Souvernirs of a Hot Afternoon

Two souvenirs of a hot afternoon. 6x8 oil.

Been Busy

Though I haven't posted in the last few days, I have been busy. Above are first, Sheep Hill Farm, 8x10 bw; second, top of Stratton Road, 8x10 bw; house in Ogunquit, ME, 6x8 oil; and an 8x10 bw of Sheep Hill near Bee Line Road, and an 8x10 oil of the same. I have been doing a lot of work outdoors. Degas may have been right about outdoor painting. He said it was a "sport". There are many more, but I won't post them, but will move on to new stuff.

Two More

Two more views of the Delaware River early in the morning. The cool side is New Jersey beyond where the sun rises, and the warm side is Pennsylvania, or New Jersey is on the bottom and Pennsylvania is on the top. These are 6x8 oils, part of my daily regimen.

My mind is still on the river

You too can become still and peaceful looking at the river. This is one of my 6x8 oils. Early morning view.

Late Day River

When the river is low, like a lake, it offers so many different appearances at different times of the day.

Early Morning River

This morning I was out early by the river. I saw two foxes chasing each other on the other side of the river along the bank. Since the river is so low, I can walk along the edge in areas usually under water. Seldom seen rocks are visible.

Water Color

Watercolor paper is especially suited for drawings of water. Seems like another picture of nothing much. A few marks can be very suggestive.

River's Edge

Even though I am not delirious about these three 6x8 oil sketches, here they are. Actually there are more, but these are enough to show that I spent the weekend on the river's edge. It was cooler there, but no matter what I said, the water and wind kept moving, not to mention the boats. The river is quite low, simulating a gentle lake, for now.

I Feel Like a Barn

I have been dutifully working on small oils this weekend, some successful, some not, so I felt like doing a barn. This is the 'wavy barn' in Williamstown, MA but in this view it looks like Montana.

Dirt and Distance

The first two are 6x8 oils of the Maine coast and a driveway; nice combination, eh. The top 9x12 pastel is the view looking back down Stratton Road. The road bends left (out of sight), and a driveway goes up right. So basically this is a picture of dirt and distance.

Top of Stratton Road

It's tough staying on top of things. This is an unusual composition that, again, will be even more unusual in color. It's sorta of topsy-turvy, like of some of Van Gogh's paintings. The color version is coming up next. I also did my seventh 6x8 oil, which I think came out the best so far. I will let it dry a little before shooting it.

Maine Coast in Color

This is the pastel version of the rocky coast near Spruce Head.

Maine Coast

This is a view of the Maine coast not far from Port Clyde. The drawing will make more sense tomorrow in the pastel version. I am a little tardy since I have been dutifully keeping up with my one hour more or less 6x8 oil every day ala Kevin Macpherson, but that takes time to set up and clean up, unlike pastels. I will post some of the beasties later.

Lenox Mountain

This is the view from the top of Lenox Mountain reached via the Pleasant Valley Audubon Sanctuary in Lenox, MA. To improve this pastel, I had to remove a bush. It wasn't easy. You know how I feel about bushes.

Looking Down Sheep Hill

Before I did this pastel, I did a small oil study. In his book Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light and Color, Kevin Macpherson offers a three month challenge: paint a small 6x8 painting every day for three months. He guarantees that one will learn something about painting in those three months. I will attempt the challenge starting today. In any case the small oil seems to have helped with the pastel.

If you are wondering about all these books I refer to: I get them through inter-library loan. I can't afford to buy them all.

Halfway Up

Not enough time to complete the pastel, but here's the black and white drawing of what it's like half way up Sheep Hill looking down. The wet grass in the "path" was higher than my sneakers, which became soaked. Sheep Hill could be called Steep Hill.

Top of Sheep Hill

This depicts a hot afternoon last week on the top of Sheep Hill.

Sheep Hill

I am done with the bush for a while. Two more to get it out of my system. They are like self-portraits.

I revised the Sheep Hill drawing, and did an 11x14 pastel today.

Early Morning on Sheep Hill

I was out early this morning in the sun on a wet path part way up Sheep Hill.

Edgar Payne writes in his book Composition of Outdoor Painting: "In painting from nature the artist is faced with the problem of judging between the influence of realism and the power of his artistic ingenuity. The latter leads him to the extreme of imagination, while nature counteracts by demanding a respect for her truths."

Sheep Hill

Al Gury, in his book on painting Alla Prima, writes, if I remember correctly, that 50% of outdoor work will be successes, and 50% will not be. It may take a while to determine which works fall into which category, and there might be gradations.

Portrait of a Backyard Bush

This bush is like a fabulous sculpture. Any side at any time, even at night, displays interesting characteristics.

Three Oils and a Bush

Out in the brilliant sun I stood before my easel to make the three small 8x10 oil sketches of the bush, the shed, and the field behind the shed. I also made another black and white bush later in the day.

I have been reading the excellent book Painter's Guide to Color by Stephen Quiller. One idea that he proposes is to make black and white drawings of your subject, and then paint from the drawing, using a color schema, which will allow you to be more expressive and not tied to what's in front of you or a digital image. Of course, his book is all about color schemas, which make for better pictures.

Bush and Shed

These three I did outside today. The bush is not quite as ominous in color, though it is still quite vigorous. The drawings may be like a bank account: overdrawn, but one learns with every effort. This shed reminds me of old age. I was surprised to see that a storm window has been placed in the window opening on the other side (not visible), presumably a little upkeep to hold off the rain. Somebody still cares about the old shed. I plan on doing more with the shed tomorrow, to see if I learned anything today. The weather is supposed to be better than today's heavy overcast with only momentary appearances of the sun.