Tugman Park

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10"

Two beautiful days in a row...what's going on?

Meadowlark Prairie

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10"

Some touch ups...

I spent part of this morning painting the wetlands at Meadowlark Prairie. What a beautiful spot. It was a pleasure to be outside.

Spring Bouquet

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10"

Saginaw

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

Tuesday Evening

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

Tulip Bouquet

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

Pink Tulips

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

I learned something new while working on this painting - if the paint is the right consistency - like whipped butter - it's much easier to apply to the canvas. It's possible that some of my problems with the canvas have their origins on the palette.

Marechal Foch

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

This evening I continued to work on this painting. I wanted to make the bottle stand up straight. It's interesting...on the easel, it looks vertical. In the photo, however, it appears to be leaning. It's recommended that while painting, you occasionally look at the painting's reflection in a mirror. For some reason, the reflection will reveal errors. Apparently the camera works the same way.

Saginaw Marechal Foch

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

I didn't feel like painting tonight so rushed through this. It shows. For the next little bit, I think I'll spend a minimum of two evenings on one painting and will try to stop just before I'm ready. Maybe that will help me slow down.

Muscat and Apples

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

This was fun to do. I'm still having trouble with background colors, so will continue working with still life paintings until I feel more comfortable.

Hint of Spring

Oil on canvas. 14"x18"

We found this cheery little bouquet at the grocery store this weekend. The flowers are a natural anti-depressant for the dark, wet winter.

It felt like the painting was working well for the first hour, but then I started fiddling and quickly got "into the weeds." It's a hard habit to break. I need to slow down and be more mindful with my brushstrokes...it's a process.

Rework

This evening we went to two art exhibits. Emerald Art Center exhibited works from the plein air painters of Lane County - it was fun to see the work of others in the community. Maude Kerns was exhibiting works from Sara Sedwick. She's a talented young Eugene artist who does beautiful work.

I needed to get my hour in this evening, so decided to "fix" some earlier paintings. I couldn't wait for the paint to dry to try glazing, so went ahead with the red wash on the pomegranates.

The blue background on the tulip painting gnawed at me all day. I was eager to get home to tone it down a bit. Not happy with the result. I realize I should have waited until I could work on it in the daylight. Oh well, I guess it's true that every painting is a lesson for the next one.

For me, it all comes back to color. If I could get color right the first time, I wouldn't need to do the rework.

Tulip, Train & Ball

Oil on canvas. 5"x7"

It was a dark and dreary day, but spending the evening painting this flower and toy train lifted my spirits.

Two Pomegranates

Oil on canvas. 5"x7"

The color is more orange than I intended. This might be a good painting to use for experimenting with glazing. After the painting dries, I'll use a transparent red wash over the pomegranates. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Pomegranate

Oil on canvas. 5"x7"

The Road Home

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

Let's just say that when it comes to pochade painting, I have lots of opportunities to improve. I've been fighting with this painting all afternoon. Maybe I'll have better luck tomorrow.

January Afternoon

Oil on canvas. 8"x10"

Pochade (poe-shod) is the French word for rough sketch. A pochade painting should be done with few strokes. My challenge is to paint quickly and simply using fewer stokes.

My book recommends doing a pochade painting every day for three months...about 100 paintings. I'm game. In for a penny, in for a pound.

International Way

Oil on canvas. 5"x7"

Our office building sits near a branch of the McKenzie River. This is the view from the boardroom window.

Two Pears

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10".

My book says to paint boldly and decisively. "Put it on and leave it alone." That's what I tried to do with this painting. It was fun and a little bit scary.

Pink Ladies

Oil on canvas board. 5"x7"

I finally bought a couple of art books I've been wanting for a long time. I'm hoping these books have some good information on color. I definitely need some help!

Today I bought a frame for the painting I'll be entering in the Plein Air Painters exhibit at Emerald Art Center this weekend. Here's the painting with the new frame:

Royal Wetlands
Oil on canvas board. 11'x14"

Peppermill

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10"

We received a lovely peppermill for Christmas. I wish I could capture its rich, beautiful bamboo color. One of my goals for 2011 is to learn more about color.

Papa (unfinished)

Oil on canvas. 14"x18"

This is the first painting of 2011. It needs more work and some areas need to be redone. I'm a little nervous about trying to fix the problem areas since I tend to rework paintings until they turn to mud. I'll need to give some careful thought to what needs to be done.

African Violets

Oil on canvas board. 8"x10"

This painting was an attempt to use different shades of green. I also wanted to experiment with painting the reflection in the glass-topped table.