Not-So-Still Life

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Painting by James Aponovich. Photo by Elizabeth Aponovich

FYI

23rd Annual Chocolate Festival, Sunday, Feb. 26, North Conway area.

Trailside stops are open from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. The stops include the 1785 Inn, Mountain View Estates, Stonehurst Manor and Riverside Inn B&B. Cilck here for a complete list, tickets and more information.

An internationally renowned artist in the midst of a painting marathon.

What does an artist do when the art market is quiet? If you're James Aponovich, you launch an unprecedented 52-week marathon of painting.

"I decided I was going to paint what I wanted to paint and complete one painting a week," he says. He started last March with a painting of two pears. Since then he has painted or finished paintings of parrot tulips, seaside nasturtiums, sliced oranges, peonies, lemons, even Chinese takeout - all in the super-realistic style that has made him the internationally celebrated artist he is.

The "Still Life with Chocolate Truffles" shown here is from Week 24. All the paintings done to date are posted on Aponovich's blog along with notes about what inspired him to do the painting.

For this one he says, "Last Sunday Beth [his wife] and I had a group of friends over for a 'Buon Viaggio' dinner party in anticipation of their upcoming trip to Italy. As gifts, Sylvia brought a bottle of truffle-flavored oil and Joanie brought a box of elegant chocolate truffles.

"The truffle oil went to the kitchen to await some fettuccini to grace. The chocolate truffles went directly to the studio because I was in need of a 'model' for this week's painting. I placed seven truffles on the tissue that lined the box.

"Visually these were orbs differing in color and texture, all conforming to the passage of light across them. The tissue envelopes them and adds a translucent quality when placed in front of the striped wall. The blue ribbon adds a melodic line that accentuates the rolling roundness of the truffles. But with the world as it is ... why paint candy?"

Aponovich, N.H.'s Artist Laureate from 2006-2010, is still "hitting the easel," as he puts it, to finish out the 52 weeks. All of the paintings will be exhibited in June at the Clark Gallery in Lincoln, Mass. Click here for more information.

Chocolate Lovers, Take Note
It's called the "Sweetest Day on the Trails" - there are chocolate-dipped strawberries, chocolate fountains and fondue, brownie sundaes, chocolate cookies and more to be had. And you can enjoy them all guilt-free because you burn up mega calories getting to where they are. At the Annual Chocolate Festival, held in the North Conway area, lovers of chocolate (and the outdoors) cross-country ski or snowshoe from inn to inn (65km of trails) to get the chocolate treats that await them at each of the several stops. If you're more comfortable going by car, no problem. A map of all the stops at the festival, which is sponsored by the Mt. Washington Valley Ski Touring & Snowshoe Foundation, will be available online before the event.