Spring along the Animas River - pastel painting, 9x12" SOLD

Spring Cottonwood Along the Animas

9x12" - pastel on black Strathmore paper

SOLD

Today was a picture-perfect spring day, and just too nice to spend inside painting, so I decided to head to one of the most logical places to paint - the Animas river.  This view is about 1/4 mile walk down the Animas River Trail, a multi-use paved urban trail that runs along the river.  The east side has this fantastic slope that has layers of pale sandstone sandwiched within softer mudstones.  I knew shortly after we moved here that I had to paint this area of the river.  So, it made sense to kick off the plein air season by painting it.

On the previous plein air excursions I've been on, I either lugged along all 3 of my pastel trays (home-made, from foamboard), or just brought the 90-pc. NuPastel set, neither of which was really satisfactory.  I decided to make up a dedicated travel set, using an empty 72-pc. Unison box with the foam insert.   It will need adjustments and additions here and there, but the colors were good for the task of today's painting.

Speaking of plein air vs. studio painting...I subscribe to Mitchell Albala's newsletter blog, "Essential Concepts of Landscape Painting".  It's a great resource, meant also as a companion for his book on landscape painting, and I always glean practical tips or good philosophical advice from his posts.

His most recent post was an excerpt from an article written by accomplished landscape painter Matt Smith for Plein Air magazine back in Jan '05 [and now back in print!].  In the article, Matt talks about the importance of both studio and plein air painting, and the synergy between them.  This really struck a chord with me, because I have found value in both, but for different reasons.

These two paragraphs by Matt articulates the reasons perfectly:

"...As time progressed, I began to paint subjects of increasing complexity. I started to realize the importance of studio time as a factor in improving my field work — just as my plein air paintings are intended to improve my indoor work. Simply put, I learned that the two are synergistic. For me, one cannot exist without the other.

My time in the controlled environment — my studio — allowed me to develop paintings over days and weeks, rather than an hour or two, as is the case in the field. I was able to focus on academics: the basics of drawing, value, design and color. When I returned to the field, I experienced a renewed confidence and a realization of the importance of balance between field and studio."

I get so tired of the attitude that exists among some artists stating that plein air paintings are somehow  superior to those done in the studio, and that studio landscapes are some sort of bastardized form of painting.  How absurd.  And insulting to countless artists.  The importance of painting from life cannot be emphasized enough as far as developing one's skills of observation and understanding and seeing local color, and in an ideal world, I'd paint from life all the time.  But, the reality is that it is not possible or practical for me to do so; it would significantly limit what I'm able to paint.  I have found great value in painting landscapes from photos in my studio as well, so it's nice to see one of the premier contemporary landscape painters explain why he thinks both are important.  As he says towards the end of the article - "...a good painting is a good painting."  

Here is the rest of the article on Mitchell's website - definitely worth a read.

Mortar and Pestle still life - oil, 6x6"

Mortar & Pestle in Marble

6x6"

oil on 1/4" wood panel

Every serious cook needs a mortar and pestle in his or her kitchen!  This one, made of white/gray marble, doesn't get as much use lately as it did in the past, but I will never part with it.  I will say that it was a challenge to paint, but it was a great exercise in doing ellipses - something I haven't painted or drawn in ages.  And, of course, being able to really observe the true values and subtle colors and reflected light that photos seldom capture accurately.  

Another limited palette here - burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and white, with a touch of yellow ochre.  I constructed a 3x3" viewfinder out of a piece of foamboard to assist with composition, and actually taped it to my small tabletop easel.  Worked great.  

I tried to keep the strokes on this loose, but I keep having issues with my paint getting tacky during the painting process.  I've been using M. Graham walnut oil as a medium, and am wondering if that is the problem - it is fine immediately after mixing with the walnut oil, but then gets sticky and doesn't spread well after about 5 min.  Exasperating, to say the least.

One thing I did discover that was the best way to clean my brushes is simply on a bar of Ivory soap after wiping as much paint off as possible.  I have tried removing paint with unrefined linseed oil, followed by washing with dish soap, but that often left the bristles stiff after they dried, indicating I didn't remove all of the oil or paint.  I do have Turpenoid, but I'd prefer not to use it if I don't have to, and it seems to drive paint up into the ferrule, which I have always had a problem getting out.

Still life with tomatoes and a jalapeno in oil - 6x6

Salsa Lessons

6x6

oil on wood panel

This still life painting, featuring a group of tomatoes and a sole jalapeno, came together after a trip to the grocery store today, as well my need/desire to not paint from photos for a while. The local plein air group is supposed to meet this Friday, and I hope I'll be able to join them.  In the meantime, I was finally able to use this attractive white bowl I bought not long ago.  

I also tried out a new red for this - Grumbacher napthol red.  It's similar to the cad red medium I use, and I added some cad red dark and yellow, along with burnt sienna and ultramarine blue to paint it.  Nothing like some vegetables in complimentary colors to challenge one's painting skills...

On an unrelated note, I was pleased to learn that the floral pastel painting I posted yesterday:  "Family Gathering", was accepted into the annual gallery show at the Durango Arts Center:  "Durango Blooms:  Flowers in Art".  It is the first time I have entered my work in a juried show, and the response was much greater than they expected, so many works did not get included.  The artist's reception is next Friday, May 13 - fun!

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Today's photos:

Lenticular-type clouds in the afternoon sky

The view from our new deck:  Animas river that runs through town

An action shot of a big orange-banded bumblebee partaking in the flowery goodness of a tree right off our lower deck.  He is so fuzzy - I just want to pet him.

Daisy floral painting in pastel - 11x14

Family Gathering

11 x 14 inches

pastel on black matboard

Another floral painting, on a new surface: black matboard.  Our local frame shop carries pre-cut 11x14 pieces of their archival matboard for $2, so I picked up a piece to experiment with.   The nice thing about  working on this surface is that it simplifies framing as no mat or mounting is needed.  It was perfect for the project I had in mind.

I love daisies - they are so cheerful and even though they are a non-native flower, I still enjoy seeing hem in large meadows up in the mountains.  This painting is based on a photo I took on some hike last year.  I  realized that I really liked the simple design.   The individual flowers are interesting to me because they are in all different planes, and have these wonderful cast shadows, adding to the depth and dimension of the image.  And the out-of-focus background is the perfect abstract accompaniment to keep the focus on the flowers.  

Here's how it looks in a small gold frame, unmatted (complete with regular glass and part of my arm, face and camera lens in the glare):

I decided that I didn't care for the intense blue sky on the Hollyhocks painting, and was able to make adjustments yesterday.  I grayed the sky down a touch, and added another layer to the flowers, making some value adjustments along the way.  I think it is much improved.

Hollyhocks, redux - in gold crackle frame from Dick Blick

I decided to try some of the pre-made Simpleton plein air frames that Dick Blick carries.  They are affordable and since I try to paint in standard sizes, I can easily swap out the paintings for exhibitions and to show what a painting for sale looks like in a frame.   I got a Logan point driver and some other framing supplies, and now I can do framing at home.  For someone a limited budget, it's a good option.

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Sunset from 2 nights ago:

Hollyhocks with sky - oil painting, 12x9

Hollyhocks Know No Bounds

12 x 9 inches

oil on board

Finally, a new painting to post after a much longer than expected absence from blogging and the studio.

Actually, I shouldn't say that I haven't been painting...I have, but not much and it's not been a noteworthy showing.  We moved last Friday, and I always underestimate how out of sorts I am after any relocation.  Unpacking and the general clutter and disorganization that accompany a move make it difficult for me to sit down and paint, even though I got my studio set up rather quickly.  

I did manage to do four more ACEO's of The Tree series earlier in the week.  However, I just couldn't get around to photographing or posting them.  Perhaps because of all the amazing work I'm seeing other bloggers post lately just made me take a pass on that.  I did finally take photos, and may post them at some point, simply because this blog also serves as a journal and documentation of my work - good and not so good.

And, I even attempted a plein air pastel painting of one of the tulips in the raised garden right across from our new place.  It went straight into the trash, and I learned that my Nupastel set isn't coming with me the next time on the next flower plein air trip.  It's been far too windy and cold recently to consider a dedicated trip outside to paint, but hopefully this dry cold front delivered to us by the pacific northwest will leave and give warmer temps and calm air very soon!

This painting is today's keeper after yesterday's "three strikes and you're out" studio effort to paint a group of tulips on an 11x14 panel.  If you have to wipe something three times because it isn't working, it's time to move on.   Unlike the smaller surrealist-edged florals I've done, this one is based on two photos.  The beautiful crimson hollyhocks just needed to be freed from their ho-hum garden existence and visit the sky.  

Does it work?  I hope so.  Maybe it's hard to tell with this photo, which is just awful.  The camera sensor just doesn't take kindly to these bright colors and has created a variety of unsavory optical effects, not helped at all by the glare of wet paint.  Just believe me that it really does look much better in person.  I also hope it is dry by Monday.  A new frame awaits.  

To push the drying on this (nothing like waiting until the last minute to get something done), I broke out my unopened jar of Liquin.  I got hooked on using Liquin back during my equine art days, but since I'm not painting in thin layers and glazes anymore, I haven't used it for landscape painting until today.   I don't think I'll make a habit of using it unless I do decide to try glazing techniques.  

I'm hoping my studio dry spell is over, because I have tons of ideas bouncing around to work on.

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Some random photos taken recently:

My beautiful Easter cactus posing on our deck today.  I've thought of painting it, but it's so busy that I'm sure I'd just end up wiping the result

Nelson performs his daily sunbeam meditation on the guest bed

April 26 sunset from our new deck.  Perins Peak and Smelter Mtn. are no longer in the view, but Twin Butte is

Comb Ridge, revisited - pastel painting

"Passage"

9x12 inches

pastel on Strathmore

Another quick piece, done this evening, based on a photo up on Comb Ridge itself taken along the hike to the Procession panel petroglyph.  I was drawn to the sweeping curves of the sandstone and the line of juniper leading up the wash.  The challenge was to try and capture the direction of the rock and avoid a flat appearance by use of pastel stroke and subtle variations of gray of the same value.

I had to rely on a flash for the photo, so the color nuances aren't as clear as they are on the actual piece.  However, I won't have access to the computer or the internet for most of the day tomorrow due to our move, so it was either now or another day or possibly two before anything was going to surface here.  

The green of the junipers becomes a key element in this painting by adding both an area of contrasting value as well as a non-linear visual path into the painting.  These are things I keep in mind when I'm composing the photo.

I'm into these green skies; they seem to harmonize better with the pale grays of the land, and of course the shrubs, than blue.

It has a more abstract feel to it than the painting from a few days ago, and is more of what I was aiming for.  

I hope to be back online tomorrow evening from our new condo!  

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A few final deck photos from our current place...

Sunset, April 19 - stratocumulus

April 20 afternoon - altocumulus and Smelter Mtn. in the spotlight

April 20 sunset - bands of cumulus mediocris 

Spring comes to Durango - photo set

Some photos taken on a walk-about in downtown Durango yesterday - a placeholder until I have something new in my studio to share:

Detail of cherry blossom tree

Purple tulip with buds

Growing in a small retaining wall garden in the median right across from our new condo

Trees in bloom in downtown Durango

A trio of daffodils 

Flowering branch detail

Bi-color tulips 

Cherry tree at our current place

Enjoy!