Masked Bandit (oil, 6"x6")

I have a raft of reasons for my nearly 3 month break from blogging. Well, okay, some are reasons and some are excuses. Three come to mind.... a 3 week visit to Japan over Christmas (yay!), bronchitis, and the winter blahs. 'Nuff said. The good news is that I've still been enjoying some painting time. However, I need the quasi-accountability that I find when I'm blogging. It makes me more productive. So, here goes...

I often find myself glancing out my kitchen window looking for birds. Have I mentioned I love birds? Anyway, huge flocks of cedar waxwings have been swooping in an out of my neighbours backyard, loving on their fruit tree leftovers. Enjoy!

 

 

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Bow Lake Beauty (oil on panel, 9"x12")

I set up reminders for all the FCA jury deadlines earlier this year. Last week my phone began to remind me daily of the impending cut-off for the Small, Smaller, and Smallest exhibit (works up to 164 square inches). Those reminders were beginning to get on my nerves :-).

On Thursday I decided to take off my hand brace and see how it withstood a painting session. I limited myself to short sessions and long breaks with ice and heat for my hand. Habits gather rust. Planning a painting is much easier when you're doing it regularly. Finding a subject was the biggest challenge. I have a huge collection of reference photos but nothing new felt right. I selected these trees along Bow Lake because I've painted this view before (Here). Having the mood and plan in my head was half the battle. This ensured I didn't spend a bunch of my time planning...I could just dive in and paint.

My hand cooperated reasonably well. It's a bit shaky and small, repetitive movements are a challenge. But, we made it through and I'm pretty happy with the result. Whether Bow Lake Beauty is accepted into the show or not, I really enjoyed painting again! Have a great weekend!

 

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Day's End (9"x12", oil)

This quick sketch is the result of cleaning my oil palette in preparation for our California trip. Oil paint doesn't last forever on a palette and unfortunately, my hand hasn't been cooperating with my plans. Today I painted through the pain. This image was meant to feel relaxed, like an evening after a hot lake day. Everything felt great as I painted...except my right hand, which complained bitterly. I can't get over how much of daily life involves my dominant hand! Amazing!

 

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Athabasca Falls (oil, 16"x20")

Athabasca Falls, in Alberta's Jasper National Park, is stunning all the time. But when we visited in June last year it was thundering even harder than usual after more than a week of steady rain. Awesome doesn't begin to describe the power. I've taken a shot at painting it this week. I'll have one more session to settle a few details but it is close to done. Cheers!

 

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Rocky Bloom (oil, 8"x10")

On the rocks along Sheep River, near the falls, these tiny lavender flowers go about their blooming business as they are designed to do by their creator. They do this despite their rocky perch and sandy soil and despite the likelihood that no one will sing their praises. They do this for the audience of one, their creator who does all things well.

 

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Seriously Tiffany (oil, 8x10)

Hopefully, some of you will recognize some of the features of my nieceTiffany Matson's in this painting. What a might struggle I've had with this one! There are so many tiny things that make each of us individuals, not the least being animation. Tiffany, in real life, is a much more animated person - she doesn't hold her cards tightly at all. At least that's been my experience. This shows the more serious side of her, pensive, etc. This is based on a photo I took when she modelled for the portrait portion of the Zhaoming Wu workshop several weeks ago. Unfortunately, I had to leave soon after we began so I painted from the photos at home, without the help and coaching of Zhaoming Wu and my fellow painters. I'm fairly happy with the result, although I have barely scratched the surface of what can be learned about painting portraits. I've left it to dry for now but I may play with warming up the colours before calling it finished. It was so much fun!

 

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The challenges of painting figures

This painting is my most successful one from the Zhaoming Wu workshop last week. Unfortunately, I failed to notice the looseness of the canvass until the stretcher bars began showing through. Fortunately, the learnings are just as valid whether or not the paintings turn out :). Cheers!

 

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Zhaoming Wu Workshop

Today was my first day at Zhaoming Wu's workshop hosted by FCA Calgary. Zhaoming painted for the morning and then coached us throughout the afternoon. It was fun but exhausting ;). I had a great seat for his morning demo and he is masterful and magical to watch. Makes it look SO easy. NOT. Here's the beginning of my painting from this afternoon's pose. I concentrated on the early stages and will probably finish up later from my reference photos, although they make a poor substitute for a live model!

 

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Home Time (6"x6", oil)

Just fun little sketch done on an overcast, gloomy spring day recently. I had fun starting this off completely abstract and then found this red booted person. I'm really looking forward to studying under Zhaoming Wu May 25-30 in Calgary. He is an amazing artist and a very experienced teacher - it should be a great week! Click on his name above to look at his work.

Happy Friday!

 

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By Any Other Name (oil on canvas, 6"x6")

Funny story about this little painting: As usual, I handed over my iPad and asked Ron what he thought about this painting. He looked hard and long and looked confused. I laughed and asked him what was confusing and he says "what is it?" Wow! Is it just me or does this look like a rose? Of course once I spelled it out he could see it but it kind of made me wonder, haha. Still, I like it. Happy Friday!

 

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Hakone Fall (WIP, oil, 16x20)

I reoiled this painting from March and attempted to salvage it, or, if that's not doable, to at least learn something from it. Some artists say they struggle with yellows, others greens. Sure, I've had my moments with those colors but RED objects in a landscape just baffle me. I feel that i need to deepen and cool the values of the bottoms of the leaf clumps. What, pray tell, am I doing wrong? Any suggestions most welcome. I love autumn and just have to sort this out. In any case, I do like it better now than I did on my first post March 1st. I will have to adjust the shadows on the pathway eventuallyand, apparently, further dull the colors of the background areas behind the trees. Wish me luck!

This is what it looked like March 1st:

 

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The Gloaming at Sheep River Fall (oil, 24"x24")

I first painted The Gloaming at Sheep River Falls in early 2012 and I hung it in my home in Calgary. I saw it every day and something really bugged me about it. Sometimes it takes me a long time to figure out what I want to change andthat was the case here. Indetermined not to hang it here in Lloydminster until I figured it out. There were just a few minor changes:

• The blue of the sky and water was too warm. I glazed turquoise lightly over the sky and in places on the river.
• The tips of the trees on the left, although lighter, were too warm. These I glazed with an almost grey mix to dull and cool them.
• The foreground rocks were also too warm for this time of day so I toned them with mixes of greens and blues.
• The water spray is in full shadow at this time of day, so my water was far to light and bright. I scumbled the blue and greenish greys into the white water to tone it.

There were a few other tweaks but those were the primary issues. What do you think? I like it much better now than I did before. Have a great day!

 

The Gloaming at Sheep River Falls - before...

 

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Misty Spirit Island (Oil on canvass, 6"x6")

I had a refreshing break from the winter weather when we visited Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico for a week over Easter. This tropical paradise is between Acapulco and Guatamala on the pacific side and has warm, almost guaranteed, weather. We saw one cloud, one day. Mexico moved to develop and protect a large portion of the area as Huatulco National Park in 1998. As a result, the most delicate coastal areas are protected from resort development. Those resorts built south of the national park are limited to just a few of the 18 bays. Although I didn't shop much in Huatulco, I did manage to bring something home from Mexico. However, I'm finally feeling a bit better and I'm back in my studio so - yay! Nothing can make me fall out of love with Mexico. Nothing.

Contrast that with the subject of this little painting...another gorgeous paradise -Jasper National Park. Long snowy winters and short, dry summers, are the norm in Jasper. Spirit Island is an iconic landmark in this area. It's accessible only by tour boat (or canoe/kayak but I don't count that ;-). I visited this gorgeous spot on an overcast day in late September 2007, just days before the end of the tour season. We woke up to a cold, drizzly morning. But, being optimistic about the weather Gregg Johnson, our painting instructor, led us onto the boats. We watched rain stream down the boat windows during our 45 minute ride. But, as we rounded the corner to Spirit Island, a weak sun was attempting to burn off the fog. The color of the water is incredible - more towards emerald than this little painting indicates. Simple put - the place is stunning! A fantastic place for plain air painting and a great reference source as well. Cheers!

 

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Kyoto Street Scene (oil, 6"x6")

I spent so much time on this little painting, relative to its size! One thing about painting a small street scene that seems counterintuitive is the importance of details. Too much detail is impossible with my brushes (1/2" here)'but too little detail doesn't tell the story. That said, the most critical factor in this painting is the light. It was a fun afternoon project for a stormy spring equinox day. I hope it's warmer where you are... Calgary, I already know you're basking in spring sun - lucky!

 

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Kiyosumi Garden (oil, 16"x20")

I've done a bit of rework on this painting (previous post here) and I think the bridge shape and the colours are working better for me. I've also concluded that my paintings must be taken upstairs into natural light for proper photos... Which means I need better lighting in my basement studio - I'm still getting used to the new setup.

Enjoy your day!

 

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Nijo Castle Donjon WIP ( oil, 11"x14")

When we visited the Nijo castle (Unesco world heritage site since 1994) in Kyoto, Japan last November the weather was gloomy and wet. With 4 kids in tow (one having a full on meltdown) we were hustling to get inside the castle by the 4 pm cutoff. The castle itself is amazing but I would have loved some photos of all those 17th century murals and gold work. The guides are HARD-CORE about the no camera rule though!

The nightingale floors in the castle are pretty cool. They squeak and make whispery noises by design, allowing guards to protect their masters in feudal Japan.

This painting features the castle donjon, or central keep stone walls. The 5 storey keep itself burned to the ground in 1750. I painted this because I have fond memories of my visit there, a lesson in determination...Doug (my son-in-law) rushed around Kyoto and made sure we got to see this castle. He was initially inhibited by pouring rain and grumpy kids. But it was worth it... We toured the castle in the rain and by the time we got to the gardens the rain had eased up. Suddenly the ancient stones glowed in the light, and the grumpy kid turned up happy. Japan is a fascinating, patient place. I love it!

 

 

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Hakone Fall (oil, 16x20)

This is my latest project as it stands today. The autumn colors were spectacular when I visited Hakone in the fall of 2011. It is a struggle to capture even the tiniest portion of how I felt walking amongst the maple trees and the uber-groomed shrubs lining this pathway. The reflected sky is everywhere on the topmost leaves, giving them a pinkish hue. I'd welcome your suggestions and or comments if you have any! Happy March - spring is just around the corner :-)

 

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Kiyosumi Garden (oil, 16"x20")

I loved my visit to Kiyosumi Garden in Tokyo in 2011. This garden has a interesting story. It's peaceful and calming in the midst of hyper-active Tokyo. I was there in the fall when the maples were just into their turning. The leaves are a rusty red, really a green-red composite. Beautiful! I feel I've captured a peaceful scene and I'll leave it to dry before deciding whether or not to tweak it. Blessings!

 

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Winter Plowing (oil, 6"x6")

Playing around on a little square canvas today and found this guy frolicking in the snow. Enjoy!

 

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Mount Fuji (oil, 8"x10")

I got back to painting some of my views from Japan today. It was fun. This view is half my photo reference and half imagination... This viewpoint over Lake Ashi was rather dull in the foreground of my photo. So, I added a spring foreground of blossoms. Oil is just so much fun to paint with! Cheers!

 

 

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