Rows of Snow

Rows of Snow, oil on Arches oil paper, 12 x 16"

I have painted this scene before, a smaller version during the 30/30 challenge.  This time I interpreted it during winter with snow.  The red barn stands in the field alone. Everything else can't withstand the cold. 

Solo Silo

Solo Silo, oil on gessoed watercolor paper, 9x6"

I changed this composition quite a bit from the photo reference I used, and I like the way it turned out.  I have had this photo tagged to paint for over a year now, coming back to it until it finally shouted at me long and hard. It portrays late fall, early winter ....perfect for a cold January new year.

Winter Color

Winter Color, oil on gessobord, 12"x9"

The day I was painting in Indiana (on the one pretty day we've had here in the Ohio Valley in 3 weeks) was fun and had my mind turning with new ideas. I painted for two hours before the wind picked up, to the point I had to stop. As I was packing up, I glanced uphill and spotted this tree illuminated with the first sun of the afternoon.  I did a quick sketch on a fresh gessobord, then finished packing up for the day. When I was driving home I remembered I had forgotten to take a  reference photo for this, so this one was all done from memory. 

Walkabout

Walkabout, oil on gessobord, 6x6"

My 250th painting I have posted since beginning this blog and so fitting that it was painted at Bernheim!

This is the second painting I started at Bernheim over Thanksgiving days. I turned my easel 180° from the location I was painting "Roundabout" - yesterday's post. It was a meandering path that lead from the perfect locations - the forest to the lake!
The light was fading and lovely. I did not take a reference photo when I was forced to stop painting but finished it from memory the next morning in the studio. It was a liberating feeling not to be tied to a photo reference, for a change. It is how I formerly painted, and may try and force myself to do that henceforth.

Winter Park Road

Winter Park Road, oil on gessobord, 6x6"

Here is another painting I took while being navigated through my local Olmstead Park during the last snow we had in Louisville. I actually painted this exact spot during the fall, because at the right time of the day the sun blasts the trees and all their color.View the Fall version here . It's hard to drive because you are too busy looking at the leaves changing!  I thought the snow was equally as beautiful so I painted it too.

Winter Valley

Winter Valley, oil on gessobord, 5x7"

I took a leap of faith this week and committed to an Art Festival, date and more info to come later.  I have been wanting to do a festival but parameters of all kinds (life!) weren't right, but this one .... is! So with it comes the need to produce many, many frames to display the work as well as how to hang/display the art itself, without spending an arm and a leg.  This fair supplies the tent and table so that part is taken care of, so it will be a good intro into the whole world of Art Fairs and Festivals. With that said, I may not be posting as much, maybe one to two times a week until after the 3rd week in May. 

This painting doesn't necessarily resemble a normal winter scene but it was produced from a photo taken on a colorful  winter day.  Painting this pine forest was similar to the methods I was using for the cattails, just less lively foreground. As always, all my paintings are for sale. Contact me here or through FB for details. Thanks for visiting my page.

Snow Multipaths

Snow Multipaths, oil on gessobord, 6x6"

Here is one more from the now thawed snow.  This was such a dreary rainy day; the snow's "pretty" stage was well past. But, in the monochromatic image that I worked from, there was beautiful color in the tracks (if you looked really hard, and squinted) as well as the left over fall leaves that refused to leave their home. I don't blame them....the view is always better from above :-)

Chards

Chards, oil on gessobord, 6x6"

During the snow, which made me equal parts invigorated and sleepy, I enjoyed working on quicker sketches of landscapes and all the changes that came with viewing them, when they are covered in snow.  While on a normal day, my eyes are automatically drawn to stronger geometry or forms, but with snow landscapes things seem willowy and lithe. These shadows didn't quite turn out as light as I wanted, but willowy?, yes.

Sketch, Beargrass creek through Cherokee Park

Sketch, Beargrass creek through Cherokee Park
oil on gessobord, 6x6"

I'm glad to be back up and running after over a week off due to computer problems.  I had a hard time trying to continue without what has become a necessary vice in today's world. Other than needing my computer daily for my 8-5 daily job, I lamented daily that I didn't have it for posting. I mean, what good is a painting if no one sees it :-)

This little painting comes straight from working en plein air during the snow. I was in an extremely peaceful spot where none even saw me. That was a nice feeling, and had I brought a stool to take a few breaks with, I would have been there all day. Now that I have officially broken in my outdoor gear for the new year, I have an itch to get out frequently. And with the days getting are getting longer so I may actually have more of an opportunity to do so after work.

Vacant

Vacant, oil on gessobord, 9x12"

Done on an extremely cold day, when I seemed to be channelling Cezanne.  Would love to paint en plain air but it's 5 degrees! This is a 9x12", larger than I normally paint. I am offering it for $250

Winter's Peaceful Energy

Winter's Peaceful Energy, oil on gessobord, 6"x6"

Snow on the ground, snow in the sky and more to come today.  I will never get tired though, of the peace that comes from a beautiful snowfall. I tried convey this with "Winter's Peaceful Energy".

Snow Tracks in the Alley

Snow Tracks in the Alley, oil on gessobord, 5x7"

The winter has been hard, long, gray but it has given me a lot of ideas and photos to hopefully paint from until spring rears it's beautiful head.  There are two old garages across the alley from my own old garage. On one pitifully gray, snow falling day, they gave me a nice jolt of color when I was taking the garbage out.

Sunny Snowfall

Sunny Snowfall, oil on gessobord, 6"x6"

Surprise! Snow has overtaken the eastern half of the U.S.

I attempted to make the most of it by taking some photos at the first peek of sunshine.  Normally, I enjoy the snow, but this last one did me in with it's accompanying freezing temps. The streets have ended up with jagged clumps of frozen snow which are not fun to drive on each day.

This tree was standing still, casting it's playful shadows. It looked very cheerful against the short-lived blue skies which quickly turned back to gray.

Snowy Road

Snowy Road, oil on gessobord, 10 x 10"

I started working finally on one of the "bigger" Ampersand gessobords that I bought myself for christmas. It is a bit of an adjustment, but at the same time it felt like it was the right time to paint a bit bigger.  People have asked me in many different, creative ways why I don't paint in a larger format.  The main reason is money.  When I decided to paint on a daily basis, I really attempted to complete at least one work per day, and the only way I could afford that was to paint small.  Oil paint itself is a huge expense and the gessobords that I use and love, rapidly escalates in price as the size increases. So I have to wait until I can splurge on a bigger size board. It's pretty simple. 

Snowy Road took about four days to complete all in all. I will let the pictures speak for themselves; they document the painting as it evolved.  I loved painting the snow as it was waaaay more colorful then the naked eye can see!

Snowy Road day 3

Snowy Road day 1

 Snowy Road, sketch

Winter Lake

Winter Lake, watercolor and pastel on watercolor paper, 

8x8 inches

I have painted this image several times. It always jumps out from my photos as I search. It seemed like the right thing to do to try it again with pastels and watercolor.  I like the differences that the medium brought -- it's equal parts calm and animated.  Not bad for the middle of a tremendously cold winter. 

Happy Birthday to my daughter Reid, who turns 17 today!  Reid is a junior in a Visual Arts Magnet program at her High School. She recently won a Scholastic Gold key for a painting she did (sadly I don't have a photo), and a Silver key for a multi-media (mostly textiles) portrait piece.

Bridge in the Woods, watercolor and pastel on 

watercolor paper, 6x8 inches

I found an old photo that I had taken in January, when everything was brown and grey. Sound familiar?  There is always color to be had even during the grey days. 

I have been working towards a more abstract execution. Or at least that is my projected goal. I think with each of these little paint/pastels, I feel I am accomplishing this while I am in the middle of working on it. When I view the finished product though, it's still too tight. Rome wasn't conquered in a day. On I learn.

Parklands 3

Parklands 3, watercolor and pastel on watercolor paper, 

8x8 inches

"Parklands 3" turned out to be a painting/drawing that is gaining with the momentum I am trying to achieve.  I love when a serene and quiet scene has an element that seems to be going at a totally different speed, if you look hard enough.  Not to spell it out but with this scene, it is obviously the foreground. I continue to have fun, looking with an open eye, for ambiguity in a world full of color and shape.

Parklands 2

Parklands 2, watercolor and pastel on watercolor paper, 

8 x8 inches

This photo reference was from a solo hike I did back in December when the weather had been gray for too many days. I got my rump out to explore a relatively new park in the Louisville area.  The only problem -- it was a long drive from where I live.  By the time I arrived I was claustrophobic from being in a car by myself, so I walked for quite a while to shed that feeling. And I took some very serene and still photos.  There wasn't another human to be found, which left the landscape begging for attention. Not a difficult thing for me to do.

The pastel on this drawing became a bit whimsical and active. I'm starting to miss larger scale drawing all of a sudden, despite the fact that I am quite content still with painting small. 

Near Sleeping Bear

Near Sleeping Bear, oil on gessobord, 6x8 inches

I declare this my favorite painting I have done so far of over 150 posts !!! I worked for a long time on this one trying to get it  right, and I feel accomplished.  Before I started it though, I had a larger gessobord picked out to paint on. I ended up putting it away feeling intimidated by the jump in size ( I know... I need to jump this hurdle, and soon). Now, all I wish is that I had done a larger version of it. But, it's still my favorite!!

Lake in the Middle

Lake in the Middle, oil on gessobord, 6x6 inches

I recently visited the newest addition to the parks system in Louisville which, by the way, is amazing.  This is a linear park so this particular day, I hiked out and returned. Even though it was on the verge of rain and not the best light, there was so much color from the dying fields of wild grass allowed to be.  I hiked around this lake eventually and loved the photo I took at the beginning. The lake looks like it is cradled between the hillsides.