Honest Abe

Happy President's Day a little bit late.  Makes me proud to be a Kentuckian when I look at Abe.  Tis I did for the dailypainters challenge.

Flowers for Japan

Today, I painted this to honor the Japanese who have shown such dignity in the face of such devastation and uncertainty.  A friend recently gave me this beautiful scarf of an Oriental design and the flowers were given by relatives last week for my birthday.  The cup from a friend.  Hang in there!

Zippo deedoodah

Yesterday I did this small painting and submitted it on the Daily Painter Challenge.  Michael Naples initiated the challenge.  I have admired his paintings for several years now.  I enjoy these small spontaneous challenges and always learn something - even if it is something I already knew.    Like my "achilles heel" of painting is 'too much white' - it gets into everything and lessens the impact of the color.  So today's challenge is to paint something without using white or at least minimally at the end for highlights.  The same challenge would be fine but I have a landscape in mind.  You can create all the values you need with ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, and titanium white.  Even portraiture!  It really is all about values; values are to painting as line is to drawing.  

In The Swing

In Colorado up in the mountains, a fresh breeze arrives every morning.  Just right for a swing by the creek.  Here are some new friends doing just that.

St Augustine Sleek

Carol Marine issued a challenge to paint an old shiny car on the streets of St. Augustine.  I gave it a quick shot and had some fun with doing it.  

Let Sleeping Dog Smile

Our dear dog is aging gracefully having turned 16(or was it 17) recently. She loves being around people and gives us more warmth than this fire is providing her.

After Carlsen

This is a tiny painting I did of a detail of one of John Carlsen's landscapes. Nobody paints snowy trees like Carlsen. And his book on landscape painting is truly the best I have read.

Finish By Noon

This painting is ready for a coat of varnish and then off to a friend who requested I paint a Colorado mountain scene for him. He loves to hike and like all good boy scouts know - always be prepared- when hiking in the high mountains you must finish by noon for that is when the clouds move in and often the rain. I hope he likes it! We had hiked this area - Maroon Bells- beginning early in the morning and as we finished we looked back upon this view.

La Chinoise

Painting with Friends time again and today our model held this lovely parasol. Here's today's effort. I may have to get a parasol just to have on hand to paint. Fun!

Mates

Here's a picture of what I was told is a sand crane. The bird was just standing there very still as if it did not mind me taking its picture. So I did. But as I started to walk away, I noticed a second bird's beak and neck rise up from the lagoon not far from the first(not in this oicture). This bird had a small fish in its beak and began a gargling motion to jiggle its catch down its neck. Then it disappeared into the lagoon and emerged a few minutes later with another catch. Now my model began to squawk a bit. Praise or warning? Sand cranes mate for life in an elaborate dance and song. Later that same day I attended the wedding of my son's best friend from high school. I think this crane and his mate were a good omen for the marriage of Tyler and his bride.

And a Happy Birthday to my mate! Live long and prosper!

Appreciated

This is the painting I entered in the "Brush with Bardstown" competition and received an "award of merit." We all feel honored when our work is appreciated. I loved doing this one - the sun was out and the wind was blowing - lovely day!

The Bard's Town

Romantic English major that I am I like to think quaint little Bardstown was named for The Bard, Shakespeare, the great poet. Yesterday, it certainly lived up to its name. This brave town hosted a wonderful 'plein air' event called "A Brush with Bardstown" in which I participated. The stormy skies cleared, then the winds blew, and by mid-afternoon the sun reigned supreme.

By 9 AM my canvasses for the day were stamped and I was on my way to find a spot for painting. This little canvas was used to paint Bill's Barn. This is a barn just big enough to hold the antique fire truck once used by the Maker's Mark Distillery in case of fire.

On the Vine

I painted the lovely vine tomato painting again and am 'gifting it' to a new friend. Ah, living color!

Colora

Here she is in living color. Hmmmm, a whole new ball game and I'm not sure I like the score...but wait the game is not over. That's the beauty of oil paint - you can easily adjust it. And getting the likeness while in the studio earned me a score to be proud of.

Mona Lisa Revisited

Tonight I started a new canvas with brush and browns. I love charcoal and have tried to get the charcoal feel with my brush and paint here. Tomorrow is our last time with this model and I wanted to get a head start(so to speak.)

Next feat is to get the flesh tones I need. I remember the great patch of reflected light under her chin - a warm red from the yellow and crimson shawls she wore. Also a bit of greyed smoky blue above left brow and under nose. Overall her complexion is a rosy brown with ivory tones. She must have taken a time machine from Leonardo's day.

Thought I'd better take a photo of this. Tomorrow with paint will be a whole new ball game.

Muse

Last Friday the studio model was exceptional not only for holding her pose but for her Mona Lisa gaze. We all really enjoyed her and will attempt to convey her likeness again Friday. I have a bit too much white in her skin tone and will get a better palette ready for Friday.

Figure in Landscape

A painting friend asks "Do landscape paintings need figures?" Well, ask any artist and get a different answer. As with color and just about anything in art, there are few rules. Artists who 'think outside the rules' seem to be the ones we get excited about.



In this painting(dim due to not good lighting here - sorry, it's a gloomy day) I originally had no figure other than that of Pan atop the fountain. But the backlit light hole right of the fountain (see picture two posts ago) seemed ripe for something. Of the many figures walking by I thought a mom with baby in stroller would be nice here. When I stood back, the 'mom' looked more like a child in stature. So, I quickly moved head and hat and voila now I seem to have a 'dad' pushing a baby.



All this, Sarann, just to say that I think the main purpose that figure serves in landscape is to enhance the landscape rather than draw much attention to the figure. As in your painting of the pavillion, you used figure to help define foreground, middleground, etc. and in mine I used figure to balance the composition.

Trees along the Carriage Lane

My sister's post today is about trees. http://pvedesign.blogspot.com/2009/08/trees-of-life.html I'm a tree lover as well.
I'm posting this painting of mine from last Fall at the Horse Park in Lexington Ky. Horse drawn carriages ride down this lane in the shade of the large trees there.

Hogan's Fountain - Catch the Light

Two Turtle Fountains _ Yandell and Bernini

Our plein air group continues to paint in the parks around town. I was inspired to get a head start on the next location - Cherokee Park. This fountain graces an area of the park and was designed by Enid Yandell(she also created the statue down the hill from this - of Daniel Boone). The sculptress also worked in Paris for a time with Auguste Rodin. The fountain features Pan holding up his pipes calling the woodland creatures and served, at its installment in 1920, as a watering basin for horses and dogs. In this small study I am capturing the light on the fountain and added a mom pushing a stroller with baby on board.

I look forward to returning and adding the details en plein air. Including the turtles! The turtles - four of them- sit perched on the top edge of the fountain where the water spouts from their mouths. I saw a fountain with similar turtles years ago in Rome. My Uncle Dominic Mattei had encouraged me to see this fountain - he called it the turtle fountain. Little did I know that the fountain was located in Piazza Mattei in the Trastevere. When I paint the turtles in the sun this week I will remember him.

The Dahlia Parasols

I took this photo last year in a small park near my sis's where I was enchanted by these huge dahlias(dinnerplate?). The gardener had 'planted' parasols strategically in order to shade the flowers and preserve their colors and blooms. Look how the parasol's color is reflected on the petals!