A Brush with the Past – Painting in the Boston School Tradition

The Umbrella Gallery

Painting in the Boston School tradition, Jean Lightman’s award-winning work can be found in private collections in the US and abroad. Her paintings combine the accurate drawing and aesthetic design derived from the 19th Century academic tradition with the vibrant color and light of the French Impressionists.

Lightman currently serves as president of the prestigious Guild of Boston Artists, the first woman president in the Guild’s one hundred year history. She is also a Distinguished Artist member of the Concord Art Association.

Lightman paints portraits, landscapes and still lifes that shimmer with light. She is represented by Powers Gallery in Acton, MA; the Guild of Boston Artists; and Lily Pad Gallery in Watch Hill, R.I and Milwaukee, WI.

“I strive to capture the drama of the light and the magic of the color relationships. Whether in the pale creamy glow of the light on peony blossoms or the dance of shadows across a sunlit marsh along the coast of Maine, I am continually awed by the magnificence of nature.”

In this 30-minute presentation, Jean Lightman shares her insights on what gives the Boston School painting tradition the vibrancy of life. Passed down from teacher to student for over one hundred years, this type of painting combines the aesthetic design of the 19th Century European ateliers with the color and light of the French Impressionists. Jean will demonstrate the influence of the Boston School approach in her own work by showing the start-to-finish progress of one of her own paintings.