This is another painting from Yosemite National Park. I tried a violet underpainting this time. In an effort to become more efficient at starting paintings, I used a larger brush to block in colors within a couple of hours. Details and reworking took considerable time after that though.
Snow Creek, 2014, oil, 36 x 48 in
During an evening walk, my husband and I wandered up this small creek with exposed bedrock. The setting sun warmed the snow with an orange glow, and the remaining beech leaves shone as if fragments of stained glass hung in the air.
This winter of polar vortexes, possibly a result of climate change, did lend itself to a couple outdoor snow studies. I started this particular one while my husband, nieces, and nephews went sled riding down the hill on the right. I was drawn to the crispness of light and how the reduction of hues in winter brings out the beauty and subtlety of the greys.
We visited our good friends, Kelly and Mike, last October in Portland, OR. During the trip, Kerry and I took some hikes in Ecola State Park and along Cannon Beach. It was a beautiful stretch of coast. These are a couple of sketches I did on the hikes.
Another plein air painting on a hillside near my studio that my husband and I always joke is our own hobbit hill…
Working to improve my efficiency with colors and values, I have been working on these smaller plein air paintings. I want to be able to quickly and effectively give a sense of the space of a scene.
Here is another little plein air painting I completed this summer at Spring Mill State Park in Indiana. It was a hot, humid, 90-degree day, hence the intensity of the light on the field behind this stand of trees.
I did this little plein air painting on a foggy day at Jasper’s Riverwalk this past summer. The fog was lifting as I finished blocking in the masses, so the result does not quite have the atmospheric quality I thought it would when I started the painting.
The work starts with graphite sketches where I find I can more easily design compositions using the small scale and a pencil. Using a grid helps me to transfer the lines that I want to the large canvas and not lose the the grace of the sketch.