Saturday Quick Draw, Camp Hill

A 'Quick Draw' involves starting, completing and turning in a framed painting in a limited time frame. In Camp Hill we had two hours, this is on a 9x12 panel that I chose because I had a single mid size frame left and it was not too big a surface for the time allotted. I went to a lovely garden within a block of the display area and shared this view with 4 other artists, but only one had a picture that was remotely similar to this. I was tempted to offer a trade with her but lost that opportunity as she had two hungry little ones with her.

After a long gray winter, these huge mounds of azaleas are so attractive to me. I cannot comprehend how one chooses to paint a winning scene, so I just pick what I like. There were many beautiful and distinctive homes in the Quick Paint area but after several days of working I knew my wrist was not going to continue to correctly make the straight lines that I would need for architectural perspective. Alas, the garden fence is perfectly straight!

24th & Walnut, Harrisburg. 9x12 oil on birch panel

Harrisburg, PA, The Camp Hill Plein Air Competition

It was a little overcast but his was fun to paint, in a lovely neighborhood park. So many people had suggested I visit this pristine groomed park that I headed there with my paints. When I began the painting the air and water were still, fortunately I had recorded the reflections on the calm water to start. The small evergreens in every corner of this park are trimmed into perfect boxes, later in the week visitors to the art show recognized the location seeing these distinctive bushes. Now that the painting is in my studio I may choose to paint them out as I prefer a softer look and this isn't familiar to anyone but residents of Harrisburg. I may change the title to something like Azalea Reflectons as well, it was the bright contrast that attracted me to choose the scene between two trees.

Unfortunately, it was 'cut the grass' day in the neighborhood, commercial lawn maintenance in the park, as well as at the homes directly behind me shot cinders, grass, bugs and plain old dirt onto my wet paint, all unintentionally. I can say that the workers made an effort to avoid blowing anything in my direction, imagine if they had not! Dirt in the paint is a true sign of a plein air painting, some collectors even look for this evidence; most is removable after the sticky paint hardens a little

close up of grit on my canvas

 'Reflections of Italian Lake' 12x16 oil.

Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg.

When I sat on the west side of the Susquehanna River to paint the Harrisburg skyline with the Pennsylvania State Capitol building, I considered using the field of dandelion 'wishes' as foreground. After sketching my plan, I realized that the buildings would be dwarfed by the grasses and left them out. The buildings are barely visible in the distance here, but photographs lie. From this vantage point I could see each rooftop clearly.

This was my first use of a new 9x12 laptop box, it is only 2.5 pounds, so I lost 3 pounds by 'downgrading' from my French Resistance and I noticed the difference in how things fit, both in my backpack and in the box, it has a built in palette. I love how everything works for me with this box. My precious French Half easel may never see sunshine again.

I was there for the Camp Hill Plein Air Event, a week of painting central Pennsylvania culminating in a show, prizes and a quick paint competition on the weekend. I had applied for entry a few months earlier, was accepted and was able to stay with Laurene Buckley, and we both had a wonderful week.

A Capitol View, 12x16 oil on birch panel

VIsiting with the original Guerrilla Painter

A few months ago, I ordered a new paint box from Judson's Art Outfitters in Colorado. Poking around their website I discovered that Carl Judson would pass nearby; I took a chance and invited him to stay with us and paint with the NIagara Frontier Plein Air Painters. A few emails back and forth and we set up an evening salon with my group, he gently presented some history and his philosophy and listened carefully to comments and art stories. All evening a series of about 100 images rotated on the tv screen, providing a visual panorama of plein air.

Painting the Falls, on the days when the ice is roaring down the river from Lake Erie has a special quality. Spending that day with Carl Judson added to the 'special' as we set up with our backs to the American Falls and could see the 'shoe between the trees before leaves filled in the view. Ice at the base of the Horseshoe was halfway up, about 90 feet deep, and another 5-6 feet deep on the fenced off lookout areas near the spray.

 Carl attracted a steady group of observers of the water falls and our paintings.

 This pile of equipment represents enough for two artists to sit, paint and eat lunch. The economy of space of the Guerilla Painter supplies has lightened my load considerably. When I started to paint out years ago, I could barely manage my own bulky set up even with a set of wheels, these two boxes were easy to carry with two chairs up the hill and through the fields without thinking about weight or bulk.

 Carl Judson and I in front of his mobile art shop [and traveling apartment], before leaving the area in Wilson. We had painted the Trillium walk in the morning, he was headed for Rochester Art Supply, one of our favorite artist road trips, followed by Canandaigua and Ithaca.

New Buffalo Botanical Gardens Waterfall

'The Palm Room' is the central domed rotunda at the gardens; through the years we have watched various palms reach the 60-70? foot high ceiling. Some have been replaced, others trimmed, but every time I enter that beautiful space, even when it is for consecutive weeks of painting, the room is different. Flowers are moved around for seasons, lemons grow from white buds, displays are rearranged. This winter, a new feature is a lovely waterfall near the center, a peaceful moment right where people converge from four directions.

The first is a photograph of the site, followed by an underpainting and then a picture of the nearly completed painting.

A week later, daffodils, hyacinth and majestic tulips surrounded and covered the rocks, making this little painting a true moment of that particular time.

Tinkling Waters, oil 7x5 c. 2014

Great Baehre Swamp in Amherst

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Call it Great Baehre Swamp or Margaret Louise Park, this was a great place to officially start the plein air club season. We came early last year also, but the geese had paired, green was everywhere and frogs were sunning. It was eerily quiet this time, except for a single pair of geese practicing their water landings and the regular walkers getting exercise, the day was gray.

I chose a spot at the beginning of the raised wood walkway, intrigued by the amount of ice that remained in the pond.  I am sure it was merely an inch or so, melting furiously to make way for sun and reflections.

Once I got going this painting went quickly, as it is quite small. I am sure that the buds on the trees in the distance expanded during the time I was painting. A day or two later and there will be green here, the ice will be gone.

Interesting -I searched the former name 'Margaret Louise Park' to create a link and one of my paintings from a previous year here came up first in Google images.

Spring Melt, oil on canvas panel, 6x6

April Snow

I planned to paint outdoors, but the weather report was gloomy. Waking to white stuff falling isn't high on my list in April. There was not much snow and it melted quickly as the ground had warmed already. Snow only remained on the tops of the evergreens and on horizontal branches. I took a photo out the back, ate, and realized I should paint from indoors. Carpe diem.

 The woods glowed silver with iced mist. My new birch panels were ready to go, three coats of gesso and sanded. As I prepared to paint, it warmed outside and the scene changed, snow melted and large drips from tree branches kept the surface of standing water flickering. Now that I have tried it this birch painting surface is my new favorite.

I painted our garden rock wall far to the left of the big pine in this photograph, but I included this photo to show the magical effect of icing in the wetlands and snow on our half grown evergreens.

April Snow, oil on birch panel, 8x10