Onlookers

Yesterday my friend Tracy L. who is visiting from New York City, came with me to Ocean Point because she wanted to watch me paint.  She had no idea how a watercolorist proceeds and was very attentive as I worked from light to dark, large to small, and  smooth to a more textured area in the foreground.

Early in the painting stages, a man came by and started the conversation by stating that he, too, was a painter.  But he was the kind of onlooker that I've come to know and dread over the years:  The Bore Who Came To Stay. He wanted me to look at photos of his oil paintings right when I was in the middle of a tricky wash.  Then he wanted to know how much I charged for my work, not because he was interested in buying, but because he wanted to gauge how much he should charge for his own work.  He didn't ask permission to take photos of my painting; he just barged forward and took them.

How to swat away such outdoor pests?  Sometimes, if they are standing too close, I "accidentally" splatter water on them.  I also have taken the painting off the easel to dry the first wash in the sun and purposely leave it long enough for them to get bored watching paint dry and exit.  If they begin taking photos, saying they are going to copy my work, I explain copyright laws and that they could be sued.  Then I ask them their name.

Most people are very considerate and complementary when they see an artist on location.  I enjoy chatting with interesting viewers.  Once in a while, if I really like the conversation we've had, I offer to let them pose in front of my completed painting with one of my brushes.  That never fails to draw smiles!  But sometimes The Bore Who Came To Stay will start to distract and annoy.  It's nice to have some ammo in your repertoire to shoo them away so you can get back to work!

The Power of Neutrals

I'm still playing with the complementary colors red and green.  In this painting of a boatyard in East Boothbay, red and green are mixed to a neutral gray in most instances, the result being a painting largely dependent on strong values.  The two pops of pure color occur in the figures.   They stand out mainly because of the neutral grays.

Next I will switch to another complementary combination, either yellow and violet or blue and orange.  Experimenting with color will help you get over any painter's block you may be experiencing.

Complementary Colors

Red and green....Complementary colors.  Neutralized red, neutralized green, warm bridge house, warm beach, and that warm spot of red on the clam digger.  The red of the clam digger's shirt is contrasted against the green reflections in the water to his right.  Grays on the other buildings except for the bridge house which is bathed in warmer neutralized colors.  Also the footbridge itself is a neutralized red.  So basically, this painting is comprised of red and green complements, sometimes pure, but more often, the reds and greens are neutralized by the complement to form grays away from the center of interest.

The bridge house and the clam digger are both on the thirds with warmer colors, while everything on the outer edges is a neutralized gray made from those two colors. 

Complementary color schemes are only one of several subjects concerning color that I'll be teaching about at my September workshop here in Boothbay Harbor....Sept. 8th - 12th.  Please consider coming  to enjoy painting in this lovely area at a great time of year.  Contact:  caroljessen@yahoo.com

Knowing the Reason

On Wednesdays, the Plein Air Painters of Maine meet in different locations around the peninsula.  Yesterday we went to Hendrick's Head Light, which we've all painted a hundred times.  So some of us painted the old Victorian house overlooking the beach.  And a couple of us chose to paint these Adirondack chairs.

Along with many other people, I love Adirondack chairs.  They're comfortable and look inviting.  But yesterday it was the light falling on these two--- on the top left corner, the up-facing arm rests, and the top of the seat---that took my breath away.

Knowing what enthralls, delights and summons you to your subject will give you a sense of purpose in your painting.  More and more often, for me it is the quality of the light that I seek to portray.

Stop for a moment and consider what it is you want to communicate.  Color and light are good places to start.

The Importance of the Oblique

    

 
It's been said before:  horizontals are restful, verticals are formal and dignified, and obliques have energy.

     Obliques, which some people refer to as diagonals, guide the viewer's eyes.  Look carefully at this painting of Ocean Island, and you'll find lots of horizontals, a few verticals, and several subtle obliques.  The road is, of course, the most obvious oblique, and it guides you into the painting, stopping briefly at the focal point of the stone gate before continuing on to the trees on the island.  The bush on the left and the left side of the tree shape on the island also gently lead your eye back to the stone structure. The very small indication of some driftwood on the rocks is also an oblique pointer.    

One word of caution:  Diagonals cut things into two equal parts or shapes.  That's one reason to avoid starting them in corners.

Choose your placement of obliques carefully to come in aid of the composition.

Deciding What's Important

I have painted Fisherman's and Ram Island Lighthouse a hundred times and have always had the problem of the island competing with the foreground if I want to focus on the foreground .  The other day when I was painting it, it occurred to me that the problem was the red roofs of the keeper's houses kept drawing my eye out to the island when I really wanted to emphasize the calm waters and reflections in the foreground water.

Red is an especially powerful attention-getter.  So I just decided to eliminate the two houses out on the island.  The lighthouse became the "locater", but I subordinated it by its size and neutral hues. The larger shapes and the textures in the foreground then had a chance to take the spotlight.

Don't be afraid to eliminate some elements that are in reality there for the sake of keeping the viewer's eye on the elements that you want them to look at.

Locating Your Subject

This old boat is out in the bay here in Boothbay Harbor.  The subject is obviously the boat, but the iconic Catholic Church locates the scene as well as providing a secondary interest point.

Size is a key factor in promoting the main subject, the boat.  Intense color and value contrasts around the church play up its secondary role.  As the shoreline moves away from the church, it becomes more neutral.  The other buildings are less defined, even only hinted at. 

For viewers who like to know where a subject was located, using a local landmark will satisfy that need.

Framing Your Subject

Before you put a frame around your masterpiece, you need to think about framing your subject within the composition.  In this scene, the rocks and pine trees on the right side were really much farther to the right, but I needed them as a frame for the lighthouse and island.  So I moved them!  That's something that your camera can't do. 

The dark values in the foreground also provide a foil to the light on the island.  Our eyes are drawn to the light, so overlapping that area with darker values cause the eyes to go outward to the lighthouse.

The approach, therefore, is to paint the background first, coming forward to the island and then to the darker foreground.  Again, plan the values, and the colors will be able to sing.

These helpful hints and others will be explained in detail in my workshop in Boothbay Harbor, Maine the week of Sept. 8 - 12, 2014.  Contact me at caroljessen@yahoo.com for more information. 

Including Figures in Landscapes

Sometimes I look at paintings of street scenes and architectural subjects and wonder where all the people went.  Including figures can provide scale, movement, and life to a scene. 

The trick is to avoid painting figures that look stuck on.  If your figures are to be an accessory to the scene, there is no need for great detail.  The man in this painting came by twice.  He had on a plaid shirt, and I joked with him that he would be travelling incognito in my painting, having also removed his mustache! 

Whatever the speed of your brushstrokes, it should not change when it comes to including figures.  The fear of painting figures comes from too much attention to details and not enough to shapes. 

I love the architecture in this scene, and by placing a couple of figures in it, I provide some other spectators the opportunity to love their surroundings, too.

Intense Color vs. Neutrals

Directing the viewer's eye to the focal point doesn't happen by accident.  Planning is crucial.  You can use directional lines, values, textures and color intensity.  In this painting I've used all of these.  But the most important is color intensity. 

The red hull of the old trawler is surrounded by neutrals.  Red is a bold and attention-getting color. By surrounding it with grays, the red is highlighted and intensified.  The red is also repeated in the flag. The darker values in the background come in aid of the focal point by popping the whites.

Plan, plan, plan.  Consider the elements and principles before subject matter accuracy. 

Forest and Trees

Remember the old saying, "You can't see the forest for the trees."?   My goal is to paint the forest paying less tribute to individual trees.

In this painting of a dock scene in Boothbay Harbor,  there were buildings (too many), boats, (too many), pilings, awnings, dock debris, bait barrels, lobster traps, buoys (too many!)  You have to eliminate some things in order to say the most important thing.  For me in this instance, it was the afternoon light and shadows. 

Accuracy is not the same as art.  Ed Whitney once famously said, "I don't want the truth; I want a beautiful lie."  Someone else said,  "It's a poem not a police report."  Try to tell the story of what you saw, not the polaroid version.

Getting Back in the Groove

I think I'm finally settled back here in Boothbay, Maine.  So many set-up chores:  banking, grocery staples, buying  flowers and herbs and planting window boxes, and entertaining friends two days after my arrival.  Now it's quieted down, and I can once again get the easel out and do some plein air painting. 

This scene is at the end of my daily walk here on Hiawatha Trail.  I can think of several things I'd like to do over in this piece.  I felt it got a little busier than I had imagined it in my head.  That is a problem with painting on location.  You see so many details and textures that seem important at the moment.  But I need to recognize where the big shapes are first, and worry about details and texture the last five minutes of the painting process. 

At any rate, I've got the first one out of the way and am already looking forward to tomorrow!

Glazing for layers.

In this painting, which I did on the side of a New Hampshire roadway,  I considered what the procedure would have to be.  There are only three things that can change in any one shape:  value, color, and texture.  Light to dark values:  sky, far distant mountains overlapped by progressively darker values as I moved forward with each plane.  Colors:  cooler to warmer in the foreground.
Textures:  Smoother shapes in the background to more rough textures and edges in the foreground.

Plan for a few minutes thinking about these three things.  Then you can paint rather quickly and keep your glazes fresh and clean.

Vacation Paintings

It turns out mosquitoes were good for me this morning.  I was standing by Echo Lake in New Hampshire in overcast weather, and the mosquitoes were buzzing.  But the good news is that it made me paint faster and more simply.  Getting down the big shapes fast was a necessity.  I finished this painting in an hour and twenty minutes.

Flat light was also a problem.  Color was the solution. 

Demo

For the workshop instructor, demos are part of the job.  People like to see the process and how a painting unfolds.  Last night I was invited to give a demo at the monthly meeting of the St. Louis Watercolor Society.  There was a very receptive audience in attendance, and I enjoyed myself immensely.  I love teaching and making people laugh!  But sometimes all that talking can distract from the painting thought process.  Last night I felt like the painting did not meet my expectations.

So this morning I got up and re-painted the same composition.  I tried to remember to keep the shapes simple, and not get so involved with too many color changes.  Also I felt that the first wash last night was a bit timid, so I was determined to make the first color and value application bolder in the re-do.

The best advice is a bit of a cliché, but it still applies:  Keep It Simple, Stupid.  K.I.S.S. Stay with your larger brushes longer and avoid the temptation to put in details too early. 

Happy Splashing!

The Rule of Thirds

In this painting of Nubble Lighthouse in York, Maine,  I was very conscious of the rule of thirds.  The foreground rocks form the dominant third; the grassy areas and sky form the other two thirds. The light is on the vertical third.  It is balanced by the small outbuilding and telephone pole. 

The color scheme is primarily the complements of red and green.  The textures are more notable in the foreground rocks, less noticeable in the grassy slopes and basically absent in the sky.  I could have chosen to put in clouds, but that additional texture would have distracted the viewer's eye. 

Can you tell I'm getting amped up for my return to Maine?  Come to my September workshop in Boothbay Harbor and see more beautiful scenes like this one!

It's Derby Day!

Time for The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports!  Kentucky Derby 2014!

It's Derby Week!

One of the things on my "Bucket List" was to attend the Kentucky Derby just once in my life.  I didn't want to party in the infield with a bunch of people who wouldn't even see the race.  I wanted to sit in the stands.  I wanted to sip mint julips under the rim of my especially bought hat. I wanted to sing My Old Kentucky Home.   I wanted to bet on a winner.

In 1999, a friend of mine, whose son was the lawyer for the National Thoroughbred Horse Racing Association, took me to the Derby.  Because of her son's connections we sat high in the stands on Millionaire's Row!  I stood next to the owner of the horse I bet most heavily on, "Stephen Got Even."
He told me the story of how the horse got its name.  We all sang "My Old Kentucky Home, and as I do every year, I got so choked up I couldn't finish the song. 

Well, Stephen didn't get even, though he led most of the race.  That was the year that Charismatic, a long shot at
 50 - 1, beat the field!  The only person around me who bet on the winner was a woman who said she just liked the name!

Charismatic went on to win the Preakness, and at the Belmont was on the way to becoming a Triple Crown winner when he broke his leg.  For almost a year they tried to save the horse, but in the end he lost that race.

So here is my tribute to Derby Week. 

Photographic References

    

 Generally, I don't use photographs as references.  I use them as idea generators or sketch material.  I will look at photo I've taken long and carefully, put it down and then sketch it from memory, changing the composition as suits the need for incorporating design principals. 

     Unless you are using a photo taken by a potential buyer who has specifically given you permission , it is highly unethical to use a photo taken by someone other than you, especially if you are relying on their composition.  Copying photos from calendars, guide books, magazines or other copyrighted material could also land you in hot water legally if you display your work outside your home.  You may use objects or people as references if you build the majority of your composition independent of the photograph. 

     I have juried and judged shows, and though I might not explain it to the individual, I nearly always reject paintings of lions, tigers, and other exotic animals, especially if they are placed in their native habitat  because I am dubious that the artist went to Africa or India and took the shot themselves. 
If an artist goes to their local zoo and photographs the animals, that would be acceptable.

     That said, here's a rare choice to paint from a friend's travel photo.  She's in Italy right now, and wants the painting as a reminder of her trip.  It is a private transaction between two people, and other than illustrating my point, I would not have shown it in a competition or gallery. 

      Just be mindful when using photos that you don't borrow other people's creative work.

Overlapping/Complementary Colors

This post is for Dave Anderson, who told me he looks forward to getting my blog postings and was eager to see the next one.  It's been a while because of illness, but I'm all better now!

J. S. Bach once committed himself to writing a prelude and a fugue in each of the 24 keys so each time he sat down to compose, he had a place to start.  So it is with my goal of painting in a different color combination: analogous, complementary, split complementary, triads, etc.  Here's one in just two complementary colors:  red and green.

What gives the painting depth are the overlaps: distant shore, middle ground cliffs, and foreground cliff. Since each overlapping plane is progressively lighter as you approach the far shore, the values help establish receding land masses.

Overlapping is a great way to achieve the feeling of depth.  It's also fairly easy to paint, too, because you start with the lightest area of the background, proceed to the next plane a little darker and with more intense color, and finally the darker foreground which sets off the middle ground by contrast.

Secondary Triad/Workshop Opportunity

In this painting I used a palette of violet, green and orange.  The violets and greens were neutralized to give emphasis to the bright orange row of trees. 

The size of the shapes are another key to this painting.  The thin, long strips of bright yellow green and orange at the focal point are surrounded by larger but neutralized shapes of the mountains and the foreground trees.

I'd like to announce, too, that I will be conducting my annual weeklong workshop in Boothbay harbor, Maine September 8 - 12, 2014.  This year's focus will be on all things color.  Sign up soon to insure your participation!  caroljessen@yahoo.com

Directional Lines

When I took a painting to my gallery owners here in St. Louis the other day, their framer commented that the painting had a "wonderful verticality."  That got me thinking about the importance of directional lines in paintings.

In this painting, you can surely identify horizontal lines, which are restful, vertical lines, which are formal, and oblique lines which provide movement and energy.  In a painting of a quiet saltwater cove, I didn't need many oblique lines.  The peace and quiet are conveyed primarily through horizontal and vertical lines,  (The energy is provided more from the colors than the lines.) 
 
When trying to portray a feeling, it is worthwhile to consider line as a major component. 

Re-Do

In an effort to explore my evolving style, I've been choosing an "old" painting and painting it over in a new way.  Here are two such paintings.

A Spot of Red

I'm not sure if seeing red makes a bull angry enough to attack the cape in front of him, but it sure gets his attention.  Adding a touch of red in a field of neutrals or other dominant colors will also draw the viewer's eye.

My friend Mark Mellor makes it a point to always put a spot of red in his paintings.  In this painting I've used some neutralized reds but left a carefully placed pure red just off center.  The pure colors are all at the focal point, and really are the subject of this painting.  As your eye goes out from the center the colors begin to tone down to less emphatic shades of gray.

Think pure color/neutrals and which colors will dominate.

More Complementery Colors

This time I decided to use red and green.  The greens and its grayed down relatives would be dominant; the reds would be subordinate.  The warm colors are in the focal area.

Study the foliage area and you'll see that I graduated from red to orange to yellow to green and then a grayed down green.  I painted the trunks by painting the negative space behind them.  The line dominance is curvilinear with the verticals subordinate.  The biggest value contrast is near the trees and on the foreground trees  I kept the waterfall and the surrounding area close in value so your eye would still go to the trees.

And, yes, I really did think about these things before I began to paint!  It really is okay to plan as much as you can before your brush hits the paper.

Re-Thinking an Old Subject

While trying to come up with a subject to paint, I ran across this painting that I did in the Catskill Mountains this past fall.  I decided to take a completely different approach to the subject, minimalizing the shapes, removing details, and concentrating on color as the subject.  I started with complementary colors--blue and orange--and then worked on values.  I saved some areas of the pure colors while neutralizing the complements in others. 

Take an old painting and try a new approach.  Use color differently, or line or texture. Play soft edges against hard edges.  Try a high key or a low key. Switch format or size. And have fun!

The Power of Neutrals

I've recently been reading a lot about color, and have been reminded that pure colors can be punched up when they are surrounded by neutral, or grayed-down colors.  Using complementary colors mixed together will gray down and neutralize the color.  If you use equal parts of each complement, you get a perfect neutral.  But you can push that neutral to either the warm or the cool side by adding more of one complement that the other. 

Then, when you add a pure color near the focal point, it's much more likely to stand out. 

Try, Try Again

                                               

This is the ruin of the Yulee Sugar Mill in Homosassa Springs.  I pass through here every year and spend the night at a small resort on the banks of the Homosassa River where Winslow Homer painted.  And almost every year I paint the ruins.  Until this year, I have never been even close to satisfied with the result. 

I think the difference was in defining the building shape first and then glazing the shadow shapes in one pass.  I also eliminated many of the details that had confounded my previous efforts.  Simplify, simplify, simplify. 

Staying Ready

Last week, I rendezvoused with some old friends in St. Petersburg, Florida.  They were driving from Tampa, and I was coming from Bradenton.  I got there first and knew it would be a bit of a wait before they arrived.  Down by The Pier, I spotted a small regatta getting ready for their sail.  Their boats were on the beach, sails raised, waiting the signal that they had enough wind to launch. When I travel, I always pack the car so that my painting gear is readily available, so I was able to quickly set up my easel and begin to paint.

If you make your supplies reachable, you are more likely to use them when an unexpected opportunity presents itself.  By contrast, if you have to unpack the suitcases to get to your equipment, you will find a handy excuse not to paint.  If you keep your sketchbook in the car, you can also record a fleeting scene while waiting.

So stay ready!  You never know when a great little scene will present itself!

In the Footsteps of the Masters

Last fall, I blogged from Chadd's Ford, Pennsylvania where I went to the Brandywine Museum to see the works of Andrew Wyeth.  While there, I also toured his studio and the Kuerner Farm where he painted.  Working from reference photos when I got home, I did my own version of the farm as it is today. 

Now I'm in Homosassa right on the river and creek where Winslow Homer painted.  There are even inexpensive prints of his work on the walls of my motel room.

I love to see the locations where great artists, especially watercolorists, painted their works.  When I was in Provence one summer, I was amazed to see that Vincent van Gogh didn't exaggerate the colors he saw.  In Venice, it was like walking the streets with John Singer Sargent.  And the hot lavenders of Joaquin Sorolla were everywhere in central Spain. And also last summer, I actually found John Pike's old studio and house.  Those woods looked awfully familiar!

One of these days, I'd like to see Georgia O'Keefe country.  Anybody game?

Straight Line, Broken Line

For many years, I thought that a perfectly straight line was necessary to produce an accurate edge.  But straight, uninterrupted lines are boring.  Broken lines or lines that pop up from their "straightness" are much more interesting. 

To achieve a straight line, I always chose a flat brush.  Now I find that using a round brush allows me to vary the edge because it is harder to hold the straight line if you are using the tip of a round brush. 

The broken line or edge provides a staccato rhythm that contrasts with the smooth unbroken passage of a straight line.  Contrast is needed.  If most lines are straight, adding a broken line or edge will provide relief.  If there is too much nervous energy from employing mostly broken lines, throw in a couple of very straight edges. 

Looking at this painting of the clock tower on Historic Bridge Street on Anna Maria Island, you will see not-so-straight edges in many places.  I wanted to avoid having the painting look like an illustration.  The negative space behind the bottom of the tower and the railing was the place to leave some bumpy edges. 

I think there is more movement in this painting because of the number of broken lines. 

Working in a Series

A couple of weeks ago when I did a painting of the Apalachicola Bridge from below, I got lots of complimentary comments.  So today, when I went to Cocquina Beach on Anna Maria Island, Florida, I decided to paint the Longboat Key bridge and beach.  It was a lovely warm day, and the paint dried quickly.  I didn't bother with a preliminary drawing; I just did the first wash and started to paint in layers with no pencil guidelines.  I enjoyed the process and the freedom of painting without so much drawing ahead of time.

I still have some time here south of Tampa before my thoughts must turn northward.  But 75 degree temperatures make the frigid north seem like a fairy tale.  Unfortunately, soon I may have to fend off the cold like most of my friends north of the Mason-Dixon Line. 

Happy Painting!

Greens

One of the most common problems I see in my students' work is depicting the greens in foliage.  The tendency is to overmix the greens on the palette which results in a dull, flat looking shape. There are several ways to avoid this problem.

Blue and yellow make green.  Use different blues and yellows in various combinations.  The variety of plants and trees will suggest which ones are bluer and which lean toward the yellow side.

Mix the blues and yellows on the paper.  Wet in wet will help mingle the two colors.

Remember that yellow is the first color to disappear in the distance.  The farther the foliage is from the foreground, the bluer and lighter will the trees appear.

When you place a green on the paper, pick up an earth tone or add a touch of violet for variety.

Try not to drag the brush to create too much texture.  Think shapes of foliage rather than individual leaves.  Show texture at the edge of the shape.

Look carefully at the color in front of you.  Pine needles can be green, but when they start to die, they turn orange.  Use both colors.  Observe before you paint!

Complementary Colors

Surrounding a color with its complement is one of those exercises that is very popular in art classes.  A red square surrounded by a green field will intensify the red.  A yellow square framed by a violet square will intensify the yellow.  An orange piece embedded in a blue field will emphasize the orange.

But sometimes we forget to apply the information we get with these exercises in our paintings.  Choosing local colors often pre-empts applications of color knowledge.  Using arbitrary colors for the purpose of intensifying pure color areas often results in more interesting paintings than using accurate colors.

In this painting of a jellyfish, I chose to emphasize the fish by using the complements orange and blue.  I used a cool blue--thalo-- and an ultramarine blue which has a bit more red in it to surround the orange.  That gives the orange an extra pop that gives extra intensity.

Negative Painting

Putting down a light wash of varying colors is easy.  Finding objects by painting the darker background is negative painting.  In this painting, I used warm colors around the focal point and then painted darker background values in cooler colors.    As the values got lighter, I also used more neutral colors as I worked outward to the edges of the paper.  The higher contrast of color and values were then around the focal area. 

Going With Your First Reaction

Upon arriving at a painting location yesterday, I looked to my right and found a perfectly acceptable subject:  a yacht club near a little harbored lagoon.  But as I looked back over my shoulder to the left, I looked at the bridge over the Apalachicola River .  I loved its curve and the color of the cement pilings.  The blue sky and the warm pilings were also appealing.

Still, I thought I should go for the more conventional subject.  But while I was setting up my easel, I kept looking over at the bridge and the river.  Just before I started to paint the yacht club, I decided to go with my first gut instinct.  I turned the easel 180 degrees and lightly sketched the shape of the bridge with a small brush and some diluted yellow ochre.  Here is the result.

Two thoughts: first, you'll probably have more fun if you're invested in the subject.  Taking the easier subject might have produced a perfectly acceptable painting, but I knew I wouldn't have been invested in the outcome.

Second, if you can name why the subject appeals to you, you're halfway finished.  In this case, I knew it was the lovely curve of the downward sloping bridge and the play of warm against cool colors.  Rather than say, I'm going to paint the bridge, say, I'm going to paint the way the shadows fall on the bridge and the play of light and contrasting colors.

Studio vs. Plein Air Painting

When the Impressionists first stepped out of their studios, the subject matter shifted from the things that they were painting to the quality of the light that fell on the things they were painting.  Color and light became uppermost in their minds. Even these days, most studio painters are influenced by that change in focus.

As for me, I am energized when I'm painting on location.  I am more spontaneous, my brushstrokes are faster, and I love the way the upright easel helps to mix the paint on the paper.  The occasional drips and splatters also delight me.  I can also choose nearby elements to include in my painting rather than relying strictly on a photograph.  And quite frankly, I think the sounds, the warmth of the sunlight or the coolness of the fog on my shoulders, and the smell of low tide all make their way into the experience of painting.  Being outdoors makes me feel part of the landscape and much more in the moment.  Rather being removed from the scene I'm painting, I feel the joy of being in the landscape.

So when I was finally able to paint plein air yesterday for the first time in over three months, it was exhilarating. 

Painter's Block

I've been here in Apalachicola, Florida for two and a half weeks.  The weather has been most uncooperative for a plein air painter.  I finally dragged my gear up to my second story room and have attempted to paint in my room.  At least I got my brushes wet. 

Before that it was home repairs, and holiday and travel preparations that kept me away from the easel.  All in all it's been about a month since I last touched brush to paper.

I've discovered that even a short time away from painting can result in painter's block.  Re-igniting interest, finding subject matter, and remembering procedural techniques become difficult.  And after painting for over 40 years, I feel a lack of confidence when facing the blank page.

What's a painter to do?  Here are some things that have helped me to jump-start my painting motor:

1.  Paint some color swatches.  Some wet-in-wet combinations, some wet over dry.

2.  Watch some painting instruction DVD's. 

3.  Re-paint an old painting.  Use a limited palette, arbitrary rather than local color.

4.  Re-visit your old instructional books.

5.  Visit a museum.

6.  Get out your sketchbook.  Check it for subject possibilities.  Make some new sketches.

7.  Make a list of the subjects you love to paint most.  For me, it's boats and trees.

8.  Explore some galleries.

9.  Try painting an entire painting with only your largest brush.

10. Set a goal.   Ten paintings for a week.  Enter a competition.  Contact a gallery.

Merry Christmas

  

   Merry Christmas to all!  I hope to have some new paintings soon now that I'm in Florida and can paint outside again soon!

Figures and Backgrounds

Backgrounds and foregrounds are always a problem for the watercolorist.  How much detail to include or exclude.  Should the background be dark or light?  Making those decisions before beginning to paint is an important starting point.

                             "The Cast"

In this painting of a trout fisherman on his favorite stream,  I wanted the fisherman to really stand out, so I decided to make the figure light against a dark background for the most dramatic effect.  I also wanted the viewer to concentrate on the figure, so I provided no details or texture in the dark background.  It isn't a solid mass, but certainly any suggestion of rocks or trees has been eliminated.
The foreground rocks and stream are necessary to give context and setting.  Most of the action centers around the fly fisherman's cast. 

This painting was a gift from the faculty of the high school where I taught for 19 years to the principal upon the occasion of his retirement.  A couple of years before, he had given me a refresher course and loaned me his rod for a spring break trip to Arkansas.  So it was appropriate on a personal and professional level.  Consider giving a painting related to someone's hobby.

Overlapping and Receding Values

                       "Ocean Point Marina"

For this painting I decided to take the color factor out and concentrate on values.  After painting the sky and ground, I worked from far distance to near foreground.  Each step forward, the values got a little darker. The shadowed sides of the white boats were the exception.

Overlapping shapes also helped bring things forward.  The closest sailboat with its rudder overlaps the lobster boat in the back, and the foreground figures and scaffolding are darker than the shapes behind them.

Notice, too, how the shapes are connected without  stopping for hard edges.  The underside of the boat doesn't start with a hard edge, and the cast shadow melts into the hull to form one shape.

Every once in a while, it helps to eliminate the color problem and just paint the value of things. 

Clouds

                       "Clouds Over Newagen"

When the subject is clouds, they must dominate the space on the paper.  The larger the area that a subject is given, the more attention will be given to it.  In this painting of "Clouds Over Newagen", the sky takes up about two thirds of the painting. 

Special care must be taken when designing them.  Choose one cloud to dominate.  Then place one or two lesser clouds to balance them.  Papa Bear, Mama Bear, Baby Bear....

Consider the placement of sky holes.

If you study clouds, you will eventually notice that because they are made up of water molecules, they are very reflective of what is under them.  A sailor will tell you that when searching for land out at sea, he will look for the clouds with the warmest colors on their underside.  A cool underside will tell him that the cloud is reflecting the sea.

This is important in choosing colors because the values of most clouds are not much darker than the light of the blue sky.  A warm gray, even if light in value, will read as cloud if it is pinned against a cool sky.

Did you know there is a Cloud Appreciation Society?  Google it for more information and some fantastic photos!