Note to Self

One cannot have enough pairs of boots or pictures of boots for that matter.

Note to self: take note of the rich color in cast shadows. This one was a lovely dark purply lavender color cast on the painted green floor.

Holy Night at the Chicken Coop

Thought a Christmas post should include Holy Night at the Chicken Coop. This was painted 3 years ago on Christmas Eve by the farm porch light. Inside the little building was RooSir and his mate Girly. The wires overhead were encrusted with ice and made a nice reflection within the sphere of the yard light. The yellow lights in the distance were not the Wisemen approaching on tractors, but a hog operation.

I have always been intrigued with night paintings. Darkness solves unity problems and allows for a single brush stroke to define detail and lend complexity.

I have been thinking that this title should turn into a story about what the chickens inside are discussing on Christmas Eve. (Has proven to be a fun lunch topic with Reverand Mother already). I would love an opportunity to paint such outlandish chicken characters as demonstrated by touring the State Fair Poultry Exhibit. (Wish I had the photo of GitcheeGumeeGuy with rooster from a State Fair outing to insert here). Watch for future posts of chicken sketches and story material that is part of the 2010 goals to complete.

Merry Christmas to you and yours.

A Blessing by James Wright

Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota,
Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass,
And the eyes of those two Indian ponies
Darken with kindness.
They have come gladly out of the willows
To welcome my friend and me.
We step over the barbed wire into the pasture
Where they have been grazing all day, alone.
They ripple tensely, they can hardly contain their happiness
That we have come.
They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other.
There is no loneliness like theirs.
At home once more,
They begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness.
I would like to hold the slender one in my arms,
For she has walked over to me
And nuzzled my left hand.
She is black and white,
Her mane falls wild on her forehead,
And the light breeze moves me to caress her long ear
That is delicate as the skin over a girl's wrist.
Suddenly I realize
That if I stepped out of my body I would break
Into blossom.

Hidden Falls

Hidden Falls is a favorite place to access the Mississippi River. You can drive in, park, and be "on the river" in minutes. I painted this on a warm November morning (note: tiny people & dogs suggested on the right bank) and kayaked in the late afternoon. I got carried away by the sheer beauty of the parkland on both sides, so got to experience this 1/2 mile stretch paddling upstream in the dark. Amazing to have this wild place 2 miles from my house!

Inspiration

After finishing "October," I still had time to do another oil sketch before the traditional Saturday lunch at Kelly's. My inspiration was the close values in the blue distant bluff and the brown riverbank in sunlight set off by the orange crane arm. I expected to wipe it off, but was pleased with finding the color notes and close values.

October

Fall is my favorite season. And I like that this one is lasting a long time. How do you depict the rich mosiac of October in Minnesota? The textures are softer and color radiates from the yellow grasses to the brilliant sky blue with wispy floating cirrus clouds.

Occasionally, after lots of "brush time" (as we call it), something new happens where the color and the brush strokes come together in a new and more confident way. "October" seems to have a new quality. I hope it is a glimspe of many more paintings to come.

Blogging Again

Thanks for noticing my hiatus. With diminishing light at the end of the day, it became impossible to photograph the paintings (which is how & why the blog came to be) and so an alternative studio set-up had to come about.

A special "thanks" to John H. for being the most persistent in wondering when the next painting would be posted. He uses them as screen savers. WHAT A GOOOD IDEA! and probably his co-workers were complaining and needed a change, too. Anita G. prints them and pins them outside her cubicle along with other artwork.

Note: there are many contemporary ways to have an art exhibit, but maybe someday I will actually send postcards and announce an upcoming exhibition in a big white space where I will wear black and serve wine and crackers...or maybe I'll just send a screen saver.

I started depending on Artist Mary to bring flowers for still life paintingfor Instructor Richard's Studio Class. She had other plans that night. I brought nothing to paint. Dilemma!

Instructor Richard quickly set up this cobalt pitcher on a low stand. My sunflowers at home would have been beautiful in the pitcher, but I mentioned that their highest good was to remain in the garden and serve as food for the many gold finches that were feasting on them. (There were a few editorial comments about that).

Light changed quickly and then the chair disappeared so a fellow student could sit and take in Instructor Richard's lecture.

Still life painting is not exactly what I would call "still." True to the laws of physics all light and matter is in constant motion. I just have to make faster marks for painting...

Yellow Swing

It's summer and time to go up Nort' to the lake cabin. This a charming lake cabin that has been in the Jones' Family for many years. My neighbors, Paul and Anne, asked me to paint it from photos as a birthday gift.

I See the Forest

For Instructor Richard's studio class Mary brought garden flowers and a lovely yellow vase to paint. While I have never gravitated to painting still life from unsuccessful attempts in the past, I am enjoying the speed and vitality of a 3 hour session. After about an hour and a half I looked at the other two painters work and discovered that they really were painting the flowers and vase as the main subject matter. Amazing! I looked at the same thing and saw the table cloth, vase, shadow composition (oh, yeah, there were flowers there, too!). I am truly a landscape painter. I see the forest and not the trees, as it seems. (Left room for lots of commentary here--be gentle).

Which brings us up to date on my painting struggles and triumphs. Based on the above composition, it is apparent that I am able to view a subject and pick out simplicity of shape and form. The next step, and this is the critical one to make an OK painting a great painting, is what to put back in. The exquisite dashes and dots and sparkles that speak to the light source and follow form. To be or not to be? Oh, what to leave in; what to leave out? That is the question.

I have to learn to see both--the forest... and the trees...

4th of July

I admit it. I was a slug. Here is the only painting that I completed in 3 vacation days. Work with me on this...

Note to KK. Found the doll clothes that you made for me. Why didn't you go into fashion design? I had the MOST STYLIN' outfits for Cisette & Betsy. Sisters--S&S and I had a wonderful time reminiscing. Wish you could have been there.

Barn Bluff

Artist Sharon and I took an early morning road trip and ended up in Red Wing. After a bit of deliberation we crossed over to the Wisconsin side of the river and discovered a Caribbean-like private marina and campgrounds. We set up easels on the rocks and acted like we belonged there and had a perfect morning believing that we were on vacation somewhere else...and we were. We were in Wisconsin and they not only allow themselves more fun. They have a better perspective of Barn Bluff than the folks in Red Wing. We will return. Perhaps with a tent.

Boat Trifecta

We live in the Land of 10,000 Lakes and it makes sense that we all own boats of various sizes and descriptions. Here are just three (actually 4) of them commemorated in paint. I really enjoyed painting them because each painting suggests a story rather than depicting a time and

place.

Thanks to Instructor Richard these paintings were all brought to completion despite rain, cold and biting insects. Part of his job is to cajole us into staying the course when paintings go wrong and the environment gets tough. Thanks again, Richard!

Grand Marais

It was glorious to spend four days thinking about nothing but painting. The spectacular inland coast of Lake Superior is quite a departure from Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary. Even though the overall effect is a series of big shapes (such as sky, lake, rocks) a successful painting depended on value relationships...or the value sandwich...as it came to be called thanks to Instructor Neil. The weather and lake was as "well behaved" as I have ever seen it, but the values were difficult to discern based on cloud shadows, glare, and special lake effects, such as white-out-fog. It was humbling to try to capture the light and beauty of this place, but most of all it was fun to experience four days of immersion with such accomplished painters.

Gone Painting

Heading up to Grand Marais for a 4 day workshop with Richard Abraham and Neil Sherman. I'm taking all of my favorite gear--paint box, tent & kayak. It will be heavenly to paint without time constraints. Check back on Monday for an update.

Springbrook Nature Center

Life is ironic. People, places, events that you don't take much notice of have a way of winding their way back to you. Let's take Springbrook Nature Center, for example. I was the leader of a Sierra Club outing there. I spoke at a press conference after it was saved from becoming a golf course. I almost sent my "Save Springbrook" tee shirt to the Goodwill (but something stopped me) and now I work nearby. I go there 2-3 times per week now. When I first read about it and heard about the financial plight that would turn it into a golf course, I had no idea that any personal connection would develop. Life is ironic...the mystery of life's twists and turns are wonderful.

Driving West [in my mind]

Been thinking about driving west...I like the BIG SKY, the flat plains, and a long highway...probably won't happen this summer, but this painting conjured up some memories of camping and driving in the SoDak Badlands.

So Green

Mother Earth has performed her magic again and has taken us [in Minnesota] from two-tone-winter and transformed into 30 shades of green in four weeks. I love this transition. I love the faint yellow fringes of emerging leaves. I watch their progress every day...I just don't know what to do with them in paint.

Shouldn't there be more colors describing "green" in the crayon box for young artists? Colors like: yellowy green, pond reflection green, cool greeny shadow green, warm greeny shadow green, not to be confused with purpley shadow green, etc. Green is very complex and deserves a description with more expression and flare then---green. It should have two syllables, at least! Perhaps Verde works better!

Let this post serve as a humble retraction of the final statement from the previous post.

Kitchenscape

I love painting landscapes in oil. As long as I stay focused I can paint indoor-scapes with the same enthusiasm. Here is Instructor Richard's kitchen in the new spacious studio space. While purple is not the regular Home&Garden kitchen recommendation, it works great for a painting about a kitchen space. I vote for purple to stay...

Every single time I pick up a brush I learn something new and this one was no exception. The mantra: stay focused, on task, and think about the relationship of all elements together, is my guiding principle as learned from John Muir, the founder of the Sierra Club back in 1890s: "Tug on anything at all and you'll find it connected to everything else in the universe." This quote has carried me through Sierra Club advocacy campaigns, Grad school, painting, and life in general.

I can paint everything... including the kitchen sink...when I see the connections and simplify the complexities.

Winter is Over!

Cousin KK from CA is the only one enjoying snow scenes because she is basking in relatively balmy weather. Is the garden up yet?...While Minnesotans are getting testy and are starting to "request" spring paintings with open water and blooming trees to lift their spirits. Geez! Look outdoors!... Well, here is the last winter painting. And I saved the best for last! I (personally) think that MN outdoor painters must be the best due to extreme conditions and close values. In winter, we take 2 colors and capture a light that is rarely observed from inside the car driving down the freeway, and in summer, we take "salad bowl green" and give it perspective and form. Add the ability to draw graceful lines to represent trees and the courage to use #10 brushes to add some atmosphere and you could place us anywhere....except a cityscape, perhaps.

Brown is Beautiful

April is here and the white stuff is starting to get annoying. A couple of posts ago I was lamenting brown. Now I embrace it! Thank you to all for your public and private comments. And to John for reminding me that its time for another post. Sorry to report that you will have to look at one more winter scene in the post to follow and then if need be I will post paintings from Spring 08...or there may be a rebellion of sorts.

First Snow--Painting #2

Sometimes a place inspires you to paint with more expression than others. There is a library of memories that play in your head. You are there with the feel of the season and time and place. The brush marks symbolize the arch of branches that form a familiar canopy of trees in summer. Such is the love of This Place. Each of the elements are parts of a bigger whole. If I were a singer, instead of a painter, I would have sang this ever so sweetly...

Bail Out

Sunny Day. Temp reached 50 degrees. After changing locations 3 times, the painters were back to the Bruce Vento standard, but things were going badly...wind, ice, and a scene that was primarily raw umber + white on steroids. Instructor Richard had to put up with some whining and dispensed advice and color notes on how to persevere. The result was surprisingly pleasing and a good lesson on gravel roads. Will never see them again the same way.

What will we do next week without having bits of snow and ice glare for frosting? The world will truly be brown with a capital B. What would Wyeth do?

First Snow--Painting #1

The angle of the sun is changing and the days temperatures are starting to promise the warmth of Spring. Time to publish the snow paintings before it's too late. I have a series of paintings from the first snow at the Mantorville farmstead. H-m-m-m-m. Let's call this one--Painting #1.

Finding Puffins

Say the word "Puf' fin" out loud. Now say it again with more enthusiasm-PUFF-F inn-n. And visuals of Julie Andrews twirling on a mountain top come to mind...These puffin water birds defy both gravity and sentimentality. They are wise and the entertainers of the bird world. I spent an enjoyable Saturday morning painting their habitat at Como Zoo and little glimpses of them too.

At least I remember that it was overall enjoyable. Remember how I was lamenting in the last post about how human models suffer nerve damage by standing in awkward positions for extended periods of time for art? Well, I forgot to mention just how wacky plein-aire painters are: I was kneeling for 2-1/2 hours on cement with a cushion of fleece jacket under my knees and still called it great fun. The split view I painted of the exhibit tank required that I be lower than the birds. Other painters would never admit to these bouts of insanity for art. These are our secrets....

Please note instructor extraordinaire, Richard Abraham, in "Followers" section. Visit his painting a day to see how its really done.

Juxtaposition Penguins

As a student of art, drawing is the basis of ALL successful results. We spend a great deal of time drawing the human figure. The class with a naked model is called something like "life drawing" and although the title is cloaked with encryption, the model is not. Now you would think that modeling for artists is an easy job. It is not! The professionals (and, yes, there are aging models who indeed make a living taking the bus around town to drawing co-ops to disrobe) suffer from a multitude of maladies including hip problems and nerve damage from standing motionless in a variety of awkward positions for up to 20 minutes for the love of art.

That brings us to plein-aire painters who cannot comfortably paint in temps below 9 degrees F. We seek an indoor experience in these sorts of temperatures and what could be better than the Como Zoo? After a tour of the zoo, it was decided that the models for the day would be penguins (puffins with wild-Einstein-hair moved too fast). At least it seemed like a good idea. They were unpredictable, they needed frequent swimming breaks, and their shape is unlike anything I have ever drawn in "quick-draw" style before. Think about it: bird skeletons in a bag. But there were no animals harmed for science and they certainly did not suffer the ills of nerve damage like their human counterparts.

First Post

Decided to start putting my recent paintings on-line for family and friends to follow my painting journey. It feels a bit like wearing a bathing suit to a dinner party, but let's jump in the water and have a go at it...

I frequently paint on Saturdays at Bruce Vento Park and this is one of my favorites from last summer. My intent is to post a new painting every week.