Green House

Green House, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

So many angles. So many straight lines.  I think this will be the final architectural piece for a little while to give my honing skills a break.  Despite the fact that they are small, they require more attentiveness and attention to detail then I'm accustomed to.  I have produced nine works all together

 and am extremely proud of myself for sticking with it even though it wasn't easy. Here they are in the order they were painted in starting from bottom left (sorry for poor photo). I'm also happy with the variety of the painting and content.  Now back to broad landscape until the next series idea strikes me.

Plain Garage

Plain Garage, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

This little garage reminded me of a little old lady.  The residents that originally and proudly purchased the homes in my 1920's era neighborhood are long gone, but their souls are hanging on in the form of sweet nostalgic architecture. One of the things that constantly flows through my head as I take my daily walks is the possible lives of the folks who moved in when the neighborhood was brand, spankin' new.  Who were they? what did they do for a living, and most importantly, how were their lives compared to our rushed, frantic, mad world of today. 
Looks can be deceiving....the neighborhood face is still calm, sweet and definitely charming. But the cars rushing down my street breaking the speed limit, and the parents hurriedly cramming their children into cars and returning at night with carry-out, tells a different story.

Red Shutters

Red Shutter, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

This painting almost required nearly the entire thing to be scrubbed, but instead I scrubbed the necessary parts (nearly all of it in the end!) to make it the symmetrical neighborhood home that it is. This house was so "perfect" that the mulch even matched the shutters.  

One of the difficulties I have been having that I didn't mention before is, with this series I switched back to small, small gessobords. I had been painting larger finally, throughout the summer, and as I had originally planned on doing a 30/30 challenge, I cooked up as many small boards to complete a months worth of paintings. When I changed my mind on the challenge, I used the boards anyway. What a difference 4-6+  cubic inches makes with a brushstroke. All in all, the work has been successful if I may add, in my humble opinion.

Purple Plant

"Purple Plant", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

This house had a streak of light dancing across it when I took it's photo. It was also framed in green, which often happens in my neighborhood which thankfully contains old-growth trees.  I had to rework this one a couple times to get angles right and lines un-crooked.  It was such a sweet little house, I wanted to do it justice.

Alley Beauty, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

For the paintings of the architectural series I have been reusing my Ampersand gessobords from paintings that I didn't care to hang on to after 2 years.  Or as I like to say,  "paint overs".  You will notice some texture within some of the paintings that, despite sanding, still remain. 

"Alley Beauty" was painted this morning in a moment of frustration. I had planned on attending a paint-out in Louisville but circumstances prevented me from going. In order to not cry over spilled milk, I went back to my studio and started another painting from my architectural subjects. Better to make hay while the sun shines. All-in-all, despite my disappointment from not attending the paint-out, I feel successful today. 

Labor Day

Labor Day, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

I started this painting on Labor Day but wasn't satisfied with it in order to post that day. So here it is, tweaked here and there.  Labor Day weekend was a very productive painting time period for me. This is the last one that came out of that binge and I like it! It's like icing on a cake!

Red Shutters

"Red Shutters", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

I have been making the rounds lately in my neighborhood, searching for subject matter for the latest series "Local Architectural Color and Elements". This is a cute little bungalow around the corner from me. I see it daily and take in the sweet factor of it, and its age (nearly 100!). The red shutters first caught my eye years ago, and now with subsequent passings-by.

Red Row

Red Row, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

Here is the second painting in the series "Local Architectural

Color and Elements". I felt like I got the perspective mostly right with this painting.  The details are hard, I have to admit. 

But it's only #2 so hopefully progression will show itself. 

Alley Shape

"Alley Shape", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

So I passed on the 30/30 challenge I had been considering, not because I didn't want to do it, but because I got behind at the end of August with non-painting life stuff, and September started before I could put my hands on a paintbrush. I am still going forward with a series I had decided upon before September began, but just not as many paintings in the end. I am calling it "Local Architectural Color and Elements". The first one is above. I have been out roaming my neighborhood in Louisville, and the alleys as well (where I tend to find more interesting subject matter all the way around). My goal is to "slow down" and concentrate on getting the perspective correct, the highlights where they need to be, the angles un-wonkey, etc. You get the picture. I haven't done an architectural series in a while, and I"m feeling the need.

Private Universe

Private Universe, oil on gessoed board, 16x20"

I worked on this painting for a few days from several images I had taken from a short Lake vacation near the end of the summer.  The reflections on the evening water were intense, and I had problems with scaling down the intensity for one painting.  As I am a few days removed now from finishing it, I like the way it is equal part calm, equal part alive.