A Work in Progress...

"Last Call"

I haven't been out to do a good Plein Air Painting in a few weeks, but don't think I haven't been doing any art!! I've got a great studio project going on at the moment, a commission for a family friend.

If you'll notice in the picture, the reference photo is in the upper right hand corner. My client is from the coasts of Florida, and he's been landlocked in Wyoming now for 10 years or so. He's got a lot of love for the ocean, and misses it greatly. I myself have only visited the ocean a few times in my short life, but I'm madly in love with the idea of living on the beach. There is a strong emotional connection with this piece for me.

I've put about 27 hours worth of time into this piece so far, I think I have about another 10 to go before finishing. It's on a 30"x40" stretched canvas. All in all, I am really enjoying this piece, and it's going by so quickly and smoothly.

I'll keep the updates rolling in as I near the end of this fun journey. Tag along if you wish. :)

Epic... Painting...

..Fail!

I often use the term, "They can't all be gems", and boy did I paint a dud this past week. Unlike Friday's attempt for on site painting, my previous two Plein Air paintings turned out rather nice. If you'll notice the nice piece up above, that's my view of the Cashe Le Poudre river running high in May. I had become so enthralled by my surroundings, and so connected to where I was, that it just flowed out of my hands. I really didn't have to think too much about it, nor did I concern myself with any "what ifs". I just painted.

What I've always known, yet am coming to really realize, is that it's very hard to capture a scene when there is little emotional connections. With my art buddy Laura ( please see Lauragyoung.blogspot.com for a veiw of her beautiful plein air painting from the day) in tow, we headed out to City Park. It was one of those days where we wanted to paint, but really didn't know where to go. We ended up on Sheldon Lake, and found a neat little area that overlooked the lake, viewing the foothills and mountains. There to the right of me, was a cool little duck island just about 30 feet off shore. and out ahead of me on the lake sat a little red lifeguards boat at a small dock. There were lots of billowy cumulus clouds hanging over head, blotting out the sun. I told my self, "yeah, this will do". And so we began to paint.

2 hours later, I found myself struggling to complete a dark, muddy, over-worked and over-thought mess. The perspective was off, the colors were too dark and the scene was very "elementary quality". Le Sigh....

After taking some time to reflect on this painting (of which is not photographed nor will be shown for good reasons), I've really come down to the emotional connection which I feel I really lacked. True, the lighting made things tricky, being that the sun was disappearing and reappearing throughout the session. It gave me very little contrast to work with. And I made some beginner mistakes as well, not toning my canvas first (amazing how that threw my painting off.. the gesso was absorbing the paint and caused me to over layer everything), and not penciling in the scene better. My next mistake was not mixing my colors properly. I'll be sure to bring a better color pallet with me next time as well. But what really mattered was that I myself was not fully in the moment. I was too disconnected with my art. Lack of sleep the night before, the onset of a head cold, and various stresses made for a much more challenging day.


The one good thing that came out of this whole day, was that I now have more insight to what I need to make produce a better painting. Perhaps on my next outdoor adventure, I'll be sure to cut through the mental blocks, be better prepaired, and make sure that I'm going to have a much better emotional connection with where I am.

But hey, They can't all be gems. :)

Go Play Outside...

...As my mother used to suggest.

So I began a new adventure yesterday, outside, with my oil paints and easel in tow. My bestest art buddy, Laura ( ), had given this "Plein Air" painting thing a whirl a week ago. It looked like a great challenge, and I really wanted to try it out. So off we went, to an old barn that sits on the edge of my neighborhood. This barn has been calling out to me for nearly 6 years now. Every time I passed it, I felt like I needed to capture it on canvas. Course, oil painting outside seemed like something only "real" artists would do. I'm much more comfy in my little corner in the basement, painting from photos and silk flowers. Which is odd for me, because I'm an outdoors type girl.

I'll admit. I was really worried about this at first. I tend to doubt my abilities, and I worry that I'll be ill prepared for painting away from my studio. Plus, I had no music to listen to, lol. But, with the support of my dear friend, and with the sun shining warmly, I was coaxed out of my dark little basement.. LOL, ok, so for those of you who really know me.. It wasn't that hard to get me outside, not at all.. And now it's gonna be harder to keep me inside. What an amazing rush it was. I set a new land speed world record for starting and finishing a piece in under 2 hours... in ANY medium I've ever worked in!!! But I'm getting ahead of myself.

I worried about not having the correct colors, but I only allowed myself to bring good strong primary colors, and Titanium White. I did bring Linseed oil, but never used it. I brought only 4 brushes, as opposed to my 20 some brushed in my studio. My portable aluminum easel was perfect for my outing, and I used a total of 2 sheets of paper towels. My only complaint was not having the correct paint pallet to hold my oils. I used a large wax paper pallet that was not wind nor hand holding friendly. I can fix that easily though. :)

My next worry was "What if I blow this, and my piece really sucks??" Of course, that's a constant worry, outdoors or not. I've gotten used to feeling confident enough to show anyone and everyone my stuff, good or not. But that little voice is always in the back of my mind. How I hate that little voice. That same voice often tells me "you could have done so much better" after a few days of "art separation" (That's the time period between finishing a piece, and going back to look at it again). Guess I shouldn't hate it so much.. It's what keeps me creating more, and creating better.


Well, 2 hours later, and worries pushed aside, I was absolutely thrilled with my little painting. I'm addicted, hooked to the outside world of landscapes and nature. I don't know exactly where we artists go when we immerse ourselves into a project, but I was amazed to find such tranquility and bliss inside my own little world. Sure, we laughed about the little bugs that wished to be apart of our painted worlds, and the sunburn I received was stellar. However at the end of the session, I felt kind of like I did when I was growing up, spending a day outside in the fields playing and chasing the wind. It was an awesome feeling.

Laura and I have set goals to create at least one Plein Air painting per week, if not more. We are headed to some of the most beautiful places in Co. to capture our world on canvas. While I still have several studio paintings to start and complete, I can't wait to "Go Play Outside!!"