Five Small Studies, 8x8

Perhaps these should be called.....
....."Armchair PleinAir", because while they are based on pieces I did standing outside at the easel they are studio re-dos of what I had originally intended.

You all know that painting outdoors is fraught with all kinds of things that make it difficult to do your best work.  The original studies for these stretch from the Queen Charlotte islands (a grizzly showed up and things ended early) to Maine (a squall came galloping in dumping buckets of rain on the fun).  Each of them were incomplete for some good reason (lack of energy and/or inspiration originally sank two of them).

I thought it would be a good thing if I repainted them but doing it while focusing on my first concept, sacrificing anything that didn't contribute to that being fulfilled.

These are all on 8x8 birch plywood coated with two coats of shellac.  As the coating dries in 20 minutes or less, they are quick to prepare...and I kind of like the wood tone showing through.  They are all acrylic and were done this winter sitting in a comfortable chair, usually in one go.  I still learned a lot.  Mostly I learned that maintaining a clear concept, while reining in all those other great ideas that don't contribute, makes for much stronger paintings.  You all probably knew that....

Thanks for looking.....back soon.

Backwater Seclusion, 24x30

Cruising down Bainbridge Island's Eagle Harbor you would never see or guess that this little stream fed backwater was there.  You can't see it from the main channel.   I've drawn or painted it several times and finally did this studio piece just to explore the color I was seeing.

 That was a year ago and running across it the other day I realized that I hadn't posted it.  A year isn't very long but already there are parts I would paint differently if done today.  I suppose many areas of my life are experiencing subtle adjustments, changes and growth that I'm not really aware of in the moment.  How reassuring.

I rather like how the bluish water reflections dance to that far shore. 

Four Studies, Plein Air

 

 

Do you live someplace other than the great Northwest?  Go outside.  Bask in the sun.  Do it for me because I'm counting the days until the weather begins changing from constant rain to a bit of occasional sun.

These four studies, done one morning in Maine, are from those glorious sunny days when painting outdoors was actually possible.  Each image brings me back to the scene I was looking at, with warmth on my face and a gentle breeze blowing.....OK, so there was a slight gale that blew over my easel.....I was still outside painting.

'What Do You Do When You Can't Paint Outside' is the title of my upcoming class beginning on January 17th.  While I will have a couple of still life setups around, most of the class will be about painting from photographs.  We will explore the pitfalls of photography and the possible work-arounds that can keep them fresh and exciting.  Open to all levels in oil, acrylic and gouache.  Find out more at the Winslow Art Center website.

This will be great practice for when plein air becomes doable again as the same principles of design, value and color will apply.  Come join us if you can.

Beached Buoy, 11x14

Last Chance to Enter the Painting Giveaway!  Make a comment on the blog, by sending me an email or on Facebook.  You have nothing to lose....and I feel more connected when I read your comments.

OK.  One oil and one acrylic....I'm sure you can tell the difference.  These weren't supposed to be the final paintings but time was running out for me as I'm getting ready for some extended painting and travel.  Stay tuned.

Painting is such fun.  I've given up trying to figure out what people like and now I just paint what appeals to me.  Predicting what catches my eye enough to paint is impossible.  I wouldn't have thought that either of these paintings would be things I'd do....but here they are.  It's the unpredictability that is part of the fun.

"Harbor Walk", 8x10

That's it.  End of the Contest.  I'll be compiling the names and drawing a winner in the next couple of days.  There will now be a Winner and Another Winner.....Two!  Can't wait....

Cape Naden, 12x16

Post 5.5 in the 'Make a Comment and Win a Painting' Contest.  (Why 5.5?  Because I have this idea for what #6 should be.....wait)

Dianna Shyne let me tag along at her acrylic workshop for a day and I sat on the beach and painted these.  If you want excellent instruction in plein air acrylic contact Dianna.....she's the best.

The blue boat is the Cape Naden, a 100 foot Alaskan fish 'packer' boat from 1908.  It has been redone with 5 staterooms below and a huge diesel engine.  It's for sale for only $47,000....I should buy it for my roving studio.

'Along the Dock' is only 6x8 and was done with no predrawing....just blocked in the big shapes and carved it out.  For both of these I used only three hues, Quinacridone Burnt Orange, Thalo Blue, Primary Yellow and, of course, White.  Amazing what can be done with a limited palette.

Make a comment.  Only one more post to the announcement of the winner.....I promise.

Two at Roby King, 10x12 and 20x20

This month Roby-King Gallery is featuring paintings with water themes.  Here are two of the four that I plan to show.

The first is from a magical place that changes every time I see it.  The rocks and water are always flexing their colors and shapes.   It's up the Kootenai near Florence, MT on one of the many painting trips to the area with good friends Cathe Gill and Bob Phinney.   The water doesn't just flow, it dances it's way to the valley below.  Hey, that rhymed.  See.  I told you it was magical.

 
This 20x20 is somewhere around Poulsbo.  If you squint you can see that its about some simple shapes of light and dark intertwining with one another.  Sky and water form the bulk of the light.  Distant shore, docks, boats and logs form the dark.  The trick for me was describing the water in such a way that it wasn't dominant but created enough visual interest to pull the viewer across the surface and into the painting.

Instructional Still Life, 20x24, Acrylic

Last night I began wondering about still life painting.  It's a great way to learn to paint  (no model to pay, it stays in one place, no bugs to swat) but where did this rather odd activity come from?  According to Wikipedia and other sources, representing everyday objects with food began with the Egyptians, can be found in Roman tile work, fell out of style and was revived in the Middle Ages.  During the Renaissance and the increased interest in the natural world it experienced a great revival which seemingly hasn't let up.

While it still seems a bit odd to me, who am I to question thousands of years of people who have gone to garage sales and Goodwill for second hand junk and surrounded it with fruit and vegetables just for pleasure.   I will admit that it's a great excuse to play with paint and color and the paintings are somehow more interesting to look at than the objects themselves.

I painted this as an instructional example.  It was done in acrylic and is one of the five current setups we are using--which get changed every two to three weeks.  The next painting session will begin January 18th.

Island Morning, 24x24

While in the studio the other day I ran across a small study done about a year ago and, together with a marker sketch, redid the painting in a larger size.  Keeping with 'no predrawing' I quickly blocked it in with a grayish purple and just kept going.  That undertone wasn't bad for establishing a cool morning mood but I may paint it again with a warmer undertone just to see where it goes.  Simple shapes hopefully kept together. 

North Rustico, 11x14

It must be the nature of islands that there are constantly new surprises just around the corner. Driving along the pavement came to an end but the road continued onto the beach....when the tide was out. I actually don't know if this was Rustico, South Rustico or North Rustico as I couldn't figure out the distinctions......no matter. I parked on the beach.

I hope you can see that it was the dock I was painting with the shore sand serving as an excuse for more color. The beaches on PEI are red, almost more red than is realistically paintable. (The place down the road had great haddock.)

Diana Shyne, a fine artist, was the impetus to get us to Anne of Green Gables land. She is a long time friend and we have painted together frequently and studied under some of the same people. If you get a chance to take one of her workshops, do so.

Abandoned Farm

At first it was the color of the house peeking through the trees. Then I noticed the light patterns surrounding it. I finally became sold when I noticed the grayed magenta of the background trees.

I tried to make the acrylic look more like oil by painting thicker and softening some edges.

While on PEI we met Richard Vickerson, an accomplished artist in the Andrew Wyeth vein. We first ran into his works just after visiting the Wyeth museum in Rockland, ME, because they were in a gallery across the street. The online pictures of his work don't do him justice. While his style is about as far from my own as you can get, I found his strong abstract patterns and delicate use of color and value mesmerizing....and he's self taught.

Winter's Heat, 14x14

In the old town of Victoria, PEI, were these two old barns right on the main street. I liked the color contrast going on between the yellow orange of the wood pile and the blue shadowed barns. It also helped that the local chocolate factory/espresso machine was across the street.

I like this piece for its color and energy in the brush strokes. The light was changing so quickly that this had to be painted fast. Why is it that the pieces that are painted more from intuition and empathy than thought seem to work the best? I call these 'grab and go' studies. Done again I would change the composition and include the red motorcycle that moved away about half way through. (Yes, the barn was leaning.)

Quiet New Glascow, 11x14

Only one day was rainy and overcast, hence the subdued values and color in this piece. The challenge for me here was how to balance and connect both the farmhouse and the rocks, either of which could have been the focus. I intended to make the house the spot of main interest and use the rocks as a balance, connected by the little slice of road and the power pole. My eye travels around the piece fairly easily, but does it work for you?

By the way, I reloaded the two previous paintings to better represent their value and color.

New Glascow River

Prince Edward Island was a surprise to me. I had expected an extension of the Maine coast and woodlands. Instead we found rolling hills, small well-to-do farms, and tree lined ravines.

This was my first painting and I think you can get a sense of the land from it. Even though it is a relatively small island there are several rivers of which this is one. The nuances of color don't come across in this photo. In the painting the colors are more intense with subtle differences such as a red hue across the water and in the clouds which barely show up here. I think the color comes somehow from the red sandstone that makes up the island.

Morning Harbor

Greetings from Prince Edward Island! Boston to Camden, Maine to PEI....what a great trip. I brought acryics this time because the person I was painting with is allergic to solvents. Plein air acrylics present their own problems but the fast drying time is always a pleasure when packing for traveling.

This is a quick morning study of a boat that tends the mussel lines that hang in the harbor. I was trying to subdue and abstract the background so the focus was clearly on the boat. This would have been easier with oil and I may try to repaint this both larger and in oil later this month. I'll post more when I get back on Thursday.