Paris, canvas 1167

Never painted Paris. So as the first, hard to say where this 44x40 wrap ends up. The Paris give away is of course the iconic Eiffel Tower. I don 't want there to be any confusion where this is. Kinda like our Empire State Building....(never painted that either). A painting needs a bit more than an imposing structure to make it a compelling, paintable subject able to find a proper wall to hang around on. Like something inspirational.... something moody like sunlight with some atmospheric air and water reflections to get your attention.

All one has to do is look at Google images to know Paris is an overwhelmingly gorgeous city. Photos, photos and more photos tell us it is. When France turns on the lights, gilding the lily is something France does exquisitely well like no other. What I love is they do it to excess. Paris is an eye popper to wet our whistle. A good art photographer with patience, a good eye and a bit of luck can tell a compelling story in the right situation. Both the art photographer and painter has to dream a bit more to make it go well beyond a simple photo to an aesthetic reality on photo paper or a studio canvas. 

I have a bit of a learning curve figuring out how to render the tower. The shape is easy, the stuff in between is another matter.

DAY 1, Saturday

DAY 2, Sunday

DAY 3, in the studio, Monday

DAY 4, Tuesday

DAY 5, Wednesday (focusing the light)

ONE MORE ADJUSTMENT

Untitled Paris 44x40 oil on linen wrap (8-16-17 canvas 1167)

My last day in Paris, I adjusted the light to a narrower path and darkened the tree line....in general, more muted tonally. A few boats or something of interest in the river might have made sense, but I like the quiet nature of this painting. The sky is intense and yet not. The tower works....all it needs is a proper name.

A FEW CLOSEUPS 

This one fared well. Lets just  say "beginners luck", because the next one didn't......

Canvas 1166 - studio, merging references

August is starting off on a good foot. Until seconds before I started this 30x30 canvas below, I did not know what would be on it! Lately nothing really got me in the mood....then "Bam!" An Italian Riviera countryside (Ventimiglia) and a Virginia sunset collided. They were a perfect match up. Neither on their own were remarkable...... that will be my job:=)

 Saturday, August 5th

 Sunday, August 6th

My sky was painted to a 99% completion during the first session using the Virginia hillside sunset from Libby Terrace. There was no consideration for my countryside reference until I made the connection with the mountain range and only a suggestion of the river. The next session allowed  me to easily adjust the landscape tonally to a painted sky as opposed to the original reference material. All I had to do was follow the light and atmosphere down.

Monday, August 7th in the studio

Venice, Another Time (behind) is in the process of proofing for a limited edition Giclee

Most of yesterday was spent closing up the lower portion and refining the space up to the distant river. I did not paint the river in deliberately. The river is still raw canvas and will be the last element painted. The surrounding canvas will be dry so I can easily remove anything I don't like. More importantly, all the information is in place to make it merge better with my overall painting. The river could/should/does glow more than the sun because it's a surface reflection of the sun and will sparkle brighter. Anyway, that's the plan..:=)

TUESDAY, August 8th

 EVENING 30xx30 oil on linen (8-8-17 canvas 1166)

The river is done! The sky and sun were twerked a bit. Not much left to do except study it in different light conditions and find a frame.

Natural light (Early morning)

  EVENING 30xx30 oil on linen (8-8-17 canvas 1166)

Slept on it, studied it, still thinking about it.....never a good sign. Especially when you wake up in the middle of the night thinking about a pink sun, best move on it asap!

This looks more like an evening moon than a sinking sun. I am debating if I should change the sun to a pinkish colour. I know it originally was. Something my camera at the time would not necessarily pick up on.

PLEIN AIR 2009

Libby Sunset 8x10 oil on panel (8-8-09 canvas 132)

THURSDAY, August 10th (modification)

 Evening Over Ventimiglia 30xx30 oil on linen (8-10-17 canvas 1166)

Closeup marks are quite abstract

I actually did make it pink, but like a few other attempts it didn't hit my mark....and then it did. Fortunately the area was dry because it allowed me a lot of freedom on my part to figure it out. Every painting seems to have an odd/contrasting colour that makes it work with the whole. Soft orange did the trick here. Now its finished!

A new month of Swimming-in-Paint

Summer always brings great painting opportunities we as artists should take advantage of. Every weekend I spend my time coaching a great bunch of fellow artists exploring and painting with oil paint. Summer is a good time for landscape painting outdoors or in the studio from references or memories.

I like Plein air painting when something has my interest or it's related to my studio work. I am getting ready to take a refresher course with the sun.......I have to do that every once in a while to keep it fresh.  "Sunshine" (RV) will undoubtedly play an important roll this time around. Maybe armed with a GoPro drone:=)

 COACHES MESSAGE TO THE TEAM

In truth, its fun to paint and to paint with others. We learn from each other. Encourage each other throughout the day as we navigate over a blank canvas or perhaps a problem canvas started earlier in the studio. The latter often being the most challenging for any artist. Another set of eyes can be a valuable tool for any artist to have in their tool box.... and, the focus of this post.

 

I found coaching is more about problem solving than it is about the ABC's of painting. The basic stuff most of us learn on our own or other means. When we are trying to raise the bar it is a continuous and perhaps even a contentious process if we are serious about making art. Perhaps, more important if we are working artists or want to be. Because of this, we continually strive to improve our art. Our tool box may need things beyond the usual material stuff found there. Sometimes we need a second set of eyes to help it along. Someone able to offer a few words or a simple demonstration to jump start the process. Although, beyond words of encouragement, I found as a coach, words are less effective. I found the visual move or two with a brush is worth a 1000 words. So, another set of eyes able to do those things when needed is a valuable tool.

A SIMPLE ROAD MAP

 SPEEDS UP THE LEARNING PROCESS

Any team member can start a new canvas, but if they have a problem or stalled canvas started in the studio with an unsatisfactory outcome, it would be better to resolve it, understand why it failed before starting another. If you don't recognize the problem, you can not solve it.

Simple rule, if you know whats wrong, move on, improve it with the next and repeat the process until it is no longer an issue. But solve the issue first! Don't worry, you will have plenty of issues to solve along the way, so find a way to solve them efficiently, then move on to the next one. 

Swimming-in-Paint is learning how to construct a strong painting with good punctuation... how to frame it and how to present it to the public.......our potential collectors.... Something that should really be avoided until you have a canvas that reads well at 30 feet and is touchable closeup. The touchable part is a moving target and takes some time. Time we will spend the rest of our time mastering. 

We naturally go through learning curves. In this case "learning paintings", work that often leads to a final conclusion..... canvases worthy of wall space like the canvases above and below. This can be a few canvases to dozens before the process starts again. Those are the important works that will most likely find a future hanging around on good walls......

 

 Not much question this sweet moment caught by artist Susan Paavola will have a fine wall to show off on!

The learning canvases; well my guess is some end up in the attic space or trash bin. Be happy with the outcome at whatever level you are at. Kids are good at that, adults not so much. A painting I love today will fade with the next one........ I only hope today's work is better than last years. If its not, I'm on a learning curve to raise the bar......count on it!

This post reminded me of a particular painting I got so annoyed with I placed a big RED sloppy grumpy "X" across the surface..... I came to my senses the next morning and removed it, scraped the area that caused a fuse to "blow" and fixed it! There was an old post about that particular temper tantrum. (link below).

Link to Grumpy "X" post (12/10/12)

(A few posts down shows the stage photos) 

Venetian Melody 30x30 oil on linen (12-10-12)

 TODAY
 

 1163 Interlude 20x20 oil on linen (7/28/17)

Tracking and reviewing your work history via digital files will clearly show learning and mastering cycles. Use it! It is another valuable tool, like having another set of eyes, your own! Do side-by-side comparisons to other artists you admire, see your successes and recognize your weaknesses and work to improve them.

"Think big and accomplish big goals. The risks are great but so is the reward! There are no free rides"

A Drone??

Here it is, a sunny Tuesday morning, a brand new month..........my question to myself, what will it bring?

A large raw white canvas is on the easel....actually been there for a few days now. I know it needs attention, but I know there is nothing I really want to paint...... I can see Sunshine from my studio, she is parked in her spot, ready to go....well, almost. We took her for a run last week, loaded my equipment just in case something got my attention. A little early on that one tho. But it was an enlightening trip, nothing like "doing" to find out the ins and outs of something. 

 FIRST RV TRIP

ZOOLAND RV PARK, Asheboro, North Carolina 

Zooland was a nice park to hang out in, but isolated without a car. The park is family friendly with plenty of space to roam around in, I would go back again or hope to find many more like it. We left early, but should have stayed awhile and gotten use to it..... We have a punch list that needs to be worked on before the next trip! I couldn't get the TV to work! Yikes! We had it on our phones but......not the best solution.

 First night in an RV......oh my!

A nice river to paint and a small picturesque fishing pond

DOG FRIENDLY

 Riley really liked the doggy playground, it was very nice indeed 

A SUN TO PAINT

Our basic Sunshine plan is follow the sun with her for awhile. I need a refresher course outside the studio.......not to mention, I need new stuff to paint! I really like the idea of doing a few art fairs in between...... more equipment to lug around. We will see. Unquestionably it could be fun and entertaining.

What I discovered with Sunshine is, as small and easy to handle as she is, compared to most RV's out there.... there are limitations to getting around. You almost certainly need a small tow vehicle of some sort to explore with. Or, perhaps an artist needs a GoPro camera drone more, yes,  a drone......think about it, a GoPro could save a lot of time, get shots and angles totally unavailable otherwise. Certainly more fun than another logical choice like a simple bike, unless it was powered....not even then.

More than a drone.

Capture amazingly smooth footage in the air with a camera. More equipment, but I'll make the room for this very, very cool gadget. They have an excellent video worth watching!

I think short term home bases for Sunshine in a park like Zooland is the easy part. There is no shortage out there. Sunshine will easily fill its new role as a mobile studio with some tweaking, more equipment, a drone and a little more RV experience. 

Great word, experience! Hard to short cut it!