This and That

Looking forward to warm weather and painting outside again.

I attended the IPAPA (Indiana Plein Air Painters Assoc.) annual meeting several weeks ago in Indianapolis.

It's always good to see familiar faces. We traded small unframed paintings and I came home with a Jeff Klinker original. It's hanging on my newly developed "Friends Wall".

That's all for now......

Portraits

Its been a long winter.

Thought maybe I'd get outdoors in the snow and paint but alas.... it didn't happen.

Took a bit of a detour and dabbled in some portrait painting.

Maybe I need more practice before I'm willing to post anything. Most is not finished anyway.

I found this quote to be helpful....??  I'll keep practicing.

"Imagine breaking down even the most complex painting into just a handful of shapes. Painter Ron Hicks has found that the process of portrait painting can be intimidating, if not overwhelming, to even the most practiced painters because a lot of detail is often confused with what makes a successful portrait. For Hicks, it is just the opposite. Hicks believes that a powerful oil portrait--or painting of any subject, for that matter--is not in the details, but in the fundamental forms of a composition. A well-executed portrait is one that describes a person's face or bearing with just a few shapes. Just as you can probably identify a friend or loved one from a distance because you know the general structure of their face and head, you can paint a portrait by representing those same large masses."     by Ron Hicks

Guess I'd rather be in Paris?

More later......

Painting Together

I found this post in one of my Reader sites: "Artist Daily"

"As much as the stereotype of the solitary painter working alone and shutting him- or herself off from the world makes artists seem mysterious and cool, I've found that artists tend to be fairly social creatures, and their cool factor isn't lessened by their sense of community.

But I think it is mostly about enjoying each other’s company. Working creatively takes a lot of personal perseverance and being able to come together as a group with friends and fellow artists makes the struggles seem less insurmountable and the successes a lot more worthwhile. And there is always the opportunity to learn from each other—that’s what I enjoy the most. Open and honest dialogging on what we are all passionate about. 

Sometimes you compare and contrast working methods and come away with a better understanding of how the process can work for you and how you can achieve your own vision knowing what others have tried.

You can also get exposed to new ways of working and share discoveries you have made about your medium of choice or working method. "

As I read this I was reminded of our little group of artists that have been meeting almost every week for the past 5 years. There are about a dozen of us with a variety of medium and level of ability. It's a time I very much look forward to.

Been working on some drawing lately. Like anything else practice is necessary to become better so here are some practice pieces...... Next time maybe there will be improvement?


I like tennis so this is a combo effort.

I finished up these pieces a while back.

There are more of this barn.

I really loved it and have had fun painting it

from several different views.

Guess I'll be signing off now....

bye

This and That

Yes, Its been a long time since the last post. 

What have I been doing? 

Well, if you want excuses.... there was Christmas and New Years and life. 

Besides my energy level for painting during the winter kind of wanes. 

The winter for me tends to be a time of practice. 

I get back to drawing, sketching and attempting things that are out of my comfort zone.

For instance.... Here are a couple of books I've been reading and learning from.

As much as I like the outdoor painting, it's nice to switch up for a while and tackle something different. I find when practicing I don't turn out as many finished pieces.

The other thing I find to occupy my time is to watch videos. There are some good ones out there and you might even find some at your local library. I watched this one recently. He is very detailed and an excellent painter. Even though I won't paint quite like this I find I can glean something from most all painters.

As you can see portraits are a current interest to me. It's a subject I've mostly stayed away from because I find it very hard. Getting the correct flesh colors are still pretty difficult for me.  You can see from the following attempt I have a ways to go. With help, I'll try to stay with it.

I write this sitting here at Border's. My favorite place to hang out. Usually my good friend is hanging out with me but today she is way down in Texas with family, probably enjoying some warm weather. It's snowy and cold here. Guess I'll have another mocha and find a good magazine to read.

Bye for now.....

Paintings

I have been working on a couple of new things...

They are small.

This is one I did from Brookville, IN

It's a scene in the country and the patch in front is tobacco.

 size 8x10

This is from a picture I took as we headed out of Vancouver, BC on our way to Alaska this past summer.

It's taken just before we went under the Lion's Gate bridge and the coast line is of the Stanley Park Seawall.

It's late afternoon and very foggy.

size 9x12

An amateur picture just doesn't do it justice.

I had wanted to try a foggy painting. I might try another now.
My hero David Slonim does marvelous grey and foggy paintings.
See what you think.



David Slonim's Paintings of American small town and rural landscapes are filled with scenes familiar to many. But his are not romantic, idealized images. These are canvases that capture both the beauty and the unadorned reality of everyday life. The artist's versatile palette and bold, impressionist brushwork turn these paintings away from mere sentimentality. They are strong, compelling, tributes to commonplace things, places, and events that exist with quiet dignity. David also writes and illustrates children's books, which are available at online and traditional booksellers. Visit his children's book web site at davidslonim.com. 




I'm going to try another house this winter.
It's the Swinney house out on W Jefferson.
Here is a look at the photo.
I loved the play of light on the front of the house.

...and here is my start.
I find I have to have a good drawing as a base.

See ya...

Art Show

We have a group of ladies that meet once a week and use a room in our church. Our congregation doesn't really know what we are doing every week when we get together so we were asked to do a display of our collective work. Some of the pieces are done in oil, watercolor, pastel, pencil or whatever art project anyone is working on presently.

It turned out to be a show with at least 100 pieces of artwork, some of it for sale. The pictures to follow are the result of this endeavor.

Some of the paintings were Interpretations of the Masters.

Overall, I think it was a big success!

Bye!

Workshops

I recently attended a painting workshop

in Brown County at the Waycross Retreat Center.

On our way there we keep an eye out for photo opportunities.

This time we found......

There's more than corn in Indiana.
Camel or Dromedary?

And this young man was just strutting his stuff.

Guess he wasn't big on being Thanksgiving dinner.

There was a nice morning mist

as we looked out the studio window.

The workshop was held in the lower floor of this building.

We stayed over night in the lodge near by.

These are the paintings we were to work on

with some new techniques to learn.

Mine don't look quite the same
and I managed to change a couple
of things after coming home.

All in all it was a good learning experience and a fun weekend.


Bye for now!