Work in progress

This is the painting I began last week. Progress...but still so much to do.

Petals

This is a painting I've just finished up. I started it last spring but it was never quite working so I put it away. It's taken a few turns but I'm ready to stop now. I think it's done.
acrylic on stretched canvas / 8"x10" / $165

Plein air on a farm

Warning: This is a six picture post - I was really taken with the place ; ) Fresh autumn air + a farm and paints = a perfect day. This was the tree that stopped me in my tracks. So much flow.

The initial stages...

View to my right...

 ...and behind me.

My painting at the end of the day. Obviously there's much to develop & refine but it was a great couple of hours and it felt so good to be out there surrounded by bright colours, crisp air and a light wind whipping around! More to come! Acrylic on stretched canvas, 14"x18"

A beginning

Today was a boring but necessary afternoon in the studio. I had a bunch of paintings whose edges needed painting...yawn. So I thought I'd post the initial drawing for a painting I did last week when I was painting outside - I did this after "Roots". This is 12"x12" but I'm going to work it up to a larger scale after this study.

Roots

Here's what it looks like today. I am still debating whether to darken the top strip - really darken. I'm going to have to think on that...
This is acrylic on stretched canvas, 12"x12"

Leaves, Roots and Black Gesso

The leaves are changing and it is starting to look gorgeous! This is a bit of the colour I saw today. Fabulous, yes? Wow, does nature ever give us a show. THANK YOU trees!

So walking through the woods, I came across an embankment and the twisted, exposed roots from the trees grabbed my attention. I've always found the shapes they create so intriguing. I had a canvas that I had prepped with black gesso and began my work on that. It's the first time I've used black gesso. Kind of cool but I found I really had to be thoughtful about my darks. I definitely didn't want to rely on the black as my dark because I think it can look dead. So I mixed up some deep dark paint to work with.

Here is a detail. I will be developing/finishing the rest tomorrow. And I can't wait to dive back in! I love it when you get the feeling that you just want to to paint non-stop.

Tangle

It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanates from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit. ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

I'm finished! I really enjoyed developing this piece. And it's my favourite subject to paint.

20"x24" / acrylic on canvas / $585

Rhythm Wood

This was a plein air painting I did after the pond study I posted yesterday. After the pond I turned to my right and was attracted to the light and shadow play in the forest. There was a really exciting rhythm happening.

acrylic on canvas / 8"x10"

Pond surface study

This week I did some plein air painting. The weather is just about as glorious as it gets. This was a study I did on a section of a pond in Ancaster. There was so much going on and I was trying to capture it and semi-abstract it, without getting fussy. Quite tough actually! I may use this for a basis of larger painting. 

acrylic on canvas / 8x10 

Continuation

Here's what I worked on today. I added finer branches of various tones and began working on the colours in the background shapes. It's starting to take shape!

Progress so far

 These are the next steps on the tree I began at the conservation park Saturday. My goal this next year is to continue working at abstracting the landscape. Well, semi-abstracting. I still intend to develop the background shapes/colours and values. This is acrylic.

Grimsby's Night (and Day) of Art

Saturday was Grimsby's Night (and Day) of Art. The Niagara Region was chosen as the Cultural Capital of Canada for 2012. Because of that designation communities across the region have had events to celebrate all facets of the arts. Pretty cool stuff! One of my children and I were positioned at a conservation park. He played celtic fiddle tunes and exhibited his sketches and I worked on a painting. In the evening there was a party at the local art gallery that included live music, contemporary dance and art. A really lovely night.

today's effort

Apologies if you're getting tired of seeing these progress shots. Hope to finish it soon! I've been really armiring the work of Hashim Akib lately. I think this is where some of my strokes are coming from ; ) Check him out. He's fantastic.

This week has been crazy but I plan on settling in to a regular painting schedule next week. Wait. Didn't I say that last week? Happy weekend everyone : )

(detail)

Still working on those trees...

I came across an interesting thing a while back. I was reading my friend Nicki Ault's blog and she spoke about how she sometimes began in acrylic and then painted over top in oil. I never knew you could do this! I began thinking it might just be what the doctor ordered for my trees! To me it was looking too pointilism-ish and I wanted to soften yet retain strong shards of colour. So I began working over top in oil. On the left is the oil and to the right is the original underlaying acrylic. As always, I'll keep you posted!

Good Cheer - SOLD

It's been a while since I painted wine bottles so I decided to re-visit them. They're such a challenge but it feels like a good work-out : )

6"x6" / oil on canvas / $100( (includes free shipping worldwide)

Trees continued...

I've taken it in a new direction. Trees will become much more prominent - haven't got to them yet - and I will probably knock back some of the background colour. Experimenting ; )

Trees continued...

Continuing on my trees. Building up more layers. This one's going to take a while.

Glow

Today I was working on the trees from yesterday, and it's been progressing, but I forgot my camera. No matter, I realized that I'd never posted my demo painting from the last plein air day at The Good Earth so I thought I'd share it tonight. I had intended to go back to the site and work on it another day, refine it...but too many days passed and now I'm glad I didn't. I like the loose, sketchy feel. Detail below.

Glow / acrylic on wrapped canvas / 12"x16" / $275

Plein air today

The weather was beautiful and fresh today so I promptly took advantage of it and went out to paint. I did my sketch on a wash of cad red and then started in with some thin washes. Right now it looks like a candy-coloured quilt or something but this is just the beginning. There will be many layers of paint. You know me...it will probably turn into a figure painting or something...lol Speaking of plein air, there are still a few openings for this Friday's class at The Good Earth in Beamsville. This will be the last painting event of the year there. No experience? No problem. Every class has had a couple of people who've never held a brush but have always wanted to give it a whirl. Details here.

Concords

It's that time of year again...local grapes are ready! I live in a fruit belt. And I fully appreciate it. There's a joke about donut shops being on every corner in Canada and where I live I like to joke there's a winery on every corner. Close to the truth actually! : )
Anyway, I set out to paint these grapes and they were just a blendy mushy mess. I wiped off the painting and re-focused. I wanted to concentrate on crisp shapes and clear values and this is the result.
6"x6" / oil on canvas / $100 (includes free shipping worldwide)

Beach sketches

Today I was going to head to the studio and do a full day of painting but plans changed. One of my kids did battle with a wasp and the wasp won. Let me tell you, they are nasty! This sting (from a week back) required a doctor's visit yesterday and a bunch of pills for the next few days.
Anyway, in lieu of that I am posting some figure sketches I did at the lake on Monday. Now the problem with sketching people at the lake is their unfortunate habit of moving. Why must they do that? So these sketches were very quick studies, and it was good practice.

plein air in Hespeler Village

This is how the painting looks now. I may be working on it further - I have to sit and stare at it a while and decide. I had to finish the painting in my studio as I didn't get it completed outside and the location is over an hour away.
I am really itching to get outside and paint. Just waiting for this humidity to break. I'm not wishing for snow and frigid temperatures but let's just say I may actually run outside and dance on the first fresh day. I love you autumn!

Plein Air Painting in Hespeler

Well, school is back in swing now and it's time for me to get back to blogging. Enough of my delinquent ways. But wow, the summer seemed to fly by. Is that age? : )
Today's post is from a plein air painting event that transpired August 25th: A Day and A Night in Hespeler Village. Artists were scattered around the village, along with musicians and a number of pop-up galleries. A great day! The musician near me was David Charles Fox. What a beautiful way to paint - with your own live musician! I was down by the water and it was very peaceful.

My set-up and the beginnings of my painting. Tomorrow I'll show the painting as it looks now.

 David Charles Fox, a fine musician and a visual artist as well.

Someone was attracted to cobalt blue.

 Back at one of the pop-up galleries at the end of the day with Sandy and Victoria.

Walls at one of the galleries