INCUBATION

"Cottonwood Homestead

posted in July

"Cottonwood Homestead" Improved

oil on cavas, 16" x 20"

INCUBATION

Have you ever done a painting, accepted it as done and went back a few weeks later to see it had **changed** ?

What are these mysterious gremlins at work on our paintings? Somehow, they manage to modify shapes, change the colors, put strokes in the paintings that I KNOW I never did. How does this happen.

Maybe I should pose these questions another way. Why was I so bloody blind when I was painting it? That is the real question!!

I have several paintings leaning against my easel which MUST be revised. I can see now what I could not see when I was painting them. It must be the incubation process. That is to say, like hens eggs, they must incubate quietly under warm conditions, then they hatch. Paintings have a similar character. We don’t really get to see them in the state they will be living until they have “incubated.” . . . . . .Or, been out of our vision for a period of time. . . . . How Long? . . . . . . . . Maybe as long as a year or more. Most times, though, it is usually a few weeks. Then I see the errors in color, shape, value, texture and direction. You can see in this painting of the poplars that it was rather blah. The sky was too yellow, the trees washed out, there wasn’t enough contrast of value, the color of the trees was wrong and they were leaning to the left. The more I looked at the painting, the more I itched to fix it.

So, here are the results, such as they are. I am much happier with the piece, but my mind’s vision is still a distance away from the outcome (that never changes, incidentally). As artists who are constantly looking for improvement in our work, I think our minds grow much faster than we realize. Perhaps that is why we can see the faults in our work in a matter of a few weeks.

Personally, I am very thankful for the constant change in my mental perspective. Incubation affords me to see the errors of my skills then consciously make improvements. How else does an artist grow?

Sans Drawing

"Sistahs"

watercolor, 15" x 22"

Since I have very little time to paint while prepping for open studio, I am taking a little time in the mornings for some recreation and challenge at the easel.

Today, working with only a value sketch (2” x 3”) and not doing any drawing on the paper, I painted negative shapes and shadow shapes (good ole “light and shadow” again!) and left the whites. I have to admit that there was some hesitance to do this . . .in fact, “fear” might be a better word. And I struggled. The shapes are a little rough in places, but that is why I did it without a drawing; to get shapes I could never deliberately make (my corrective instinct is too strong!)

As I saw in the value sketch, it is the way all the whites interact together to make a simple composition and the dazzling contrast which makes this genre of paintings a total blast to do.

In the end, the whole thing comes to life with the addition of simple line work (calligraphy).

OPEN STUDIO OCTOBER 11,12 & 18,19

Open Studio Invitation

postcard image

If you live in the Bay Area or are going to be visiting during the dates in the title, please come by my studio for a visit. There will be LOTS and LOTS of artwork on display, a demonstration or two, great munchies, wine and plenty to talk about. It is a biiiiig event in this town. There will be some 270 artists exhibiting . . . half on the weekend of the 4th and 5th, the other half on the above dates. MY STUDIO IS OPEN THE 11, 12th and THE 18, 19th. The address is 105 Geneva Court in Santa Cruz. Join us!! We'd love to see you!

Under the Gun

"Balls!"

Watercolor, 15" x 22"

I am deep into preparations for my annual Open Studio show. This is my 19th year holding it and it seems the work beforehand is overwhelming.

It must be an escape mechanism in my personality that rears its head at this time of year. When I need most to focus on completing these daunting tasks, my mind is racing about possible paintings. I awaken from sound sleep dreaming about it. It seems the more I am around the framing and puttering in the studio to clean up and get ready, the more I want to paint!! It literally becomes a feeling of imprisonment! Eventually, I must cave in and dance with my easel.

Today, I awoke at 5 AM thinking about a certain sketch I had done last week . . .what color here? What value there? How should I handle the backdrop? Dry into wet or wet into dry? Calligraphy? Where? How shall I combine the light valued shapes? And what about making stimulating shapes? And on and on and on. Finally, I threw off the blankets and headed directly to the studio at 5:20AM. I was painting by 5:45 AM and finished around 7:30 AM.

After my playful easel shenanigans last week, I couldn’t get the method out of my head. So, I went after it again: dry into wet paper and building layers wet into wet. The painting always lacks something till the very end when the calligraphy is put in (line work). The trick with line is not to let it become to tight. Just lay it down with one stroke. If it is a little off, so be it. It really adds excitement to the piece . . . .oh! I forgot the birds!! That’ll bring more life to it also. I’ll have to put those in after I post.

As a last comment . . .my sense of humor carried me away this morning. I just couldn’t help making the title a little bit tongue in cheek.

Fun to Just PLAY!

"Harbor Hallucinations"

watercolor 15" x 22"

Some days there is just no substitute for play at the easel! And this was pure FUN!

I absolutely LOVE this look in watercolor, but it is a look that too many artists over the years have attained . . . .and I want my own look that will be recognizable. Even so, this method of working is a thrill for me.

The method involves soaking the paper first. Then wringing it out by rolling a dry rolled up bath towel over the paper (firmly) . . .then painting into the wet (Moist) paper. The trick to success using this method is to carefully monitor the amount of water in the brush. Too much water and it blooms on the paper. Just enough causes the marks to have softer edges, but the paint stays put. The artist has but one hour to get it all blocked in before letting it dry completely. Once dry, a few calligraphy strokes here and there make for visual excitement and balance.

Years ago, I painted a lot like this . . .and it is really fun to 'digress' a bit and just play for the sheer sake of play.

The Power of Practice

"Golden Morning"

oil on canvas panel, 16" x 12"

This scene, one I worked on over and over while in France, is out of the images left in my mind.

Yes. It was composed and painted completely from my thoughts about what it should look like. First, the pencil sketches came while mulling over my morning coffee without visual reference to any of the previous attempts done on site. Then there were the considerations that came with the sketches. Those considerations would never have come had I not painted similar scenes in plein aire while there. Here are some of my thoughts about composing this.

· The hay rolls must provide direction for the eye to track into the composition and not become a subject in themselves.
· Color !! Is GREEN the only color to work with?! Too much green is simply too obvious!
· Color again! Why not use colors that wouldn’t otherwise be seen? Pump it up and see what happens. Look for impact and entertainment versus realism.
· Those poplar trees! They speak to me. Feature them, not the sunflowers below.
· As for the sunflowers, just make them one shape with minor color variation.
· Put the color accents on the poplars and repeat those colors in the foreground for unity.
· Texture in the foreground to indicate grasses, but without stating “grass” explicitly. Imply!
· Use the successful parts of previous paintings.

When I stand in a field and paint a subject such as this, my attention is focused on what is there and how the light is working. That focus makes memory connections that no photograph can make. That is why so many photos go unused after coming home. There just is no concentrated, laser observation at work.

Then there is the added benefits of painting the same subject from different perspectives or points of view . . . .which make for different compositions. The more I do it, the more there is to recall . . . .and the more clarity I find in my purpose. I suppose that practice does that. It helps eliminate the superfluous and aids in refining that which impresses me. In this case, those beautifully shaped poplar trees . . . .and, of course, the light.

In the studio, all this stuff comes into play and falls easily into place.

Practice does that. It makes every attempt clearer, more certain and easier to execute. Some artists call it working in series. It is very, very powerful!

Chasing the Perigord

"A Place for a Picnic"

watercolor on paper, 15" x 11"

"A Roll in the Hay"

(whaddya mean, 'corny?')

watercolor on paper, 11" x 15"

The Perigord, as it is called, is a region in the south west part of France along the Dordogne River. The area is a delight to any who would be interested in history ranging from Cro-Magnon man to the hundred years war to ancient markets, bizarre chateaus and citadels to the growing and harvesting of truffles, ducks, geese and other delights . . . . . . . not to mention some of the finest wine in the world.

I just returned from a stay in that region beginning with Bordeaux and its beautiful surroundings. Residing out in the countryside, near the small bastide village of Eymet, our mornings were filled with sights of enormous fields of sunflowers, rolling hills and lots and lots of vineyards laden with grapes waiting for the coming ‘crush.’ Each little village in the area reeked of history and age and was turned out with all the French charm anyone could hope for.

Armed with camera, sketch book, pochade box, watercolors and every art supply known to man, I chased the perfect painting for three weeks. Trekking about with a number of other artists and good friends we gobbled up the sights and tasted the repasts of the region as though we had been starving and deprived most of our lives. To say that the food was wonderful would be understating the obvious. To say there was just too much to absorb in the way of visual stimulation and historical information would also be an understatement. But we did it anyway!

Just outside the door to my quarters were fields of rolled hay set against more fields rife with sunflowers. The light changed as quickly as my wristwatch changed time. We had clouds and skies that were more than worthy as a singular subject to back up all the gorgeous rural scenery. I gotta say that it was really, really tuff to handle! (read with sarcasm).

Here are a few hurried attempts at watercolor plein air painting that represent the sort of ‘ugliness’ we had to endure. To make matters worse, our feeble efforts at attempting to harness the beauty there on canvas or paper were rewarded nightly with wine and dinners most people would sacrifice a family member in order to partake. Yup! It was fabulous!!! (Except, now I have to redouble my exercises to de-expand my svelte self, if you get my drift.)

More about it later, But for now take the glimpse of the few painting attempts I brought back and try to imagine yourself enduring this form of hideous torture. Life is just toooo good, sometimes, folks. And I really do mean too good!!!!