Ocean piece from plein air study

Here's an piece I just completed in the studio ...

"Pacific Shimmer", Pastel, 12x16

 ... using this plein air study:

"Coastal Repetitions", Pastel, 9x12
Sold

My goal was to try shifting the focus away from the bright rocks and move the focus out further into the painting.  I wanted to highlight the water and pull the eye out towards the horizon.  About half way into the painting I put the plein air reference aside.  It's interesting to see the extent to which they organically deviated from each other as I let the painting go where it needed to go on its own.

Large Commission

I just finished and shipped off this large commissioned painting:

"Intersection of Elements"
Pastel
24 x 48

It was interesting because I was asked to make a larger piece based on a plein air painting I had done earlier this year.  The plein air piece was done during the San Luis Obispo Plein Air Festival under very unusual lighting conditions when a layer of fog was undulating in and out right on the edge of the coast.   Because of the conditions I never got any decent photos, and because it was painted a few hours away I couldn’t easily return to the site (and the odds of returning and getting comparable weather and lighting were virtually zip).

"The Tales They Could Tell", Pastel, 12x16
Painted Plein Air

Lousy reference photo

 Given the relative lack of reference material, I was forced to draw heavily on my visual memories from the day.  The size (24”x48”) was also larger than I usually work in pastel (although I used to paint large oils).  To top it off, I started with an oil underpainting which is something I have only tried once before.

Turns out changing all these factors made the painting process really enjoyable and I was very happy with the final result.

Post Impressionists Show at San Francisco De Young Museum

I got out tot the post-impressionist show at the De Young museum yesterday and really enjoyed myself.  The show really concentrates on the period after impressionism, and had few works by artists like Monet.  It did have a nice collection of Van Gough, but what struck me most was a Sargent piece (left) and this work by Albert Besnard (right):

 

As if often the case, neither of these images do the originals justice - in both cases fabric of the dresses just shimmered with light.

What really made the show for me was going late in the day midweek and then doubling back to the beginning of the show about 30 minutes prior to it closing.  At this point they haven't been letting people in for about an hour and I got to spend big chunks of time in the galleries all by myself (well, and a security guard too).  It's really so much more enjoyable then navigating crowds.  Both of these pieces are really large and should be appreciated from 20+ feet away which just can't be done in the normal course of these shows.

San Luis Obispo Plein Air - The Work

I’ve just gotten back from dropping my paintings at the museum for the San Luis Obispo Plein Air.  I’ve had a blast all week painting dawn to dusk through a crazy heat wave.  To survive the heat I painted out by the coast the entire week where it was a cool 85 vs. the 105 degrees in town.

I’ve been painting like a madman doing 15 paintings Sunday through Thursday.   Back when I started plein air painting I was having back problems and I couldn’t envision standing for a whole painting.  I swear painting plein air has helped my health.  Testament to this greater stamina is that I did 5 complete paintings on Tuesday. It also helps that I’m getting better at pacing myself.  Even when doing 5 paintings in a day I took time to take a nap midday when the light was flat.

Now I need to take a long hot shower, get my act together and head back over to the museum for the first of the weekend's events.  The ticketed opening starts at 4pm tonight, and the show then opens to the general public at 6pm.

Here are a few of the paintings I framed and delivered ...

 "Le Cove", 8x10, Pastel (sold)

"Morning's Mystery", 12x16, Pastel

 "Three Groves", 9x12, Pastel (sold)

 "The Tales They Could Tell", 12x16, Pastel

 "Morning Magic", 9x12, Pastel

Dune Studies - Painting in the Hamptons

Here are three of the dune studies I did through the week in the Hamptons. 

I picked these images to post because they show an interesting progression (and least it's interesting to me).  I found myself challenged to develop compositions from a landscape that was dominated by clumpy/spotty lumps of grasses.  These three images show how I developed a handling of this situation with greater and greater simplification along with taking bolder risks in altering the shapes to create interesting ways for the viewer's eye to move into and through the painting.

Dune Study I
Pastel
8x10

Dune Study II
Pastel
9x12

 

 

 

 

Dune Study III
Pastel
12x16

Now I have to make some time to get down to Carmel and give this subject a try down there.

Next Up - Painting Dunes

I've been in the Hamptons (Amagansett, NY) this week and I've been taking the opportunity to work on studies of rolling dunes.  This is a subject I've never spent any time on, but I've always admired the way Terri Ford and Kim Lordier have handled the subject (they are typically painting Carmel, CA).

Amagansett has it's own unique flavor, and I've been setting out at dawn most days to see what I can come up with.  Stay tuned - I'll post images when I get back to my studio.

The 5th layer of streams with rapids

Earlier I made the statement that I think there 4 layers in a painting of water with rapids, but I was just looking over a painting from the series and I think a 5th layer might be worthy of it's own category - underwater reflected light from air bubbles.  This would make the list:

1. Stream bottom (underwater rocks)
2. Reflected/refracted light from underwater bubbles
   
3. Water surface
4. Reflections on water's surface
5. Bubbles/foam on top of water's surface

You can see this near white water where bubbles are forced under the surface and often vivid greens are apparent (from the sunlight (yellow) mixed with the blues of the water).

This is definitely going to take some time to master ...