"Treehouse" – 14x20 Inches – Woman Reading by Window – Kenney Mencher 1997 Figurative Portrait – Alla Prima – Unframed Canvas
I painted "Treehouse" in 1997, shortly after leaving a curator job in Chicago and starting my first tenure-track teaching position at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas. I finally had a proper studio—about 14 by 16 feet with great natural light—which made a big difference in how I worked.
This is an oil painting on a hand-stretched 14x20 inch canvas that I gessoed myself using acrylic gesso. It’s painted alla prima, meaning it was completed in one sitting while the paint was still wet. The painting shows Val sitting by a window reading, with a soft background of trees and filtered light. I didn’t realize at the time that I should’ve used standard frame sizes, so this one’s a bit irregular, but it still hangs just fine unframed or with a custom setup.
At the time I was experimenting with color and texture, building up the paint in thin layers and adding some non-local color—color choices that don’t exactly match reality but help with mood or emphasis. I was strongly influenced by Lucian Freud and the Bay Area Figurative painters, so this piece reflects some of that brushwork and layered surface texture.
Like a lot of artists, I’ve been going through my garage and studio lately and realizing I’ve kept too much work from my early years. This is part of what I’m calling a “legacy release”—offering some of those formative pieces to collectors, new and old. If you're just discovering my work, this piece stands on its own as an original handmade oil painting. If you've been collecting for a while, it’s a chance to own something from my early studio period.
Details:
Title: "Treehouse"
Artist: Kenney Mencher
Year: 1997
Medium: Oil on hand-stretched canvas with acrylic gesso
Size: 14 x 20 inches
Style: Figurative, alla prima technique
Condition: Unframed; edges may show signs of handling or storage from the studio
Influences: Lucian Freud, Bay Area Figurative painters
Shipping: Packaged securely with insurance and tracking
I painted "Treehouse" in 1997, shortly after leaving a curator job in Chicago and starting my first tenure-track teaching position at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas. I finally had a proper studio—about 14 by 16 feet with great natural light—which made a big difference in how I worked.
This is an oil painting on a hand-stretched 14x20 inch canvas that I gessoed myself using acrylic gesso. It’s painted alla prima, meaning it was completed in one sitting while the paint was still wet. The painting shows Val sitting by a window reading, with a soft background of trees and filtered light. I didn’t realize at the time that I should’ve used standard frame sizes, so this one’s a bit irregular, but it still hangs just fine unframed or with a custom setup.
At the time I was experimenting with color and texture, building up the paint in thin layers and adding some non-local color—color choices that don’t exactly match reality but help with mood or emphasis. I was strongly influenced by Lucian Freud and the Bay Area Figurative painters, so this piece reflects some of that brushwork and layered surface texture.
Like a lot of artists, I’ve been going through my garage and studio lately and realizing I’ve kept too much work from my early years. This is part of what I’m calling a “legacy release”—offering some of those formative pieces to collectors, new and old. If you're just discovering my work, this piece stands on its own as an original handmade oil painting. If you've been collecting for a while, it’s a chance to own something from my early studio period.
Details:
Title: "Treehouse"
Artist: Kenney Mencher
Year: 1997
Medium: Oil on hand-stretched canvas with acrylic gesso
Size: 14 x 20 inches
Style: Figurative, alla prima technique
Condition: Unframed; edges may show signs of handling or storage from the studio
Influences: Lucian Freud, Bay Area Figurative painters
Shipping: Packaged securely with insurance and tracking
I painted "Treehouse" in 1997, shortly after leaving a curator job in Chicago and starting my first tenure-track teaching position at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas. I finally had a proper studio—about 14 by 16 feet with great natural light—which made a big difference in how I worked.
This is an oil painting on a hand-stretched 14x20 inch canvas that I gessoed myself using acrylic gesso. It’s painted alla prima, meaning it was completed in one sitting while the paint was still wet. The painting shows Val sitting by a window reading, with a soft background of trees and filtered light. I didn’t realize at the time that I should’ve used standard frame sizes, so this one’s a bit irregular, but it still hangs just fine unframed or with a custom setup.
At the time I was experimenting with color and texture, building up the paint in thin layers and adding some non-local color—color choices that don’t exactly match reality but help with mood or emphasis. I was strongly influenced by Lucian Freud and the Bay Area Figurative painters, so this piece reflects some of that brushwork and layered surface texture.
Like a lot of artists, I’ve been going through my garage and studio lately and realizing I’ve kept too much work from my early years. This is part of what I’m calling a “legacy release”—offering some of those formative pieces to collectors, new and old. If you're just discovering my work, this piece stands on its own as an original handmade oil painting. If you've been collecting for a while, it’s a chance to own something from my early studio period.
Details:
Title: "Treehouse"
Artist: Kenney Mencher
Year: 1997
Medium: Oil on hand-stretched canvas with acrylic gesso
Size: 14 x 20 inches
Style: Figurative, alla prima technique
Condition: Unframed; edges may show signs of handling or storage from the studio
Influences: Lucian Freud, Bay Area Figurative painters
Shipping: Packaged securely with insurance and tracking
