Saturday, August 22, 2020

Happiness

Earlier today, I decided that a glaze of Asphaltum and Sap Green would be just the thing to unify that thicket of stems at the very bottom of the picture, but it dulled everything down too much so I tried to wipe most of it off. Then I went back in and picked out some lighter and darker details here and there, and finally brightened up the flowers.

Left the studio for a bit, and when I came back in and caught a glimpse of the painting on the easel, the sunflowers were so cheerful they made me smile, not an easy task in these days of gloom.

  Bluemont Vineyard With Sunflowers, Virginia Vineyard Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Changing The Wall Color

I'm experimenting with the color of the wall on the right, and have brushed in some Cerulean mixed with white. It needs more of the dappled light and shadows but it's a start.

Light And Shadow, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
 

Friday, August 21, 2020

Something New

I know that reading this blog has all the excitement of watching paint dry; the paintings go ever so slowly because of the amount of tedious work involved, so the changes you see are incremental. I get tired too, and sometimes I just have to break out and do something new. So yesterday I stretched a 16" square canvas and today I had some fun loosely brushing on this base layer.

Tranquil Pond, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Thursday, August 20, 2020

Foliage

I've been looking at a lot of clipped magazine photos I've gathered over the years of landscape paintings, and it seemed like a good idea to add some blue tones to the foliage here. Next time I'll go back to the flowers.

Somerville Roses, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
 

Reworking And Renaming

Late yesterday afternoon I redrew and then scrubbed out a new sunflower at upper right; I wasn't careful enough about placement and I knew it would bother me every time I looked at it. This morning I drew it in again, slightly lower, and added a couple of other elements. The original composition had two or three snapdragon stems too close to the top of the canvas, so those are gone now. Also, I'm renaming it.

Bouquet In A Blue Vase, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Wednesday, August 19, 2020

One Step Closer

The day unfolded very slowly— I didn't even start painting until after 12 noon— but in the end, I got a lot done. Besides the paintings, I polished the wood floor and made several coronavirus masks.

Here's the first of the day: it was time to start placing the details on the door:
 
Variations On A Theme #2a, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Then I tightened up the detail on the spoon handle below and repainted the outer rim of the bowl. There's very little left to do; I think I need to pay some attention to the inner rim of the bowl, and clean up the bowl edges.

Strawberry Shortcake, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
  
And here is the repaint on the postcard that I never liked; I think the changes I'm making are good ones. It's that middle section that needs some drama.

A Bend In The Green River, Postcards Series #13, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 






Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Adding A Head

Originally I left the head of the bald man at left out of the picture, since I didn't want to distract from the woman at the table behind him...but I think she's so well lit you can't miss her, and why would that bottle be on an empty table otherwise?

Specials Of The Day, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Blossoms

Worked on the cherry blossom painting today. I'm trying to get a sense of structure in the clusters of flowers.

Tidal Basin, Postcards Series #15, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Monday, August 17, 2020

Carried Away With Blue

The intention was to correct the color of the sky, which (though it pretty nearly matched the reference photo) seemed too assertive. So I greyed it down a little, and then fretted for a while that I might have made it too subdued.

At the same time, I've been admiring the work of some landscape painters recently, and studying how they paint foreground weeds and grasses. The ones in my painting looked too light in tone to me, so I set about making them darker...but that eliminated a lot of the carefully drawn detail, so I'll have to go back and redo it. But it does give the piece a more unified look!

And I dabbed some of the sky color on the foliage. Not sure that's working, either.

  Bluemont Vineyard With Sunflowers, Virginia Vineyard Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Softening The Shadows

I'm making an effort to conform with the fact that the further away from the light source, the fuzzier the shadows. So I've softened some of them and done a little redrawing today.

Also changed the color of the shoes.

Light And Shadow, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Sunday, August 16, 2020

Fretting Over Unresolved Areas

The quilt patterns are going to drive me crazy, eventually. I have no patience for them. Meanwhile, I did darken the pants and take out the detail on the sheer curtains. And I reworked the hands a bit, and the wall area underneath the window. Next I have to replace the soft subtle colors of the sheer curtains; covering the lacy spots with white obliterated all those sunset yellows and window frame blues. But the work moves forward, and in the next sitting I'll draw on the knowledge I gained in that Zoom class for the face.

The Promise Of Evening, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Working The Foreground

While waiting for the paint to dry on the sky areas, I decided to take out the roadside strip at the bottom of the canvas and replace it with some of the shadow color of the weedy areas. There are also many highlights in the crops; the leaves are catching the fading sunlight, and it will be a challenge to paint them in without making the overall effect too busy.

Rising Stars, Setting Sun, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
 
The reference photo also shows barnyard animals: cows, geese, and a goat. I would love to add them but it might be too cheesy.

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Another Dessert To Finish The Week

 I'm still trying to make up for lost time. Enjoyed cleaning up some areas and clarifying others on this one today, but I have not been careful about brush washing lately and as a result I'm having trouble finding one that holds a point. 

Choose One, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Friday, August 14, 2020

Making Up For Lost Time

 Added two more tonight to the day's work. This one has a blue cast, since I took the photo late in the day.

 Bluemont Vineyard With Sunflowers, Virginia Vineyard Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And this: 

Variations On A Theme #2a, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Interruptions

 The refrigerator conked out again; it does this every so often, but lately it's happened every month. It causes huge problems, as I'm sure you can imagine. So most of the morning was wasted with trucking food around. 

Here's what I did on the big painting: clearly the guy's head is too small right now, so I'll fix that next time. But I sketched in the bottles, and am experimenting with the color of the back wall.

Unfinished Business II, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
 
 Later, I looked at the dessert paintings lined up in the hall, and decided the Banana Cream Pie painting was pretty close to being done, so why not work on that? Haha! Once on the easel I realized my mistake. For one thing, the green rings on the plate are painstakingly tedious. And there are three of them. And they have to be "drawn" correctly. I painted and repainted, trying to get the angles to match. I still have one more ring to put into place, close to the outer one.


Banana Cream Pie, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Thursday, August 13, 2020

Another Repaint

 This is one of the last of the Postcards series; I never liked the way it looked and am trying to bring it p to par. But I think I need to work on the atmospheric perspective; darker greens in the foreground, lighter in the distance.

A Bend In The Green River, Postcards Series #13, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Adding Some Structure to The Trees

 I'll end up covering much of the sketchy branches I just put in, but at least there's more of a sense of the tree structure.

Tidal Basin, Postcards Series #15, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Clouds Too Dark?

 Worked on the clouds and the car interior on the right; the clouds might be a bit heavy.

Sara Driving Across The Desert, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

It Would Be Nice To Finish Something

 I'm going to concentrate on this one for the next week or so. I brushed in the irregular ripples of the tabletop this morning. The edge of the spoon needs a little work, as does the plate; then it'll be done.

Strawberry Shortcake, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

Afternoon Delight

 I Zoomed with one of my favorite artist friends this morning, then went back to sleep for two hours. This afternoon I forced myself to work on the painting below, even after it got tedious; I've got to apply myself and not be so self indulgent. Watched the remarks by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris while I worked. The "battle for the soul of the nation" is not hyperbole, and I'm wondering what role I can play to help with their election. No doubt there are stormy days ahead.

 

Rising Stars, Setting Sun, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Tuesday, August 11, 2020

A Tuesday Dessert

 Maybe I will get to work on one of these a day during this week. All this one needs to finish it is some work on the plate and the background, both should be easy to do.

 

Strawberry Shortcake, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

More Attention To The Figure

 I added a few touches of color to the woman in the painting. The bag on her right arm is going to feature butterflies, and I'm wondering if the red shoes are working or should be toned down.

Light And Shadow, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Back To Bluemont

 Is that sky too dark? It's pretty close to what I see in the photo, but maybe it's too strong a blue. I've been looking at the work of some landscape painters who have a nice atmospheric touch, am trying to figure out how to do that successfully. 

Bluemont Vineyard With Sunflowers, Virginia Vineyard Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Monday, August 10, 2020

Dessert

Yesterday I thought I would just concentrate on the Dessert series this week, but aside from the one below, which I worked on this morning, I no longer find that thought appetizing, haha.

Sharpened up the detail in the upper left dessert.


Choose One, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Saturday, August 8, 2020

Blocking In Some Color

 At this early stage, I'm just trying to get a sense of what colors go where. It's a big canvas to cover. And this was the only thing I felt like working on today.

Unfinished Business II, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Night Work 2

Also: I'm trying to figure out what color the side of the building on the right should be. Tried something greyish last night. I might brush some dabs of color over it after it dries.

Light And Shadow, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 


Some Night Work

 The Postcard #14 painting has been bothering me. I'd put it aside in a low-traffic area, and every time I looked at it, I became more certain that I needed to amplify the contrast on the grassy areas. So last night I did, and now I'm happy with it (I think). 

Here's the reworked version:

Postcard #14, Queens Cove, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Friday, August 7, 2020

Working Those Faces

I'm trying to consolidate all of the information I've gotten from the two classes I took in the last 9 months and apply it to this painting. So far, the success has been limited, but I'll keep working it.

Sent in an application for a virtual show this morning.

The Chair, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)


Wednesday, August 5, 2020

The Desert Painting

I put in a little time on this today: Hands, jawline, plants on the desert floor, and some more color in the mountains on the right. Next time I want to finish those clouds on the right.

Sara Driving Across The Desert, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

An Oldie, Resurrected: #2

Every year I try to get this Christmas-themed painting done before November in the hope that I can show it somewhere; this year, that seems less likely, but I'm putting the effort into it anyway. It's been very disappointing. I see it in my mind's eye one way, but the paint doesn't assist me in that regard.
From a distance, it looks wonderful, with a lot of charm; up close, it looks sloppy and the brush strokes seem chaotic.

A Quiet Evening In Cambridge II, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

An Oldie, Resurrected: #1

Sometimes I get started on a painting but then get bogged down in the process of living, and it ends up gathering dust. This is a large piece, and I've had it in the dungeon studio for over a year, thinking I would get down there in the winter and work on it. But winter came and went, and I really don't like working in the dungeon studio, so the painting languished.

It's actually a repaint of one I sold back in (I think) 2006; I'm not sorry I sold the original but I do miss it a lot. This one will be just for me to enjoy here at home, and it'll be interesting to see how differently I paint it 14 years later.


Unfinished Business II, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Monday, August 3, 2020

The Frustration Of Working Wet-In-Wet

I don't know how the plein air painters do it. Every time I've tried to do an alla prima or work wet-in-wet, it's a catastrophe. In the case of the painting below, I worked very hard at getting a believable transition from the left side of the sky, where darkness approaches, to the right side, where the sun is setting. I took out as many of the finely visible brushstrokes as possible, and then set about putting in the clouds. Disaster!

Rising Stars, Setting Sun, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The wet sky color, which is mainly Thalo Blue and Indigo, smooshes into the white and yellow of the cloud highlights, and that Thalo is a pretty intense color anyway. So I can't get the form or the precision that I want, because the edges are all discolored. I've put it aside to dry, and will go back to it later, but it sure feels like a disappointment right now.

Sunday, August 2, 2020

After Mulready

The image on the left is the one we were working from in Zoomclass; my version of it is on the right. The artist's name is William Mulready.

 

Trying Some New Stuff

The figure painting class ended yesterday, so I'll post the image of the last study I did for it; meanwhile, I'm trying to broaden my approach to landscape painting. I'm using larger, flatter brushes, and trying to sweep in bigger areas of paint, in a looser way. 

Tidal Basin, Postcards Series #15, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)



What Is The Color Of Shadow On Whipped Cream?

Way back in the first year of art school, I had an instructor who used to periodically gaze off into the distance and ask the class, "What is the color of shadow on white?" Nobody knew how to answer this, and I am reminded of that question as I ponder the shadow areas on the whipped cream in this painting.




Hot Fudge Sundae I, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2020, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

There's a peachy orange light source somewhere to the upper left of the little still life, and there's also some blue light bouncing around from somewhere. Whipped cream is intrinsically slightly yellowish; think of the butterfat content. But when we try to darken yellow paint with black, it turns greenish! So I struggle with mixing in some Portland Gray or one of the umbers.