Amy's Barn

"Amy's Barn"  10x10"  Acrylic  Buy Info

I'm having some fun playing with abstracting my subject and taking a lot of liberty with color. It's a very freeing experience!  (Original Photo by Amy Shawley)

Green Lakes State Park

"Green Lakes Park"  9x12  Acrylic  More Info

Green Lakes Park, just outside of Syracuse, NY is perhaps my favorite place in the world. It is a magical place to take long walk, along beautiful trails that seem to go on forever. There are two lakes there, that are the crowing jewel of the park. These lakes are a stunning turquoise caribbean blue-green. I have never attempted to paint them because I feel I could never capture the beauty in paint. Here is a scene from one of the winding roads.

I'm leaving tomorrow for New Hampshire, to teach a 4 day plein air workshop. We will paint the lush scenery and grounds surrounding the Gibson House B&B, I'm looking forward to it. Happy 4th of July!

Using a (very) Limited Palette

"Tuscany Sunflower Field"  10x12"  Acrylic  $300  Click to Buy

The time has come... I'm packing for the Italy trip. In an effort to keep the weight to a minimum, I was experimenting with a limited palette. I used 4 colors in this painting. (Plus white, if you consider that a color.) Purple, green, ochre and alizarin.  Yup, that's all! It's amazing how few colors one can get away with and still represent a scene realistically. Not that I will be bringing only four colors, but it was an interesting exercise. One of the benefits of a limited palette - automatic color harmony. The other - way less schlepping!

Critter Comforts

Carmel Mission  Acrylic  8.5x6.5" Purchase Info

It's nice to be back home. Seems I've been on the road for quite a while. I'm just returning from a great workshop in Cary, North Carolina, we covered a lot of territory. In the beginning of a workshop I ask each person what their goals are, take notes, then check with each person on the last day to make sure their goals were accomplished. Everyone was happy!
    Just as the workshop was ending, I was asked to do a final demo. With only 1/2 hour left, I picked a photo that is a little outside my comfort zone, and told everyone that I was not feeling confident about doing this demo, especially so fast, but I'd do it anyways, since I had asked them to be brave, experimental and non-judgmental about their work and I should do the same. I didn't have time to sketch it out and make sure I got the drawing correct, but at least I did have a small 3-value thumbnail sketch to refer to. I used a 2 inch brush and finished in exactly 35 minutes. I say "finished" but it wasn't, really. Working so fast and not cleaning out my brush much in between colors made for a muddy looking sky and some too-neutralized greens.
     So last night I went to my studio and spent a few minutes cleaning up some of the colors and adjusting some values. I also changed the value of the sky from a light to a middle value, which made emphasized the stucco wall and helped the composition. Below is a photo of the demo painting and the value sketch, and above is the finish, with better color, using some smaller brushes for flowers and vegetation. I like the final painting and feel like I stretched a little. I'm glad I stuck my neck out and tried something I hadn't had time to plan out, especially as a final demo in front of 16 people. The moral of my story is, its essential to move outside your comfort zone if you want to grow. The only risk is not taking one.  I have a lot of favorite sayings about facing fear but one of my very favorites is: "Life begins at the end of your comfort zone."  Now if I could just motivate my critters, who are clearly stuck in theirs!

 

 

Autumn Colors

"Autumn Colors"  11x14" Acrylic on Stretched Canvas  Click to Buy

Who isn't inspired by the spectacular colors of a crisp autumn day?

 In New York, this is the most beautiful time of the year!

Field and Sky

Landscapes are so forgiving. Transplant that bush and move it 6 feet left, move that mountain, fill out that forest, throw in a few flowering buds and ... ahh, the composition falls right into place. No one knows the artistic sleight of hand that was pulled and no one cares, as long as it pleases the eye.

Field and Sky

6x6" Acrylic on board