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This is who we are
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Don Ripper
I am lucky to have been involved with all aspects of Art as my life upon Graduating from the Corcoran College of Art and Design. My BFA days are 20 years ago, and through that time Jeff and I have risen to the challenge countless times for our clients by giving them the very best in design, conservation, and restoration services. Each experience over the years has added to our unique skill set that has fostered our success.
Artist Statement
I spend time seeking out stimulating life experiences to paint. Most frequently I
paint in plein-air along the back roads and coastal towns of the east.
Although my
roots are in realism, I rely on a painterly vocabulary that asks the viewer for an
emotional connection.
Inspired by Abbott Thayer, Juels Sabastian-Lapage and
Lucian Freud, I seek a balance between emotion, tone, and a self directed voice.
I can't remember a time when I did not paint. Painting to please my mom.
Painting to woo a girl. Painting to bring out a mood. Now, I mostly paint to better
understand what I am looking at, why it moves me, and to solidify my relationship
with it.
My process is open ended: direct observation, drawing, tone, temperature, and
the movement of paint form the basis of my paintings. My goal is to commit
myself to a process that will always force me to discover and nurture my
relationship with the subject through the application of paint. My paintings will
find their truth as long as I paint honestly and avoid tricks.
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Jeff Erickson

After 20 years of being in business, it gives me great pleasure getting to know our clients, share experiences, and help frame their treasures they have collected. On any given day, I get to see art of all kinds from all over the world, and come up with fantastic ways to preserve and display them. It certainly inspires me in my own art, which has been shaped immensely by all that I see.
Growing up as a foreign service kid, I was fortunate to live and travel all over the world. I was exposed to art and culture that has helped shape the person and artist I am today. Being immersed in cultures other than your own, makes you pay attention a little bit more to your surroundings.
At one point, I thought I would become an architect. I loved seeing cityscapes and landscapes around the world. Studying art and architectural history in college, reaffirmed my desire to be surrounded by art in some form.
I have always had the entrepreneurial spirit in me as well. While in college, I owned a landscaping business with a good friend. So, it was no surprise, when I finished college at George Mason University, I would be drawn to the idea of starting my own business as a career. I had known Don since high school, we ran in similar circles and were in a band together during college. It just so happened that we both finished school at the same time, and were contemplating our next step in life. It was a natural progression to go into business together.
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Curt Smith
For almost 35 years I have been involved with all aspects of conservation framing. I have worked with the protection and archival framing of historical documents, artworks on paper, paintings and almost every other object imaginable that can be placed in a frame. There may be no aspect of framing that I haven't been involved in, including gilding and restoration. I have been blessed to be able to have worked on many interesting and historical works. Knowing that the finished work will be enjoyed, in some cases cherished and handed down through generations gives me great satisfaction.
My earliest memories of childhood include wanting to draw everything that I saw. Living on the outskirts of Birmingham, Alabama, the environs offered up a bounty of subjects. From an early age I was encouraged by my family to pursue my creative interests in any and all areas. At the age of 7, I was enrolled in art classes that were held every Saturday at the Birmingham Municipal Arts Building. I continue drawing almost every day, eventually taking up painting in oils. I took every art class offered in high school and helped organize an inter-school show in 1973 in the Prince William County School system.
Following High school I traveled in France for 3 months, visiting art museums and visiting cities and towns where most of the I mpressionist masters painted. Upon returning to the States I moved to NYC where I attended the Art Students League, studying under Will Barnett and Theodoros Stamos. I became interested in the French Fauvist movement of the early 1900's. Their bold brushtrokes, blazing color and almost abstract design were moving away from the conventional "prettiness" of painting at that time. But their insistence on adhering to nature as a base were appealing to me and my own paintings were starting to take on bolder colors and stronger design and pattern.
I moved to Alexandria in the late 1970's. I was included in a number of group shows. In 1983 I exhibited in a 2 man show with my friend, Delaware painter Kevin Fitzgerald. That same year I was given a one man show at Gallery West in Old Town. Among those who own my work are former State Department spokesman Hodding Carter, the American Red Cross and a former assistant director of the Brookings Institute in Washington D.C.