I just felt like I didn't have much to show. But before I get into that, I want to mention a special blog that has gone up over the holidays, "Artists for Lyn." Lyn St. Clair is a fellow artist who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Like so many artists Lyn is without health insurance. She is painting but the bills are going to be piling up as medical bills do, and so we are launching an on-line gallery to assist Lyn in her efforts to fund her medical care during this time. I along with some other amazing artist have pledge a portion of the sales of our artwork that are posted in the blog to help Lyn out. Please take a moment out and visit the blog , you might find something that you really like and also be helping out an incredible artist at the same time. The piece that I have been working on is "Reeds at Rice" for the last couple of weeks. It ...