A Brief Artist Statement/Bio...

Hello, art lovers and blog readers! This is Ellen Perantoni, painter of the landscape in oil in a manner inspired by the Hudson River School and the Barbizon School. I have lived in the Hudson Valley for decades, from my birthplace in New York City as far north as Albany. I now live and paint in a secluded studio on the slopes of Overlook Mountain, between Saugerties and Woodstock in the mid-Hudson Valley. I can be reached at eperantoni@yahoo.com
The painting at right shows detail from a view of Kaaterskill Clove in the northern Catskills. I will exhibit this work (subject to prior sale) at a show November 29 at the Woodstock Jewish Congregation, 1682 Glasco Tpk., Woodstick, NY from 10am-4pm.
I have a BA from New York University and have professionally produced creative work in many fields, from writing to composing music to fashion design. But painting is the best! My true love.
I studied oil painting with Hong-Nian Zhang, perhaps the pre-eminent living Woodstock painter, at the Woodstock School of Art. Hic color theory stands immortal in my mind.
I cherish all the nuances of the Hudson Valley landscape and have focused more and more on the Hudson River School and the Barbizon School for inspiration. My goal is to paint "better than photorealism", showing all the beautiful details and with a depth no photo can match, especially not digital ones on the Internet!
I am listed in AskArt, the major directory of respected living (and deceased) US artists. My work is in the permanent collection of Whistler House Museum of Art, along with work by J. McNeill Whistler and John Singer Sargent. I also have paintings in respected private collections including that of former NYS Governor George Pataki, a fellow Hudson Valley resident.
For the past several years I have focused on the dramatic and changeable Hudson Valley skies and their cloud formations. Recently I've been widening this focus to include more detailed treatment of the graceful foliage of the region.
I strive to paint clouds that look fluffy, leaves that look feathery, rocks that look eternal, and water that is still and silvery or turbulent, as the case may be.
Naturally I interpret, but I want to interpret so the reality looks even better, and the paintings draw you into the scenes and make you want to stay.