Plein Air Excursion, or It's Green Out There!

My EasyL box with an oil sketch

A couple of weeks ago, I went out to a farm near the Gallery at Paper Mill Road, met a few painters from Atlanta, and we had a great couple of hours in the morning, painting in the shade.  I tried an underpainting of transparent orange, which really came in handy that day, with all of the green grass, leaves, shrubs, etc.  I wouldn't always use this bright toning, but I was happy to have done so with that little study.  It IS nice to get out of the studio, though I don't seem to venture out unless meeting others!!  

Painting Children

Sketch of Evie, 20 x 16

Well, I have kids on my mind, as next Wednesday, I am teaching a one-day workshop on painting children, and I have been progressing on a portrait of the little one sketched above.   Commissions are always a challenge - seeing is compromised by imagining the seeing of another (i.e. the commisson-er)!

I totally admire portrait artists, who take the plunge every day - trying to please two masters. That being said, I do love painting children whose images I have captured at the ballet studio or at the pool or beach.  Their chunky bodies and the very little shapes of them are captivating to me -- I try to do an honest and not too "sweet" portrayal, with varying results!  Below is my latest ballet-inspired painting, and I will post the completed painting of Evie, sketched above, when done.

Pink Leotard, 24 x 18, Oil on Unbleached Linen

Fish Plate

Branching Out, 24 x 24

Well, when I was at the beach last month with my good friend, I found a little antique fish plate/shallow bowl, and I had been wanting one ever since I would see this type of piece in Laura Robb's wonderful work.  So, I bought it and am now in love with working it into various paintings.  And, I see that 2 pears have been making the cut lately as well....I had to really warm up the fish plate in the painting below since the linen background color is so gray.

First Hydrangeas, 16 x 16, Oil on unbleached linen (which I like using as the background)

Pose of the Rose

Rose Poetry, 12 x 12

Well, I have been away and busy catching up, and am just getting to posting the rose painting that I mentioned last time.  I didn't totally capture what I saw as the grace of the drooping rose, but I finished it last week, and decided it was fine.  It is hard for me to go back into a painting and find the colors and even the motivation that I had when starting, yet I often am trying to do just that, to varying results!   I have a gorgeous frame from Barbara Carter Frames (www.barbaracarterframes.com), which I am using on this piece, and it helps matters quite a bit.

Everyday Things, Part Deux

Switched On, 12 x 9

Well, here is another somewhat random subject - but different from my usual crocks, fruit and flowers.

I have been letting something catch my eye around the house and painting it!  It is oddly freeing to just paint, and paint whatever!  Meanwhile, today was an interesting day... I did several sketches on canvas that I loved, and still could not get an effect I liked on the now totally drooped roses.  Luckily, I took a photo yesterday, and will finish next week after I return from a brief sojourn in Tucson.  

Everyday Things

Where's My Purse, 9 x 12

My soft leather yellow bag, which I was ready to recycle, caught my eye last week, and I decided to paint it for a (slightly longer) warm up... I love the way the light caught the near side of this purse, and the slouchy "attitude" of the thing.  Meanwhile, I spent 2 hours today trying to catch the somewhat slumping "attitude" of a rose, that I loved observing, and could not quite catch.  I did the rest of the small  painting, and hope to finally communicate with paint the wonderful "pose of the rose" tomorrow.  I'll post when done!

Julep Cup

Julep Cup, 8 x 8

I painted a little julep cup on Sunday for a warm-up, inspired by the Kentucky Derby I guess!  I've been painting outside this week... I began 2 floral set ups en plein air yesterday -- caught the light effect on each and laid them in...hope to finish today.  Also, I've been working on several other paintings, trying to figure out what is needed, and doing smalls in between.  As I preach in my workshops, it's good to do

a quick alla prima exercise each day --  a small 20 - 30 minute study of anything -- a pear, a box, etc.  In fact, this morning I painted my yellow purse.  Until recently, I had not been doing many of these, and decided I need to follow my own advice (duh!), to loosen up before I work on larger pieces.  

By Sunday, I should have some paintings finished and will post some new work.  Below is a picture of my easel out on the front deck; we have a waterfall out there, and the atmosphere is great.  I dragged a large easel outside so I could work on 20 x 20 linen panels (from New Traditions - www.newtraditionsartpanels.com - I love them).  Bye for now!