Montauk

Hello all! Long time no update, so thankfully I got the idea to visit Montauk today! For those of you who are not familiar with this place, it is located all the way at the end of Long Islands southern fork. The Montauk lighthouse, commissioned in 1792 by George Washington, is one of the islands most famous landmarks. Erosion is a significant problem there, which you can read more about here: http://www.montauklighthouse.com/erosion.htm . It's an interesting read, especially when you see the pictures of where it was in respect to the coast line, and where it is now. But I digress.

I didn't go to Montauk for the lighthouse, I went for the unique way the sun shines, the quiet, the cliffs. It's a special place to me, and if I had an endless supply of money it would be the only place on Long Island I would chose to live.

(The lighthouse in the distance. A nice hike when there's not a foot of snow on the ground)

(Camp Hero radar tower. Very cool building and surrounding area with army bunkers under 'hills'. Worthy of its own post, will do when the weather gets warmer)

(The cliffs along the Atlantic Ocean. These specific formations are known as 'hoodoos')

My hike began along the southern coast line, where one can walk along the cliffs. I was hoping to see some seals, but alas there were none. Plenty of birds were out in the water, as well as some boats.

(All the trees were permanently windswept from the wind coming off the ocean. Beautiful!)

After this I hopped in the car and went to the tip of the fork, where the lighthouse and a trail to the shore was.

I came across many dead fish. They looked like the same species, whatever that species is.

I loved seeing all the fishing lines and hooks that laid on the beach, especially when it all got tangled and formed these weird bundles!

Then, my day was made when a beautiful deer walked out from the dune to nibble on some plants at the base of them.

She was so calm and let me get really close before she scurried up the dune again. It really did make my day.

The air was getting colder and the sun was going to set soon, so I went a little while longer before discovering what I'd like to describe as the Garbage Man of Montauk.

After quite a bit of hiking, I headed home. This trip was fun, interesting, and inspiring. I suppose Long Island isn't as boring as I thought it was...

Nat Geo

Hey all! I have a little gallery over at the National Geographic site, check it out! I'll add photos as time goes on.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/myshot/gallery/299036#/gallery/1002478/

Update from yesterday

I made some pretty big changes on the painting from yesterday, not sure how I'm feeling about it though. I think I'll turn it upside down a walk away, see how it looks when I come home later.

This coffee tastes like pretzels

Hey all! Just came back from a short trip to Boston, and I FINALLY feel like continuing a painting I began a few weeks ago. It's 4'x4', acrylic. Having fun with some metallic paint as you can see from the sun and the sky. I'm going to work on the shape of the rocks and maybe the bird today, updates a little later!

Art Contest!

Hey friends! I've signed up for this art competition, please visit the website and vote for my portfolio in the upper right corner!

Thanks!

http://www.artistswanted.org/CPulsonetti

Hi everyone! Happy Thanksgiving! Now that the craziness of that is over, I'm here to deliver the final pictures from the residency. This isn't the end of the blog, so remember to keep coming back for art updates and such!

(Full moon over the sunset landscape)

(Hiking through the wilderness, here's a BIG tree trunk)

(Swirly trees)

(Looks like wood chips, but when you walk over them it sounds like walking on glass!)

(Petrogylph)

This residency yielded alot of inspiration. The landscape was amazing, the people I met were wonderful. It's great seeing a completely different side of the country, how everyone lifestyle differs but we have so many similarities.

Many of the visitors to the park only stayed for a few hours, but I recommend devoting at least 2 full days to get the real experience. Go on ranger talks, explore, ask questions. There's so much to learn. And of course be sure to visit the surrounding towns, mingle with the locals.

More to come, perhaps more local travels here in NY. Thanks for reading!