Monday, February 26, 2007

Through the Trees

Painted sometime in the fall of 2004, at Mendon Ponds Park south of Rochester...it was a windy and cool day. I was struck by the vivid yellow foliage glowing behind a stand of trees, and tried to capture that. This 9x12 oil painting won and "Honorable Mention" award at the Suburban Rochester Art Club show in April, 2005. I felt somewhat daring putting that large tree right in the middle of the painting, but feel that it worked out OK.

Late Warmth

Painted on November 11, 2004. I remember this day...we had set up in a somewhat suburban location, on a cloudy afternoon. The light was pretty flat and I had a terrible time trying to paint a stream. I had given up and was ready to start packing my supplies, when the clouds broke and the late afternoon sun suddenly came out, flooding the house across the street with light. I had to try to paint that light, and had to do so quickly.

I scrubbed in the background trees very quickly, along with the foreground, then spent some time drawing the house and applying thick paint...the photo does not really do justice, this one looks better in real life.

Mendon Ponds #1

This was painted on September 10, 2004. It is oil on board, 9x12. Not one of my best paintings, but it has some "historical" significance, as it was the first day that I painted with a local group of plein air artists...kindred spirits. I've painted with these artists many times since, and my painting has improved considerably because of it. The group has since become "official", and is known as the Genesee Valley Plein Air Painters, Inc (GVPAP). Currently there are over 70 members.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Linwood Hay Bales

This painting, titled "Linwood Hay Bales", was done on August 24, 2004. It is oil on canvas, 12x16. Painted on a hazy, humid summer morning. The photograph is not too good, there is aliasing and the values are compressed a bit. This was the first plein air painting I did in Rochester that I was reasonably satisfied with. It won a "2nd Place, Oil/Landscape" award in the April 2005 Suburban Rochester Art Club show.

One thing I've noticed over the past few years is that I can remember almost everything about the day/time when a painting was done...the process seems to heighten the senses. During this painting I set up under a walnut tree without realizing it...until the wind blew and walnuts started falling all around me! I didn't get hit by any but certainly learned to look up before setting up to paint, as there are other hazards in trees (limbs that could fall, birds that could do what birds do, etc).

Joining the blog world...

I've decided to enter the "blog world". This site will be devoted primarily to my artwork, though other subjects may creep in from time to time. My long dormant interest in art was rekindled in the late 1990's when, during a move, I discovered an oil painting set given to me by my parents when I was a teenager. I remember following the painting instructions in the book that came with the set (something by Connie Gordon, I think). The paintings came out OK for what they were, and I still have some of them. However, when I tried to venture away from the book and paint on my own, the results were not suprisingly quite poor. I quickly lost interest and put the set aside, though it obviously traveled with me, stowed away in a box somewhere, for many years.

I did remain interested in art, though. My wife and I lived in the Albany NY area for about 8 years, and made numerous visits to the Sterling Clark museum in Williamstown MA. Fantastic art collection, if you're ever in the area. Then we had the good fortune to live in the Washington DC area for another 5 years, which meant many trips to the National Gallery of Art and other museums in the area. We then wound up near Richmond Virginia. The museums were not as plentiful, but the local art scene was fairly active.

It was in Virginia that I rediscovered that painting set...I played around with the paints a bit and finally decided to take a couple of classes. Along the way I met several artists who enjoyed painting outdoors...plein air painting. As soon as I started painting outdoors, I was hooked. My skills were not well developed, but I worked at it and produced a few decent paintings. A couple made it into juried shows at the now defunct Shockoe Bottom Art Center, and one was published in the 2003 calendar of the Union Theological Seminary in Richmond...though they spelled my name wrong.

Unfortunately, things came up that interfered with painting during my last year or so in Virginia. However, when my wife and I moved to Rochester in July, 2003, I was determined to start painting again. In early 2004 I heard about the WetCanvas online art community and became a regular participant in the plein air forum. I learned a lot there, and became more confident and interested in painting. Then in the fall I met a group of plein air painters in Rochester, a group of about 8 who painted outdoors at least once a week throughout the year. Going out with this group allowed me to get over my inhibitions about painting in public, and also exposed me to many new painting techniques...just seeing how different people painted the same scenery was an eye-opening experience. That, combined with the excellent advice of some wonderful artists on WetCanvas, helped me make some major strides in my painting ability.

Most recently, I've been involved in the development of the Genesee Valley Plein Air Painters. Based in Rochester, this is a group of 70 members who gather for paintouts at various locations around the Genesee Valley. We've had a judged/juried show each January. It's an exciting, active group with some extremely successful and talented artists. Hard to believe there's so many outdoor landscape painters in such a harsh climate. I feel very fortunate to have found such a group.