Packing Up!

Ginger and Twink want to walk on the foam. Bad idea!

      We are preparing to leave for the Outer Banks and there won't be room in the Jeep for three dogs, our stuff and all the paintings I want to take down with us.  So, I am shipping the largest one in one of my Airfloat StrongBoxes.  I have mentioned these before and they sure make shipping paintings easy.  I have three and they are all well traveled.  I can't believe my first one is still in circulation!  These are lined, puncture proof boxes.  The painting lies on a bed of foam like you see on the right side of the photo and the middle layer of foam is perferated so you can create an opening to cradle whatever size painting you are shipping.  You can tell by the mosaic of foam surrounding this painting that I have used this box for various size paintings before.  The last step is to place the top layer of foam over the painting and close the box. I will Fed Ex it to myself at the OBX and then just Fed Ex the empty box back home.  Nice.

     Lucky was off sleeping on his favorite chair but Ginger and Twinkle were just waiting for an opportunity for me to turn around so they could jump in the box and walk around on the foam.  Twink is quick and I plucked her off the painting before her weight could do any damage.  You might be able to tell from her expression that she was just chastised.
     Since space in the Jeep will be tight I am glad my new Cigar Box sized Pochade Box arrived in time.  I can get everything in my backpack and it is still a comfortable weight for me to carry. I hope I remember to bring my card reader so I can post from the beach.  I am bringing 8 panels with me and hope to fill them all!

I'm in an Outer Banks State of Mind

"Blue Heaven", 30x40 oil on canvas

     It is after 9:00 PM and I still have the windows open.  There is a balmy breeze after a day of 80 degree + temperatures and it would seem we are going from winter directly into summer.  The pears, cherries and plums are late to bloom this year but they made up for that in the last 24 hours.  It is wonderful right now and adding to the delight is my countdown to our departure to the Outer Banks next week.

     Today I finished the painting I started several posts back but as I stare at it there are a couple of minor things I want to tweak.  This painting will be heading to North Carolina along with another next week.  I couldn't make up my mind about the title.  First I thought "Carolina Blue" because that is the blue that Carolinians consider theirs (think University of NC team colors) but today I leaned towards "Blue Heaven".  I may flim flam.

      In preparation for what I hope will be 10 days of plein air painting I ordered some really light weight gear.  I love my French half box which I wheel to most locations but for this trip I want something light that will fit in a back pack.  I selected the newly redesigned Guerilla Painter Cigar Box pochade box.  It is only 2 lbs.  It has a universal mount installed so I can mount it on my light weight tripod.  I also ordered an adapter for 6x8 inch panels.  Judson's in Colorado has a great selection and they are the originators of the Guerilla Painter brand.  They even have Handy Porter wet painting carriers in 6x8 inches!  My Farmhouse series has gotten me hooked on those little panels.
      Speaking of the Farmhouse series.....I haven't forgotten about it.  March was just very repetitive and I have enought winter scenes for this series.  The skies were wonderful and worth painting but I already had enough of those.  I have been waiting for spring.  I showed you the only early spring Farmhouse painting some posts back.  Finally there will be more as the trees are beginning to show those light colors that look so good against the bright blue skies.  I hope to pull off a couple before we leave.

      ON EXHIBIT at the Art League Gallery this month is this small plein air painting from last summer, "Waiting to Sail".  I painted it in June at the Washington Sailing Marina on Daingerfield Island. I hope these bright, warm paintings get you in the mood for this wonderful season!

"Waiting to Sail" 9x12 oil on linen panel

What a Beautiful Day!

Rock Creek at Pierce Mill where I set up my easel

     We really lucked out with the weather for this month's paint out with the Washington Society of Landscape Painters!  Temperatures in the 60's and bright, beautiful sunshine all day.  Slightly breezy but not enough to lift the painting off the easel:)
       The location was Rock Creek Park at Pierce Mill.  That is the mill on the right side of the photo.  Rock Creek Park winds its way for miles through Washington DC following the path of the creek it is named for.  Looking at this scene it is hard to imagine that bustling Connecticut Avenue is a mere two minutes away or that just beyond the park are a number of large embassies.  This is one of the reasons I love this city.  No skyscrapers and lots and lots of green space. 
      I arrived around 12:30 and sat and sketched for awhile until I decided on the view beyond the small falls.  I liked the moving water and the green bridge. Lots of light and shadow.

The view

Many families were out picnicking and I was beginning to get really hungry watching them unpack coolers full of food.  Then they started grilling.  I had a granola bar:(

At 3:30 we stopped painting and gathered beyond the mill to see everyone's paintings and have a critique.  That is traditional with this group.  They are kind.  They give good advice.

If you get the magazine, "American Art Collector" you might be interested in reading the article about the WSLP as they are celebrating their Centennial.  There are pages of their paintings on view in this month's issue.  Next Friday their Centennial Exhibit opens at the Washington Arts Club.  I am looking forward to the reception!  If I am lucky in June I will be juried into this group.  Membership is kept to 40 which is why I have been painting with them for 2 1/2 years and am only just coming up for jurying.  We shall see.....

"The Tilden St. Bridge, Rock Creek Park" 8x10 oil on linen panel

A New Beginning

Untitled, 2nd day of painting, 30x40 oil on canvas

      Yesterday I started work on this new painting. My mind has been wandering back to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and this scene was inspired by a day of magnificent clouds.  I felt tiny.  I felt very aware of being on a small spit of land surrounded by vast sky and ocean.  That is the feeling I am going for in this painting.  I am considering adding gulls in the pools of water in the foreground and/or small figures on the beach.  However, I may just go with land, sea and sky. 
       I didn't take this photo until I turned the lights on which is why the clouds on the right seem so much more yellow.  They were close to the lights.  I didn't have time to do a very good job photographing it I just wanted to document the progress.  I am eager to get back to work on the painting  and I am very much enjoying working in a larger format again.  This is the first 30x40 painting I have done in a very long time and this used to be one of the most common sizes for one of my paintings. This one is on a 1 1/2 inch deep gallery wrap canvas and I don't plan on framing for now. 

        Tomorrow it is doubtful that I will be working on this as I plan to be out painting with the Washington Society of Landscape Painters.  We will be painting at the Pierce Mill in Rock Creek Park in DC.  Thank goodness the weather forcast is for sun and just 9 to 10 mile per hour winds.  It has really been blowing this week and I hate having to batten everything down!

        Speaking of new beginnings.....I just have to share this photo of a beautiful newborn filly foaled at Cornell University. She is Ellie's (Urielle's) new baby and this photo was taken just after she stood up for the first time.  Ellie is still cleaning her off.  Urielle is a mare who used to be mine.  She is now part of the Cornell University breeding program and has been since 2003.  She has produced some truly wonderful foals who will be making their contributions to the dressage and eventing worlds.  This filly, like all but one of Ellies offspring was sired by a magnificent Hanovarian stallion named Benvolio.  The exciting news this year is that Ellie was actually pregnant with twins and instead of pinching off one of the embryos Ellie carried one and the other was implanted in a surrogate mare.  So, on April 10th we are expecting a sibling to this baby!  Carol Collyer of Cornell has been a wonderful friend and has kept me informed of all Ellie's offspring.  I am partial to mares and Ellie will always be one of "my girls".

The filly looks like her daddy:)

A Snowy Day and a Newly Finished Painting!

"Leaving the Inlet" 18x24 oil on gessoboard

     It was something of a surprise to wake up to heavy snow this morning.  It was really pretty early in the morning but by afternoon it was being washed away by rain.  Still, it gave me an excuse to stay home and enjoy a full day in the studio.
      I finished "Leaving the Inlet" and the completed painting is shown here on the left.  If you scroll down to the March 2nd post you can see the sketches for this painting and then watch the painting progress in subsequent posts. The more I work on gessoboard the more I like it.  I experiment with different ways to prepare the surface.  Usually I like to leave heavy brushstrokes in the gesso as I like the way the paint fills the grooves and creates a texture.  This time instead of applying the gesso with a brush I used a foam rubber brayer.  The surface it created had more tooth than if I just worked on the factory prepared gesso surface but it was more uniform than that I customarily work on. 
      This is the third Lake Cayuga painting I have done and I suspect I will do at least one more.  Next up, however, is a large beach painting.  Be sure to check back to watch that one develop.

A cozy day in the studio

Second Day of Painting "Leaving the Inlet"



Day two of painting "Leaving the Inlet" 18x24 oil on gessoboard

     
      Busy, busy, busy was the weekend!  I had planned on working on this painting but instead I got caught up with framing and varnishing and updating my bio. I also put together some of those 6x8 panels I posted about last time.  I do miss the convenience of my ready to paint old ones.  Such is life.  Maybe someday I will be successful enough to have an assistant to take care of such things.  I can dream can't I?
   
       Back to the current painting.....Today I worked a little bit on the sky but spent most of my time on the lower portion of the painting.  I am very glad I chose the alizarin crimson underpainting as it has been just right for this early morning light.  The little speck of white in the middle of the painting is where I will be locating the launch that is heading down the inlet to Lake Cayuga proper.  My husband and I were in a launch following this one which is how I was able to see this view. 
      I love painting skies and water!  I don't want to overwork this sky so I will leave it for now and probably add a few brushstrokes at the end.  The sky is always the fun part for me and I have to be careful not to spend too much time there and not enough on the rest of the painting.  The nice thing about painting skies reflected in water is that it is logical to work on the two elements at the same time and I therefore work around the painting rather than in segments.

     I haven't added the link to my website in quite some time because, as usual, I am behind on updating it.  Actually my next update is going to be the reorganization of it and I have been working on that on paper.  Again, I sure wish I had an assistant!

     No shows on the horizon right now.  I will pass on the upcoming exhibit at the Art League as it is a theme show that I don't really have anything available for.  I have entered a couple of national shows but I won't hear about them until April and May.  It is nice to have a little break and start thinking of plein air season:)

First Strokes, "Leaving the Inlet"

First day of work, "Leaving the Inlet", 18x24 oil on gessoboard

     I showed you the sketches for this painting in my last post and today I got off to a good start.  I am happy that I chose the underpainting of alizarin crimson as I think it will serve me well.  This is an early morning scene and the colors in the sky reminded me of the colors I see in the shells I find on the beach at the Outer Banks.  This, however, is not the OBX but, as I have already written, is Lake Cuyaga in Ithaca New York.  The lake is one of a group of glacial lakes which make up the Fingerlakes in upstate New York.  The region is very beautiful and I love our visits here!  I hope I will have more progress to show you tomorrow.

"The Farmhouse, Bright Blue Sky", 6x8 oil on linen panel

      Also painted today is another addition to my Farmhouse series.  This one was painted uber fast because I only had a very short time left.  I will have to add a few strokes tomorrow to finish.  The drive needs more work and I need to indicate a window on the house. 
     I know I have mentioned how much I enjoy these and I do hope you will not become bored by them.  This may just turn out to be folly on my part as I have no idea where and when I can exhibit them all.  I also need to consider the framing issue and have asked for some advice from my frame supplier.  I would hate to wait until I have a huge amount of them before starting to frame.  I also need to be sure that whatever frame I start with will still be available at the end of the year.  
       That last remark is important as I have recently found out.  These little paintings have been painted on clear primed linen panels that I have been using for years.  They are one of my favorites for plein air painting.  When I got down to just one 6x8 left I contacted my supplier to order a dozen more.  Unfortunately they will no longer be carrying this size.  I can still get them in larger sizes, which is good news, but won't be any good for this series.  So...I got online and searched for other distributers of these panels.  I found a number of them but guess what...they are out of them as well.  They have been discontinued:(  Now, there are plenty of 6x8 panels to be had out there but not with the same texture and not clear primed.  Believe me, I have looked!  So, either I can use another brand and underpaint with umber (a wash of that will mimic the color of the clear primed linen) or get creative.  I chose to do the latter. 
        I have a pad of 16x20 inch Centurian Belgian Linen.  It is white primed.  However, the back is still the natural linen color which is almost like that which I had been using.  My old panels were gray/umber in color and this linen is more like a burnt umber.  I was going to order some hardboard and adhere this to it but then I learned that I can't get those in 6x8 1/8 inch panels either.   Back to the drawing board....I ended up ordering Panelli Telati, 6x8 inch canvas panels.  I have also used these for years, mostly for plein air painting and love the extra fine, cotton canvas surface.  They are white primed.  I cut a 6x8 inch piece of linen and glued it primed side down on the primed surface of the panel.  When it was dry I clear primed it myself.  The above painting is the first to be painted on one of these newly made panels.  It worked well and the surface felt like those much loved panels I had been used to.  The only downside will be the extra time it will take to make them. Such is life:)