All Things Fine Art

 Painting on the floodplain of the Pigeon River, Ottawa County, Michigan

Last Saturday, the Plein Air Artists of West Michigan painted along the Pigeon River in Hemlock Crossing Park near West Olive, Michigan. While the weather wasn't exactly ideal we enjoyed beautiful views of the river and little wind which was a blessing.

I elected to block-in with Transparent Red Oxide to help warm up the scene a little from the rather drab gray that permeated everything.  By starting there and working the neutralized colors in on top of this warm base,  I was able to emphasize the reddish blush of color that was evident in the shrubbery edging the grassy overflow area on either side of the main river channel while maintaining the integrity of the gray day. Minor adjustments were made back in the studio to adjust a couple of values and edges.

"Time and the River Flowing", 11x14", plein air, oil on canvas.

"Yellow Lemons, Yellow Fish", 6x8", oil on canvas panel, $150

I try hard to draw or paint every day but find it almost impossible at times. Today, I had a class from 9am to noon, a doctor's appointment in mid-afternoon along with various errands, then a second class in the evening after dinner.  To squeeze in painting I was up at 5:30am and spent an hour finding props and setting up a  still life. After the morning class I hurried through lunch and blocked in the painting before leaving for my appointment. I finally finished the painting tonight after class. Tomorrow is another day and I'll make time to paint again. 

I find working small is an advantage as it gives me a chance to work on a variety of subjects that I wouldn't be able to do if I worked large all the time with such a fragmented schedule. The other advantage of course, is the fact that I can focus on specific issues with each small work which is great practice and helps push my technical ability forward for when I work on larger complex subjects. These small studies scratch my creative itch and keep me painting on a near daily basis.  I've learned to respect them and love doing them. My students also benefit as they get to see a number of issues resolved and new paintings in the studio each week. A win win situation.

I had such good intentions of following through with my notan series but like so many things in this busy world we live in, I got side tracked.  The next installment has been written for 2 weeks now but I've not had the time to put the visuals together so I can publish it.  It will happen, in it's own good time. In the meantime I'm going to write a bit and publish more often about my experiences with art.

In my most recent (March) email newsletter, I discussed one of my many foibles...which is the lack of energy and discipline to finish paintings. I truly find the beginning process of a painting the most exciting and creative. Conversely, the finishing (definition) part of a painting is, to be blunt, boring to me.  For that reason, I have to admit that I have many paintings stacked against walls in my studio in various stages of incompleteness.

 Well, I did goooood this last weekend. I actually completed four paintings and made headway on four others. That's probably a record for me!

Plein air, 16x12" as painted on site without adjustments.    "October Gold", 16x12", oil on canvas, completed in studio, $600

 I teach three days/nights a week leaving four that are devoted to plein air and/or studio painting, life essentials, family, class planning, web presence, etc. I also have to have time to play an occasional web game or two.  Phew!  Just writing it all down makes me realize why I seem to never have enough time to finish most paintings to my satisfaction in a timely manner. I guess I shouldn't be so hard on myself when things get left in limbo. I have to remind myself, that hopefully there may be a few other artists out there that have this same problem?  Somehow I can't believe I'm alone. 

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