Cheshire Lake and This World

A morning at Cheshire Lake again.  The sky was milky, not offering much sun, and it was hot and sticky.  After wandering around for a few minutes, I settled on a spot across the road from the lake.  Every now and then I was startled by passing vehicles.   I selected the spot in order to include the dirt portion, which I otherwise would have been standing in, and then the trees would have been too close.
The painting is a 12x16 oil on panel.

I've been reading the essays of Robert Hass.  He writes, "Art hardly ever does seem to come to us at first as something connected to our own world; it always seems, in fact, to announce the existence of another, different one, which is what it shares with gnostic insight.  That is why, I suppose, the next thing that artists have to learn is that this world is the other world."

Jumping Dog

A peaceful afternoon at Cheshire Lake resulting in a 12x16 oil on panel painting.  I only had to contend with a boat being put into the water and a jumping dog.  The boat soon disappeared around the corner without disturbing the water, but the dog repeatedly jumped into the water chasing a ball tossed by its owner.  Fortunately I was almost done at that point.

Shady Lakeside

Another day at Cheshire Lake in Cheshire, MA.  This is an 11x14 oil on panel.  I was lucky to find another shady location under a tree from which to paint this view.  Even in the morning, when I painted this, it was hot, but it was also nice to be near the water.  The breeze was constantly changing the surface of water, so I had to decide late in the painting what to settle on.

At the Spot

This morning I went again to Cheshire Lake.  This time I was facing south at Farnum's crossing setting up at a spot used by fishermen.

A Tree at Cheshire Lake

A view of Cheshire Lake facing north at Farnum's Crossing: a 12x12 oil on panel.  I found a spot under another tree from which to paint this view earlier today.

Cheshire Lake and Old Store Fronts

To continue with my water theme, this morning I visited Cheshire Lake and painted this 9x12 oil on panel at Farnum's Crossing.  The lake edge next to where I was standing was full of sunfish.  Earlier I walked around the St. Stanislaus Church neighborhood in Adams.  I didn't know that Summer Street, adjacent to the church, is (or was) like an alternative main street that now suggests an older and bygone time.  By that I mean the buildings all contain old store fronts, some still active, some not so much. 

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On the Road

Yesterday I was out on Jenks Road in Cheshire with painters Ann Marie Scott and John MacDonald.  The above painting, a 9x12 on canvas, is one removed from the painting I did on the road.  Jenks Road is a dirt road in the country, not that far away, but it just seems so far away.