Your Nose in A Tent

Open Studio this coming weekend ! Open at 11 AM till 5PM.

What you see above is less than 1/6th of what will be on display. No kidding: over 100 framed pieces, both oil and watercolor. And plenty more unframed . . . . .SOOOO MUCH to see!!

If you need directions, just drop me an email to tell where you'll be coming from and I'll shoot directions to you. The email address is in the bright blue sentence almost directly to the right of this post.

Don't miss this annual event! It is the only time I put up such a massive one man show.

Wine, cookies, nibbles, art chatter, giggling, general goofing off, and painting demos.

Come enjoy the fun!

Mike

The Endless Fountain . . .

"Parade"

watercolor 15 x 22 inches

Every year around this time, to get ready for Open Studio, I clean out my flat files . . .and sometimes, I move furniture in my studio to readjust things. There is a serendipity that occurs, literally, every single year: I find works I had forgotten about completely. Many times they are simple musings, others they are terrible failures I had hoped to save at some point. Yet, once in a while, an old painting will surface that rocks me back on my heels and makes me wonder why it was hidden away. Here is one, "Parade," which I cannot imagine why it was hiding. Of course, I had to put a few finishing touches on it, but, for one reason or another, I love looking at it.

I believe this painting is approaching 12 to 14 years old. I can see quite a difference in the way the paint sits on the surface versus how I paint now. . . . . .a sure lesson for not throwing away your old paintings: we can really see our progress.

I found a few more, too. But you'll have to wait to see those. :-) That flat file has been giving up surprises every year. There must be something pushing that stuff to the surface!

I have come to the point that I don't worry too much about having paintings for Open Studio. 10 drawers of paintings have never let me down!

By the way . . .are you planning to come to Open Studio?

The Last One . . .for now

"Misty"

watercolor 15 x 22 inches

It is already passed the first week of September . . . .and my task list has grown to huge proportions . . . . . .

Open Studio here at my home / studio begins October 1 & 2. I am just now beginning the preparations . . . they seem insurmountable right now. With over 45 paintings to mat and frame and to set up the house and yard to accommodate hundreds of visitors and over 100 hanging paintings, the chores are beyond my ability to remain positive about.

NWS's (National Watercolor Society) Annual Exhibition opens in October with the Awards Banquet preceding the opening. As president, I must prepare for this grand event and officiate as well.

Oral Surgery looms in the next week, too! And work (business) beckons, also. So, for now, painting must go to the back burner, sadly. Our best weather is this time of year, too, the call to go outdoors to paint en plain air is a siren I can hardly ignore.

Here is the last painting of the rock series . . . .which was all based on observances in Yosemite National Park. As with all the rest of these paintings, a loose style, timed at 90 minutes (reasons explained later), with a somewhat presentable painting was the goal. Mostly, it was just about standing at the easel and soaking in the pleasures of the running paint and the vibrating colors to please my soul.

Hope to see you at open studio. If you would like my address and/or directions, email me. Just click on the "email me" just above the Facebook Fan Box, opposite this text on the right. I'll send you everything you need to get here . . . . .save for tickets from Italy, or India, etc . . . .;p)

Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't . . . .

"Sickle Rock"

watercolor 15 x 22 inches

And this was one of those times . . . .I got lost in the shapes and failed to pay attention to the contasts of light and shadow . . . .I suppose I became a little heavy handed with the darks.

But come on! Give a guy some slack! Once in a while ya just gotta slip into something that just doesn't ring the bell.

The only thing one can do in a situation like this is to step back from the easel and shout "NEXT!"

In other words, chalk it up to experience and go on to the next one. Who knows, maybe some terrific notion will pass through my head while whipping up another one and be able to come back to this piece with a different attack. Stay tuned.

The Source

"Stoneface"

watercolor 18 x 24 inches

So . . . .tired of rocks?  Take a look at this . . . .a solid granite wall with mature oaks and ponderosa pines growing out of the cracks.  This wall could be one 1000 feet (300 meters) high . . or more.  The model is from the neighborhood of where my rocks lie . . . .Yosemite National Park in California.   The rocks seen in the previous posts fall from cliff faces like this . . .and sometimes from enormous heights.

The abstract patterns of line and shape in these cliff faces make a painter ponder them for hours on end . . . . . . .and usually go home in frustration when attempting to paint them.