A weekend of plein air painting at Chaco Canyon

A trip with the 4CPAP at Chaco Culture National Historical Park, New Mexico...

Fajada Butte - 6x12 inches, pastel on brown cardstock

Friday morning, I packed up my pastels, painting and tent camping gear, and hit the road south to rendezvous with some members of the Four Corners Plein Air Painters.  It's about a 2-hr. drive from Durango, with the last 20-odd miles on a dirt road that criss-crosses through a patchwork of of BLM parcels and Navajo Nation land before reaching the park.

After securing a campsite and checking in at the visitor's center around 12:30 p.m., I took the loop drive through the park to re-aquaint myself with the areas and get ideas for painting.  The combination of a poor night's sleep and strong gusting wind made both standing and and attempting a larger painting a no-go.

I have been drawn to Fajada ("banded", and pronounced "Fa-HA-dah") Butte the other times I've been to Chaco, and decided it would make a good subject for a small 1:2 format painting.  The top of this butte, which was sacred to the Chacoan people, is the location of the famous "Sun Dagger" astronomical petroglyph spiral

The perfect location for painting...

 From this view to the west in full afternoon sun, this painting was about the colors of the land and the butte itself.  As you can see, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, but something needed to break up that large span of sky and help balance the composition.

...both shade and windbreak

After finishing this painting, I was feeling a bit energized, so I drove back to the Visitor's Center and picked up a backcountry permit to hike out to Wijiji (Navajo for "black Greaswood"), an outlier ruin I've not seen before.  The trailhead was conveniently located less than a quarter of a mile from the campground.

Since it was an easy 3 mile round-trip hike, I carried my chair and the small folding table along with my daypack of pastel boxes (I added a new box for this trip, which you can see in the above photo).  I must say that these little panoramas are very satisfying to create, and I'm finding that the light and dark brown cardstock worked out well for these landscape paintings.

Wijiji Wall - 6x12 inches, pastel on brown cardstock

On the hike back, I saw two photographers setting up for the full moon to rise over Chaco wash, and decided to head back to Fajada Butte to get some full moon photos of my own.

On the drive back, I saw a most unexpected sight:

I met up with the rest of the 4C group that was staying overnight shortly before they headed off to listen to the astronomy presentation and nighttime sky viewing through telescopes located at the park.  

In light of the full moon, one of the objectives of the coordinator for this trip, Rhonda, was to try nocturne paintings for those interested.  I did bring a headlamp, but was too tired to try and paint.  

But, before I headed to my tent to try (unsuccessfully, I might add) to get some sleep, I experimented with moonlight photography:

Light painting of the small ruin at the campground
33 seconds @ f/5.0, with a few quick passes on the ruin from a mini Maglite, which is known as "light painting"

60-second exposure @ f/5.0
Interesting to see how much the stars "move" in such a short period of time

Because there are more paintings to share, including one that is a complete departure for me on many levels, I'll save the rest for another post.

Back to painting the CO landscape, and some musings on improving one's work

Spring Afternoon on the Piedra - plein air, 12x12 inches
pastel on black cardstock
© 2012, S.Johnson

Sometime shortly after coming back from our Utah trip, I decided that I would aim to do 100 plein air paintings this year.  Last year, I did about 50 - all pastel.  A subset of this goal is to have maybe 1/3 of them be in oil, once I can sort out the logistics of bringing the oil painting operation out of the studio.

Last year on this date, the number of plein air paintings I'd done: zero.  This painting is #14/17, as of today.  So, I guess I'm off to a pretty good start!

Why plein air in particular?  Honestly, because: a) I seriously enjoy it; b) I want to get better at it; c) plein air painting improves my studio pieces.

At the river's edge this past Sunday - a glorious (albeit a bit breezy at times!) day
in southwestern Colorado

The number sounds ambitious, but really comes down to averaging 5 paintings/week for 5 months.  Given that, practically speaking, I can paint about ~8.5 months of the year outdoors, this is pretty doable for me, and makes allotments for the inevitable lulls and other life events that always crop up from time to time.

It is said repeatedly by instructors and other artists that the best way to improve one's painting skills and therefore, becoming a better artist, is by simply painting more.   Lots more.  For the most part, I honestly think it's really that simple, and thus, my defined number goal.  I've given much thought to the process of painting, and what I feel has helped to improve my work and take it to the next level.  Maybe you'll agree with some of these suggestions?

- Augment with occasional workshops if you want to and can afford to (I can't), but don't rely on a workshop or an instructor to make you a successful painter:  consider the French Impressionists; no one was offering workshops in the 1870's when they were around.

- Spend time regularly studying the work of the Old Masters and contemporary artists whose work you admire (free, via the internet and your local library).  I collect books on art history, art technique and coffee table books on art that inspires me, and I regularly re-read them.

- Work on your drawing skills.  I think this may be the weak link for many artists, and I include myself here as well...

- Find a colleague or small group to get critiques and feedback on your work.   If you are a plein air painter, find someone(s) to paint with from time to time.  Painting is a lonely venture for most of us, and  it is unbelievably energizing to paint with other artists.  Anyone who has will surely attest to this!

- Experiment with new techniques and materials, just because you never know when you might find something that works even better for you than what you are using now.

- Push yourself to paint subjects you consider challenging or are a known weakness for you (like groups of trees...see painting above).  Consider setting a mini-goal to do x-number of  paintings of a given subject that you'd like to get better at rendering...like trees, or ellipses, or eyes.

- Definitely keep painting things you love and that you consider your forte'!

- Don't be caught up in producing an amazing, or even a successful, sellable painting every time you sit down to paint, as this will stifle creativity and produce burn-out.  In other words, focus on the process and not the outcome.

- Likewise, don't be discouraged when the inevitable crappy painting comes down the pike...because it will.   Laugh at it, and analyze it to figure out where, why and how it went south, and consider it a learning tool instead of a failure.

- And don't be afraid to toss the funk and earlier efforts out.  I usually keep all but the most horrific paintings around for a while, and then periodically, I go through and toss old work that maybe I sort of liked when I did it, but looking at it later, with more paintings under my belt, and a more experienced eye, and decide I just don't want it around anymore.

- Be mindful of why you are painting what you are painting.  Can you effectively verbalize what it was that drew you to paint a given subject?  Consider it practice for when the potential buyer asks you that question, because he or she will want to know!

Cedar Mesa, UT, part III - a still life of sorts, plein air pastel

Sandstone Still Life - plein air, 12x12 inches
pastel on brown cardstock
© 2012, S.Johnson

The last painting done on the trip, quite different than the others.  This sandstone cliff, divided into tiered layers, offers mini alcoves and undercut areas that are ideal for a variety of shrubs and grasses to eke out an existence, producing a most attractive rock garden.  I was impressed with the tenacity of the small juniper at the top, and the contrast with the cool blue-gray-green of the adjacent sage.  

This was about 20' away from the RV, so I was able to sit in the shade to do this painting.  With mid-afternoon sun directly on the facade of the rock, the color nuances from variegations within the sedimentary layers,  mineralized desert varnish and organic contributions from lichen were readily appreciated.

I had plans and visions of painting more grand, sweeping views of the landscape, but I've come to realize that I really dislike standing in full sun to paint.  So, an umbrella for my easel is next on my equipment purchase, and next time, I'll paint the view up Arch Canyon one sees from atop this sandstone outcropping...

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Cedar Mesa, UT, part II - shadows in plein air, pastel

Because one painting and a 9.6 mile hike wasn't enough for a day...

Camp Shadows - plein air, 12x12 inches
pastel on brown cardstock
© 2012, S.Johnson

After we returned from the Arch Canyon hike, everyone immediately gets situated in some captain chairs and cold beer is in order.  While sitting in the shade of our friend's camper awning, drinking my beer, I note that the view right in front of me is actually pretty neat!

It's got the distal rise of the sandstone, lots of colorful cottonwoods, sagebrush and dried chamisa.  Oh, and really neat shadows from a huge cottonwood just out of view.  Feeling ambitious, I decided to paint it.  I think most of the effect of the beer had worn off by the time I finished this, but it was just plain fun to paint.  It's loose, pretty quickly done, but does manage to capture the essence of what the view was around our camping area.

I'll post the final painting (and load of photos) tomorrow, and then will come the wave of new plein air pieces I've finished in the past few days.

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More Cedar Mesa:

Moon House ruins, in McCloyd Canyon on Cedar Mesa - view is from across the canyon

Moon House ruins 

A view of Sleeping Ute Mtn. from Snow Flats road - a high-clearance road we  drove on day 2

A view of Arch Canyon from above

A view of Comb Ridge to the southeast, and Hwy 95, as seen from the slope 

Localized clouds form over the northern part of the Comb in late afternoon

Cedar Mesa, UT - part I, plein air in Arch Canyon

A trip that defined why I love painting the landscape of southern Utah...

Arch Canyon Spires - plein air, 12x9 inches,  pastel on cardstock
© 2012, S.Johnson

Done on day three of our trip, when our group of four took a hike/trail ride up Arch Canyon, the mouth of which we camped during our stay in the area.  

I never know whether I'll be in the mood to paint, or find a decent location to sit and paint (must be in the shade) when I bring my plein air gear along on hikes.  But, even for the times I've hauled it along and never brought it out, I've never regretted bringing it...just in case.

This particular painting also pushed the envelope of how far I've hiked to paint:  4.8 miles.  I honestly thought I might be too tired to paint; the temps were in the 80's and hiking through soft sand along a Jeep road can wear one out.   Our friends, riding ahead on their horses, found the perfect location for lunch - a sandstone overhang with abundant shade right next to the creek.  And this view.  I could have easily done 3-4 paintings from the exact location.  

For whatever reason(s), this painting came together in a way I couldn't have anticipated, almost surrealistic in how effortless it was.  It is moments like this that cause me to not worry when I have a painting slump, because they often result in a breakthrough of some type - I feel there was one here, but I'm not sure what, why or how it happened.   There's also something about the effort required to obtain these "immersion" plein air pieces that makes them special to me, and this painting is one of the few I'd have a hard time parting with.  

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Some photos from the first day and the Arch Canyon hike:

Our campsite, with Jypsi (Paso Fino) and Indy (pinto Tennessee Walking Horse)
in their portable corral 

Cliffside ruins (Anasazi) a short walk up Arch Canyon

This handsome chap - a Collared lizard - posing for a photo during our hike

Ancient granery along Arch Canyon - telephoto shot...

...another photo to show just how inaccessible and high this granery was

Sarah and Jypsi at our lunch location; I sat in the shaded alcove to the left to paint

A wide-angle view of the spires from the creek bed near the alcove

On the way back:  Jypsi demonstrates her rock-climbing prowess while Todd and Indy look on

A look back up the trail on the afternoon hike back

Plein Air along the Animas River in Durango - pastel, 16x12

Our trip to Cedar Mesa was absolutely fantastic, and I have paintings and photos to share from that trip.  I've decided to split that into a few contiguous posts just to keep each a manageable size and hopefully not disinterest more readers than I maybe already have...

So, in the meantime, here is yesterday's painting done with the 4CPAP group right here in town:

The Purple Cliffs - 16x12 inches
 pastel on acid-free construction paper

Durango is surrounded by a series of tilted, eroded ridges, known as hogbacks, including this one, known by locals as the "Purple Cliffs".  And purple they are - colorful shales of what I believe is the Morrison formation.   I've been wanting to paint them for probably as long as I've been living here, so I was happy to finally be able to do that.  The cottonwoods are now leafing out in force, and in that beautiful shade of pale green that I enjoy painting.  Also, green + purple = winning combination.

This is the view from the terminus of the Animas River Trail, although I ended up standing on a slope next to the trail to paint.

I got this 90% finished on location, but when the wind started kicking up around noon, blowing my hat off and forcing me to hold the easel while I painted, that's when I usually decide it's time to pack it in.

The two challenges were trying to make the very muddy Animas look not so...unappealing.  The warm temperatures we've been having accelerate mountain snowmelt, and the river is at a seasonal high, and much siltier than normal.  Also, I'm not sure the foreground cliff reads very well; it is in fact probably 20' above the river and not at the shoreline.  Ditto the middle "island", which I decided to keep because it had neat things going on and helped to break up the otherwise solid mass of the river.

At any rate, I'll certainly be back to paint the purple cliffs again, and will at least have a better idea how to handle these issues.  Painting the same location repeatedly is a common practice amongst landscape painters, both past and present, and this subject in particular makes me appreciate why.

Comb Ridge, Utah - pastel

Inspired by tomorrow's trip to Cedar Mesa:  another road painting...

Towards the Comb
10x20 inches - pastel on Canson Mi-Tientes paper
© 2012, S.Johnson

Based on a photo taken last April during our first trip to Cedar Mesa/Butler Wash, this was one of those paintings that arose somewhat spontaneously.  I was preparing some of my 8x16" matboard panels for painting and thought that a 1:2 painting seemed like a good idea.  Going through my photos, this one epitomized the majestic view of the Comb Ridge monocline as seen from Hwy 95 heading west, which made it a logical choice.

Instead of using the prepared board, I thought I might try using the other half of a sheet of rust-colored Canson paper I've had for ages - seriously, I think I've been dragging this sheet around for at least 10 years.  I bought it back when Canson was pretty much the only readily available paper for pastels.

And besides - what better way to resume pastel painting after being in a recent rut than using a surface that has always proved challenging and really never produced a painting worth keeping?  Sounds like a great recipe for failure!

I was reminded again how much I admire pastelists that are able to use this paper to great success, such as Bill Cone and Lorenzo Chavez.  Really, I don't know how they do it.

I suppose this turned out better than it could have/should have, perhaps, given the circumstances.  It allows for more layering than my favorite black Artagain, but the rough texture (smooth side, even) sort of rubs me the wrong way...pun intended.  I am trying to get away from finger blending my pastels, but this just didn't seem to work without blending.

Anyway, with luck and motivation, I'll return from our trip on Tuesday with at least a few paintings and probably more photos of Anasazi cliff dwellings.