Posts

Posted on

A Plein Air Morning

The weather has been phenomonal for March, so I could not resist getting out this morning for my first plein air session of the season.  I left my knives behind today and just did a good old fashioned brush painting.  It felt good.  I was right on a bluff overlooking the lake at Sheridan Park in Cudahy.  The sun was still low in the east, creating a dramatic light from the left.  I was inspired by the dark evergreens silouetted againts the bright eastern sky.  I enjoyed the fresh air and the freedom of capturing a passing momoent in time.  This is definately the best plein air session I have managed so far- can’t wait to do more.

Posted on

Head in the Clouds

Lately I have been painting and drawing clouds.  I thought it would offer a different perspective and fun change.  However, it has proven to be more challenging in oil paint using my knife.  The hard, rough, and aggressive surface created with the painting knife contrasts with the assumed feeling of soft fluffy clouds.  I am going to try to work with this conflict and see what I can make of it.  I also suspect I will be pulling out the brushes soon.  The pastels, on the other hand, are quite easy.  As seen in this recent pastel drawing, the pastels blend and soften easily into representational forms.  Is direct representation my intent?  I would still argue that it is not – though I enjoy making the more representational pastels before taking liberties in the oil painting.  This also give me a clearer sense of what I am doing when I manipulate, simplify, or translate in oil.

Posted on

Evolving

I have not abandoned the pond project yet- however boredom has motivated me to seek ways of keeping it interesting.  Yes, I have been using more brushwork.  I still begin with a knife for a loose beginning to each painting.  I block in areas of color quickly.  Then, with a small round brush I maneuver the paint on the surface.  The most important application for the brush is capturing the branches.  I am also able to create more detail and subtlety through this hybrid mark making system.  These two paintings were done using the same limited palette of cadmium orange, ultramarine blue, and titanium white.  These images are taken from photograph- two pictures shot just days apart.

Posted on

Warm Sunset

I know I seem to be painting a lot of sunrises and sunsets lately, I just really enjoy the sharp colors found in those few minutes each day!

 

8″ x 12″

pastel on paper

 

$195.00 via PayPal
$5.00 shipping within US

Posted on

The Pond Study Continues

The season is certainly proving to be an interesting one for observing change.  The mild weather, with a few bouts of snow, has created a situation in which the view of the pond changes daily.  This painting is done from a photo taken January 17th.  Here is what I wrote about that day:

 

1-17-12

I took an extended walk today. We had a few more inches of snow this morning, putting a fresh blanket over the park. Despite the snow, the temperature was agreeable. Again I was memorized by the quiet, desolate feeling just after a snow storm. However, I was not completely alone. There was a set of recent tracks, one dog and one human (I am guessing female by the shoe size). I found myself following the tracks inadvertently for most of my walk. I studied the straight pacing of the human in contrast to the meandering path of a dog. Tracks became one of the themes of this walk. I also observed squirrel tracks darting from tree to tree. Finally, later in the walk, I came across a set of human tracks that were oddly positioned. It was as if the person were incredibly pigeon toed. The feet faced away from each other to a great degree and the spacing indicated large wide steps. I tried mimicking this pattern for a while in my own tracks. I could in fact imitate them but found it curious why they existed in the first place. It certainly was not a comfortable way to walk.

By taking a longer walk today I had time to notice other minute details. For example, I was enchanted by the crackling music of ice and snow in the tree branches when a wind whipped through. The was almost a melody to it. Also, when the winds picked up I saw whirlwinds of snow lift of the ground and dance. There was a magical animation today, or maybe I am just in a fantastical mood. And yes, there was the pond, there as always. I feel like I am really just beginning to know it. The same is true for my paintings.

In regards to the pond paintings, I feel the past month is all that really counts. I imagine I will feel the same way two months from now about the paintings I am to make. In any case I feel like I have a long ways to go in achieving what I mean to achieve. I still sense that there is something I am not seeing or doing, a limitation I am placing on myself that is stifling this project. I can only hope that through repeatability and introspection I can resolve it.