Friday, June 24, 2011

Natural Structure... Simply Stated!




Today's painting... "The Big Zee/Zed" demonstrates very clearly that exciting painting subjects can be found... and successfully painted... despite the predominant green veil everywhere one looks in the landscape. But as I suggested in my last post, the onus is on the artist to "make the scene his or her own." Which often means painting in and out aspects of the subject... and even painting with the palette of colour which supports your vision... or "The Idea" that you wish to capture and present.


There is little question that the challenge to paint outdoors... without the studio support system... facing the elements... insect attacks and the overwhelming visual imagery before you can be daunting... even discouraging to the novice. But like everything else in the human experience... if one persists with determination and desire... learns and is open to the lessons that are only found..."out there"... the pay back is immense and will provide tools that apply and can be used successfully ion the studio as well. One never forgets how to ride a bike... ever. But one must conquer the initial fear... and practise to gain confidence and skill.


I am offering today's painting as an encouragement to a young and very talented artist, Kim Rempel who has very successfully launched into a plein air orbit. What "She" is producing is surprising "her"... but not "Me." I always recognized the potential in her deft brushwork... good eye for composition displayed in her daily 6x6 panels. Having moved to a broader and more challenging space... she has "raised the bar" ... and will from now on continue to do so! Good on "You" Kim!


I pass this site many times in a month... and it never fails top yell, "Paint me!" I have even stopped to get a digital on different occasions. But as is the case with all of us... life gets in the way... and the image gets lost in the visual library... until you get the "overdue notice." I finally decided to "just do it"... and pulled out a longish 12x24 inch canvas which best suited the panoramic feel that I needed.


When I visited the site... I found the field to be planted with grain... likely wheat... which though it was a vast sea of a rich teal blue hue... lacked the interest which I had in my head. So I visited my files and found a jpeg which capture the field... golden and rust clad in ripening canola.


The basic structure was the same in both. It was that huge and elongated "zed" that divided the field so gracefully... so naturally into an exciting prospect. I decided to really "give the deck a shuffle"... and chose to begin the painting process on a white canvas. Not standard practice for this ritual-based painter! Secondly... I simply bled very diluted OMS washes of Indian Yellow across the width of the canvas at the sky level ... beginning at the top. To this, I added thinned bits of burnt sienna as I approached the field level of the canvas.I allowed this to run and form "fingers" that reached down into the raw canvas below... making no attempt to manipulate or remove them. I then moved away from the easel and let this "Idea" set and form a foundation for beginning the real painting process.


At this point... I paused to decide what matter of painting I would employ to actually commit to the painting. I decided to play my "wild card" at this point. I reached into my box and hauled out my dormant medium painting knife - too long ignored and forgotten... except for "executing" my failures when they appeared. The knife took away my predisposition to work in detail... sometimes... admittedly too much detail. It left a loosely painted and fresh rendering of the subject... that pleased "Me" greatly!


The actual painting with the knife was actually a lot of loading and dragging... downward mostly at the beginning. But that motion shifted to a horizontal and smoother and thicker application of pigment as the process continued. I could not at this time tell you how the values and colours emerged... or what their derivation might be. "I" was .. in "The Zone"... transfixed and unaware of any guidance system. It was easy to cease painting. I did so... at the very moment... when I had too think ... "Where does the next stroke need to go?"

Taking risks... working ouside of your normal comfort zone can be stimulating... and create some pleasant surprises! Take a ride on the wild side!



So this one finds itself in your genre and experience Kim. Congrats on the success you've obviously enjoyed! Stay the course! Do visit Kim's site http://www.eatdrinkpaint.blogspot.com/ ... see what she's about... and up to! Also a side trip to Linnyland... http://www.linnydvine.blogspot.com/ will yield another gifted and highly successful lady on our West Coast! Whimsy unleashed! Pure joy!



Happy Summer!... Fair Sailing... and Good Painting to ALL!

26 comments:

  1. Bruce...I have to say this is my favorite piece of yours that I have seen. It is simply and wonderfully done. Very painterly and love the composition.

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  2. Hi there Julie!... Thanks for stopping by for a visit... and for the very uplifting comments!

    Knowing that your usual warm watercolour painting style and process hinge upon simplicity and wash-upon-wash layering of colour... it is not at all a total surprise that this painting ranks so high with "You"!

    It is often... only when we deviate from our "norm"... that break throughs and pleasant hidden surprises reveal themselves to us.

    It feels great when it happens... and causes us to adjust our processes and our goal-seeking! Makes "Me" feel.... "taller"! HAHA!!

    Thanks again for your observations and encouragent. I will get over to your "house" for a visit!

    Good Painting!... Happy Summer!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  3. Hi Bruce,

    It's nice to see such a 'big' landscape for a change. There is a great feeling of distance and space. The knife painting has worked well to suggest the broad sweep of the corn field.

    All the best,
    Keith

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  4. Hi there Keith!...Thank "You" for the encouragement... to think and work panoramically... a la Tilley! HAHA!

    Space and a gradual recession were the goals and the knife not only allowed me to add texture and that broad sweeping treatment you mention... but as well... handcuffed my rigger! HAHA!!

    Good painting!...Happy Summer Keith!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  5. An interesting painting Bruce, at first glance the colour looks very similar from the front to the distance, yet on careful observation I can see there is a difference and it is that subtle change in yellow that gives us the feeling of looking into the distance. Nice warm burnt sienna areas in the fore ground that catch the eye and keep you focused on the front area of the painting. What is nice is the large jpg of this painting so we can see the use of the palette knife. It is for you a simple scene, in a way I sort of missed the beautiful cottages and forests that you usually paint but on a second look I started to really love this wee beauty too. Happy summer painting to you too!

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  6. Hi Caroline!... Glad that you found the painting interesting and that you also love my forest and hetitage pieces!

    Variety is the spice of life ... they say! T'is for "Me" anyway! I always enjoy the challenge of new ways to look at things... which usually leads me on new adventures!

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Good Painting... and a Happy Summer!
    Warmast regards,
    Bruce

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  7. Love all the texture in this wonderful landscape painting, Bruce. Well done!!

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  8. Hi there Hilda!... Thanks for the encouraging comment regarding the texture!

    Can't beat a knife for layin' down a creamy load of "peanut butter"! HAHA!!! It was a pleasant change from the usual push n' pull of the brush! I enjoyed the sweeping flow it provided!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  9. Hi Bruce,

    It is simply beautiful! Quiet, open and I love your palette.

    Best to you,

    Sue

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  10. First, Bruce, is that water I see in the distance? Such a nice color palette and I loved hearing your process on this one. Especially when you went "file diving" to find the colors that you envisioned in your head. I also do this, sometimes pulling ideas and images from several places to form a new piece.

    Also, I want to thank you for having my blog on your sidebar. I am so very honored that you like me enough to visit and have me on your sidebar. Makes my morning, really. I am feeling respected by someone and that doesn't happen often.

    I'm off to visit the two blogs you mentioned...!

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  11. Hi there Sue!... Happy Summer to "You"! Thank you for dropping by and leaving these encouraging words.

    "Quiet... open...simply.... beautiful" tell me that I achieved what I set out to leave on the canvas! Thank you!

    Good painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  12. Good Saturday Morning Sherry!... Nice to be sharing coffee time together! HAHA!!

    The Big Blue" that you see in the distance is the famous "mountain" group... The Blue Hills of Collingwood... a ski mecca in the winter months here in Ontario. They are truly... that blue!

    As for the "sidebar honour" Sherry. Those sites that are there are there because of the "connection" that I feel with these individuals.

    All are artists... like me Self... "works in progress". All share not only a passion for making art... but also a passion for honesty in sharing their knowledge... HUMBLY!


    "I" am a humble man Sherry above all else. I choose to live humbly... enjoying the blessings that are given "Me". Each of us needs "a leg up" from time to time... and each of us is.... WORTHY of dignity and respect. Those things can only be given and received... when they are earned. "You" are doing that!

    "I" am proud to be your Friend... and value your ideas... your art... and your wonderful words and spirit! Stay your course!

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  13. Bruce! What a kind and lovely post! Thank you for the compliment ; ) I had to laugh at the adjective "young"! lol But hey, thanks for that too ; )
    I too have followed Linny and love her work. Now, about your piece: WOW!!! I seriously love it. Beautiful, beautiful marks and so sensitively seen. Really enjoying the bit at the back - the suggested house and tree clump. Perfect. You outdid yourself!
    Cheers,
    Kim

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  14. Hi there Kim!... I very much enjoyed seeing your new work in the field... and thought how similar our approach is in many ways when we look at plein air painting.

    Work in the field should be about finding and capitalizing upon structure that provides a sound framework for a picture "possibility". The colour and lots of other facets that make up a painting can be interpretive... if the structural base is sound!Orange is great!! HAHA!!

    Young... being "your age"??? Everyone seems young at my age. HAHA!!! Enjoy the compliment!

    Glad that you enjoyed the landscape! That's about as "absract" or "expressive" as I get... but I truly enjoyed the activity... and will be "into it" further for certain!

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  15. I totally agree with Julie!!

    Love the simplicity... Love the color!!

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  16. Hi there Marian!.... Thanks for your visit ... and for your vote of confidence on thgis piece!

    Julie's comment times two? That's a great honour from both of you ... given the quality of your own work... and your own focus on remaining "painterly"... at all costs!

    Good painting and Happy Summmer Marian!

    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  17. Hello Bruce,
    I have just spent a most delightful morning looking through your blog and reading your informative posts; I feel so inspired, I may just have to put down this cup of coffee and attack the easel...now. My first choice would be to pack up the gear and head outside, but, here in NE TX, the triple digits keep me inside, so for a few months I will have to plein air "paint" vicariously through others, like yourself. I've added myself as a follower so I can be sure to visit often. Love your paintings and look forward to visiting often.
    Take care,
    Angela

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  18. Good Morning Angela!... Nice to share coffee with "You" this morning! Welcome to my blog!

    Triple digit temperatures do not make for good plein air forays here either! I have done that a few times... and the sun now presents danger for me ... if exposed and am forced to lather on 60 sun block! It's an angry orb up there!

    I look forward to my visit (when this comment is completed)... to Angela's NE TX world! Never visited Texas... but it's on the "Bucket List"!

    Nice to meet "You"... Look forward to more sharing... of coffee... and TIME! Thanks for your encouragement!

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  19. Really excellent "canvas stroking", Bruce!
    Masterful in all aspects.
    A "ride on the wild side!" is a tremendous creative boost!
    I'm "wild" about your explanation of process in this post.

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  20. Hey there Dean!... So glad to hear back from "You"!

    I always enjoy my visit to Deano's Den... always a treat for the eye... and soul in store when one visits you there!

    Thank "You" for these gracious comments about my work and the process. The process was strikingly similar to your description of the making... and remaking...HAHA!... of your "Chieftain"!

    We share so much... on separate journeys... don't we Dean?

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  21. Beautiful painting in its simplicity. Thank you so much for sharing.

    all the best to you,
    Joan

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  22. Thank "You" Joan!... For your generous compliment and for dropping by!

    "Simplicity" can be found in the structure that we initially "see"... when a scene attracts our attention. Maintaining that effect throughout the painting process to the end can be very difficult for me still.

    I tend to get distracted and give in often to the allure that Nature creates with so many wonderful things to take in! A drunken sailor! HAHA!!

    Good luck with the 10x12 inch panel! Hope that you enjoy it!KISS method Joan...HAHA!!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  23. Wonderful painting, Bruce! (Thanks for the kind words and mention on your blog.) Now, I'm off to see what Kim has been up to...

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  24. Thank "you" ever so much for visiting Linny!

    I always enjoy my excursions to joyful Linnyland and wanted others to discover and share the beauty that "You" regularly create and share there!

    Creating a circle of artistic friends to connect with keeps "Me" fresh and in touch with others who share my passion for plein air painting... in other places!

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer Linny!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  25. These are lovely colours, the soft violet neutral sets off the yellow perfectly. Nice to see the knife texture too.

    Have a great day.

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  26. Hi there Lisa!... I missed your lovely comments and "presence" until this morning! I apologize for the tardiness of this reply!So nice of you to visit!

    Good eye!...I use the knife every once in a while to add texture... or to add some missing "oomph" and rescue to a "too quiet" piece.

    Texture is important and as you know... one can create it with impasto passages and brushwork... or technical applications to give a faux feedling of texture! Either way will work!

    Good Painting!... and Happy Summer!
    Thanks for your visit!

    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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