Finding the Painting in the Landscape

12/30/2013 3:46:01 PM

After a long hiatus from plein air painting I had an opportunity to spend the day testing out my new 30 piece Basic Landscape Pastel Set from Terry Ludwig.  There was a thick coating of snow on the ground and I went looking for a building with character or a gestural tree to paint. The forecast called for a sunny winter day and I had visions of using the colorful palette to capture blue shadows stretching across a sparkling white field.  What I got instead was a sky of leaden gray that was the exact same value as the snow.  These conditions are common for my part of Michigan and create a subtle beauty.  We do not have awe inspiring landforms or grand great lakes in my corner of the state.

After driving around searching for inspiration I was getting frustrated. The gray sky and snow did not excite me and areas I wanted to get to had not been plowed.   I decided the only way I was going to get a painting that day was to change my attitude.  Rather than search for the perfect landscape to paint I would find the painting in the landscape by using visual language to create the composition.  Visual language is identifying a composition by shape, value, edge, and color.  You can read more about visual language in a previous blog post.

I pulled into the parking lot of a local state park and decided whatever scene was in the driver’s window would be the painting.   There was a lake surrounded by oak trees and brush. The sky and snow offered contrast to the rhythm of the trees and understory.  Color-wise the landscape was ishy.  The brightest colors belonged to the muted reds of the frozen oak leaves. Yellowish grass and greenish trunks complemented the red. The hills behind the lake receded into a dusty blue.   All those gray tones challenged the bright primary colors of the set and meant I would have to do a lot of mixing with the limited palette.  However, once I identified the big light dark pattern and the colors that would fit into those values I could get down to work.  You can see the steps below.

The scene from my drivers window.  I was wimpy and painted from the front seat of my Honda Fit.  It was cramped but I stayed warm.

  The set up: the box of Terry Ludwig Landscape Pastels fits nicely into my Easy-L box.  I brought along 3 extra lights for the snow.

Once the light/dark pattern is established I focus on the edges and how the values and colors transition into each other.

  Here is the finished painting.  "Try Out" 6x8 Pastel.  It is for sale in the "Little Gems" portfolio on my website.

Plein air is a test of an artist’s resolve.  Often what I envision painting when I set out is different than what reality offers.   The goal of the plein air painter is to find the painting in the landscape.

I will be teaching a plein air workshop in Toledo, Ohio called Finding the Painting in the Landscape.   The workshop will be held in August of 2014 and is hosted by the Toledo Arts Club which is located on the grounds of the beautiful Toledo Botanical Gardens.  Details will be posted on my website soon!

Holiday Wish List - Favorite Magazines

12/21/2013 10:30:57 AM

Favorite Magazines and Publications -These come in print and digital download with exception of Artists on Art, which comes as an online subscription or PDF.


Pastel Journal-If you are a pastel painter this magazine is for you.  It is the go-to publication for all things pastel.  It is published six times a year and features articles on artists, techniques, history, and materials.  There is a great listing of workshops and competitions in the back.  To order click here


Plein Air Magazine - Publisher Eric Rhodes is an avid plein air painter and Plein Air Magazine reflects his enthusiasm for the genre.
Published bi-monthly, Plein Air magazine is focused on landscape paintings by historical and contemporary artists, art collections, events and the process of creating plein air paintings.  It is beautifully designed, with rich reproductions and features the top artists and artworks from around the world.  I get both the print and digital form of this magazine.  The online version offers many extras and expands on the print form.  I get both, just because I like the feel of the magazine in my hands and  it is sooo comforting to curl up with and look at the beautiful photos.

To order click here


International Artist-  This is my favorite magazine when it comes to instructional articles on different mediums and subjects. They have regular features from artists that explain technique and concept in an easy and informative way.  Harley Brown is a favorite contributor and I keep a file of his articles.  If you are a member of the Portrait Society of America you will recieve a subscrition to this magazine as a membership benifit. If you are not a member and you want to subscribe click here 



Artists on Art- I Love this online magazine where Master Artists & connoisseurs share their ideas and techniques through in-depth, interactive articles. To subscribe click here

Hope you enjoyed reading these lists. Now I have an excuse to collect more art stuff to share with you next year!

Holiday Wish List - Favorite DVD's, Websites, and an App

12/11/2013 6:05:10 PM

Holiday Favorites List - DVD's, Websites, and an App

When I was first learning to paint it was frustrating trying to find good information about techniques and concepts.  My learning was limited to what was in the local library and once I had read through every art book on the shelves, I thought, "Now what?"  Then  along came the internet and an excellent, affordable art education became available from the comfort of home.  Here are some of my recent favorite websites and downloads. Enjoy! 

To visit the websites below click on the highlighted lettering.


David Shelvino - I recently treated myself to two of David Shelvino's DVD downloads.  I love the painterly quality of his work and the freshness he brings to his subject matter.  His DVDs can be purchased and shipped as hard copies or downloaded.  I got "Painting Loosely" and "In the Studio."  David is an excellent teacher and has some unusual techniques for applying paint.  He also offers shorter tutorials on drawing and using Photoshop.  A nice feature of his website is all the previews of his DVDs.

 
Your Elusive Creative Genius  by Elizabeth Gilbert - Ted Talks
This is one of my all time favorite Ted Talks! Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses, and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It's a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk. Ted Talks are free.


New Masters Academy - The internet is an amazing source of fine art education if you know where to look.   One of the newer offerings is New Masters Academy.  Taught by some of the top artists and instructors in the U.S., including my drawing hero, Glenn Vilppu, the Academy builds on traditional skills of drawing, painting, and sculpture.  This is a rich resource of information and education offered at a very reasonable monthly price of $19.00 to $29.00 dollars a month depending on which level of subscription you choose.  They offer a 7 day free trial for those of you who would like to try it out.



Peggi Kroll Roberts - Peggi Kroll Roberts' paintings are about simplicity and light.  She has created a series of lessons on DVDs that are simple and easy to follow.  Here is the description from her website: You’re invited into the art studio of Peggi Kroll Roberts, painter of still lifes and figures from live models. Watch Peggi create light-filled paintings through informative demonstrations designed to engage viewers and inspire artists at all levels. Her exercises, condensed to one idea at a time, simplify the learning process creating interesting challenges and charming results. Peggi's instructional videos are available on DVDs or by Video on Demand.

 
AccuView  

Have you ever finished a painting and then realized it would be sooo much better if  the whole design had been moved an inch to the left?  Struggle no more!  I recently purchased an app called AccuView.   It is the ultimate viewfinder and a great tool for composition.  To use AccuView, open the app, take a photo with your phone then choose to view it in color or black and white.  You can impose different canvas sizes and grids on the photograph then move the photo within the selected canvas until you get the composition you want.  I recently used this App to design my still life.  My original thought was to include everything in the set up in a horizontal composition but after using AccuView I selected this vertical composition and am very happy with it! AccuView is an app on my iphone but it can be downloaded into PCs and Macs.
Cost: $1.99 
  

The set up                                                                             The final composition

  
The lay in                                                   The finished painting
Next Week's List - Favorite Magazines

When a Portrait is More than a Likeness

12/2/2013 6:18:17 PM

I was asked by Freedom 58 Project to create a portrait of someone who had been freed from human trafficking. Robert Swenson, who co-founded the organization with his wife, contacted me saying that he was looking for portrait artists whose work he admired and asking if they would paint a portrait of someone who had been freed from slavery.  The portraits will be part of a traveling exhibition used to inform the public not only about the injustice of slavery, but also about the hope for those who break its bonds.

I was sent several photographs and chose to paint a young woman from Thailand.  I did not know her story yet or what conditions she lived under.  An 11x14 canvas arrived along with an 8x10 photograph of a young woman, with a shy smile, wearing a white scarf and standing in a building.  In her hand was part of a card granting her citizenship.  The reference was not the best for painting but that allowed me to make up my own interpretation of hope for her.  I wanted bright colors and a sense of sunlight and open sky.  I dissolved part of the building she is standing in so it could create shelter but then open up to the outdoors.   Any plane of her that was facing upward I colored with the blue sky and the downward planes reflected her shirt and the bright green grass.  As an artist I chose to paint her and her future bright and full of sunlight.

Along with the photo and the canvas was a book called, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.  It is a powerful book that is both heartbreaking and hopeful as it follows the plight of women around the world who have escaped bondage and found new lives filled with respect and love.