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!

Summer's Coronation

This subject is located only minutes away from our Gallery and home. I pass it many times during the course of daily comings and goings.... usually with scarcely a glance of interest. But two days ago late in the day.... my eyes caught sight of this piece of drama. Filled by excitement... I turned around... drove home... grabbed my camera and raced back to try and "capture the moment." But the moment had passed... as those fleeting moments of dawn and dusk have the tendency to do.

I immediately downloaded the image from my camera and sat surveying the "caught" image. At first, I was bitterly disappointed with what was in front of me... but as I surveyed the STRUCTURE... which first attracted me to this place... it was still there.... certainly not with the dramatic lighting effects... and not even without distracting elements that offended my eye.

But the physical essence of what attracted my attention remained.... and the longer I looked the deeper my memory reached back... until the glorious sunny moment flickered... then rekindled the rich colour and pageantry that I sensed in one glance as I drove past.

I grabbed a 20x24 inch canvas and toned it with Mars Black acrylic and left it to dry overnight... knowing that the rich colours and dark contrast would set the tone for the drama that I wished to create. This was one of those paintings that fairly stated...."painted itself"... from start to finish. Many refer to this as a zen state... and in my own mind, it is essentially that.... meditative. At no time was there any hesitancy... or hurdle to be jumped. In retrospect... I believe that this state arose out of the fact that "The Idea" was fresh... and that the process began and ended in almost a plein air fashion.... "done like dinner"... in under three hours.

The other contributing factor was the fact that "I" owned the process... making decisions based upon deep experiential feelings and creative choices... rather than the reality of what was recorded in the photo. The camera is a great tool to assist in creating... but it does not in any fashion possess one single ounce of creative spirit. It is limited by the fact that it will never have emotion to add to the picture-making programmes it possesses.

I am including both the jpeg of the actual site... and my interpretation... "impression" of that fleeting moment. I leave "You" to judge for your Self which is more appealing... regardless of a faithful direct rendering of the scene!

"Some artists show a reverential attitude towards the natural world. Nature is something to learn from and, at best, to emulate, with no thought of manipulating, much less commanding it. The best you can hope for, perhaps, is to, in Thomas Eakin's phrase, "sail parallel."

-The Artist's Mentor
Inspiration from the World's Most Creative Minds
Ian Jackman, editor

Fair Summer Sailing... To ALL!

Thank You For the Music!... and Happy Father's Day!

Today is Father's Day... a special day set aside each year to celebrate and to thank the Dads of the world. That was a ritual in my life... and even when I could not make it home (which was rare)... I always sent my card in advance... and called on the day to wish my Dad to let "Him" know how important his contribution to my life had been.

Both my Dad and my Mom have passed on... so that ritual is no longer physically possible. As a matter of fact, I will not even be able to get down to place flowers at their grave to mark the occasion. That's how I have celebrated for their days since their passing. This year... my youngest son Bryn, aged 14 years is playing in a weekend soccer tournament. He managed to make the "rep" team... and wondered if I "might like".... to see his games on Sunday.

My Dad would understand... and expect "Me" to follow his example and choose "to be" with my son on this important event in his life... and I shall be there rooting in the stands for "Him." Life is indeed about change... and rituals are most important to the living. Rituals afterward do have to do with respect... but the impact upon the living is what passes forward the sense of respect and links generations.

My Dad and Mom created many blessings in our family's lives. They showered all their grandchildren with that same love and gift of their time. When I have to think about Dad's greatest gift to us as a family... it is hard to separate love... loyalty... compassion... generosity and consistency to decide upon that one gift of largess. But I believe... that his sharing of his gift of music... his impeccable and unique piano styling... were shared not only with his family as a whole... but with several decades of his community as well .

Mom simply added harmony in our family of song... and encouraged creator ship... in her homemaking and her personal gift of decorating... using the simplest of materials for all occasions and celebrations. "She" took us to the Natural World... guided us... taught us to observe... understand... respect and assume stewardship for it.

In short.. together... they used music to stitch together a way of life that remains intact... even after they both have passed on. Of all the blessings they offered "Me"... "I" am most grateful for the Music... that continues to soothe my soul. There is a favourite song of mine that best describes my gratefulness... and today, I wish to share it in love with each of "You":

Thank you for the music, the songs I'm singing

Thanks for all the joy they're bringing

Who can live without it, I ask in all honesty

What would life be?

Without a song or dance what are we?

So I say thank you for the music

For giving it to me

Thank you for the music

For giving it to me...

-ABBA

Thank "You" Dad and Mom... for the many blessings!

I love "You" both forever!!

XXOO

Happy Father's Day Dad!... A salute from my brush and heart to "You"!

... and a Happy Father's Day to all the Hubbies and Dads out there in Blogger land!!!

Good Painting to ALL!!!

Primavera!

"Summer Breeze, makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine of my mind..."

-Jimmy Seals & Dash Croft (Summer Breeze - 1972)

Primavera is a combination word of Italian origin roughly translating as in spring... or springtime. Prima by itself translates first... while vera translates wedding ring. First thoughts about how this combination of two words translates springtime left me puzzled. However... in pondering the question this morning while on my morning walkabout... what I beheld before me, offered some kind of an impression/explanation for "Me."

Wedding rings in most world culture symbolize the joining of two spirits in harmony amd marriage. It occurred to me that Spring in fact joins together the cold of Winter with the heat of of Summer. The richly scented... varied green... and flowered majesty of Spring is the wedding ring in this "nuptial". There is much fanfare... birdsong and rapid growth and energy to ceremoniously herald this union of our two longest seasons of the year.

In my plein outing with Jennifer... I offered that the challenge of painting and capturing this season of transition is possible... provided that one uses the KISS method (Keep it simple stupid). Find strong structure in the scene. Make a thumbnail or two to develop a"map" based upon ONLY three values. Keep detail to a minimum... and good pictures can be made.

Today's jpeg "Summer Breeze" oil on canvas 12x10 inches... illustrates another solution to the "too much green" discouragement. Simply find some man made-structure... a house... in this case, a colourful sailboat and quiet patio on a river and voila... a still life which uses the greenery as a backdrop. I think you will agree... that both methods can work... if you risk... and get "out there"... with a plan!

Give it a try!

"To a person uninstructed in natural history, his country, or a seaside strolls a walk through a gallery filled with wonderful works of art, nine-tenths of which have their faces turned to the wall."

-Thomas Henry Huxley

Looking for the "Idea" and making it your own will produce results at any time... even during the "dreaded" (by some)...Primavera!

Good Painting to ALL!!!

Eden is not just a place...It's more a state or feeling!

A First Plein Air Experience!!!

I had the great pleasure to spend the day Saturday painting in the beautiful garden of good friends Rolly and Grace Hallyburton. I was joined by my minister friend' David Howes' lovely wife Jennifer... this being a special day for her. David hired me to take her out on her first plein air adventure... as his fourth anniversary gift to "Her'.

He could not have honoured her in a more fitting and meaningful way. She came expecting to face the same barriers that she struggled with in her previous attempts in a studio and in a couple of courses to find growth and development. "She" ... was in the very same loop that so many of my students in both my elementary classes and my art workshops shared - a cycle of self-proclaimed failure... before they even picked up a brush. That to "Me" has always simply equated with... low self-confidence... battered down self-esteem in their previous experiences... or from the lack of a system from which they can proceed one simple step at a time towards a seeable and uncomplicated goal.

This beautiful Eden... on the shores of Orr Lake... a Love Garden created over more than ten years by a couple with a vision... and a passion for life and beauty... was also the setting for my marriage to Deb six years ago. Everywhere one looks or walks... one can find "still life" settings created by Grace... where one can pause... suck up the smells... the sight of greenery and sculpture and odd bric-a-brac interspersed... and all the time be chorused by every kind of songbird voice that lives in this Eden.

One could not fail to make a good picture in this setting... and neither Jennifer or I missed the mark in that task! Both of us came away refreshed... enriched... and with a "winner" in hand. Never at any time in the outing was Jennifer "lost". She took charge... asked questions... and painted with the confidence of a seasoned plein air pro!

We began the morning with a leisurely tour about the paths and walkways... contemplating "possibilities" and working out strategies to maximize success. I stressed to her the strong importance of taking ample time to choose a subject based upon structure... that is large masses and shapes... rather than complicated elements that required excessive attention to detail and draughtsmanship. Time is of the essence in plein air work. Light is constantly on the move and thus constantly effects the scene

Secondly, I stressed the need to think about the painting process and subject in terms of ONLY THREE VALUES. I introduced the value and personal practice that I use to address both of these concerns through making one or two simple pencil sketch thumbnails. The first sketch was simply a map that recorded the strongest or dominant lines... through squinted eyes in the scene. This creates a road map... or framework... on which to hang the three values.

In the sketchbook... white of the paper is the highest value... light pencil shading is the mid value... which coincidentally makes up at least 75% of the entire colour package... and heavy dark pencil is the darkest dark in the scene.

After making these preliminary sketches at the scene which Jennifer had selected... we set up the easels and palettes together... with her following my lead... and using the equipment and materials that I provided her. She decided upon a vertical format- Good! Simply because the trees in the painting were integral parts of the composition.

We simply retraced the initial sketching steps... this time with paint used thinly to create a value study and then began blocks of colour... as seen through squinted eyes to isolate the various large blocks from one another. Within less than an hour, we had the 116x12 inch burnt sienna toned panels to the lay in stage. We paused at this point to enjoy lunch on the dock at the lake and to replay the mornings findings and progress.

The next stage of the day's work was to work on values... balancing the myriad of greens to create more a more accurate and defined pattern of darks and lights. I stressed making a firm decision on where the light was coming from... and we took support references... so that changes could be made back in the studio if necessary... that captured "the moment" that we had chosen . We worked feverishly to get as much done as possible... because the wind had picked up and the skies threatened ominously overhead. We finished and packed up... just before the deluge arrived.

We arrived back at the studio... where Deb and David poured praise upon our efforts. David was so very surprised with the painting resulting from his anniversary gift... with Jennifer... justifiably busting her denim britches! Plein air painting is both a salve and tonic for the weary spirit. My piece was completed in full... while Jennifer wishes to take hers back to her home to finish certain areas, but even at this semi-finished state.. it is easy to discern the very admirable quality of her first plein air piece.

It is in every way a form of meditation during which the mind is transported out of reality... to a place where time and troubles evaporate. A place where the Id and Ego coexist in complete peace and harmony.

Have "You"... visited this place/ state called Eden?.... I wonder????

Happy 4th Anniversary David and Jennifer!... Many Happy returns... to Eden and Plein air Painting!

Good Painting All!

Glad Tidings to Share...

Summer has dropped in... from dizzying heights.... bringing heat with HUGE winds and thunderstorms... the "usual stuff" that one associates with summer's bombastic displays. Menacing deer flies during the day and mosquitoes during the night... have replaced the black flies in the field and on my walks... but these daily rituals fill my heart with joy and excite my desire to be "out there" in a new world full of scents... sounds and sights that change almost daily!

Deb is back from her week-long Grand Gal visit to Saskatchewan... heart gladdened by the experience and all the Gramma huggin'... but also gladdened to be be back in the [cleaner]world and life that "We" share...HAHA!!! "She" was overjoyed with my effort and simple gift... as "I" was overjoyed to have her company and laughter... when "I" tease and perform. Simple joys and pleasures like my morning coffee and newspaper delivery to her... our daily cribbage matches in the studio and sharing the daily newspaper crossword rituals are again the order of business... and pleasure at The Paint Box Gallery. Life is good... and "Summer" in my own world ... has surely returned!

More glad tidings to share with those of you who took up my pleasure to support Allison's Chicken Pesto Sandwich entry to that on line Country Harvest Ultimate Sandwich Contest. Her entry was selected as one of the three finalists to receive a $1000 prize for her efforts! A yummy surprise for a young gal conducting her first university summer class in Venice! Thank "You " to all from Allison and "I"... for your daily votes sent in on her behalf ! Another solid example of the power of blogging as a tool to reach out and... simply share! Thank you one and all !

Congratulations to Sherry... for pushing forward with her coloured pencil to overcome the block that "She" was experiencing! Never giving up the ship... always results in saving it! Glad to share your glad tidings read in your last post! When the canoe dumps you our suddenly... stay with the canoe. When lost in the woods. Sit down and think. Get your bearings... make a plan and move on only after the initial bewilderment and fear subsides. Good common sense decisions.... in outdoor adventures ... and in the creation of art!!!!

A very BIG thank you"to Suzanne Berry for Spot lighting "Lost In the Sixties" on her wonderfully rich site (see right hand tool bar)... and for the Lady Bug Brigade Parade! Exquisite summer fare... those Lady Bugs! One of them might just be my own Lucky Lady Bug... Deb! That's what I call her! My thanks also... to those of her followers who left gracious and uplifting comments concerning the piece! Do come on over for a visit whenever you are able!

Today's jpeg featured here in this post is the last (for a while) in the series of acrylics that I "played at". The site is Bateau Channel... a favourite haunt of mine on the inside of Howe Island... where Lake Ontario drops into the St Lawrence River. Access to this island site is obtained only by means of a small cable-driven four car ferry... a peaceful summer getaway from the mainland rat race. Sunset is a particularly serene moment on this picturesque and quiet island retreat... looking westward up through this channel. It gets its name from the fact that the channel was used by the "batteaux", or large rafts made from squared white pine timber that were driven by crews of men who lived aboard from the entry point upstream near Trenton down the entire length of the St Lawrence to awaiting timber ships at Quebec. It was then loaded and taken across the Atlantic to Britain. This heritage piece that harkens the earliest historical beginnings of travel, settlement and industry in this part of Canada.

Happy Summer!... Good painting to All !!

Spring "House" Cleaning....

As I mentioned in my last post, Deb has been away visiting her beloved Grand Gals... Ava and Ella in Yorkton Saskatchewan for a week. I have been "keeping shop"... as promised... here at the Gallery and have managed to get in some good painting time... and of course... to the beat and rhythms of my own play list! HAHA!!

Before departing Deb announced that upon her return... "We"... would be doing a much needed "house cleaning". I knew fully what that mouthful of words would mean! Things that hadn't seen action in the past two years... would be on the way to Goodwill... or the dumpster! I will admit without any hesitation... "I" am a collector - a "keeper" of things sentimentally attached to any person, event or experience spanning my entire sixty-seven years on the planet. I even collect and keep stored things that I find ... and envision in future paintings. The list is endless... and I know... that Deb is pragmatic... and... realistically ruthless in her desire to keep order in her own life... and in mine!

We are celebrating our 6th anniversary today... so I thought that I would offer an unusual... but none the less... highly meaningful "gift" - a personal cleanup... before "She" arrived home. In so doing... I would at least have the benefit of ridding my Self of the things that had no meaning to "Her"... or to "Me"... perhaps!

The process began in earnest... with an inward promise to be ruthless and earnest in the process. As I made my way through the boxes stored in the basement... two bedroom closets... and the studio.... I began to share her feeling that perhaps this "collection" of memorabilia... was more an avalanche of dated "art-i-facts" which swallowed up precious space in our living and working environments.

I made two trips the the Goodwill Shop... with items of clothing that ranged from never worn... to worn out... to out of style and other items that had been replaced in our living area. There are a lot of empty hangers now... when the weekly wash day comes along! I ran our shredder none-stop for two consecutive days... filling ten clear plastic bags with expired income tax return materials well beyond the seven year period required... and "personal" keepsakes from high school proms and pictures... of faces that I hadn't looked upon since the 50's and 60's- teen aged girlfriends... who most likely look like their mothers at present! Zip!...Zip!! Gone!... but never from my heart! I remember... and cherish the time spent with each and every one!

I have all of my "treasures" remaining in two plastic boxes... filed according to subject so that I can quickly retrieve what I am looking for... without searching closets... the basement "cubbies".. or my piles. I actually know that I have them... but mostly I feel highly relieved and uplifted by the fact that the avalanche has melted away and that there will be no precarious negotiations necessary between Deb and "I"... when "She" assumes the helm next week! Whew!... What a relief that is!

This epiphany was not limited to just the physical "things". The process also crept inward and I began to cull out... or at least question "old" ideas... old rituals and goals. It was during this period of thinking that I landed upon the notion to work in a new medium... acrylics... just to see where that might lead. I also added some figurative pieces to the mix... and came away from the experience encouraged by my success... and the response of people who work regularly in that very specific and demanding genre.

I have gone back to my sketchbooks... and have assembled some great "possibilities" to be considered for projects in the near future. I also cleansed my computer files... deleting older images that now didn't seem to excite me... or that had multiple files. I rearranged my file which house copies of all of my paintings completed... again reworking colour using my Image Zone program... and eliminating multiple copies or ones with poor picture quality.

During my computer house keeping duties... I came across one experimental project...which then became two... and will now become three in the near future. These projects clearly illustrate what I describe as "imagineering"... thinking creatively... outside of the box we all put our Selves into at various times. These projects are "risky"... because they are so "unlike" us and clearly stand out in a roomful of one's work ... as orphans. A strange word to describe them perhaps.... but as in real life "orphans" are children needed love and attention - a chance to have a regular life... to be loved and cherished. These children are CHOSEN... not born! That... makes them SPECIAL!

I offer as an example of this thinking and working process..." Nine Days This Spring" a 24x24 inch canvas, created in the spring of 2008. The painting began in a purely experimental and random "splashing around" of acrylic greens on a pinkish toned canvas. I then divided the canvas into nine 8 inch squares with black ink marker. The I went out into the field and sat down to drawing with an ink brush...just one wildflower... as they appeared... and as I found them. I took several digital images for each at the end of each plein air session.

I began the painting process... only after all of the nine images were in place. I had actually worked out which flowers and where I wanted them on the canvas beforehand in thumbnails in my trusty sketchbook. The paintings of each flower were completed one at a time... and when all were (more or less) completed... I fine tuned values and details until I felt satisfied that they "read" harmoniously.

The "Idea"... then a painting left the gallery quickly and gave way to the second piece... same format... "Summer In Transition' completed in the summer of 2008." In both projects which began similarly...advanced. The final product ... and the imagined version were immensely different... and pleasantly so to "Me." And now ... several years later my house cleaning has offered another slant... and chance for "me"... to play! Stay tuned....

I'll post a cross section of jpeg images from the sketchbook concept and planning... to the final work to give you a visual impression of the process... and leave you to judge for yourself its merit! I'll close with an excerpt from a book I read and reread constantly edited by Ian Jackman. It's entitled: "The Artist's Mentor" (published by Random House Publishing)... a motivational compilation of wonderful quotes and insights from the lives of major artists... from across the breadth of art history:

"Rather than wait[ing] for [a] creative urge to come, the artist is better served by cultivating it."

Good Painting... and Creating to All !