A Country Christmas - Gene Pelham (1909-2004) - oil on canvas 16" x 24" signed lower right

What does a New York City painter have in common with a painter from Yugoslavia? Both painted the seasonal beauty of New York City and breathtaking country landscapes. Bogomir Bogdanovic painted the picturesque countryside of upstate New York while Gene Pelham chose the Vermont of Norman Rockwell.  If you are looking to incorporate paintings in your Christmas holiday decor, these two paintings offered by Tom Pikul of Bantam Fine Arts fit the bill. If you can’t decide whether you want a country or city scene, why not buy both.  These great works of art not only make fabulous decorative statements, they are also excellent  investments.  Click on paintings to enlarge and for more information.

Fifth Avenue and Central Park, NYC - Bogomir Bogdanovic (1923- ) - oil on masonite 24" x 30" signed lower left

Renowned furniture designers and retailers, Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams, will be in Greenwich this Wednesday evening, November 4th from 6-8 pm, to host their company’s 20th anniversary party and a book signing for their newest book at their Greenwich store, 45 East Putnam Avenue.  Their timely new book, The Comfortable Home: How to Invest in Your Nest and Live Well for Less (Clarkson Potter/Melcher Media, Inc.) will be available for purchase.  Champagne and cake will be served.  All are welcome.  With every book purchased, customers will receive a complementary, autographed copy to give as a gift (Mitchell and Bob will be on hand to sign books).  Please call 203.661.4480 to RSVP.  For more information about Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams and their book go to www.mgbwhome.com.

Just in time for fall are two lovely autumn landscape original oil paintings offered by Bantam Fine Arts in Litchfield County. The paintings are the works of Henry Hammond Ahl, 1869-1953, Mt Washington and Saco River and William Merritt Post, 1856-1935, Autumn on the Bantam River. Both artists had studios in Connecticut and were considered tonalist landscape painters associated with the Barbizon school and the early New England Impressionists.  Post, in particular had a fascination for streams which shows in the lovely Autumn on the Bantam River . Works by Henry Hammond Ahl similar to the Mt Washington and Saco River,  can be found in private and public collections including the Whistler Memorial Home in Lowell, Massachusetts, and in church murals in Boston and Providence.

If you are planning an autumn foilage trip to Litchfield County, Connecticut, stop by and see Tom Pikul, owner of Bantam Fine Arts. Call him at 860.567.3337 or contact him through his website: www.bantamfinearts.com

There is no doubt that paintings change the ambiance of a room or hall. They are not only great investments but decorative as well as functional. These are not mere sketches done randomly, rather, they are strokes done by creative hands. Paintings have the power to unknowingly attract you. They are one of the most beautiful creations of man done with skill and passion.

Original paintings have the power to enhance the space of any home decor, as living rooms, dining rooms, dens, game rooms, and master bedrooms come to life with wall art.  An original oil painting makes a great conversation piece and is a joy that lasts a lifetime – not to mention the aspect of possessing an investment that continues to grow with age and attachment.

This lovely still life oil painting by Leonard  Woodruff (1880 -1965) Red Grapes (click on painting for larger view)  is sure to whet your guests’ appetites when placed in your dining room. It is an oil on canvas 16 1/4″ x 13 1/4′ signed lower right, and offered for $2,800.00  by Tom Pikul of  Bantam Fine Arts.

Woodruff was an Oklahoma artist. Woodruff’s works were shown in the Kansas Master Artists Exhibition Oct. 22-Nov. 12,1999 in Wichita, Kansas. The artist is listed in Artists in California 1786-1940 by Hughes. The Wichita Center for the Arts has several Woodruff works of art.

If you are planning a Summer trip to Litchfield County, Connecticut, stop by and see Tom, call him at 860.567.3337 or contact him through his website: www.bantamfinearts.com

If you are looking to decorate with original seascape oil paintings, a beautiful one by Otis Pierce Cook is available at Bantam Fine Arts .  (Click on link or on painting for a larger view). A large seascape, such as Gloucester Dock hung prominently over a fireplace lends sophistication and elegance to a living room, whether your furnishings are modern or traditional.

Otis Pierce Cook (1900-1980) was an American painter born in New Bedford, Massachusetts. He was mostly famous for his oil paintings of coastal and landscape scenes and studied under Emil Gruppe of Gloucester. He lived much of his life in Rockport, MA and Cape Ann was the focal point for much of his work. He was a member of the Rockport Art Association. In 1935, Cook had an art gallery on Bearskin Neck in Rockport and was a member of The Rockport Art Galleries along with William Lester Stevens, Joseph Eliot Enneking, Arthur J. Hammond, Marian Parkhust Sloane and Frank M. Rines.

His paintings are in the permanent collections of major museums and private collections across America, including in the Springfield Museum of Art.

If you are interested in this painting or other seascapes, contact Tom Pikul at 860.567.3337, or visit his website: http://www.bantamfinearts.com

Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams
45 East Putnam Avenue
Thursday, February 19, 2009
8:30 am to 10:30 am
Exclusive breakfast for interior designers to preview the new spring 2009 collection.
Kindly RSVP to: rsvpgreenwich@mgbwhome.com or 203.661.4480
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