Angela Saxon, Landscape Paintings

painting from paintings

2010-11-21T08:33:00.000-08:00

I'm convinced that painting from paintings is good. The hardest part at the moment is that I seem to have to finish a pretty realistic painting on a panel before I can really get at the abstraction that I want. I'd like to figure out how to have that process involve two paintings at least. The plein air versions of the paintings, and then the abstractions. Separate rather than on top of each other!

Wednesday, Oct 20

2010-10-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

It's hard not to be seduced by the drama of nature. I'm stuck on that today.

Or then I'm disappointed by the lack of drama when I need it.

A day of looking, and some drawing....

Notes, October 19

2010-10-19T07:03:00.000-07:00

I had a great couple of hours of drawing time yesterday afternoon, the light was so dramatic. I was drawing in a very familiar location, but I very much tried to just respond to what I was looking at, rather than make it conform to some pre-conceived notion I might have of what the drawing should look like. I still think I was holding on to expectations a bit, but it will take practice.
I'm thinking about roadways, pathways, driving in a car, stuff moving into the distance and the distance coming at me. Red and green and orange, about drawing marks…how might I start to better translate some of the drawing marks, the excavating that happens, into my paintings?

2010-10-18T05:49:00.000-07:00

Painting notes | October 18
I have been meaning to write more about my painting/process/thoughts, and figured that maybe by posting to my blog, I'd have more motivation to keep it going. Here's what I'm thinking about today, really me talking to myself, but then again not...

These ideas keep popping to the surface: layers, excavation, revealing secrets, but also to hide information. To make it more work to get at the heart of the matter, less obvious, to obscure, be elusive. Sometimes I feel that my paintings have become too obvious. And the landscape isn't obvious. Or when it is, it can hardly be painted. A sunset. Flaming fall color... a rainbow. Right, not so much.... It's the subtle that is really fabulous. Might be that summer is past and that landscape can be over the top in as far as color and just general brilliance goes. I'm ready for the fall color to move on.....

I need to both engage my eye and imagination, but also my hand. Brain, heart, hand? Can i abstract paintings from the plein air paintings/sketches? There are definitely recurring elements in the paintings to consider: horizontal bands. treelike in distance. sky. roads/pathways. clouds.

Drawing: must draw today. Must draw every day. Richard Serra said so.

2010-04-19T20:01:00.000-07:00

What inspires me.....

An acquaintance asked me to write something about what inspires me, for her blog. So thought I'd share it here too. Here goes:

"As a little kid, when asked what I wanted to be, I always replied, 'an artist.' But then there was that question of what to paint or what to draw. I remember asking my mom this question many times. I suppose she offered suggestions, but somehow the void was never filled.

"I went to college to study art, and still was asking the same question….what should I paint? I earned my BFA in painting, and made a lot of paintings in the process. I explored color and pattern, the still life and interiors, and the general moving around of paint. But something was always missing--I was still searching for THE answer.

A few years after graduating, after marrying and having my first daughter, our family moved to northern Michigan. I don't know what my exact feelings about landscape paintings was, but it wasn't necessarily something I ever thought I'd strive for.

But there it was. The landscape. Staring me in the face all day every day. It is spectacularly beautiful in northern Michigan, in any time of the year. After a few months I finally started to paint it. And the more I paint it the more I see. My eye then and now is just drawn into places in the landscape. Light playing across a meadow, huge clouds towering over the lake, it's always captivating to me. Sometimes I wonder how many times I can paint a cloud over a lake, but so far it's new to me every time. And I think that it is through this subject matter that my work is starting to move away from the literal,...expressing more of the emotion of what I'm looking at, not just the imagery. Go figure. ; )

2010-02-19T12:33:00.001-08:00

Field Pattern Series
A new series of encaustics. These are 12" x 12" on panel. I've been working on a series of plein air paintings done on the back of Bicycle playing cards for a few years now. The delicate pattern on the back of the cards has become an integral element of that work. This new series is pushing that idea further.

The delicate details of the background patterns play against the broad movements and geometric compositions of this series. The medium of encaustic lends itself well to this layering process. You can see the complete series at www.angelasaxon.com

2010-01-08T05:09:00.001-08:00

Meadow
I had forgotten how many issues there are surrounding a diptych. In actuality, there are two paintings, but they have to function as one painting. I feel strongly that each painting must stand alone, be successful without its companion. I originally started this new series thinking of convenience. How much easier to haul around two paintings that add up to 80" wide as opposed to one huge panel? But it is so much harder to paint. This is oil on canvas, each panel is 40 x 30.

2009-12-02T06:05:00.001-08:00

November Plein Air Miniatures
Here are a few more in my series of little playing card paintings. I work on these on location...at the present from the cozy interior of my pickup. The small size allows me to work out compositional issues in the landscape in front of me, and then very much inform my larger paintings in the studio.

2009-10-29T07:05:00.001-07:00

Lake Overlook
Painting from my favorite spot overlooking Lake Leelanau. The second photo is the painting I finished just at sunset. The light in those last two hours was amazing..

2009-10-26T14:04:00.001-07:00

Cleveland Exhibit Went Great
Here's a couple photos from my exhibit last weekend in Cleveland at the Mezzanine Gallery's temporary space. It is in a converted elementary school in the heart of Little Italy. Sold some paintings and met many wonderful folks! Thanks so much to Geoff and Kate Baker for hosting me for the weekend (and my sister..she's in the kitchen in this first photo...couldn't do these short shows without her!) Thanks to Sharon too....

2009-10-21T05:53:00.001-07:00

Weekend show in Cleveland at Mezzanine Gallery
I'm taking it on the road again this weekend for a 2 day show in Cleveland. The gallery owners are renting a larger gallery space for the weekend so we can put on this event. Looking forward to showing around 25 recent paintings. The exhibit runs Friday night from 6 to 9 pm and then again on Saturday from noon to 4 pm. Friday evening I'll be giving a short presentation about this body of work. If you're in the area, please stop by. Email me if you want more information, angelamsaxon@gmail.com
Mezzanine Gallery
2026 Murray Hill Road #209, Cleveland

2009-09-09T04:34:00.000-07:00

Cy Twombly at the Art Institute Chicago
I was so lucky to catch this exhibit last weekend (with Chicago pal Michael). I'd always been a fan, but didn't realize how much i would be captivated by his new work. If you have a chance, go see this. It's up until Oct 11th. Here's a link to the AIC site:
www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/CyTwombly/overview

2009-08-30T08:25:00.001-07:00

Rainy Days
In mid August, I participated in a plein air event through Water Street Gallery. It ended up being a cold, rainy, seemingly miserable day for mid-August in Michigan. But once out, i really started to get into the smaller range of colors and by the way that the intense summer greens were subdued by the overcast skies. A blue sky can just be so obvious. With the rapidly changing overcast sky, i had to be so much more a careful observer, had to really look hard.

The event at Water Street ended up going great. I sold a number of paintings as did many of the other artists that participated. And I think it's launched me into a new series of work. This is one of my watercolors from yesterday..the second rainy, cold weekend day in a row for us, but now i'm rather looking forward to these days.
You can see more of these watercolors from Friday and Saturday (8/29-30) on my website: www.angelasaxon.com

2009-08-26T05:09:00.001-07:00

New Summer Paintings
Summer is fast and furious up here in the north and I always feel that I have to absorb as much of the summer color and flavor as I can! I've been painting a series that is just about water. The ever changing colors and textures are endlessly fascinating to me.

I spend a lot of my time just looking, trying to see what's really happening on and below the surface of the water. Trying to convince my painter eyes to not necessarily believe what i think to be true about water, but rather to actually SEE what's happening. You can see more of this series on my website, www.angelasaxon.com

2009-05-01T06:51:00.001-07:00

April Salon
Trying for a different approach to reaching patrons, a friend and I participated in a salon at the home of my sister and her husband in northern lower Michigan. Our thoughts were that by showing work in a home setting, and by creating an event that had at its heart an open forum for discussion and comment, we'd be able to open up the possibilities for engagement with a new group of individuals.

Royce Deans and I each hung new work and in addition, we showed a couple series of still life paintings that Royce and I make collaboratively. We managed to fit over 40 paintings! You can see photos at www.angelasaxon.com. Click on SALON at the top of the page.

Early in the evening, we gathered for a lecture of sorts: my sister introduced the evening and then Royce and I each made a presentation. We then opened the discussion up to everyone present. Conversations were lively and engaging--it seemed that everyone enjoyed the openness of the evening.

We decided to keep the work up for a few weeks and then have a salon closing the weekend of May 8/9th. Email me if you're going to be in the Ann Arbor area and would like to attend. angelamsaxon@gmail.com

2009-04-13T15:13:00.001-07:00

Late Light
One in a new series of middle-sized paintings. Thinking about light and shadow, and how a controlled but relatively raw brushstroke can define.
This is 16 x 16, oil on panel. The rest of this series is posted on my website, www.angelasaxon.com if you'd like to see more.

2009-02-17T15:17:00.001-08:00

Number Four in my current series, "Divisions"
This is 80 x 36", oil on panel

2009-02-11T13:01:00.000-08:00

An email interview with gallery owner, Emily Amy
Emily Amy, owner of Emily Amy Gallery in Atlanta posed the following questions to all her gallery artists. I thought it might be interesting to post those answers here...

An interview with my artists:

What is your earliest memory of making art and when did you realize that you were an artist?
When I was around three, my parents let me use their oils and I painted a picture of my siamese cat playing with a ball. I can remember moving the paint around as I watched the cat...at least I think I can remember. I still have the painting, so that might be what triggers the memory. Regardless, I was hooked. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always responded, "an artist." (Though there was that period when I was maybe 9 or 10 that I changed that to "a billboard painter..."). I realized I was an artist after college, when I kept at it hard when nobody was really looking.

Tell me more about your creative process.
What inspires you? Please be as broad as you like.
I am inspired by what I see as I go through my daily life. When I lived in a big city, I painted interior spaces. Having lived in a beautiful, rural area for the past 20+ years, the landscape now is what inspires me. Specifically, I'm drawn to intimate spaces in a large scene. Pulled into the landscape by a detail that is often quite far in the distance. That rush of moving into a visual space is what I try to capture in my work.

What artists, in particular, have influenced your work and why?
I have looked at deKooning's work for many years. The confidence of his marks, whether he's working in a figurative style, or loose and flowing -- that confidence is so engaging to me. It more than describes whatever he is rendering.

Right now, I'm looking at Eric Aho's quarry paintings. I saw an exhibit of that body of work in NYC and was blown away. There's an awkwardness that he seems to portray, even in the midst of a stunning landscape.

Franz Kline was a revelation for me. While always appreciating his large black and white paintings, I thought that they were probably executed in some wild mad dash of energy. But after reading more about his process I came to understand that they are very deliberate. That opened a door for me. I was trying to push a looseness into my own work, but kept running over myself, so to speak. With my current body of work, after the small preliminary sketches and studies for a painting are finished, and I think that I understand what I'm going to paint, I can slow down and really plan my moves one at a time: planning the specific brushstrokes, loading the paint carefully on the brush, etc. Controlled spontaneity.

What hobbies/interests do you have aside from making art?
I spend a lot of time in the summer on the water, either sailing, swimming or hanging out at the beach. We usually take a long summer vacation on our sailboat. Sitting on the deck, watching the endless horizon pass by, or gazing for hours at the passing water, changing color as depths change. This very much informs my painting. I pretty much always have my sketchbook and drawing stuff on hand.

How do you remain engaged and motivated when you are beginning to feel bored or complacent in the studio?
There are a number of ways that I push past those frustrating places. In my current work, which is all quite large, I'm at the same time working on a series of very small paintings. The small paintings help me to work out issues for the large work, trying different variations on the composition, etc. They help to keep ideas flowing.

Another project has very much influenced my work for the past couple years and has almost eliminated those times of restlessness in the studio, which is wonderful. I began a collaborative series a year or two ago with another painter. We initially began working together as an experiment, one that I initiated as I have always had a desire to work in tandem with another artist. We chose a subject matter that was intentionally different from each of our own personal work: the still life. Through a process of trial and error, we developed a format for our process. We work together on a setup, making small sketches to fine tune the composition. We then take turns on the painting, from the initial charcoal sketch to the end of the painting. While one of us is painting, the other is generally watching the work. We comment and discuss aspect of the work more and more as the painting develops. We generally put in 2-3 sessions on each painting.

One of the struggles that faces me regularly in my own studio occurs when I'm fairly deep into a painting, and some part of it isn't working. There's a reluctance to wipe out that area or to paint it out, to realize that because I won't let go of one “precious” area in a painting the entire piece isn't as strong as it could be. Painting with another artist, together on one painting, spreads that responsibility out a bit and makes it so much easier to be daring and make some necessary change that pushes each of our own work forward. For me, this has completely validated the time and effort I've put into these collaborative sessions. In addition, we are developing an interesting body of work. You can see the work if you like on my website, www.angelasaxon.com, under Extra Stuff.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Isn't there only one answer? A really successful artist, selling work, getting great reviews, fame (well, I actually don't care so much about fame, just want to have my work out there).

What is your current passion project in the studio (or outside the studio) and what is next for you in 2009?
I'm in the middle of a new series of very large paintings and very small paintings. The very large paintings started first. I'm working 80" x 36 and 60" x 36, oil on panel. Exploring what, at first, seemed to be the simple relationship between sky and water or sky and land. Horizontals. Half and half division. How the top of the painting relates to the bottom. As I've gotten farther into the series, I'm starting to understand that the interesting relationships are much smaller in scale than the large sky/land or water relationship. The scale of marks is exciting for me: the movement of paint on a large scale describing intimate details.

The small paintings are 3.5" x 2.5", oil on playing cards. I started this small series to work out details for the large paintings. But likewise, have been surprised by how expansive the small work feels. They have kind of switched places. The big paintings have an intimacy about them and the small paintings feel more vast. I'm still trying to figure out what this is really all about. In the meantime, I'm continuing just to paint.

What is your favorite color and does that influence your color choices in the studio?
I don't think I have a favorite color. Being a landscape painter, I find that I often am most frustrated by green. And try to challenge myself to not always see the sky as blue. The tube of paint that I can't do without is Daniel Smith's Quinacridone Burnt Orange. I add it to almost everything. That and their Tiger's Eye Genuine.

Do you consider yourself a self-taught artist or a classically trained artist?
I received formal training while getting a BFA in Painting from Indiana University, how to mix paint, be archival in my techniques, prime a panel, etc....but that's information that, once internalized, is just a tool. I have taught myself to see and to interpret that in paint. I'm always learning. Moving from series to series seems to be the way I progress.

What (or who) had the greatest influence on you as you developed as an artist?
This was going to be really hard for me to answer, and then it came to me. It's the landscape. Nature. The great outdoors. But not any outdoors seems to do. Luckily for me, I'm enraptured by the one that surrounds me now.

Why do you work in your preferred medium?
I love the richness of oil paint, and the slowness of the drying gives me time to work the surface. I work on panel as opposed to canvas because of the smoothness of the surface. I paint with very soft black sable brushes. The combination allows for quick, smooth brushwork.

How do you know when your work is finished/do you ever know?
Sometimes I am certain; I’m positive about it. Generally when I'm not, it's not finished and I just haven't admitted it to myself. Some paintings are never finished. Lately, I've been telling myself that there's no reason to not continue to work on a painting...that the worst thing that could happen would be to have a "finished" ugly painting. So I either dig back in or sand it off and start again if that happens.

What is your favorite museum to visit nationally/internationally?
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Park, Washington DC

What is the most inspirational show you have ever attended (visual arts or otherwise)?
The Gates Project, Christo. Central Park, NYC

2009-01-14T16:04:00.000-08:00

Two recent paintings of the beach in Saugatuck, MI
12 x 12, oil on birch panel. I also posted a couple of new landscapes on my online shop: www.GalleryA.etsy.com

2009-01-01T15:31:00.001-08:00

Pears
I painted a few pear still life paintings as part of my playing card series of miniature paintings, for sale at www.GalleryA.etsy.com.

2008-12-07T09:53:00.001-08:00

Visit my new online shop:
www.GalleryA.etsy.com

I am working on a new series of paintings...on playing cards. Tiny landscapes and still lifes in oil. So far I think there are 20 or so available in my shop and I'll be posting them regularly. They sell for $25 each.

I began these miniatures in response to the current economy, but have really been engaged working on them! Even though the cards are small, there's a lot of room for detail and expression.

I'm using a fairly large brush, a #14 filbert, but am also using my palette knife to "urge" the paint into small spaces. By painting on the back of the card, I can work with the patterns of the card, letting it show through the layers of paint in some places.

Take a look at my shop, and share it with friends if you like too. www.GalleryA.etsy.com

2008-11-19T08:08:00.000-08:00

Perceiving Nature
Time for a new artist statement after the opening in Atlanta.
My work is an exploration of nature—my attempt to describe the natural world that influences me. But at the same time, I’m making paintings, and my thesis so to speak, is about paint: not skies and water, trees and clouds. A natural deconstruction of imagery takes place in the rendering, a break with the literal. By allowing the medium to emerge—flowing marks, moving paint, surface textures—I am approaching an interpretation of the sublime in nature. Nature doesn’t care whether we look or not. The most awe-inspiring visual moments in the landscape: sunrise and sunset for example, can appear the most trivial when painted. Finding a language to describe my discoveries, to lead a viewer to see these intimate details, is the goal of my work.

2008-11-10T06:44:00.001-08:00

A great opening reception at Emily Amy Gallery
I went down to Atlanta this weekend for the opening of a group show, Nature Interpreted, at Emily Amy Gallery. It is a beautiful gallery located in an up and coming area of Midtown called the Brickworks. I'm really excited to affiliated with this exciting new gallery. You can see more photos of the exhibit on my website: angelasaxon.com

2008-10-22T14:18:00.000-07:00

The Harbor
This is the second in this large format series, 80" x 36".

2008-09-28T07:46:00.001-07:00

Woods Series
A new painting from a new series. 24 x 29, oil on panel.

2008-09-18T17:06:00.001-07:00

New work
Just finished this piece, "From Shore". It's the largest painting I've completed in quite a few years, 36" x 80", oil on birch panel. It's been exciting for me to explore larger marks and think more about the surface of the paint in this piece. It's on the wall at Michigan Artists' Gallery in Suttons Bay, MI. You can see an earlier state of this painting if you scroll down to the August 10 post. I thought the painting was almost finished back then, but finally decided to push it off the fence, figuratively speaking, more towards abstraction.

2008-09-08T07:03:00.001-07:00

Moving paint
This summer I have been focused on the paint in my paintings. While that might seem obvious, it really isn't so. I'm trying to follow the paint as it leads me past the object-ness of the landscape. Past the trees and clouds and water and landforms. Letting the paint be the subject matter.

2008-08-25T18:38:00.000-07:00

Plein air painting in Saugatuck
Here's a shot from a painting day at Oval Beach--super windy, but so beautiful. I participated in an event for Water Street Gallery where a number of area artists worked for the day, then there was a sale at the gallery that evening of the artwork created that day. Thanks to Ted Swoboda for the pic.

2008-08-10T12:13:00.000-07:00

A Larger Format for me
I just have started working a bit larger: this panel is 80" x 36". I did a few smaller studies to work up to this size, and to sort out what the scale would be for this dimension, but have really enjoyed the larger space to move paint around in. I'm using Mega brushes from Dick Blick that are great.

2008-08-10T12:10:00.001-07:00

My painting set up one lovely July day.
I try to keep my setup pretty straightforward, so I don't have to spend too much time doing that, as opposed to painting. I have a French easel, a palette that seals in a plastic case, and a jar of gamsol. Plus a small box for paints and brushes, and a couple of large flat cardboard boxes to hold the wet paintings in my trunk.

2008-07-13T09:22:00.000-07:00

2 New Books
I've recently published two books, one for each of a series of paintings completed this spring.
Surface and Depth is my first exploration into foreground patterns. These paintings delve into the dichotomy I see between surface and depth of water. Shorelines showcases twenty paintings, each an exploration of the intricacies of pattern and movement found along a shore. I spend many days each year on the water on our sailboat, often anchored off a shore in a beautiful setting. The combination of looking and sketching this subject for many years reinforces this work.

Both books are available for free download or purchase at lulu.com. Here's the direct link to my storefront: http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=543286

2008-06-24T13:56:00.001-07:00

Clouds Overhead
Another in the series of sky/land imagery. 24" x 29, oil on panel

2008-06-19T18:41:00.001-07:00

Let paint tell the story
This is one of a series where I was simplifying the landscape into a sky block and a land block. Letting the paint tell the story. This is 24" x 29", oil on panel

2008-05-11T06:28:00.001-07:00

When is a painting finished?
I think that this painting is finally finished, but I have thought that it was finished about 5 times since I started it back in early winter....The more I am immersed in a painting, the harder it is for me to actually see it...or at least to see the important details of the composition that aren't working. Or maybe it's that after a period of time I just want it to be finished? And then there are some paintings that seem to paint themselves. I'm trying to sort this one out....

2008-05-06T08:24:00.001-07:00

Another in the series...this is called "Standing in the Shallows"

2008-05-06T08:19:00.001-07:00

Sky Water Encaustic Series
Been working on a series of 12" x 12" encaustics focused on relationships between the sky and the water. I'm trying to push the transparent layers that encaustic offers more in this series too.

2008-03-11T16:40:00.000-07:00

Shoreline Series
I'm working on a 1/2" masonite panel with a ground of Liquitex modeling paste which is composed of a polymer and marble dust. I apply it with a trowel and then sand it very smooth. I'm working in thin layers of oil over this surface--it's kind of absorbent which is working well for me. The surface dries much faster than on a gesso ground so I can work the layers in the same session. I'm thinking about applying a layer of clear encaustic medium over the finished painting. More of these on my website on the "On My Easel" page.

2008-03-02T16:30:00.001-08:00

Another painting reworked from that series....

2008-03-02T15:39:00.003-08:00

About Energy
I've been reworking the painting in the Sand Bay series (posted on 2/27), focusing on integrating the excitement and energy of the foreground brushwork throughout the rest of the painting. I'm not sure that this is finished quite yet, but I'm excited about the direction. I'm reworking some other current paintings in this same manner and will post them soon.

2008-02-27T06:59:00.001-08:00

New landscape series
I'm working to integrate some of the new brushwork and attention to foreground imagery into a more familiar subject matter for me. This is part of a series I'm working on based on drawings I made last summer while sailing on Lake Michigan. This is Sand Bay up near Fayette, in Big Bay de Noc. @ 20' x 32", oil on panel.

2008-02-19T17:22:00.000-08:00

Meadow Series
I've often worked on a series of paintings focused on meadows, but with this new series, i'm focusing much more on including a clear foreground. The work I've been doing this winter has helped to train my eye to see more in the foreground and it's been very exciting developing a vocabulary of marks to work with. This painting is 24 x 24 inches, oil on panel.

2008-01-25T15:14:00.000-08:00

Another pool painting in the series, this is 16 x 24

2008-01-14T05:39:00.000-08:00

Pool Series
I'm currently working on a series of paintings, working from drawings I did while we were vacationing in Akumal, Mexico. They're focused on the shallow tide pools, the way the light reflects off the water and on the currents in the water. This is 24 x 24, oil on panel.

2008-01-14T04:37:00.001-08:00

These are smaller, only 8" square--I worked on a bunch of these in preparation for the larger paintings.

2008-01-14T04:33:00.001-08:00

Two more pool paintings: these are 24" x @ 18", oil on panel

2007-08-08T08:56:00.000-07:00

Big Cloud
We just returned from 2 weeks sailing around on Lake Michigan--leaving Beaver Island, we watched this gigantic cloud just sit there over the island for hours. No other clouds in the sky.

2007-06-21T04:36:00.000-07:00

Ways of Wax
Water Street Gallery
June 16 -July 10
Douglas, MI
waterstreetgallery.com
Here's one of 8 new encaustic paintings I have at WSG--which has just moved from Saugatuck, to Douglas--98 Center Street. I've put away the wax for the rest of the summer in favor of cooler pursuits...

2007-06-21T04:27:00.000-07:00

Another painting at WSG
Here's another one of the encaustics. These two are 16 x 3.75.

2007-04-23T17:18:00.000-07:00

A new gallery
Gallery 50 at the Village at Grand Traverse Commons in Traverse City is showing my work starting this May. They are reopening in a new, larger space--still within Building 50, but in the Mercado development. www.galleryfifty.com

2007-04-23T17:13:00.000-07:00

Finished These Two....
Here are two paintings I've just finished--I posted these same paintings about a month ago but have since worked on them and have divided the panels and then reassembled them--it's all about focusing the view and trying to keep my eye, or anyone who's looking at the painting's eye, in the painting for longer.

2007-03-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

New Meadow Series
I'm working on a new meadow series of paintings, in a larger format. This painting is 24" x 48".

2007-03-09T12:03:00.000-08:00

Meadow Painting #2
Here's another image from the meadow series. Also 24" x 48"

2007-02-28T14:58:00.000-08:00

Artists buying art
My new purchase: a mixed media painting by Traverse City artist Dan Heron. I am so inspired by this piece--I just brought it home yesterday and am so enjoying getting lost in it!

2007-02-28T04:29:00.000-08:00

Winter Work
I've been working on this series of "snow" paintings. I'm starting with a toned panel and then applying a heavy layer of light-toned paint. Using a very soft and thick piece of charcoal, I'm working back through the layer of paint to scribe the drawing back on the panel. The charcoal breaks up a bit and mixes in with the paint as I work. I frequently wipe off the charcoal on a rag or sometimes cut off a clean edge. Once finished, the charcoal seems to be really blended into the paint layer. I might add a coat of varnish or something like that to completely secure the charcoal to the surface.

2007-01-24T15:37:00.000-08:00

Work on Paper
Just started a series on gessoed poster board--wanted a surface that I didn't have to spend so much time preparing so that I could be a bit freer with the painting. In the first image, I went back into the wet paint with charcoal. These are around 28" wide.

2006-11-19T08:19:00.000-08:00

Lincoln Road II
this is part of a new series that began on location and has continued in my studio--I'm working a bit larger, this panel is 50" wide. I'm aiming for a more loose and emotional response to my subject matter.

2006-11-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

On the easel today
I've been working larger and really focusing on keeping the abstract elements in the paintings strong. These are around 18-20" on the horizontal.

2006-10-22T19:23:00.000-07:00

About making paintings...
I was reading an old article in a magazine that was reviewing the newest biography of Willem de Kooning and came across the following quote from de Kooning; " Wouldn't you think it would get a little easier after all these years? But, you know, finishing one painting never solves the problem of the next one. You alwys have to start over the next day. Every morning when I come into the studio to work, I feel like I could have the potential to do better somehow. I still want to do just one terrific painting..." And this was said by him in 1982, after a very long successful career. Just made me stop and think.

2006-10-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

Saturday, October 21

2006-10-13T13:11:00.000-07:00

Water Street Gallery
Saugatuck, MI
Featuring my paintings through November 9th.
Here's a few installation views.
waterstreetgallery.com

2006-09-30T07:05:00.000-07:00

Upcoming Exhibit in Saugatuck
My paintings will be featured at Water Street Gallery from October 7 through November 9th. The ceramics of Paul Flickinger will be featured as well. The opening reception(s) are Saturday and Sunday, October 7th and 8th from noon to 5 pm--the two day opening schedule coincides with the Saugatuck Fall Gallery Stroll. www.waterstreetgallery.com

I'll be showing recent landscape paintings as well as some new encaustic pieces. Saugatuck is a great place to visit in the fall when all the crowds are diminished!

2006-09-10T06:26:00.000-07:00

Dividing up the "canvas"
While I don't actually work on canvas, often artists speak of "dividing up the canvas", before they begin to work--sorting out the composition, etc. I work on panels and divide up my image once I've finished the painting so to speak. In this division process, I'm looking to force the focus of the viewer to certain areas of the painting. Drawing emphasis to some of the smaller details with the overall goal of keeping a viewer engaged with the image for a longer period of time. Especially with landscapes, I feel that it can be too easy to quickly dismiss the subject--or maybe not dismiss but think that you know what you are seeing because it is so familiar. Trees, sky, land. Done. But there is so much more to see--the elements that draw me to paint in the first place. Quiet relationships between spaces. Tension between a cool dark shadow and a warm sunny patch of grass. So once the painting is resolved for me, I pull out the table saw and divide up the panel. Sometimes part of the painting is left behind, to be used in conjunction with another painting later. Or I reverse the order of the panels. This construction phase of the work is perhaps the most engaging for me.
Top painting is small, @12" wide, second image is 48" wide, third image is @ 28" wide.

2006-08-27T07:02:00.000-07:00

Evening Light
I've been working on location in the evenings for the past month, anytime after 5-6 pm. This painting was the last one in a recent session. Something about having worked intently for a number of hours that whatever I was trying to say finally jumped into focus with this little painting--@ 12" x 5".

2006-08-27T06:55:00.000-07:00

Current Inspiration...
The past month has yielded a number of days with magnificent clouds...huge, towering, white, gray, purple, ocher. I've been trying to capture them in my work but so often, by the time I'm out and set up, they start to dimish! Here's a recent scene I "captured" with my camera...not the same, but it's still magnificent to look at.

2006-08-18T06:32:00.000-07:00

New Paintings
Been a busy summer around here--lots of plein air painting and not much blogging! Here's a couple of recent paintings I've been working on in preparation for an upcoming show at Water Street Gallery in Saugatuck, MI. I'm showing new work in an exhibit entitled: Fragments, together with 3D ceramic artist, Paul Flickinger, October 7-9th. The opening reception is Saturday and Sunday, October 7 & 8 from 12-5 pm.

The first painting, Centered, is 6" wide, the second, Yellow Light, is 14" wide and both are oil on panel.

2006-06-14T09:51:00.000-07:00

Here's one of my paintings from the DeYoung farm.

2006-06-13T19:17:00.000-07:00

Heartwood Furniture and Fine Art Show
June 16-18
Old Art Building, downtown Leland

I'll be showing my work along with 5 furniture makers and 5 fine artists this weekend in Leland. It's my first time showing with these guys and it's looking like it'll be a great exhibition.

Opening reception is Friday from 6 - 8pm. The Neptune Quartet will be featured. Show hours continue on Saturday from 10am to 8 pm and Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm.

2006-06-13T19:12:00.000-07:00

Painting at the DeYoung farm in Leelanau County
I finally made it out to paint this week with fellow plein air painters. It was a gorgeous evening with beautiful light well after 9 pm. I hadn't painted much in the last few weeks and was a bit apprehensive about how it'd all work out. Just being out in the field moving paint around reminded me of just how much I love to paint.

2006-05-15T17:10:00.000-07:00

Embedded Charcoal Drawings
I've also been working with my charcoal drawings on paper-- embedding them in layers of encaustic on luan panels.

2006-05-15T16:56:00.000-07:00

Charcoal Transfer on Encaustic
I've been experimenting with transferring charcoal drawings to my encaustic paintings. This is one of a series of very small works, 4" square.

2006-03-23T13:41:00.000-08:00

Long Point Cove, Lake Huron
We spend a long vacation each summer up in the North Channel in Lake Huron. I take along oil pastels to record the magnificent landscapes of the area. I've recently begun on a series of encaustic paintings working from my drawings. It's a nice spot of summer in the midst of the snowy cold.

2006-03-18T04:59:00.000-08:00

Winter Fog
A stand of trees in Leelanau County captured in the winter light.

2006-03-18T04:53:00.000-08:00

Night Sky
I continue to be fascinated by the winter sky and am moving to a bit more abstract of a representation with this oil. Dimensions are 48" x 16"

2006-03-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

Wolf Kahn's America
I've been reading a borrowed copy of Wolf Kahn's America. It's a wonderful book full of short blurbs written by Kahn about the many different places he's painted. His writing is so candid and forthcoming--rather rare for an artist to share such intimate thoughts about both is work and the way in which he works. The book is also beautifully designed.

2006-02-27T06:27:00.000-08:00

Night Sky series
I'm continuing to explore the subject of the night sky--working from scribbly little sketches that I make on a little blue notepad while driving at night. I pull the car off the road and flip on the overhead light. I look as hard as I can, to absorb all the subtle details of the scene, scribbling the major composition elements on the notepad. I'm always surprised at how much I can remember days later when starting a painting based on these scant sketches. It seems to trigger my visual memory and then it's all just there to work from. These are encaustic on panel, about 7" tall.

2006-02-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

Plein Air Painters of Grand Traverse
A friend and I have started a plein air painting group. It can be really positive to have the collective energy of a few people working together when painting out of doors. Visit the blog for more information: www.pleinairpaintersgt.blogspot.com

2006-02-17T14:38:00.000-08:00

Charcoal Studies
This winter I have been working in charcoal, on location in Leelanau County (usually from inside the warmth of my car...). I've been using these drawings as a starting point for paintings, both in oil and encaustic. Anytime that I'm feeling unsure or lost in my painting studio, I head back out with my charcoals. The immediacy of this medium slips me back into a better sense of value when I return to the paintings.

2006-02-13T16:36:00.000-08:00

More Encaustic
Here are a few more encaustic paintings that I'm working on. I'm trying to keep these paintings very fluid with a lot of motion contained in the brushwork. I've reworked the painting of the stand of trees since I last posted an image of it on February 6.

2006-02-13T13:10:00.000-08:00

Atmospheric Series
I've been working on a series of paintings this winter that are focused on moody light, shadows, fog, the city glow in a evening winter sky. And of course the snow. These are oil on board.

2006-02-06T14:08:00.000-08:00

Waxing Poetic
I've been experimenting with encaustic for the last few months--mostly I've used up a lot of wax, but am starting to get a handle on this elusive medium. I've been working on birch plywood panels with encaustic paints from R&F Paints-- great company that offers tons of support for artists. They have a great website and a very active online forum.

Here are a couple of recent works that are part of an atmospheric series I'm working on.

2006-02-06T11:20:00.000-08:00

Northwest Michigan Regional
Juried Exhibition of Michigan Fine Art
January 29–April 16, 2006
Dennos Museum Center, Traverse City, MI

I was pleased that my painting, Meditation II, was accepted into this exhibit. The show was juried by Dennis Nawrocki, Professor of Art at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit. I finished this piece in the spring of 2005. The painting is oil on masonite panel and measures 48" x 16".

I combined panels from two different paintings in this piece and have created another "sister" painting with the remaining panels, (Meditation III). I had planned to segment the two paintings in this way when I began them. The panels showing the trees have a lot of surface sanding going on. I love to layer paint and then sand back into the piece, revealing all sorts of texture and pattern beneath. I often times sand back in using a very coarse sandpaper before the paint has fully dried. Then I can pull and drag the paint across the surface and around contours in the piece.