Two more in Southwest Skies series

These paintings were actually completed on Wednesday, but too late to get photos.  An all-day snowshoeing trip on Thursday caused me to miss the opportunity to photograph them on that day, and yesterday, I just didn't get around to doing the planned blog post.

So, here they are, finally.  I'll probably do 1-2 more, depending upon what grabs me, and wrap it up.  I've been thinking about the next direction I want to head, subject-wise, and am starting to gravitate towards figurative work, both animal and human.  We shall see.  I may do a short series of winter landscapes based on some of my recent photos.

Along the High Plateau

oil on panel

9x12

SOLD

Painted Desert Sky

oil on canvas board

5x7

Both of these locations are along I-40 in Arizona.  Just west of Gallup, the Painted Cliffs form an unexpected addition to the land, tapering away near the AZ border to form wide, sweeping plains with pinion-juniper as the dominant vegetative zone.  The land is cut with washes and arroyos, the edge of which is seen in the first painting.  Near Holbrook, the Little Colorado river , on its northwestern path towards the Colorado, passes by, follows along the interstate, and takes its exit north at Winslow towards Leupp and Grand Falls.  The geologic make-up along much of I-40 east of Flagstaff is Chinle formation - Painted Desert.  Both the Petrified Forest and Meteor Crater are also right off I-40.

Both of these were again done with the limited palette of the two blues (phthalo and ultramarine), Indian red, yellow ochre and purple lake.  "Painted Desert Sky" was sort of an afterthought to do as a quick painting on these small 5x7 canvases I'd purchased shortly after I started my Four Corners roadtrip series.    Despite the extra layer of oil primer I used over the canvas, I really don't care for the texture at this small size.  Once the other two are used up, no mas - only MDF or Masonite panels.

The snowshoeing trip we did on Thursday was amazing on many different levels.  I was going to include some photos I took here, but I think they warrant their own post.  So, I will post that later today.

Painted Desert #2

Today's painting - the completed "Painted Desert #2".   Painted with Alizarin crimson, yellow ochre, burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and titanium white, which gives a wonderful muted palette of cool and warm grays.  Working on an underpainting that is essentially the same as the finished piece works well for me; it's how I painted for years doing mixed media equine sculpture.

I also detailed this out a bit more than the other paintings, both because the canvas is bigger, and because some detail, specifically in the small rock piles and caps, helps draw the eye around and unifies it a bit [at least this was my thought when painting it].

Painted Desert #2

9x12 - oil on canvas

Feeling ambitious, I did underpaintings for the next two in the series.  The first is loosely color-based; the second was a simple monochromatic using all the paint mixed to a earthy gray.  I can see modification (more sky) that needs to be made for the final painting, which is an easy fix.

#24 underpainting

#25 underpainting

And, finally, here are some photos taken on a walk I took down the Animas River Trail this morning, which is a fantastic multi-use trail that is probably close to 10 miles in length.  The Animas runs through town, adding to the reasons Durango is such a wonderful town to live in.

Cottonwood color close-up

Quartet of lady mallards

Not the best photo, but who can resist ducks - they always seem so happy!

Fall colors on the Animas

Late bloomer

Four Corners & Colorado Plateau series - #20, 21 & 22

Back to the oils today.  And, the last two I'll do on the canvas paper - it was just a tedious chore to try and get any wet-in-wet work done; the paint layers were tacky within minutes of going on the paper, so it seemed like a fight between myself, the oils and the paper.

Out of frustration, I decided I'd at least try and get the first layer/underpainting done on the next in the series, using OMS-thinned washes of the existing paints on one of the primed canvas boards I have.  Paint went on much easier and even with the thin layers, allowed for blending.  So, there you have it:  canvas paper pads (Strathmore) = exercise in frustration.  No mas.

At this point in the road trip,  Hwy 160 terminates on Hwy 89, which runs N-S, south to Flagstaff and north through some small towns in the Navajo Nation (Gap and Bitter Springs), splitting to Hwy's 89 and 89A, which lead to Page & southern UT, and the north rim of the Grand Canyon, respectively.

It is an incredibly scenic drive, and starts at the 160 junction in the Chinle formation, more commonly known as the Painted Desert.  This Triassic period rock, created from colorful mudstones from Mesozoic-era river sediments, forms flattened hills and slopes.  Once its overlying harder rock layer (Wingate sandstone) is worn off, the Chinle formation quickly erodes away.

Painted Desert Intro

6x8 inches - canvas paper

Initially, the hills are separated from the road by a wash with sagebrush and other high desert vegetation

Painted Desert #1

6x8 inches - canvas paper

As we head north, the Chinle slopes cover more of the landscape and their mauve, yellow and red layers line the highway.  I love the abstracted shapes and contours they form.

underpainting for Painted Desert #2

9x12 inches

canvas on board

Photo taken indoors with a flash...

Here are a few photos from the sky this afternoon - we had clouds and rain throughout the day, and some snow was visible on the highest peaks of the La Platas northwest of town.