THE ART LANDSCAPE

Margaret Nielsen’s “take” on the historical and emotional connotations of copying famous landscapes (“Painting to Save the Planet,” by Kristine McKenna, Feb. 12) has shown me that finally there is a good use for these dusty old paintings. It’s a shame Ms. Nielsen cannot be allowed to paint directly on the originals instead of having to take the time to painstakingly copy them. This would allow her more time to spend at cocktail parties forming more confabulated ecological political theories with her art-critic friends.

Bravo to Ms. Nielsen for explaining why copying old landscapes in your downtown L.A. studio is far more artistically challenging than painting outside with all those nasty bugs and stuff.

BILL WRAY

Hollywood