Evening Light

This was painted from a plein air sketch I did last week  after dinner.  I completed one sketch half hour earlier and was getting ready to leave when I saw this sky and pulled around to my familiar spot and finished just as the light left.

This is an 8x10 painted with acrylics.

Watermelon Slices Revisited

After looking at the painting of the slices of watermelon I did on May 23rd I wasn't real happy with it. The background is dull and uninspiring, but at the time I was only interested in rendering the slices and didn't put enough thought into the background.

I wanted to make changes to it and decided to put them in an outdoor setting where people can relate to it, as if at a picnic or out in the yard. And what is more refreshing on a hot summer day than juicy watermelon.

I simplified the background with summer colors associated with a humid day and put a blue tablecloth down to complete the story.
Oh yea,  thats a watermelon seed on the plate not a bug.
Thanks for looking.
Pat

Summer Landscape Core Creek Park 11x14

Core Creek Park Summer Landscape  11x14 oil


This painting was done from a plein air study I did a couple weeks ago  (a post on July 1st) when I was out painting with my brother Chris at Core Creek Park.  A few things interested me about this scene, first was the strip of bright grass separating the background from the middle distance trees.
The other was seeing into the shadows on the group of trees on the left next to the walking path. I wanted to maintain the contrast of shadow and sunlight but still being able to see in the shadow areas.
I added a jogger on the path to lead you into the scene and had the shadows of the trees mimic the shape of the walking path.

I am rediscovering this local county park the more I go there. Even though we have fished there when we were younger and I have painted there over the years I think the more I learn about painting the more things I see that I didn't before. Its like seeing the park with fresh eyes.
Core Creek Park is only 6 to 8 minutes away so its an easy trip when your time is limited.
 I'm going to try to do a series of paintings within this park over the course of a year to see where my interests lie.

Still Life Cherries and Cornacopia Vase

 I haven't done a still life in a while so for a change of pace I did this one. I had bought this cornucopia vase off a seller on Etsy because I liked the shape of it and its ability to hold fruit or other objects for still lifes.  I also like the light value it has so there will be a nice contrast to whatever I place in it.

I used top lighting in this painting placing the shadows right under the rim of the vase and emphasizing the color of the cherries.

Morning Session at Core Creek Park

My brother Chris and I went out to a local park to do some painting before the heat set in. We started at a favorite spot of mine, it has a view of the lake and surrounding treeline. As we drove along the park road I noticed the subtle colors in the sky and clouds and decided to try to capture that.

We used 5x7 panels because the light was changing quickly and I knew we were going to lose what was in front of us soon. Squinting at a bright sky made the landscape look so dark, I didn't realize how dark I painted it until i got it home. I had neutralized the green to dark values. The water was a slightly lighter value than the trees. I was a little too heavy with the yellow around the sun.

We decided to try one more painting and found a spot that offered some cross lighting and shadows to practice with. I was happier how this one turned out and it helped not having to fight a fast moving sun.

I forgot to get a picture of Chris's painting of this spot, sorry Chris.

Afternoon Plein air

I stopped off at Core Creek Park on the way home from work today, I had my cigar box setup with me and painted this sitting on the back of the truck. This is painted on a 5x7 canvas panel.
With the constant winds we had today the clouds were zipping by and the sun kept playing hide and seek so I would have to wait for the sun to reappear to paint things that were in sunlight. I liked how the row of  bushes in the foreground were top lit separating them from the stand of  trees farther back in the distance. The clouds were changing by the minute so I fixed a group in my mind and painted away.

Green is such a challenging color to paint but it forces you to look harder for things like  color intensity, values, and tests your color mixing on the spot. At least I have a whole summer to practice.

Falls Twp. Lake

Maria and I went up to Falls Twp. Lake after dinner to do a little fishing. I didn't catch any but Maria caught two smallmouth bass this one being the biggest one.

A couple minutes before sunset the opposite side of the lake was bathed in a orange/green light and the trees on the point of land on the left caught a little of the light on the tops. I took a couple of pictures capturing this brief moment.
Below is the painting of the end of our night. I used a 4"x12" stretched canvas.

Feeding Deer on the Hill

This is a small (tiny) oil painting 3"x8" done on 300lb. watercolor paper primed with acrylic paint.  We see these deer on our evening walk at a nearby park that is used for exercise. I had taken a picture with my camera phone as we passed by them, and when we got home I did this small painting while the image was still fresh in my mind using the picture to help me capture shapes of the scene. I added a little extra color and lighting to make the scene more interesting.

During our walks we are passing by different scenes so I do mental exercises taking note of colors, values, what objects look like when they are in shadows. When an object stands out I look behind it to see how the background has influenced it. Its a constant learning process that doesn't stop.
This painting stuff is really addictive!

Young Womans Creek

Young Womans Creek  12x16  oil on RayMar canvas panel
This is an 11 mile long tributary of the West Branch Susquehanna River. It is heavily forested with a thick canopy which helps keep the water cool to the trouts liking.

Welcome Shade

This is an image showing the interaction with people and their pets. After a run in the afternoon sun a little  rest in the shade is a welcome relief.
I tried to loosen up a little bit and keep it more painterly, concentrating on value and color. But more important is the emotional impact a touch on the dogs head can have. You can sense the concern she has for her dogs.

Memorial Day Plein Air

Maria and I spent the afternoon at Noxamixion St Park today. We found a spot under a tree that offered a lot of shade and enjoyed the view of the lake and the marina area. I brought my cigar box painting gear and did a small 5x7 of the sailboats out on the lake.
.

Watermelon Slices

5x7 oil

A small study of watermelon slices. Trying to get a feel for color, texture and a juicy look.
With the holiday coming up I'll get another try at painting some watermelon.

Farm Pond  11x14 oil on canvas

A serene summer image made to make you forget about life when things get hectic.

Fishing at Sunrise, Promised Land Lake 11 x14 oil on canvas

We were first introduced to this lake and State Park back in 1970 when my dad and uncle took us camping for the first time. What an adventure that was just being outdoors for the whole weekend, fishing out on the lake and sitting around the campfire at night.

Its a beautiful State Park loaded with wildlife, trails for hiking, and a great lake for fishing and canoeing.
Even though its three hours away the great feeling you get being there keeps us coming back as many times as we can each year.

White Iris  12"x4" oil on canvas.

This is one of the Iris's in my wife's garden.  I like the way they grow and wanted to balance their form within the canvas. I  thought about the 4"x12" canvas I had on the shelf and decided to try that.

I  painted this in the yard but lost the sunlight as I got a quarter of the way into it. I was not happy with the result so I took it inside and did some experimenting with the background and then adjusted the shades of white on the iris.

Nature Photographer

I painted in the tripod for Phil's camera and can call this painting finished. I toyed with the idea of putting deer in the fields but decided against it.  This is a 11"x14" oil painting.

Moonlit Nocturne

This was painted from sketches done from one of our trips upstate. What interested me was the cloud formations passing in front of the moon. The original scene was a wet gravel road leading into the park. The damp road had a barely visible reflection of the moon on it. I switched a small stream (which I have an addiction to)  for the road so the reflection would read better.

We have no cell phone service up there but there is a pay phone at the entrance to the park so we arrange with our wives to call at a certain time at night so we can talk about each others day and make sure everything is ok at home.  While I was waiting for my turn at the phone it gave me time to look around and sketch this scene.

My brother and I have been going up there for the last twenty four years and never tire of this place. And as an artist there is always something new to catch my interest because nothing is ever the same. A brief rain shower before we came down to the phone provided a scene that stimulated my senses.

On The Easel

This is a painting of Phil, one of my brothers. We like going to Valley Forge National Park to  photograph the wildlife and the diverse landscapes found there. Our day usually starts right before sunrise as we set up waiting for the sun to rise. After getting photos of the sky we head out looking for wildlife.
This area of the park we were up on a hill looking down at the big expanse of fields that are sometimes filled with deer.
I like to step back and watch Phil in action as he goes thru the motions of selecting lenses, figuring out exposures and looking for the right shot.
I still have to put in his tripod, but I wanted to wait for the background fields to dry a little.

The top photo of Phil is a favorite of mine, we saw this big buck on the way in and had to work our way around to position ourselves to get a photo of him.

Ocean View 8x10 oil

I found this reference painting from about four years ago while I was cleaning out the studio.
This was from a trip to the New Jersey shore. I had my paints with me but because of the constant strong wind I would have ended up chasing my equipment down the beach. I usually bring my video camera and a digital camera with me on these trips so I always have options in case the conditions aren't suitable for setting up an easel.

I was attracted to the glare on the water from the sun trying to get thru the clouds and the ton of highlights from the wind swept waves.  I set up the video camera and let it run but made notes of the values of the scene because I know from experience when you point a camera at something bright the meter wants to compensate and ends up making everything darker than what it really is.

So I painted this while watching the video just like if I was standing there on the shore.  I like the loose treatment I accomplished from hurrying along. I feel like too many of my paintings end up being tight if I spend too much time on them.

Its a wonderful feeling when you can spend a whole day alone wandering from spot to spot picking out the  most significant qualities of a scene and getting a  successful painting out of it.

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.