Van Huss Fine Art

NEW BLOG IN THE WORKS

2011-04-01T07:43:00.000-07:00

Please continue to follow me at my new blog at: http://www.sondravanhuss.blogspot.com

"Lilly" - graphite study

2011-03-23T12:53:00.000-07:00

"Lilly" is my most recent drawing in graphite using a range of pencils from the very hardest to the soft and darkest. I spent a bit longer on this drawing than the others I have recently posted just to push my skills and gain a little more refinement to the drawing. As all artists know one has to determine when you reach a point of "diminishing returns" on a drawing or painting that probably will never be up for sale or possibly even shown outside of my blog. These graphite drawings are for the purpose of increasing my skills and will some day be dug out of a box in my basement long after I'm gone.

The drawing is done in a 16" x 16" size on Bristol #300 pound weight in graphite pencil. One thing I've noticed is how difficult it is to get a really good photo of a drawing (still working on that) that really shows the white of the paper and the depth of the values....most interesting.

"Old Hippy"

2011-03-11T11:16:00.000-08:00

"Old Hippy" is my latest drawing on Bristol Vellum #300 in approx. 16" x 16" in graphite.

Waiting for Winter to be Over and Graphite Studies!

2011-03-03T13:31:00.000-08:00

While I am parked in my warm kitchen rather than in my freezing studio I am doing some graphite studies - something I have not done in years. Here are some of my most recent works in graphite

"Mort"

16" x 16" graphite drawing on w/c hot pressed paper

Bust Study of "Tiberius"

16" x 16" graphite and ink on Bristol paper

Graphite Eye Studies

2011-03-02T14:33:00.000-08:00

"The Eyes Have It"

Snow, snow and more snow - seems like it's never going to end! In the meantime, another graphite study. Done on w/c hot pressed paper and is approx. 14" x 14" using only graphite pencil in a variety of leads.

SNOW, COLD & PAINTING

2011-01-27T13:33:00.000-08:00

Not doing any painting right now - too cold in my studio so I've decided to do some graphite studies which I'll post throughout the winter and once spring comes it will be back to the studio and those gushy oils!.

"Magnolia" #9 in the New World Series

2011-01-13T13:16:00.000-08:00

"Magnolia" is my 9th painting in my "New World" series. Oil painted on stretched canvas in an 11" x 14" size.

"Bizy Bea" and "Andi"

2011-01-10T11:45:00.000-08:00

Andi, our 12.5 year old male black and white springer in behind "Bizy Bea" our new addition to our household. Bizy so loves Andi and sometimes he tolerates this crowding on one of his beds and other times he just gets up and leaves! Happy Pups!

Happy New Year and the Gift of Life

2010-12-26T12:19:00.000-08:00

Here's wishing all who pop by my blog a belated Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year with much success! We had a delightful Thanksgiving which ran into Christmas with friends, food and laughter. We received big and small presents but the one we were the most thrilled about was our adoption of our 13 month old English Springer Spaniel "Bizy Bea." Nothing we received could have been greater than the gift of this life into our family to replace our friend and companion "Magi"who passed from us 6 months ago at the age of 13.5 years! Here's to the new year and lots of painting and fun for everyone!

"New World" series #8 - "Enchanting Companions"

2010-12-13T10:22:00.000-08:00

"Enchanting Companions" is #8 in my "New World" series. Painting is 11.5" x 24" painted on canvas mounted to an mdf panel.

This painting was a long time getting finished due to the Thanksgiving Holiday, adding a new addition to our family, struggles with the painting surface I ran into and a combination of other obligations that had to be tended to. Anyhoo, hope everyone likes this one and I'm off to work on number 9!

New World series #7 "Symbol of Life"

2010-10-21T09:10:00.000-07:00

My 7th oil painting in the "New World" series called "Symbol of Life" on a gessoed 11"x 14" 300# watercolor paper attached to an mdf panel. I absolutely loved working on the primed w/c paper! It intensified the colors so dramatically even after just 2 coats of glazing of the oils. I'm very pleased with how this painting came out and even though I have other paintings started on a variety of canvases I fully intend to explore this "old world" technique in more depth soon.

While I was trying to come up with a name for this painting I did some research on pomegrantes and ran across this site which gives a long and varied account of the importances of pomegrantes in various societies dating before Christ. If you wish to read more on this fruit you can go to:

http://www.foodreference.com/html/search-results.html?cx=partner-pub-2708377307028180%3A5o1syg-nwf2&cof=FORID%3A10&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=pomagrante&sa=Search&siteurl=www.foodreference.com%2F#753

Hope everyone likes my latest painting!

"Nu Shi's Choice" in my favorite frame "just for the fun of it!"

2010-10-17T13:42:00.000-07:00

I was photographing another piece of art today in this series and decided "just for the fun of it" to re-photograph "Nu Shi's Choice" in my favorite gold frame and decided to post it here so you can see the difference. I like them both but eventually all of this series will be framed using the same frames because they will be going into a show in the future. Just goes to show you can frame a favorite piece of art in a variety of frames and it will still look good. You decide which you like best.

"New World" series #6 "Nu Shi's Choice"

2010-10-16T07:55:00.000-07:00

"Nu Shi's Choice" is my 6th painting in the "New World" series done in oils on an 11" x 14" stretched canvas. Decided a different frame was in order with this painting since I was told by a friend of mine that I might be over-working the old gold baroque frame, LOL! Hope everyone likes my latest attempt at that "Old World" look using contemporary objects. In case anyone is wondering, the title is my name in Chinese.

My #7 in the series is almost finished. I tried something completely new with this painting which is painted on heavily gessoed watercolored paper attached to an mdf panel. This has been an interesting project and I'll talk more on this combination of materials when I get it finished and posted. Check back later.

"New World" series #5 "Ming's Pleasure"

2010-09-30T10:44:00.000-07:00

"Ming's Pleasure" is my 5th in the "New World" series which is painted in oils on an 11" x 14" stretched canvas. I am also jumping with joy over my new lighting set up to be able to finally get decent photos of my paintings. I think this is the best photo to date that I have taken of any of my paintings where the colors are really true and the image is absolutely without blur and no flash back from the light in the room or glare! Hope you like this newest addition to my "New World" series.

"New World" series #4 "Moody Blues"

2010-09-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

Finished "Moody Blues" today which is my 4th in the series of "smaller and looser" paintings in oil on a 11" x 14" stretched canvas. I'm really enjoying doing these smaller paintings which allows me to try painting a lot of different objects and then move on to the next painting pretty quickly. Hope everyone likes this latest addition.

"New World" series #3 "Elva's Sugar Bowl"

2010-09-13T14:43:00.000-07:00

My third painting in the "smaller and looser" category of paintings. "Elva's Sugar Bowl" is a painting of my grandmother's sugar bowl in oils on an 11" x 14" canvas. My grandmother lived to the ripe old age of 86 and she would be pleased to see her sugar bowl immortalized in a painting! She always loved this bowl and my paintings so I'm thinking she would be happy knowing these two came together. She also loved camelias therefore the flower on the table.

"New World" series #'s 1 & 2 "Poppy Elegance" and "My Favorite Bowl"

2010-09-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

I love "old world" master paintings so I decided to name my new series "new world" and these two paintings are #1 and #2 in that series. Also in my attempt to bring my paintings down in size and paint things a bit more loose for a change I have started this "new world" series with "Poppy Elegance and My Favorite Bowl." Both paintings are 11" x 14" in oil on canvas. All of the paintings in this series will be painted using Liquin for a quick dry. I normally do not put up my paintings in frames but I think these two paintings are so enhanced by the frames that I could not resist. Hope everyone likes them!

Sweet Lady Magi

2010-08-23T15:55:00.000-07:00

Lady Margaret (Magi to us)

November 1996 to May 2010

We Miss Her So Much!

"Mystic Mums" FINISHED or IS IT?

2010-08-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

Finished (MAYBE) "Mystic Mums" today but can't say I'm all that happy with it - the mums, what can I say about the mums? They drove me crazy in a variety of ways but mostly because with trying a variety of techniques I could not seem to lay down a smooth even petal. I think the figurine came out pretty nicely and the background I was happy with but then glazing was not a "new" thing for me so not much learn there.

Anyway, what did I learn from working with Liquin vs. my very slow drying medium? I liked very much having my surface dry the next day to continue working on but it is a different technique with the dry surface vs.the wet surface because you have to use a blending brush or additional clear Liquin to make the edges smooth when you lay wet paint over a dry surface. I liked being able to glaze over areas which I did in the background where I glazed an Indian Red over the black a couple of times.....gives a nice deeper luster to the surface.

I did not like trying to do these one-stroke mums on a dry surface or even one that has been prepped with the Liquin or even an application of oil paint color. There is a different look to the mum petals because they do not pick up color from the underlying color thereby giving the streaking that is important for variation in the petals. I did not care for having to put my paints in the freezer at night to keep them from drying out. I also did not like having to worry about my brushes drying on the palette while I was painting nor do I like having my brushes sitting in a turp for very long at any one time, bends the hairs too much, particularly the smaller delicate brushes. I'll have to give serious consideration as to what details I'm putting in a painting and how fast I need the painting to dry before I make the decision to use the Liquin again. Altogether this was fun trying a product I had used before and was familiar with but using it in a different way. In the end it was one of the few paintings I have finished in the last couple of years that turned out NOT TO MY LIKING at all!

Not sure what I'm going to paint next or whether I'll decided to tackle changing "Mystic Mums" - have many canvas panels on mdf and stretcher bars that need many additional coats of primer brushed on to them so it might be a few days before I make up my mind as what's next on the easel!

"Mystic Mums" Day 4

2010-08-18T12:38:00.000-07:00

Had a few spare hours to paint today so I started laying in the pattern on the bottom of the scarf on the table. Figurine is finished. Mums finished unless I see something else that needs tending to. Maybe some deeper shadows on the left side near the mums. Maybe tomorrow I can find the time to get this painting finished. Check back later.

"Mystic Mums" Day 3 WIP

2010-08-17T12:37:00.000-07:00

Finally managed to get a few hours of painting in today. The mystic figurine is almost finished - few highlights to go. Added another glaze to the background and worked some on the mums. I have found painting the mums, even using the Liquin to wet the canvas, a whole lot different than doing these flowers when working in a wet-into-wet technique......trials and tribulations of trying something new, lol! Have all of the foreground table cloth, shadows under the mums and a few leaves to add yet - coming along so check back in a few days.

New Additions to My Blog

2010-08-15T05:20:00.000-07:00

Everyone will have to forgive me but I'm not always the fastest when it comes to postings on my blog or updating it with the newest features so as of this morning I have added a survey, because I realized I could do that (dah), asking whether anyone is actually reading and watching this blog and wants to see the "Works In Progress" to continue. I have also added a "followers" list and if it comes up with zero followers after a month or so then I know I should spend more time improving my painting and less time fretting about a blog. I do know that I follow many different blogs but almost never join one so maybe there are actually people out there watching - write me a note and let me know you are watching or join my followers list. In time I'm hoping to figure out some of the other features of blogging so bear with me until this happens - maybe more backaches are in order to get me to my computer more often, nah, don't think so.....anyway take the poll or drop me a note if you are watching.

Artist of Interest - Alexander Selytin

2010-08-14T05:44:00.000-07:00

Because I was restricted from moving my body yesterday with a backache and could not get to my studio, up a VERY LONG flight of stairs, to paint I spent a lot of the day surfing the Net looking and reading. Amazing the things you can run across when the whole day is available to surf. I happened on to this artist's works on YouTube and watched the two videos I posted at the bottom. I was so impressed I decided to post a couple of his paintings on my blog for anyone that has never heard about him or seen his work before. If you Google his name on images you will come up with many more pictures of his paintings. Enjoy!

Are you familiar with this artist Alexander Selytin?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1AbfedPFds

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ev0mDyDpo38&featurerelated

"Mystic Mums" Day 2 WIP

2010-08-13T14:37:00.000-07:00

I put a frame on this painting just to get a general idea of how it looks. Everything looks better with a frame no matter what stage the painting is at, wouldn't everyone agree, LOL? Anyhoo, this painting is progressing even with my stumbling along learning how to work with the Liquin. Flowers in the foreground are only at an early stage so long ways to go. Made progress on the figurine's robe folds, laid in an Indian red glaze over the background, evened out the drapery in front to get it ready for the details that will go on it and started adding flower petals. Okey dokey, that's it for today folks.

I've been thinking that in the future I will only post the finished painting. If you read my blog and like to see the "works in progress" just drop me a line and I'll decide what the final vote is and whether I continue to post the WIP's. Check back in a few days and I'll probably be further along with "Mystic......"

"Mystic Mums"

2010-08-12T13:44:00.000-07:00

"Mystic Mums" is a new painting in progress. I have decided to try using a quick drying medium for this painting rather than the very slow drying medium I have been using for the last few years. If this works out well then I believe I will switch away from the old medium to the new one. This painting is 18" x 24" in oil using Winsor & Newton's Liquin as my medium. Much work to go to bring this "Mystic" to life! Nice to try something new and move out of one's comfort zone from time to time. I have used Liquin before but only to paint multiple layers of glazes in very small paintings. I found the glazing technique to be a tedious and slow process, not suited to my personality (ha) so I switched to a very slow drying wet-into-wet technique which allowed me to paint for days without having to protect even my paints on my palette but because you have the latitude of this slow drying process it also creates a long time drying of 6-12 months before you can varnish a painting and very slow to get a painting to the customer!

"Clair de Lune" REDO FINISHED!

2010-08-02T14:52:00.000-07:00

24" X 36" oil on stretched canvas

"Clair de Lune - Redo Almost Finished!

2010-07-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

Almost finished with this "redo" of "Clair de Lune" and happy to be heading towards the finish line! There is still a little cloudiness around the duck that needs to dry before I can add any more background paint, some very minor touch ups and some leaves up top that are missing and I think I will be finished. This has been a hard fight to get this painting "fixed" but it really had to be done because it had a number of flaws. 1) the flowers did not show up well enough against the light background; 2) there were not enough flowers for the size of the painting; 3) the shiny vase was like a "bulls eye almost middle of the canvas which drew the eye away from the duck which was supposed to be the focal point of the painting - heavens, and 4) I just did not like it with the light background!

Now, the vase becomes much quieter and doesn't compete so much with the duck, there are tons of flowers up top to fill the space - they recede and come forward better and I just plain like the look better! I guess since I'm the artist then I get to do just about anything I want to the painting, including throw it out if it doesn't work out to my satisfaction. I will have it finished probably by Monday or Tuesday - hooray! Stop back around in a few days and I'll probably have the FINISHED work posted.

"Clair de Lune - Redo Update

2010-07-30T14:26:00.000-07:00

After several false starts on redoing this background I have finally gotten it to where I think I'm going to be happy. As you can see I have not brought all the dark background into the middle ground just yet (everything near the duck, cloth and table) - bit wet there and that lighter background has a tendency to muck up the dark so I'll get back into it when it's a bit drier so in the meantime I headed up top to start on the flowers. After a number of ideas and attempts I did a couple new set ups of the flowers in the vase and so this is the one I finally settled on and at this point I'm about one half through getting all of them in place.......so check back in a few days and I just might have this finished once and for all! This painting might escape the trash after all!

"Clair de Lune" - Day 8

2010-07-25T13:23:00.000-07:00

After looking at this painting for a few days I have come to the conclusion that I DO NOT like what is going on in the top half of this painting so I'm at present reworking and making some drastic changes to it. Could be it will work out and then again, it might not! Check back in several days and I might have it re-posted - then again it might get trashed, LOL!

"Clair de Lune" - Day 7 WIP

2010-07-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

I have finished the lower level, added some highlights to the vase and added the reflections, pretty much finished the brass/copper stand and now am working on adding more color to the leaves. Still have the right hand side (bending down leaf) to add color to plus I've deepened the color on the middle tulip and the upper right hand side tulip. Still have to add color to the two left sided tulips and completely finish the drooping right hand tulip and then after some checks over the entire painting I will sign it and call it finished!

"Clair de Lune" Day 6 WIP

2010-07-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

A little more progress on the taffeta cloth in the foreground, under painting color added to plant stand and that's my progress for today! I should be able to finish the cloth and the stand tomorrow. There is a pattern in the lighter table cloth but have not decided whether I'm going to add that yet but will need to add further crease and fold details to that cloth.......then it is back to the flowers - whoopie and I'll be heading towards the finish line......check back in a few days for more progress.....I hope!!

"Clair de Lune" Day 5 WIP

2010-07-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

As everyone can see I have started on the fabric to give the flowers and leaves a little more time to dry so when I go back into them they hold the color laid over the top of them better. Duck is pretty much finished but will check it carefully before the painting is complete to make sure I haven't left something out. Okey dokey, that's my update for today.

"Clair de Lune" Day 4 WIP

2010-07-19T13:03:00.000-07:00

Spent the better part of my 3-4 hours of painting today working on the body of the duck which still has some work to go! Painting this duck was worse than painting a jig saw puzzle!! Okay, be back in a couple of days....check back later for more progress.

"Clair de Lune" Day 3 WIP

2010-07-18T12:32:00.000-07:00

I have posted a wider view of this painting today so everyone can see my working area and it really give one a good idea of the size of this painting. I keep my brushes standing upright in a flower pot filled with rice while I'm working and there are three glass palettes on my right with pre-mixed piles of lots of paint, mal stick that is standing on the floor and reaches to the top of my easel for me to rest my hand on, chair out of the way for the photo and my computer set up on the left.

I've also posted a cropped version for all of you who don't want to see the clutter! This painting is moving along just fine but LOTS of details to go - just wait until you see what is going to happen to that duck's body - OMG, I only hope I don't go cross-eyed before it is finished, lol, and then there is all that drapery in pale green no less - I should have titled this painting an "exercise in mixing and painting greens"....nuts! Okay, that's it for today!

"Clair de Lune" Day 2 WIP

2010-07-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

Day 2 of working on "Clair de Lune" with a little progress. Since I tend to get bored working in one area and want to move on to other areas - just how I work - can't seem to stop this habit, I will jump back and forth over a canvas before it is completely finished putting in a lot of the mid tones first and then going back in and "punching" up the darks and the highlights along with tiny details that give a painting its final glossed over look at the very end. The vase is close to a finished look but there are reflections from the brass stand, leaves and flowers that will have to be added yet also. One of the other things I frequently do, and this is just me not having a complete picture of where I'm going until I get further into a painting, is that I put the background in first which then requires that I start scraping and rubbing out areas to put whatever it is I need in that area. You can see some of the petals of the leaves where I've taken a rubber tipped tool that I draw right into the paint. This happens most of the time with flower paintings because I always decide later that I need more of this or more of that and I'm off and running with the rubber tool, scraper or a small paint brush. Any hoo, I'll be back when I get further along - until then keep painting folks!

"Clair de Lune" - Work in Progress

2010-07-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

"Clair de Lune" is the beginning of my next oil painting on stretched canvas in a 24" x 36" size.

"Breakfast in Mt. View" Finished but Repainted Background

2010-07-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

I decided after several days observing this painting that the background had become spotty from paint settling into the surface and therefore decided to repaint and also change the color at the same time.

I can not emphasize enough how important it is to coat commercial pre-packaged cotton or linen canvases with additional coats of either gesso or oil based primer to prevent this problem. I've had two paintings this spring, even with one additional coat of gesso, develop streaking and spotting in various areas from the paint "sinking" into the canvas. Save yourself a lot of grief and do what is necessary when making preparation to BEFORE you begin.

"Breakfast in Mt. View" - FINISHED

2010-07-12T17:34:00.000-07:00

"Breakfast in Mt. View" is finally finished or at least I'm calling it finished and will spend the next week or so looking at it from time to time to make sure there isn't something that needs fixing before it goes to my drying room to await varnish. This painting is 24" x 36" and in oil.

"Breakfast in Mt. View" - Update

2010-07-09T14:36:00.000-07:00

Since it has been so hot here in Maine I've not gone near this painting, except to pass by it on occasion when walking near my studio until yesterday. I made an "executive decision" about the green scarf/napkin on the left of the painting while I waited for things to cool down. I came to the decision that the napkin was way too dark and had a tendency to draw the eye away from the center of the painting so I scrubbed it out yesterday, did a mini set up and re-photographed the set up of this painting with a different piece of material which I personally like better. Today I worked on putting in the under layer of the napkin, repainted the background to even out what I saw as streaks and blips in the paint coverage and did some work on the left and center orchids. I think this is looking better and I figure I have maybe about 4 more hours of minor details on this painting and it will be finished - hooray! See you all in a few days when I get this baby finally put to bed!

"Breakfast in Mt. View"

2010-07-04T14:15:00.000-07:00

"Breakfast in Mt. View" is a commissioned painting which is getting close to being finished. The size is 24 x 36 (BIG), oil on canvas. There are a number of tiny details on the orchids that have to be completed along with punching up the color on the left hand side orchid but it's getting close to the finish line!

"Breakfast in Mt. View" - Original Drawing

2010-06-28T14:41:00.000-07:00

The beginning drawing of "Breakfast in Mt. View" on stretched canvas, 24" x 36" - this is a commission.

"Stonegate Farm" vinyl mat project FINISHED!

2009-10-11T09:25:00.000-07:00

Photo of "Stonegate Farm" vinyl mat completed. I can do many things and do them well but mastering all the mysteries of my Nikon D80 and how to get the best photos at times can send me around the bend! I apologize for these odd photos but unfortunately with my lack of skills and the length of this mat (85") I was befuddled as to how to get a better direct on shot w/o standing 50 feet away! I'm sure everyone gets the idea and where the mat is being used - on my breakfast bar in my kitchen.

Summer and playing hookie

2009-09-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I have been silent since my last painting in July because I decided to take a vacation this summer to do other projects and family activities. I have been painting a series of folk art pieces for gifts and myself, a couple of commissions, gardening, research, photo shoots and generally enjoying my summer. I can not post everything I've done but I will post a project I'm currently working on called "Stonegate Farm" which is not finished yet and will require about another day or so before it will be complete. The mat is 13" x 85" painted on vinyl with acrylic paints......I'll get back in the swing with my oil paintings soon.

"Harmony"

2009-07-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

"Harmony" is a 24" x 30" oil on canvas covered mdf board with 4 coats of gesso.

"Elephant & Vases" + How to Arrange a Composition #2

2009-07-05T13:55:00.000-07:00

Time is short as I post this update on my current painting so I'll try to get back to a little more discussion about composition soon. Check back!

"Elephant & Vases" + How to Arrange a Composition

2009-06-30T12:54:00.001-07:00

How do you pick a focal point and arrange a painting composition?

"Elephant & Vases" is a simplified example of a subject matter that is streamlined, clean, without frills and arranged to drive the viewer directly to the focal point - the red elephant! Subject matter was chosen on the basis of asking first, what will be the focal point? Second, how do these objects relate to one another, if at all? What am I trying to say with this painting? All questions to ask yourself when you make choices of what to paint and how to arrange it on the canvas.

First, the subject is clearly going to be the elephant even though the tallest vase is larger, the eyes will go to that red first, without question! My supporting cast of characters or objects in this painting are all in the neutral color range (off white) and therefore subservient to the red regardless of their size! The composition components have been picked to cause the viewer's eyes to travel in a circle once they have seen the red elephant then the eye moves up the elephant trunk, across the shoulder of the tall vase, back down the right-hand side to the lower vase, across the cloth (which you can't see clearly at the moment), and back to the elephant thereby keeping the viewer's eyes fixed on the focal point! There are other ways to arrange your production, I like to think of my paintings as staged performances, which I will go into with other paintings that I post.

As you can see composition does not have to be complicated. Decide first your focal point which can be either based on color, shape or location in your painting. Second decide what the cast of characters will be in your own personal production of what you wish to say or convey to your view and remember KEEP IT SIMPLE!

Next post I will talk about cast shadows, gradient value shifts and how they work to enhance or detract from your painting. Check back again.

Peggy's Cove - FINISHED

2009-06-27T12:28:00.000-07:00

"Peggy's Cove" is an 8" x 12" oil on mdf gessoed panel.

"Peggy's Cove"

2009-06-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

"Peggy's Cove" is a small study for a larger painting in oil in a small format of 6" x 12" in progress. Lots of straightening of lines on the lighthouse to be done and the entire foreground is rocks so lots of little lines and crevices to be painted yet! This painting will be available for purchase once it has dried and I have finished the larger painting.

"Rain A'Comin" - What is Plein-air Painting You Ask?

2009-06-25T13:26:00.001-07:00

What is Plein-air painting, you ask?

Simply put, it is any painting that you paint outside in the shortest amount of time you can execute it so you capture the shifting light and the essence of the location. You can work in any medium you choose.

I decided last week to take a break from very large paintings, pack my gear and head to the hills and streams here in Maine. It had been many years since I had done any painting outside and since the black flies are not too bad right now I figured I just might survive and not be carried away before I did a couple of small paintings. "Rain A'Comin" is one of my plein-air paintings that is 6" x 12", oil on a gessoed mdf panel. I have put a frame around it to show how framing even a sweet little painting can add such presence to your work. Never forget about the frame and how they will enhance your paintings. I'll talk more about frames in one of my future posts.

"Squash Medley" - Painting Realism

2009-06-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

"Squash Medley" 18" x 24 oil on canvas

I have decided to shift direction on this blog and try to answer some questions I have been receiving about my painting style, design, composition, picking colors, values, choice of paints, in other words anything and everything that I might think or use to bring a painting from the concept to the finished product. If you have a specific question then contact me and I'll try to incorporate an answer with each of my postings.

Painting Realism

I paint in a contemporary realistic style which means I try to get as close to what the subject looks like in real life without crossing over into what a camera could do. I am not interested in competing with a camera but I do want my subjects to look like the real thing. Since most of my work is still life I therefore have complete control over the subjects, colors, size and composition. I find the greatest creative moment is in the conception of the arrangement. I have a large room full of props, a house brimming with vases, plates, statuary, plants, quilts, and I'm always on the look-out for any interesting item I might run across anywhere at any time......I particularly love the hunt at antique stores, salvage depots and any place I might find a new actor for a stage production I wish to arrange.

"Squash Medley" is one of those creations I put together from dried gourds/squash I found at Sam's during a grocery shopping trip. The brass ladle came from a purchase on eBay. The jug is something I have had a long time and I found it in a salvage warehouse. The shelf is something that my husband built that sits on top of a kitchen cart with wheels in my studio set up room where I do all my arranging and photo taking.

So you see, ideas can come from any where at any time with the most unexpected items. I frequently buy items w/o the slightest idea how it will work in a painting but eventually I find a production for it. Keep your eyes open when you travel and when you shop because you never know what you might find to bring home for that next great work of art!

"Beth's Interlude" - combining fantasy & reality

2009-06-15T09:13:00.000-07:00

Combining fantasy & reality was the theme of this painting. Since I have tended to always work on the side of reality, at least my vision of it, then tripping over into fantasy was a diversion and exploration for me in this painting. This was a battle of me against myself in how this painting would come together. Sometimes with the best laid plans things can go awry hence the many false starts below!

All in all I think the final version is if anything interesting. I await the thoughts of others to bounce back at me to really know if I have stumbled on to something I might wish to pursue or whether it best to close the door on this idea and move back to what I know how to do best! I do believe as artists we must strive to improve our skills but also to keep an open mind to other avenues of expression.

"Beth" - redo

2009-06-14T11:48:00.000-07:00

As you can see I have scrubbed away lots of paint and have started to alter the original background that I had grown to absolutely HATE the more I looked at it! I have several more hours of refinement of the background and then finish the hands and whatever I decide to do to the cloth......that I'm still thinking about. Moral of this story is PLAN AHEAD!

"Beth" - Days 3 & 4

2009-06-12T12:40:00.000-07:00

A little painting day-before-yesterday and about 4 hours today has brought me to this stage of the painting. One of the things I did was change my mind mid-course and decided to change the background so a lot of time at the easel was removing a lot of that green paint! Plan ahead dummy me says! I did not like the tapestry I wanted to add and then decided I wanted to do a California 1920's style painting out of my own imagination - now that's fun, hah! I have also decided to remove the pillar and extend the picture frame so you can say I have been painting this painting by the seat of my pants!!!

I still have more work to finish the tree tops, then on to the gold frame design, design on the cloth and the hands - hum, I'd say I have several more hours ahead of me, plus scraping off all that paint of the column!!! You can bet that next painting I will spend more time thinking about the design than I did with this one, hah! Hope you like what is happening so far though with everything else.......check back in a few days to see where I've gotten to.........

2009-06-09T12:27:00.000-07:00

Day #2 of work on "Beth."

"Vintage Ladies" Series #1"Beth" WIP - 1st Day

2009-06-08T13:32:00.001-07:00

"BETH" - Day #1 of a new painting that will be in oils, 24 x 30. My plan is a series of women studies of "vintage ladies" or any number of other names I have floating around in my head - how about "Ladies of the Night" or "Sirens of the Past" or..........? This is a series I'm putting together from the 1800's forward of beautiful women who have taken their clothes off for the camera. I will be altering many of their faces, clothing and the backgrounds to conform to my own artistic vision.

"Beth" will have a tapestry in the background so it was important for me to get the background in early so I could get a head start on the drying. I will then lay colors in over the greens which will be beautiful when finished.....that's my ego talking (LOL).....better stated would be "I hope it will be beautiful" and I'm really excited about this series so I'm hoping this painting will prove my skills worthy of this challenge. Come back again for updates as I move through this work.

"After the Storm" - Painting a Seascape

2009-06-05T08:10:00.000-07:00

Painting seascapes is something I have never tried to do even though I admire many fine seascape artists. I decided to give one a try and this is my effort. I finished "After the Storm" g yesterday. It is 18 x 24, oil on stretched canvas.

"Ann" FINISHED! Painting from a black & white photo

2009-05-30T12:37:00.001-07:00

"Beth" - oil, 24" x 36" on canvas

Painting a portrait from a black & white 80 year old 3 x 4 photo. What a journey and what a challenge this painting has been. I loved the challenge and the opportunity. I have always said that painting is an evolutionary process - a little paint here and a little paint there and eventually it is finished.

In the final analysis I decided, after looking at this painting for 24 hours, to change the shadows on the face under the hat which I believe looks better now.

Never let it be said that anything comes easily when it comes to painting.........change one thing and then you wind up changing many things.....oh, by the way don't make any mistakes along the way with that brush swinging to and fro' because you could wind up repainting an entire area, lol! I do think it looks better and a little softer and hopefully she does not look like a raccoon which was a troubling problem when you looked at the photograph of this pretty lady. I believe I am finished. Hope everyone likes this final version better than the red skinned previous version!

2009-05-23T12:44:00.000-07:00

"Ann" is progressing and this is where I am as of this day. I decided to keep the larger view of the painting so everyone can get a full appreciation of the size of the painting at 24" x 30". I worked on some skin tones, shadows, the leg and started the paisley shawl today. Did add a few highlights to the hair a few days ago along with some minor dress folds on the bodice.

I still have a long ways to go before this is finished but I think it is moving in the right direction. "Ann" will have to forgive me for taking a few liberties with the shawl and dress but since it is a blk & wht photo and so small it is very hard to see all the details of the lower half of the photo but hey what fun can a painting be without a bit of challenge and maybe some mystery thrown in for good measure!

Ah ha, I've learned another small piece of information about this lovely lady - she was a "Ziegfeld Girl" and therefore another reason to want a portrait by her family!

"Ann" WIP Commission

2009-05-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

As of yesterday I've started my second and last commission for the lady who had me do the "Clair" painting. Again, this is a painting (24 x 30) of a relative from an 80 year old black and white photo which you can see attached to the canvas in the first photo - this is getting to be fun, LOL, at least I get to pick the colors! Yes, this lady has really long hair - beautiful!

I will post updates as I move through this painting so come back again and take a look. Keep in mind I have a tendency to work all over the canvas to tweak edges and final details so at this stage nothing is completely finished.

Turnip Painting

2009-05-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

I have admired from afar the paintings of Jeffrey T. Larson for quite some time so therefore I decided to try duplicating, not completely, one of his paintings for the exercise of painting something as simple as turnips and those lovely backgrounds. These turnips were not quite as simple as they might appear at first glance since there are dozens of colors in a turnip - who would have guessed? I took the liberty of adding a jug I had taken a photo of along with the roots to the plants so not a complete copy. Of course this painting did not turn out as beautiful as his but since it was an exercise for me alone I will love it on my wall just the same!

Thank you Jeffrey for the tremendous inspiration that you are and the beautiful paintings that you continue to turn out.

"Mystery of Mums" FINISHED

2009-05-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

Well folks, my 24 x 36 inch mum painting is FINISHED! I found this painting fairly easy to paint except when I got to the base of the swan - now that was a small challenge but I think it came out pretty nice. Hope you all like this one.

Now what do I paint next? I have one more still life to complete and then on to another portrait commission. Isn't life great when you are an artist because every day it's a new challenge and a new opportunity to paint once again - what could be more fun than that?

"Mystery of Mums"

2009-05-04T08:10:00.000-07:00

Thought maybe a few might like to see my easel set up. I'm lazy (and old) so I sit to do all my painting. This is a rather large room but I only occupy one end of the room. There is a large paladin window to my right, facing south-west which gets great light most of the day but becomes a problem late in the afternoon when the sun finally moves over the house and is heading to the west and then I get glare! At that point in the day I give up painting (about 3:oo most days - actually love the gray gloomy days because then I don't have to deal with the glare. I have a complete computer set up at my left-hand side where I can do research or paint from my monitor (big expensive color corrected model, ugh) and as you can see all my paints are on my right with brushes in containers behind me if I need extras.

I have started my next painting which is 24 x 36 in oil and I'm a couple of days into it already. This is my first photos of the beginning stages in progression. This has been a fun painting and I'm trying a variety of techniques getting these mums onto the canvas since there are so many petals to paint! I will post stages as I go along for all to view.

"Clair" Delivered to Client

2009-05-03T08:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I delivered "Clair" to my client and she was to put it mildly thrilled! I'm so happy she is happy. She now wants me to do a couple more commissions but they will have to wait for a couple of weeks since I'm now deep into another large painting but I told her I would get to it as soon as I could....yip hooray. I'll keep everyone up-to-date.

"Clair" FINISHED

2009-05-01T13:03:00.000-07:00

"Clair" is finished and I can't say I am not happy about that.....this was a challenge but I believe the portrait did not come out too badly considering what I had to work with from the start!
Tell me what you think?

2009-04-25T12:58:00.000-07:00

2nd Stage of the commission "Clair"

I have managed to get a pretty good start on the face and blocking in of colors on the body but there is going to be a lot of hours ahead of me on this portrait. It has become quite clear to me how important it is to think through all my color choice for the skin and clothing and try not to deviate along the way. This has not been very easy getting all the shadows as well as I had hoped in the beginning since the photo I'm working from is about 80 years old, 3 x 5 and a bit blurry - go figure I would have problems, right, what was I thinking?

"Clair"

2009-04-17T12:49:00.000-07:00

"Clair" - blocking in color

Well folks I agreed to paint a commission portrait of a long dead great grandmother "Clair" for a friend recently with the only reference material being a black & white photo - what was I, NUTS? Probably! I had never tried making the leap from real live human or lack of a living breathing human a very good color photo to try to do something like this but was game to give it a try. This is my journey in oil on an 18 x 24 canvas.

"Peaches in Glass"

2009-04-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

My latest painting in oil. This is 11 x 14 on stretched canvas. I do have a couple of other paintings I've finished recently but have not had the time to even get decent photos of them but they will go up soon. Enjoy.

"Danelle" Portrait Finished

2009-02-27T12:22:00.001-08:00

As of today I finished this portrait of my daughter-in-law "Danelle." This painting is a 24 x 30 oil on canvas.

Portrait in Progress

2009-02-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

I apologize for being slow in updating my blog and many people have been writing me to find out what I've been up to. I have painted very little since the middle of December in anticipation of guests arriving on my door step for Christmas. On the 30th of December all had left and within 2 hours of returning home from the airport I discovered we had a heating pipe burst in our master bedroom - destroying the ceiling, carpeting and facilitating more than 6 weeks of repairs to get most everything back to normal.

I have started a new portrait which is about 3/4's done and I usually do not post my large paintings on my blog but just to show that I've actually been working recently I decided to put it up on the site. The stick is my hand rest when I'm painting up close. Hope you like it so far. More paintings to come soon!

"Lights! Action!"

2008-11-25T12:29:00.000-08:00

"Lights! Action!" is a daily painting in oil, 6 x 6 on gessobord.

"Mom's Bag"

2008-11-22T13:48:00.001-08:00

"Mom's Bag" was a fun painting to do - love painting cats and other animal faces. This is 11 x 14 in oil on stretched canvas.

"Peach One"

2008-11-15T20:01:00.000-08:00

While I've been working on "Rangely, ME" I've also been working on 4 other small 6 x 6 paintings. This is one of the four. In oil on a Gessobord panel.

"Just Washed"

2008-11-14T12:12:00.000-08:00

Daily painting "Just Washed" is an oil on a 6 x 6 inch gessobord.

"Peach Two "

2008-11-12T12:48:00.000-08:00

"Peach Two" is a daily painting done in oil on gessobord in a 6" x 6" size.

"Bethel, ME" FINISHED FINALLY!

2008-11-10T12:37:00.000-08:00

"Bethel, Maine" - oil, 24 x 36

How do you finish a painting? When you realize there is not much else you can do with it so you put down your brushes and call it quits! I believe that each painting is a learning process and sometimes we learn a lot, other times we improve our skills and then sometimes we do neither but we have to know when to stop painting, put the painting aside and move on to something else....I have reached that point with this painting!

I have changed the name from Rangely to Bethel, ME. I have fussed and fumed, applied various layers of acrylic and then several layers of oils and I'm going to leave all landscapes behind for now. SOLD

"Rangely, ME" #3 - UPDATE

2008-11-09T13:40:00.000-08:00

Spent some time working on this landscape today. I'm in the process of applying oil paint over the two coats of acrylic that make up the undercoat. Whew, this is quite a process and I doubt I'll be making a habit of painting my landscapes, that's provided I ever paint any more landscapes (!) virtually painting the picture three times before I'm finished! As you can see, when you compare the two scenes, I've made some changes to the design. I wanted to bring the eyes into the painting from the bottom and lead the viewer to the small village on the next hill and the way it was laid out before wasn't allowing that to happen. This is not finished yet since I want to add more trees on the right-hand side and below the village and then add highlights and whatever other tweaking I think needs doing before I sign it.

"Rangely, ME" update

2008-11-08T19:54:00.000-08:00

An update on my attempt at a colorful fall scene in New England. Since this foundation is in acrylic my next step is to start glazing in oil over the entire painting, agumenting with additional colors throughout the trees in particular....this should be interesting since I've never worked a painting in this way before - wish me luck because I'm going to need it before I'm finished!

"Rangely, ME"

2008-11-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

I had a request by my son to paint a landscape, something I rarely do and when I do they tend to look more like folk art than realism to me but I said I would give it a try. This is my efforts to fulfill his request on a 24 x 36 canvas panel in acrylic. I'm not calling this finished just yet but will live with it for a while before I touch paint to canvas again or sign it.

"Lady of the Night"

2008-11-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

Daily Painting "Lady of the Night" is an 8 x 8 oil on a canvas covered mdf board.

"Pear on Glass"

2008-11-04T12:54:00.001-08:00

Daily Painting "Pear on Glass" is a daily painting done in oil, 6 x 6 on gessobord.

"Oranges & Strawberry"

2008-10-03T13:01:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Oranges & Strawberry" is an 8 x 8 inch mdf canvas covered panel in oil.

"Snack Time"

2008-10-02T13:04:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Snack Time" is an 8 x 8 inch mdf canvas covered panel in oil.

"Lemons"

2008-08-07T12:58:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Lemons" is a 6 x 6 oil on gessobord. SOLD

"Peppers Waiting"

2008-08-06T12:54:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Peppers Waiting" is an 8 x 8 inch mdf canvas covered panel in oil.

"Drooping Flower & Glass Vase"

2008-08-05T14:54:00.000-07:00

This painting was an exercise in painting a very plain vase against a black background - that part was easy but the photograph I was using to paint from was all in white! I had to reverse all the shadows and highlights and see if I could get them correct...quite a mental exercise but it came out okay, not one of my more favorite paintings I've done but an interesting challenge to paint. The painting is 10 x 20 on canvas in oils.

"Perfect Pair"

2008-08-03T20:17:00.000-07:00

"Perfect Pair" is an 11 x 14 oil on canvas.

"Lily on Glass #3"

2008-07-14T13:27:00.001-07:00

"Lily on Glass #3" is my last lily in the series for right now. Time to move on to something different. The painting is 11 x 14, oil on canvas panel.

"Lily on Glass #2"

2008-07-11T13:09:00.001-07:00

"Lily on Glass #2" is done on canvas, 11 x 14 in oil.

"Lily on Glass"

2008-07-07T10:25:00.000-07:00

I've started a new painting series using lilies. Yes, I got tired of pears, at least for now, but this painting is 11 x 14 in oil on canvas panel.

"Red, White & Blue"

2008-07-04T17:07:00.000-07:00

My 4th of July contribution! Oil, 6 x 6 on Gessoboard. SOLD

"Snuggle Up Close"

2008-06-19T07:02:00.000-07:00

"Snuggle Up Close" is one of my small paintings in oil on gessoboard, 6 x 6 inches. SOLD

"Green Tea"

2008-06-18T12:30:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Green Tea" is a 6 x 6 inch oil on gessobord. SOLD

"Java Joe"

2008-06-17T12:36:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Java Joe" is a 6 x 6 inch oil on gessobord.

"Blue Vase"

2008-06-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Blue Vase" is a 5 x 7 inch oil on canvas panel.

"Red Hot Momma"

2008-06-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Red Hot Momma" is a 4 x 4 oil on masonite.

Peppers-A-Go-Go"

2008-06-09T12:41:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Peppers-A-Go-Go" is a 6 x 6 inch oil on masonite. SOLD

"Take a Bow"

2008-06-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

Daily Painting "Take a Bow" is a 6 x 6 inch on gessobord in oil. SOLD

"Two + Three"

2008-06-04T09:18:00.001-07:00

Pears painted in the 8 layer glazing technique in oil, 6 x 6. SOLD

"Odd Pear Out"

2008-06-03T15:21:00.000-07:00

This Daily Painting is a 10 x 24 oil on canvas.

"Kissing Cousins"

2008-05-15T15:10:00.000-07:00

I named this 6 x 6 oil painting "Kissing Cousins" because I want anyone looking to know that I know that this type of design layout is generally a no-no but I was playing around with these pears and this arrangement intrigued me so I decided to try painting it just the same. Tell me what you think?