Drummer, 24x30

Liz Wiltzen.  If you are an artist and don't know the name....you should.  Liz lives near Calgary and, among other things, is a wonderful painter.  Even better, the blog she writes always has something pithy and important to say.  Every time I visit it or see one of her new posts she is talking about something I was just thinking and puzzling about....and putting it into terms that make me rethink.  She has another blog and occupation which is equally interesting....but you can find that on your own once you visit her art blog.

This is one of those three hour portraits done by a whirling dervish....at least that's what I presume I look like when doing one this size in that amount of time.  I love painting this guy because he is such a great model and a nice person.  Here is a closeup if you care to see the brushwork:

 

My drawing class begins this Thursday and is open to anyone who has spent their life thinking they can't draw.  Sign up for this Thursday evening class and I'll spend five weeks proving to you that you are wrong....absolutely.  Contact the Winslow Art Center for details.

Last Stop, 10x12

The sun was just beginning to rake light across the snow when I climbed on top a bank left by the plow and began this one.  Less than an hour later there was only a hint of light remaining.  We left to go see about a glass of wine but, considering the drive back home across the pass, decided against it.....I still have that thirst (for painting and a glass).

Painting class, in oil, acrylic or gouache, begins Thursday at the Winslow Art Center.  Hope to see you there.

Fred left. Didn't come back., 12x12

Sun and snow and lots to paint....what a great day!  Is there anything like intense light and color to improve a mood...and mine certainly needed this.

Help me.  This is a junkyard.  Why are used beaten up things so appealing to artists?  If this had been a new truck sitting in the snow I might have painted it....but I would have looked for something else first.  Is it the fact that so many stories are wrapped up in old things?  I mean, I'd rather paint a house from the 1890's than one built yesterday.  Of course, this theory doesn't work for fish.

Painting class begins this Thursday and I hear there are only a couple spots left.  We will be concentrating on painting from photos, exploring the pitfalls and solutions necessary to keep work fresh.  This will include several 'tricks' from the instructor....who has learned them the hard way.  Find out more at the Winslow Art Center.

Relaxed, 12x16

I love watercolor....and I greatly respect anyone who can do it well....which I don't think I do.  It takes more patience and thoughtfulness than I possess.  I think it's my ADD.

This portrait was an accident from a few years ago but I've always kind of liked it.  It was one of those 20 or 25 minute gesture pieces that pretty much painted itself.  Actually I was off getting coffee when my brush started in.  By the time I got back there wasn't much for me to do....luckily.  Think I lost that brush somewhere....

'Everyone Can Draw.  Yes, Even You' is the title of the drawing course I begin teaching at the end of the month.  This is learning to draw without the pain.  My courses are all 'no fail' courses.  Just having the courage and interest to show up makes you a success.  Find out more about this class and others at the Winslow Art Center site.

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.

Sylvia, 14x18

It's wet here.  We live in a rainforest....well, pretty near one.  During the winter rains a group of us go indoors and paint people.   A few weeks ago, this dedicated plein air painter gave up on the outdoors long enough to come and sit for us. 

This painting was, for two reasons, an interesting learning experience.....well, they all are, aren't they?

The first reason was that I drew only three or four placement lines before beginning to paint.  A line to describe the top of the legs, one for the arm she is leaning on and two lines forming a teepee where her head and torso went.  And then it was off into paint, beginning with the hair and dark of the cloth and moving into the face.  There is another painting under this one that was a reddish kind of portrait.  You can see parts showing through and helping with the 'glow'.

The second thing that was interesting and a challenge was carving a likeness out of a head that is about an inch and a quarter big....or small.  Trying to only use bits of unblended paint when working I found that the slightest error in stroke placement meant losing the image of Sylvia. 

There are always things I would change in a painting but, overall, I like this piece for the color relationships and brushwork.

Provence Time 4, 8x8

Here are two more from the miniature show at Roby-King.  In the first one I thought the roses would be the attention grabber....but now I think the light dancing on the wall wins the show.  What do you think?

The windows in France, especially in the south, often have flowers in them, on them, around them.  They are all carefully tended.  There is something so attractive about new young exuberant blossoms being set off by the old and weathered. 

Provence Time, 8x10

The Annual Roby King Miniature Show opens this Friday.  I submitted five of Provence and am posting two here.  If you can come they have hung nearly a hundred paintings from scads of artists.  There has to be something there for everyone to see and enjoy.  From what I've seen, the prices are very reasonable....and looking is free.

Pemaquid Point, 2 8x10's

Pemaquid Point 1, 8x10

Pemaquid Point, Maine.  A beautiful and fascinating rock outcropping jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean where, because the rock strata has been tilted allows you to stand touching rock with your feet 80 million years apart.  The whole formation is about 500 million  years old.  Each band catches the light differently varying the color and texture.

Pemaquid Point 2, 8x10

I got caught up in the colors of all those rocks finding things I never expected to be there.  The longer the look, the more was there.  I didn't get it 'right'....so I'll have to go back next year and try to bring back a truer feel of this exciting place.

I was painting with my friend Cathe Gill and my new Maine friend and painter, Mary Byrom.  Her blog and website are well worth visiting HERE.  She posts lots of pictures and is a very prolific and talented artist.

Blue on Blue, 20x20

Blue on Blue, Demo, 20x20

Noelle seems to like this but she thinks it would have worked better if the plums were bacon.

I did this for my morning class.  For some reason they like demonstration paintings.  I have to admit that I like doing them....and I like watching artists do them.  It's mesmerizing to see a blank white surface explode into something that seems real.

Here is the quick marker sketch I did before the painting to explore composition and values before committing it to canvas.

It is about 7 inches square and what you see here is the part I framed after doing a more inclusive sketch....you can see the drawing continuing on from the black line.  Just enough information to guide me into the painting.

Season of Giving
Colin Page (wonderful painter) has an 18 month old nephew who can't walk.  His mother is trying to raise enough money to give him the therapy he needs.  She is doing this by selling Christmas ornaments.  Even if you can't help her out please visit her site HERE and read the story of Jakob.  His smile will melt you.

Thanks. 

Traditional Dress, 16x20

Traditional Dress

This is Elena.  I should also call her the woman with the plastic face because she is one of those people whose emotion is mirrored quickly in her expression.....and the emotion that day was mostly one of laughter and fun.  People like this are most intriguing to paint as they present a moving target.  I remember deciding to pick one mood and grab it as I could.  Elena was a great model.

I like the movement in this piece.  The brushstrokes and color build into the painting without being distracting yet stay interesting.

Lobster Traps, 10x12

What says 'Maine' more than a pile of lobster traps waiting to be put to work.   Bouncing around on a floating dock made small marks difficult....but at least we were out of the wind sheltered by the stone bulkhead opposite the one you see.

The challenge was to find a way to say 'lobster trap' without actually painting in all the wire mesh they are made of.  Did you know that lobstermen pay $250 to $500 for each trap?  That makes losing one a pretty significant deal and, since there were lobster wars taking place, quite a number of them are now sitting on the bottom of the ocean with no buoy to show where they are or rope to retrieve them.

Happy Thanksgiving!  (Lobsters must breathe a sigh of relief)

Angeline, 12x16

 

Yes, I know.  It has been a long time since last posting.  Nice to be back.

I have a stack of work that can be posted and more in process but I last told you that I would do some from the Maine trip...so here they start.

I began the 'Angeline' with a quick marker drawing one afternoon but had to leave for a couple of hours.  When I came back the sun was sinking and the tide had come in.  I plunged in anyway but an interesting man showed up and we began to talk....and I got distracted.

  

With the waning light I decided to return the next evening to finish....and the ship had sailed.....literally.   Fortunately I had finished most of the ship and a good deal of the background so I could stare out, imagine the 'Angeline' being there, and finish tying in the boats behind enough to come up with a good sketch.  Perhaps this will lead to a larger work this winter.

I like what is happening in the brushwork and the contrast between calm and indistinct shapes one one side and staccato brush marks on the other.  It imparts a kind of good energy to the piece.

Giving in to the iPad

I should be posting some of the plein air paintings from Maine and Montana....and I will soon.  Collapsing on the couch at the end of the day is all I seem capable of.  While on the couch I picked up my iPad and, after years of resistance, began doodling on it and came up with the above drawing taken from a newspaper picture.

The results got me interested enough to take it to a modeling session today.  After painting the woman I had an extra twenty minutes so hauled out the iPad.  I didn't clean it up at all so you can still see the initial block in lines as well as my mistakes.

Just thought you'd be interested.  I haven't changed my mind completely.  I still prefer tactile media but for the convenience it's great.  They were done with a pressure sensitive stylus.

OK.  Next post will have some paintings.

Friendship

Friendship, Maine.  An inlet/harbor filled with lobster boats, buoys, sparkling water and fishermen who do it for an income. 

This drawing is also about another type of friendship.  If you look carefully you can see my friend Bob sketching almost the same scene.  He probably looks like a fire hydrant if you glance casually.  He's seated just below center in front of the closest dock....see him? 

Bob is a terrific artist.  He has a book out called 'The Simple Sketch' in which he shows you how to go out drawing with just a pen and a carpenter's pencil.  The results he gets are inspiring.  I'd give you a link to his book if he had a website (hint, Bob).

I never seem to get over how a blank piece of paper can be transformed into a recognizable place with just a few strokes of a pen and some tone.  The same goes for a canvas.

Think about it.

We take some hair and put it on a stick.  Then we mix some vegetable oil with some colored dirt and put it on a piece of cloth....and actually convince people that they are looking at a person, a scene, a bowl of fruit.  Magic.

If you went to the patent office with this idea it would be the joke of the year.  "Hey Harry!  Get a load of what this crackpot wants to do...,"

I have a few Maine paintings to share but they will have to wait until I get back from Montana. 

Waterfront, Portland ME

Old Town Portland Maine

Whew!  It has been a long time since the last post.  I've been painting and drawing along the Maine coast for three weeks and I expected I'd be able to blog....but ran out of steam every day from all the painting.  Besides, it was more fun to kayak in the evenings.

Two friends joined me, each for part of the three weeks I was there.  The 150 pieces of art we turned out was impressive to me.  I think it's amazing how much work can get done when art is the only focus.  Few of us can do that all the time but once in a while is great.

The last day there was spent in the studio of a friend of Andrew Wyeth.  Helga, from Wyeth's paintings, picks berries at this guys house.  It was an interesting morning and afternoon with lots of stories.

I have an ongoing painting class beginning this month which you can check out at the Winslow Art Center site.  There is also a Two Day marker workshop coming up sometime but it hasn't been announced as yet to my knowledge.

  I haven't done a two day marker workshop before and am excited about the possibilities.  I'm also excited because I have redesigned my painting classes and think this new approach will shorten the painting learning curve.  (That implies an end point to painting skill....there isn't one.  Art is one long road of always stretching for the next best expression.)

Winner's Update

Hello From Montana....where it alternates between clear and beautiful...and smokey from the forest fires and hot. Yesterday we watched a pileated woodpecker, about the size of a small crow, take a long bath in our little 'pond'. The pond is only about 12 feet from the porch so animals are up close and personal when they come to take a drink. This became obvious a few minutes later when a black bear showed up and hung around for a while. The photos are bad because I could only find my cell phone camera.

Marilyn picked 'Heirloom Roses' so that leaves 'Harbor Walk', 'Cape Naden', 'Along the Dock', 'Ran's Beach Chairs', 'Log Raft', and 'Canning Time'. I need Blanche and Carol to contact me with their choices. Because it was a tie for second place I flipped a coin and Blanche gets first choice. Would you contact me by email because I don't think I have your address.

Time to get back to relaxing.

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Painting Winners!

 

Over a hundred comments from thirty plus people!  Thanks for all your input and compliments.  How to pick was a problem as I couldn't see cutting up that many little slips of paper to put into a hat.  Then I had this pie chart idea and remembered that since Gary and Debbie were cruising in Alaska that their dart board wasn't being used.....  Brilliant.

So I threw six darts from a long way away and, with my own little system of rules, was able to randomly select winners.  First place goes to Marilyn Gottlieb, a wonderful photographer and long time commenter to this blog.

BUT....there was a tie (how could THAT happen?)  for second place so two people get to select after Marilyn makes her choice:  Blanche Niznik and Carol Collier.  Congratulations.

The winners can choose from 'Harbor Walk', 'Cape Naden', 'Along the Dock', 'Evening at the Cove', 'Heirloom Roses', 'Ran's Beach Chairs', 'Log Raft' and 'Canning Time'.  Let me know which one you like, Marilyn, and I can then let Blanche and Carol know what they can choose from.

I had a good time....hope you did too.  I'll do this again so stay tuned. 

Wharfside, 11x14

Remember that painting give-away?  Well, I'm about to announce the winners as soon as it all gets tabulated.  So many great comments.  I'm on my way to Montana tomorrow and will let you know the contest results later in the week.  You will be impressed with the method I used to make the picks.  Stay tuned.

Those of you that have my book, 'Value Sketching With Markers', may recognize this from the front cover.  I've always meant to get back to it with paint but summer is pretty much the only time with the lowest tides in the day time.  So yesterday had to be the day.

Big shapes followed by doodads....  In the marker drawing I didn't include any background buildings but it was formatted somewhat differently.   They both work, I think.  I personally keep wondering who lives in the house even though I know it's actually a restaurant.

Keep in touch.  I'll be back with the winners in a few days!

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....