Winter's End

Winter"s End  11x14 oil

This was painted from photos taken on an afternoon walk in Tyler State Park.
It had snowed earlier that day and most of it had melted by the afternoon except for the snow that was left in shaded areas not reached by the sun.

Farm Fields

Farm Fields  8x10 oil

My brother Chris and I  had some free time to get out and paint today. We went to a local State Park that has open fields and farmhouses. Even though the conditions were not the best (overcast and windy, 43) we found some rolling fields, farm buildings and a sky full of fast moving clouds.
When you have clouds not willing to stand still for you I find it best to pick out a formation fix the image in your mind and paint away, the next time you look up they will be in a  different position anyway.

We wanted to try to capture the gently rolling fields in front of the buildings. The farm buildings added a welcome value range to the rest of the scene.

Last Plein-air Trip of the Year

I took my brother Chris and his two sons out today for the last plein-air trip of the year. We took a 15 minute drive to Neshaminy St. Park. We found a spot free of snow to stand in, but with a good view.

We wanted to try to capture the mood of a overcast winter day.  The spot we picked afforded us a range of values to work with. 
Father and son plein-air team. Both my paintboxes were being used so I was the  designated photographer for the day.

Here is Chris getting a start on his painting 

Eric with his completed painting and Chris putting the finishing touches on his.

Reference Material

Icicles 10x8 Acrylic

Every morning when I get up for work I"ll go over to the living room window and check the weather, and every once in a while I'll see a skunk or an opossum foraging in the lawn. One winter morning I looked out and saw these icicles being lit by the full moon. I grabbed the sketchbook next to the couch and drew in the scene and wrote down the value ( how dark or light) of each object. Later on I did this painting using the sketch as my reference.