This week found "Me" a little at loose ends... between projects, but steeped in some commitments that kept me away from what I had hoped would be a productive week. Life has a way at times with getting in the way of serious thoughts and creativity.
The weather didn't cooperate much either. Cold is one thing... but high, gusty winds that continually come from every direction and driving snow are quite another. Those conditions simply discourage and punish... so I spent Tuesday afternoon at the easel... "plunking away" at a smallish 11x14 canvas. I really don't find these smaller canvases much fun because the format tends to make me tighten up and they always come across as controlled and too..."quiet".
Perhaps those qualities were okay for this subject however... since the barn complex no longer exists. It was simply bull dozed and burned unceremoniously... after over a hundred years of use and service. Progress... "They" call it!
The Second piece came out of an on location painting foray on Wednesday. It was a perfect day to be "out there"! Sun... no wind... great shadows and light everywhere one looked. I only required 10 minutes to find this site very close to home... one that had not caught my eye even after dozens of trips down Ingram Road. In the deep background... one can see the ski slopes of Horseshoe Valley Ski Resort.
I simply couldn't resist the woodland tangle and play of light and shadow in the foreground. Luckily... I decided to spend the first hour simply establishing the patterns of light and shadow in the foreground.Good thinking... because this area would change over and over again during my two hour stay at the site.
The background remained constantly lit during the entire two hour session. Good decision! Because I had laid in white very thickly at the beginning... I found it necessary to adjust some of the vertical twigs and some clumps of snow later that evening in the studio... but just a few changes. I think that it faithfully records "the moment"... which was my sole objective!
Two paintings...one inside... one outside. Which is yer cup o' tea?
I have my favourite!!! HAHA!!
Good Painting! Spring's a' comin'....get "out there"!
Love them both... but my favorite is the second with the beautiful play of light across the mounds of snow.
ReplyDeleteI like them both also but am more drawn to the one with the buildings; the house on the left is so golden and warm in the light and contrasts with the sense of the cold weather surrounding it.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the one of the barn complex, just because I love old buildings and you've given it such a whimsical feel! But I have the feeling you favor the woodscape :)
ReplyDeleteBoth are lovely...
Hi Marian!... Thanks for stopping by and leaving your impressions! I too... love the woodland scene for the same reasons.
ReplyDeletePerhaps even a more important reason for "ME" was that the outing helped dispel "the cabin feeling" that i was suffering from. Painting en plein air never fails to bring me that feeling of freedom and peace.
Good painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
Hi Karen!... Thank you for visiting and for your very encouraging comments and valid observations. It was the warmth that drew me to this site in the first place. It is with deep sadness that I now pass this place... because with the barns gone... the house... and the scene seem not nearly as warm!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your encouragement!
Good luck with the new face in the leaves! It looks so cool... already!
Good Painting!
Warmest reagrds,
Bruce
HI Bridget!... Thanks for the vote of confidence on the barnscape! It was this warmth that drew me to the siote in the first place.
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not... not much "whimsy" needed to be added! The barns both have/had the
swayback horse look.... creating the "whimsy".... naturellement!HAHA!!
I do favour the woodland piece just for the fact that I was outdoors to paint it!It's somewhat like the difference in sheets dried in a dryer... and the smell of those brought in off the line outdoors in the winter! SOOOOOO sweet!
Good Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
These are beautiful Bruce, and I honestly don't see them as tight or too controlled. I love how the roof line of the old barn rather mimics the drifted lines of snow. I think it is stunning and it makes me sad to know that the place was razed. The landscape too is a beauty, a place I'd love to just go for a walk through...
ReplyDeleteHi there Sherry!... Thank "You" again for the always cheery and uplifting coments!
ReplyDelete"You" and "I" are the same page about our feelings for both pieces... and isn't that what painting is all about? Expression of feelings... and sharing them with others we care about
Perhaps collectively... artists can present a better appreciation and respect for the heritage around us... each in our own small corner of the world!
Good Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
Hi Bruce,
ReplyDeleteThey are both great, but I love the second one. I feel the atmosphere of the cold and the shadows are painted in way that the sun light can be truly appreciated. The cool of the blue shadows enhances the warmer tones. I find it mesmerizing.
Have a great weekend.
Joan
Hi Bruce,
ReplyDeleteI like them both, but I am drawn to the barn scene as I love paintings of barns, old buildings, etc. If they could only speak, what stories to tell. What a shame the complex was torn down. It is irreplacable. Beautiful work Bruce.
Sue
Both lovely paintings Bruce...those old barns can stand up against almost anything but...
ReplyDeleteMy fav is the lower one with the those wonderful trees and colours...
Jeffrey
Hi Joan!.... Thank "You" for the visit... and for noticing! The placement of contrasting warms and cools in close proximity to the other... really is a very powerful attention-getting tool. The eye and brain can't seem to resist that push n' pull created visually!
ReplyDeleteGood Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
Hi there Sue!... Thanks for visiting and for your very personal response to both paintings!
ReplyDeleteAs with "You"...barns are so much more than outbuildings to "Me". They do "speak" to "Me" about the qualities I so very much admire. Persevance...... quiet service and standing up tall... to the test of time.
I do feel great sadness when each of these rural Cathedrals disappear forever. They are indeed... "irreplaceable"!
Good Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
Hi Jeffrey!... Thanks for dropping by and for adding your sentiments... which by the way... are shared deeply by "Me"!
ReplyDeleteOur paintings however... serve to record the very presence of a changing urban... rural and natural landscape. That's something!
Good Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
I love the tree in the snow, where you actually out there painting in the snow! it looks very deep. I know you do that often. You must get very cold wet feet. I have been working on the same size small canvases lately and there are fine for a simple landscape, when more needs to come in such as buildings etc then it does feel a bit hard to work in such a small space. Looking at the top painting I would not have thought it would be so small it looks a large painting! A lovely post Bruce along with great works.
ReplyDeleteThanks Caroline!... For your complimentary remarks and for visiting!
ReplyDeleteI really seldom get too cold... because I dress for the occasion and have boots that are thermally insulated... and cold weather clothing to match. Knowing how much one needs to wear... where to paint out of the wind... and when to wrap it up are keys to comfortable outdoor painting.
I love the larger sized canvases and panels because they offer greater freedom of brushwork, using the whole arm motion... rather than the wrist... as in drawing. It all makes for a fresh... more loose... and painterly result! Just my own preference!
Good Painting!
Warmest regards,
Bruce
Plein air takes it - no surprises there! Wonderful articulation of the shadows!
ReplyDeleteLove Allie
xoxox
Hey there Jemima!... Love that vote of confidence... and "Who"... should know better to judge... than my best supporter and critic of over thirty years...HAHA!!!
ReplyDeleteThe cold and the constant movement of the shadows... and the changing light... take away any ability to create solid structure using anything else other than intuition and bravura. The result is ALWAYS fresh... and painterly!
"Say what you mean... and mean what you say"... the first time! HAHA!!
Thanks for dropping by Sweetie!
Love Always,
Dad
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