Painting in a rainstorm

I was excited to paint in Youngstown at the end of the mighty Niagara, it ends at Lake Ontario with two forts, several dozen sailboats and two marinas and Canada all in view.

And then it rained, in fact it poured and was 1" deep under the tent which also started dripping underneath. No good for pastel painters, but I was using oils. The red roof shed was a perfect collection of shapes, so I started my painting...not planning to have my view blocked by the blue sailboat 'lifter' which wheeled in front of my view. 

In Fall all the large and small sailboats are removed from the Niagara River and packed together, similar to cars at a busy mall on a Saturday holiday weekend. The huge masts create an aluminum forest, with ropes continually clinking on metal.

But, I persisted and happily completed my painting. How many more old buildings will I find?

I

RCR shed at Youngstown Yacht Club 9x12 oil c. 2022

Three Sisters In sunshine

September brings the sun a little lower and the glare on the water is almost difficult to watch or paint. Having sold all the bridge pictures of Three Sisters at Niagara Falls State Park, I selected a 16x20 canvas for my favorite spot. 

As I painted this a group passed behind me and gathered across the water by the rocks and steps and I realized it was a wedding. Every painting has its own story and I enjoyed watching a very informal marriage ceremony as I painted. Afterwards some of the attendees asked to buy this painting. It wasn’t complete but we made arrangements to meet at their hotel later. I carefully packed the wet oil at home and signed it with their wedding date. The group had taken up a collection to pay for it and they included a tip! I’ll have to paint here again soon, these bridge paintings are my favorite and apparently others feel the same. 

September Morning at Three Sisters 16x20 oil

More sunflowers! 2022 Flowers for Ukraine

I'm donating a percentage of the price of sold sunflower paintings to supporting the people devastated by war. I have a collection displayed in Studio 120 at the NACC. This is my 2022 picture made at Sunflowers of Sanborn. I worked on it until the tree shade receded and turned my spot into a sauna on a beautiful August day. It's a double benefit, you get a painting and make a donation too.

Photo by Rachelle Bisone

Sunflower field, oil, 10x20, c. K.Schifano 2022

 

Interpretation of Bonds Lake

Here is a painting in progress, nearly finished. A few more rocks and some long shadows and it was done.

We paint at least once a year at Bond's Lake and usually include the lake and the stunning colors of trees across the water in our pictures. Today I chose the path that is now blocked but leads to where we used to park. Purple loosestrife, a noxious weed, is nevertheless beautiful in late summer. Long shadows herald the approach of Fall as the sun appears low in the sky.

Bond Lake's Loosestrife, oil, 5x7 c. 2022

England and Wales continued

 One of the fantastic artists at Workshops in Yorkshire invited me to stay at her home at the end of our week. I hesitated but I was assured she would get me to Manchester airport in a few days. 

I am so glad I accepted the invitation, as Liz's extended family, lovely historic stone home and spectacular location were the best part of my UK experience. It turns out I was now in Wales with her and I found subtle differences with more beautiful views and enjoyed every minute. This involved a lot of driving and I am in her debt for a wonderful time; we painted, had some lovely excursions, went to a surprise birthday party (everyone was incredibly nice) and ate wonderfully.

One of my nearly completed workshop paintings is of a climbing 'Sylvia Rose'. I met a lovely young girl whose name happened to also be Sylvia Rose and she was thrilled to pose with my painting. We visited in a large covered area with sunshine streaming around us, sheep bleating nearby while her grandfather (?) played the guitar and sang a song written by his son followed by a song by Sylvia. She was charming and confident, ready to start back to school soon. It was delightful and memorable, life and new friendships are so good.