KE'E BEACH WALK

Ke'e Beach Walk, 9 x 12 oil

Oregon spring rains are keeping me indoors, so I am revisiting Kauai in my studio.

On Ke'e beach, at the end of the road, huge trees overhang the sands.  After I lay out the trees, I see that we will need some figures to appreciate these beachside giants.

PAINTING LARGE

Aspen Light, 60 x 48 oil 

In the basement, there are two large canvases, that I bought in a crazy moment of wishing to paint larger.  After my summer of plein air painting, I have one image that I would like to paint really big.

My studio is in what the builders designed as a bedroom.  It has a closet, useful for storing stuff, and normal bedroom height ceilings.  This means that an easel mast can only go so high, and large paintings, even if they fit on the easel, won't fit in the room.  So this painting will have to be done hanging on the wall.

I wire the back of the canvas, and set up nails at different levels, about 3 inches apart.  This way, I can reach the top of the canvas, or the bottom of the canvas, but not both.  I will have to raise it up and down the nails when I want to reach other parts.  This, of course, means that the painting gets finished bottom to top, instead of my painting all over it.  No worries.  It works this way too.

When the painting is done, I realize that my studio is too small to give me enough room to photograph it.  I wait for a sunny day, sneak outside with my camera and painting, and quickly photograph before it clouds over again.

This is fun.  I think I'll do more of them.

BANANAS AT THE FOOT OF TIKI

Bananas at the Foot of Tiki, 12 x 12 oil

A day in the studio, looking at blues and yellows.  Bananas are an iconic fruit for me. Tiki is looking toward Hawaii, where I'll be holding a class in August.  More info to come.

ORIGINAL ART IN YOUR HOME: ART SOUVENIRS

Willow Shadows and Aspen, oil on panel 16 x 12, SOLD as a memento

My neighbors came back from the south of France with a unique souvenir: a painting of the castle fort in the town where they were staying.  Walking around their picturesque village, they noticed a painter working every day in the plaza.  They looked at his work, and watched as he meticulously painted the scene in front of him.  Then they bought the painting.  It's the only souvenir they brought back, other than their own photos, and it's one that will last a lifetime, as a valued piece of art, and as a memory.

How to collect an art souvenir or memento:

1.  Look for signs that it's an original work of art, not a reproduction.  Watching an artist at work is great evidence.  Assertions of a street vendor, not so much.  Look at the art closely.  If it's oil or acrylic, are there visible brush marks?  Do the brush marks begin and end with the color mark, or do they carry through color marks as if they were put on later? Is it on canvas or panel that shows signs of a bit of extra paint on the back or edges?  Does it smell like oil?  Does a pastel or charcoal painting have a little bit of dust on surrounding materials?  Can you see the thickness of the pastel marks when you look closely? These may be signs of an original.  

Watercolor paint films have almost no thickness, so they are a little more tricky.  Look at the edges of the painting.  If they're razor straight, it may be a reproduction.  Originals will usually be on watercolor paper, usually with a slight texture.  Giclee reproductions can now be printed on watercolor paper, so this isn't a sure sign.  But any paper texture patterns in the paint should match the bumps on the paper, not be superimposed on them. The finish of a watercolor is generally matte, but there may be a slight sheen over selected colors.  You may be able to detect pigment particles in blue areas. The colors should have a clean, vivid appearance.

2.  Choose art that you love.  Don't worry about whether it fits your color scheme, or whether you have a place for it.  You can always find a place for it, even if it means rotating some artwork.

3.  Landscapes of the area make great mementos, but almost any kind of art will do.  Florals, abstracts, pottery, textiles, all carry the flavor of the area and the artists who live and work there.

4.  If you're buying from the artist, ask for the story of how it was painted.  Write it down, and store it on the back of the art to add to the memory of the trip.

Now, where will you travel next?

SNOWY MORNING

Snowy Morning, 6 x 8 oil

The best thing to do in Portland when those rare snow days keep you at home?  PAINT!  Just a hint of warm glowing clouds in all that icy blue landscape.  I am happy to be snug as an artist in her studio.

PERFORMANCE

During my mid-twenties, I competed in whitewater slalom kayaking races.  More than most sporting events, kayak racing involves the uncertainties of turbulence.  All your practice maneuvering through gates on waves and current will not predict the exact timing of a wave's surge or the strength of a whirlpool on an eddyline.

In a slalom whitewater event, racers are given 2 scored runs on a course, and the better score is the one that counts.  Invariably, I had one run in which I repeated several of my practice mistakes, and one run that I "pulled out of the hat."  Not that I did anything magically well.  More that I was "on."  Every move would coordinate with the currents,combining in a single run all the best moves I had done during practice.  In one race, I pulled my best run with a boat that had torn and was gradually filling with water.

Sunrise Light on Windows, 6 x 8 oil

What does this have to do with painting?  It is an example of performance..... of bringing a set of skills together to apply them all at once.  And painting in performance mode has a special quality.

All previous paintings have taught you habits and ways of working.  In one piece you can focus and apply these techniques in an elegant execution of your painting art.  This is why paintings in limited time can sometimes be better than the ones we slave over.  They are performed rather than worried into place.

Plein air painting lends itself to performance.  There is a tendency in the studio to linger over the painting, to second-guess decisions, and to fuss around your brush marks.  Outdoor painting requires a relaxed concentration, sustained throughout the painting process, brush strokes placed and left alone.

MOONSET AT SUNRISE

Moonset at Sunrise, 6 x 8 oil

I am headed for the river, but it's socked in with fog.  Backing up the hill, I see this scene.  Sometimes what happens by accident is better than the scene you plan to paint.