Hudson River School

 I have been working for several months on the creation of this new piece, titled “Under A Golden Canopy”. While I often make use of the sky to convey a mood in my paintings, I felt that in this case the dappled sunlight falling across the path and through amber leaves conveyed a wistful feeling about the end of summer and the passage of time.

- September 20, 2023 -

I have recently returned from a long distance walk in England’s Lake District. With each footstep, I found myself echoing the past, as romantic poets and painters like Wordsworth and Constable found the area so inspirational to their reverent philosophy toward nature. Even Hudson River School painter Sanford Gifford painted there, soaking in the divinely picturesque and rugged landscape. This painting, “Derwent Water”, looks toward Borrowdale, thought to be the most central location to English Romanticism, embodying the sublime wonder of the natural world.

To walk such ground two hundred years after these famed creative souls, to still feel the pull of the landscape and the sanctuary it offers, as been a great gift indeed, and deepens my foundation as a modern day romantic landscape painter.

- June 23, 2023 -

 When I was a child, I was always fascinated when light streamed down in bold rays through the clouds above. I was taught to call the rays “God’s fingers”, and I dreamed of giant unseen hands at work with the business of creation. This painting, “Sacred Providence”, attempts to convey that sense of wonder, as well as the feeling of providence, that we are being smiled down upon and protected in our daily lives by a sense of divine blessing. This painting, and many others, can be seen at Mark Gruber Gallery in New Paltz, NY through July 1, 2023.

- May 17, 2023  -

This painting, “Everlasting Promise”, depicts a view looking down from rocky cliffs. It suggests a promised land of sorts, a sign being given, a moment when the spiritual world reveals itself to the material world, a view beyond the veil into color and light. The painting can be seen at Mark Gruber Gallery in New Paltz, NY through July 1, 2023.

- May 17, 2023 -

I am proud to announce a new body of work that I will be showing for the first time this spring at Mark Gruber Gallery in New Paltz, NY. The show runs from May 13 through July 1, and an opening reception will be held on Saturday May 13, from 5-7PM. The show also features the work of two artists I am proud to call friends, Gayle Clark Fedigan and Robert Trondsen.

While viewers and collectors can be assured of seeing a number of my signature Hudson Valley skies, you will also be treated to a new collection of intimate woodland interiors. These paintings reflect the same spiritual truths and themes I have always explored, but in quiet, mossy microcosm. “In The Woods So Deep” (above) is one such piece.

- April 18, 2023 -

I am currently showing new paintings at Windham Fine Arts in the Catskills. In a press release, the gallery writes, “(Cook’s) artwork is quiet and still. Each piece conveys an inner peace and the spirit of its surroundings. Kevin’s contemplative treatment of light, water and atmosphere turn our attention to nature and its process, promising everlasting life.” The piece shown above, “Expansion”, is one of many new works on display.  

- December 19, 2021 -

I am proud to participate in an exhibit titled, “Seasons of Greene” this September at the Athens Cultural Center in Athens, NY. Each painting in the show features a view of a protected landscape maintained by the Greene County Land Trust. A portion of each sale benefits the Land Trust in its efforts to conserve open spaces for the enjoyment of all.

I am exhibiting six pieces overall, including the painting shown above, “Golden Finale”.

- August 17, 2021 -

I am proud to have several new pieces on display at the Mark Gruber Gallery in New Paltz, NY. A summer exhibition focused on the luminist style of painting features the piece seen above. Entitled, “A Curtain Of Rain”, it features a view from artist Frederic Church’s home, Olana. Looking down the Hudson River as the nearby Catskill Mountains loom large, the air is frequently full of light, mists, and vapor. I visited the site for the first time in a number of years this summer and was inspired yet again by the magnificence of the view from the terrace outside his studio.

- August 17, 2021 -

 This piece is an exploration of the real and the ethereal, and how we move between the two states. The site is known as Inspiration Point, in the Catskill Mountains, and was frequented by Hudson River School artists more than one hundred and fifty years ago.

-  August 17, 2021 -