Fall Painting

FALL COLOR

9x12 oil on canvas

This piece is a demo for a class I did in September. We all used the same photo reference but it's amazing how differently everyone's paintings looked when we were finished. A common error, even when I point out easy ways to judge proportion, is to make the focal point too large. About half of the barns ended up in the center of the painting, even though I was careful to point out that the barn rests on the left side of the canvas.

What I really like about this piece is the brilliant fall color in the background which manages to remain cool and unobtrusive because of the ultramarine underpainting and lack of detail.

Michigan Barn with Herefords

This is a barn in Lenawee County, Michigan, that I photographed the last time we painted in the area. Michigan is full of old picturesque and unique buildings and barns, many of them constructed of stone. This barn seems to have been abandoned and the Herefords weren't actually there. I added them because I like to see a little bit of life in paintings and I think animals add interest. I'll often throw in a cat or someone walking their dog if the picture is too static.

9" x 12" Michigan Barn

Two Hour Painting Classes

I am teaching a two hour class at the Senior Center near my home on Tuesday afternoons. The students must sign up for four weeks and we all paint the same thing from a photo I borrow at http://paintmyphoto.com. 

Last week everyone did pretty good. It's a challenge for people who don't paint very often to start and finish a painting in this amount of time. I'm sharing their efforts here. It's amazing how different they all turn out. Each has their own personality. My version is below the collage.

 11' x 14" oil on canvas

Indiana Barn

More Plein Air Work

The second day of the Waterville Arts Council Plein Air event was last Friday and my friend and I decided to head out in the country. First we painted a corn crib east of town and in the afternoon we headed west toward Whitehouse. There is a barn on Finzel Road that I have always loved and the restaurant across the road was empty so we set our easels up under the overhang for shade.

Waterville Corn Crib

11" x 14" oil on canvas

Barn on Finzel Road, June

Networking, Painting and Making new Friends

Networking with other artists is important. When you pursue an activity like painting, which involves many hours spent alone in the studio, you need to schedule time to get out and be with like-minded folk. Most of my friends are artists. Not all, but most. I think that's because I love painting and creating imagery so much that I tend to spend my free time looking for ways to improve what I do. So I make a point of attending a portrait group where we draw or paint from the live model once or twice a month. I belong to several arts organizations and these groups plan activities like paintouts, workshops and shows. Right or wrong, these are the ways I spend my free time and I've met a lot of interesting people along the way.

Next week I'll be attending a workshop given by Marc Hanson and sponsored by an arts organization I belong to. It's all about using your plein air paintings to create larger studio work. I have been trying to do this lately and it's been tough just using my own intuition so I'm willing to pay someone who knows a lot more than I do to help me learn. During the workshop, which is quite a distance from my home, I'll stay with an artist I met through another artist a year or so ago. I'll give her a painting and she'll give me room and board. Like I said, networking with artists is important! I will meet many new people at the workshop and I hope to make some new friends. You make new friends, you expand your horizons and you have FUN!

Once a month, my artist friend Teri Bersee, who owns Bountiful Arts Studio, sponsors a couple hours of life drawing in her studio, which is an old converted barn. I asked her if I could come a little early this week and paint the barn, which was built in 1849 and then moved to her property later when the state was going to tear it down.

Teri has a trio of lamas, two fluffy but large dogs and dozens of chickens. She and her husband Jim also grow lots and lots of organic vegetables. It's a really great location to paint at and I want to go back when the weather warms up and more flowers start blooming.This is my plein air from that afternoon.

10" x 20"

Bountiful Arts Barn

Plein Air of Century Old Barn

It was unbelievably warm for Northwest Ohio this week! I hope this is not a prelude for the summer months, but I'm enjoying it now. My friend and I went out early and were done with our paintings by noon. I have painted this barn before. It's 100 years old and in remarkable condition for its age. This viewpoint is from farther away and I will pick the bug out when it sets up a bit.

11" x 14"

oil on canvas

Barn on County Road K

A painting of a barn in Williams County done plein air.

Just Back from Texas

I returned from visiting my son in San Antonio early this week. It was a great trip- I met his girlfriend, Natalie and we went to a couple great Mexican restaurants and to the Stock Show and Rodeo, a huge event that attracts lots of stars and performers. I was lucky enough to see Alan Jackson's show! I completed a few paintings after I got home.

This is a larger version of James, a kid who posed for our portrait group in Toledo last year. I was going for a "Lost Soul" look. The lady is another model from 2007 I think, whose photo and sketch I kept on hand for reference until I had a chance to paint. I think it's interesting to note the way you can change your palette and how it affects the whole feel of the piece. Somber verses bright and sunny. Of course a lot of it has to do with intent and lighting but most of it is up to the artist. Color is individual, but value must be correct. The images would lose something if we made them black and white but I hope I've gotten enough of the subjects' personalities that they woudl still be interesting.

American Pie

This is a 16" x 20" oil painting I painted form life. The inspiration was the apples of of course. Northwest Ohio has tons of apples available in the fall. I actually do make excellent apple pies but in this case I just made applesauce after i finished the painting.

Finished this piece that I began a few weeks ago

A friend and I painted on her porch Sunday.