A baseball card collection, and an interloper

Baseball card collection with one Picasso face

I started collecting baseball cards when I was a kid, I believe in 1975, when I was a first grader. I developed a big collection over the years, getting older cards either via trading or at baseball card conventions, as well as eventually buying complete sets. When I was in college in the late 1980s, … Read more

Revisiting old photos spawns a virtual art exhibition

Sloth in a tree at the Como Zoo in Minnesota

I was revisiting some old photographs looking for some pictures that my mom mentioned in a phone call last night, when I happened upon a collection of images taken at the Como Zoo and Conservatory in 2007. While they weren’t the pictures I was looking for, they were long-forgotten images that included a number that … Read more

A consistency of art style – or not

paintings by artist Mark McKinney

These are the last two paintings using acrylic on canvas that I’ve made, and I think you’d agree with me that the styles are quite different. The first one, titled “A Knowing Glance,” is a cubist-styled portrait, and the second one, titled “A Memory in search of Part 2 (Brant Lake),” is a landscape painting, … Read more

A good location to hang art in Pearl River, NY

Chinese restaurant in Pearl River, NY

I was strolling around Pearl River, NY, when I passed by what used to be a Chinese Restaurant – and may still be – but the front window was papered-over and some sort of work was going on inside. But it was the outside that grabbed my attention, in particular, this little nook with the … Read more

Planning for the Glen Ridge Arts and Eco Fair

Glen Ridge Arts Fair 2023

Despite having curated and organized numerous art exhibitions over the years under the “McKinney Arts” banner, they’ve always been indoor gallery situations. This year I decided to participate as a solo artist in the Glen Ridge Arts & Eco Fair, which will take place (weather permitting) this Saturday, May 20th. Since I’ve never done a … Read more

A case for buying original art over mass produced art

people buying mass produced art

I remember visiting a Pier 1 Imports store a few years ago, I was shopping for some items for my kitchen. As I got on the line to pay, I noticed the couple in front of me, holding some mass produced image on canvas, I think it might have been some clouds, or some sort … Read more

Inspired by Richard Tuttle to use styrofoam

My finished painting on styrofoam, hung on the wall at McKinney Arts.

I saw the Richard Tuttle show of paintings on styrofoam at Pace Gallery yesterday, and I think most people have strong reactions to the work – they either love it or think it’s absurd. I’m somewhere in-between, as I can appreciate the simplicity and beauty of some of the works as art objects, and have … Read more

Giving Art Away for Free

public art by Mark McKinney

I was reading an old article from the NY Times about an artist who gives away his art, secretly … and it was both fascinating and thought-provoking. The artist, Fred Cray, has hidden over 32,000 works of his art throughout New York City over the past 12 years. He has a totally different approach than … Read more

Painting in a high-rise apartment

View of a high-rise on East 45th Street in NYC

I had the tv on while cleaning up after dinner tonight, and the show on was “My Lottery Dream Home” with David Bromstad. The couple being featured had won $15 million on a lottery ticket and decided to shop for their dream home with a budget of $700,000 … my first thought was, if you’ve … Read more