By the Pond, O/C, 12 x 16

                     "By the Pond", above,  represents an afternoon I spent by Bellville Pond in North Kingstown, RI .  The painting is, of course, unfinished; many of the delicious details, such as the water lilies, grasses, etc.  must be clarified so they "read" unambiguously to the viewer.  At this stage of the sketch I have studied closely only a few factors such as overall composition, the ever-changing light, and hue and chroma matching.  Note that the view is a downward one.  The top of the sketch suggests reflections from a tree line and the hint of another area of the water surface dotted with water lilies.  

                                                               Cattails, O/C, 9x 12                            

In the sketch above called "Cattails", I took a similar viewpoint: a downward look alongside the pond that captured the reflection of a treeline and the suggestion of more water lilies in the distance.  Again, finish might be achieved with the clarification of a few details.  The sketch has a spontaneous look and I would like to preserve this in the "finished" version.

      There is so much to paint in these pond areas besides the larger view of the pond.  There are numerous opportunities to do "outdoor" still life studies which "cattails" above represents.

                                                            Coming In, O/C, 11 x 14

    The painting "Coming In", above, represents a departure from the previously done direct studies in oil.  The area depicted is that of the beach at Goddard Park in East Greenwich, RI.  I sat on the beach with my small watercolor kit and sketched shore, rock and boats.  At home in my studio I took out the watercolor sketches and, using my memory (fresh from that very day), painted the scene above in oils.  Tonal harmony was the result of the mellow light at the end of day.  Often I do the reverse of the above procedure;  i.e., do a watercolor sketch based upon memory of a just-completed oil sketch.  I find that such reworking of an image in a different medium , whether oil, oil pastel, or watercolor allows one more room for experimentation in delivering the emotional impact of the final work of art. 

  To see more of my work the reader of this blog may wish to visit Bill Krul Gallery in Narragansett and Java Madness Cafe at Salt Pond, Wakefield.  My work can be viewed the entire month of August at these venues.
      

The Workshop Experience

                                                         Low Tide, Gloucester Harbor

        The painting above (oil on board, 12x16) was inspired by a workshop experience -- in particular, a plein air workshop hosted by David P. Curtis.  David is a rich colorist , concerned not only with veracity of drawing, hue and value, but also with the mastery of chroma (color intensity).  I urge anyone reading this blog to go to his website to enjoy -- and learn from his paintings.  A painter, remember, is really a perpetual student.  No matter how accomplished we fancy ourselves there is always something that (a) we need to master or (b) we must be reminded of.  In taking an arts workshop it is helpful to know your own shortcomings -- that can be the key for unlocking the treasure of a workshop  for you.  Another painting of the area includes this one:

                                                                Low Tide, Rocky Neck

   These paintings and this one

                                                          At Ft. Wetheril

will be included in the upcoming show I share with Katerina Stepanova, a photographer, at the Bill Krul Gallery in Narragansett, RI, with opening reception on Saturday, August 4th, 3 - 7 PM.
Hope to see you there!

Wet Works en Plein Air

                                          At Gloucester Harbor, O/C, 11x14

  A couple of weeks ago I visited Gloucester Harbor on a sunny day.  Wonderful subjects: dories in the sun, stuck in the wet sand at low tide.  Dramatic shadows help to make this an inviting scene.  I'll try not to overwork this one, but I may change title to "Gloucester Dories".

                                              Bellville Pond, Oil on Board, 11x14

  This one , painted a few days ago, is almost purely impressionistic in its approach.  I had to "slather" copious amounts of paint with painting knife onto a previously painted board.  (A portrait lies underneath.)  In the studio there is the fun of bringing out nuances of color.  Again, this was painted plein air and the danger is that of losing the initial mood of joyous tranquility -- another hazard of overworking.  But many of Monet's canvases show evidence of later reworking.  In the impressionist approach, this overworking at its best should add nuance and richness in color and texture and avoid the hazards of losing form and mood.

          

                                                South of the Bridge, O/C. 9x12

    This one was painted one week ago at the Bay Campus of URI, just south of the "Jamestown" Bridge.  The sun was getting low and there were enough clouds to notice some cloud shadows -- always a painter's friend.  Unlike the previous painting, this painting reeks more of the tonalist than of the impressionist approach.  The mood is one of quiet tranquility.  I look upon this small work as a study.  I would like to paint the scene, with some slight compositional modifications, upon a larger canvas so its mood could have more impact. 

   Since I must prepare (which means perfecting and framing works)  for two solo shows and one shared show in the next two months, I may not have time for the grandiose plan of reworking plein-air studies onto more appropriately-sized supports .  Such is the painter's life!
                                               

Before the Rains Came

About a month ago I was in northern RI where I sketched at the foot of this foot bridge in Esmond.  It was the early part of spring, showing only very few blossoms and buds.  The yellow buds at the other end of the bridge caught my eye, but I had no finished painting in mind.  Practice in values and what I call "spring grays" is what I sought for this exercise.

  After some rainy days -- in fact, two days ago-- I painted this sketch of a cove in Beavertail (Jamestown, RI).  Note that the canvas used was a round (12" diameter) that had been oil primed.  The cove is a favorite among people climbing over the rocks near Beavertail Light and it is also a favorite of mine to paint.  The distant horizon , a westward view, shows the coast of Narragansett.  Closer in, a fishing boat was passing by.  If I were to "finish" this plein air piece, I could add a figure at the cove -- or even a seagull.  But should I?  There is always the danger of introducing elements into a scene that might intrude into a certain mood set up by a simple design.  My fellow artists, you opinions are welcome!

 This second piece, an 11 x 14" piece was done on the same day and at the same place.  Again, the view is westward toward Narragansett.  At first I was attracted by the tidal pool in the foreground, but I am now attracted to the late afternoon lighting playing along the Narragansett coast.  The sketch is drying on my wall where it will suggest improvements, corrections -- or its own destruction.

     In the first sketch I used a palette modeled after one suggested by the British seascape painter, Borlase
Smart in his book Techniques of Seascape Painting.   Smart's palette uses just one blue -- cobalt blue --and one yellow -- naples yellow.  I did add to his palette ultramarine blue , which I think helps to recess distant areas.  (Borlase palette: naples yellow, yellow ochre, raw sienna, rose madder, viridian, cobalt blue, ivory black and flake white.)

   In the second sketch, I added (in addition to ultramarine blue) quinacridone red (instead of rose madder), cad yellow light, and cad red light.  The cad yellow light allowed me to suggest more brilliant, sunlit greens than I could achieve with the more limited palette.

  My landscape group must be worried about the rainy days ahead; then we must learn to paint rain!
         

Portraits and Landscapes

This is a portrait -- actually a sketch completed in about two hours-- I painted at M. Reznik's portrait session at All Saints Church.  At these sessions the model often has as a background a pale green wall behind her.  Some compensation from all the dull tones is the warm light source , shining from the lower right of the model.  These sessions are really helpful to those of us who wish to keep up our portrait skills.  Since I am currently teaching portraiture in Wickford (at the Wickford Art Association) these sessions force me to practice what I preach about beginning procedures, keeping to the larger masses, saving the struggle with detailed features for the last.

A couple of weeks ago, I braved some cool weather to paint a landscape.  This was at Arnold's Neck which boasts a rail bridge:

The Bridge is particularly interesting at low tide when some mud and a few rocks protrude as perches for gulls.  I pitched the whole key as if it were a snow painting, since it was a bright but cool day.  I had done a few paintings of this Rail Bridge, but I think this one comes closest to the statement I wanted to make. (The painting is now on display at the Bristol Art Museum -- until next Sunday, March 18th.)

More unfinished work

In the winter I tend to concentrate on still life and portraiture, primarily to keep observational as well as motor skills well-oiled and ready for glorious plein-air opportunities, now only about two months away. Here in Rhode Island, there are several venues to accomplish these "warming-up" exercises through drop-in groups. One for still life occurs at the Wickford Art Association on Tuesdays and costs only $2. The other venues involve portraiture and figure: Kate Huntington's group for portraiture on Mondays (7 - 10 PM) and figure on Wednesdays (7 - 10 PM). One drop-in Group I often take advantage of for portraiture is Martin Reznik's sessions at All Saints Church in Warwick on Greenwich Avenue. Also a contribution of artist Norah Pfeifer is leading the senior Group that meets at the Senior Center in Wickford Mondays at 10 AM. Here are two portrait sketches, the first done at All Saints and the second at Kate's.

These and other images could in my next show "People and Places" opening at the East Greenwich Free Library on February 9, 5 -7 PM. I hope to see you there. ( The exhibit will be up from Feb. 4 - Feb. 29.)

Uses for Kumquats

I recently started a still life based upon items readily available. It turns out that kumquats were in season at the local supermarket and, almost on the same day at a local thrift shop, I found a figurine of an elegant Asian lady who was once holding a flute. In this still life sketch she herds the kumquats , anchored by a small brass statue of Buddha.

Reflections obviously play a key role here in echoing the treasures of color seemingly pacified by the lady. (The object in the foreground was a small golden box upon which a turtle sits.)

A beautiful afternoon on Saturday interrupted any work on still life. I simply had to take advantage of the unusually good weather to paint on Scarborough Beach which boasts this locally famous rock. Here is the sketch (on the right, above) , a 9 x 12 oil on canvas.