Summer Sketches

So, back from the week at the Cape, recharged and ready to create -- except that July has hit with 95+ degree weather and humidity that weighs you down like a load of wet sand -- ugh! Just two small 8" x 8" watercolor sketches; I did do others but even smaller (2.5 x 4). 

I think that these two somehow capture a sense of atmosphere, of simple shapes and times of day.  Perhaps, maybe not.  Watercolor does seem to capture one's impressions quickly and, at this size, it's difficult to even try to get any definitive details, especially when using a fairly large brush.

Not terribly interested in detail or photographic reality; more an essence of place and time of day.

Although on this one my husband exclaimed, "Oh, look! An atomic blast!" Ha, ha, very funny . . . well, I suppose it does look a bit like that. 

But with this long holiday weekend, I did work on some new oil paintings, again trying to capture a sense of light, of shapes and patterns rather than traditional land/seascapes. Also, tried to work from memory rather than photos taken on cellphones, etc.  Under the extreme brightness of Cape light, details tend to disappear, things shimmer and fade, then come into greater clarity before disappearing altogether.  Think about when you lie on the beach on your stomach and look down the sand at the people and the water and the light -- more like a chimera than anything!

As soon as they are dry, I'll try to take some pics; however, I may spring for a professional to do that as they are too big to scan. My time is a bit crunched these days and patience is wearing thin to be fiddling around with cameras and tripods.

Paintings for August

last weeks of summer

sea change in the air

humid weight lifts and

gardens spark with a clear, bright light

wading through ocean waters

dizzy with currents

that ripple and tug
pulling you further
and further
beyond the shores

drifts of sea thrift and thistle

fairy wands that tap the sunlight
calling you to the dance

shadows at twilight

lace treetops and the

last rays spill 

through tired leaves . . .

Go to the Mat!

How many times have we heard about the benefits of cropping and using an L-frame to find compositions? Lots and lots, but do we practice what we know?

This is a "short" weekend for me. I have an annual conference to drive to on Sunday, plus all the preparations of laundry, packing and such. So today is my only "free" day but too short to really begin anything meaningful -- i.e. messy!

Because I have made my plans for an Open Studio in the fall, I decided to begin sifting and sorting through piles of paintings, mostly on paper, to see what I have on hand and what needs to be matted and framed in the coming months. I have watercolors, aqua media, mixed media, collages and monotypes to sort through. But believe me, not all of these are what might be termed winners. Many are 3/4 of the way painted before I lost interest and put aside with the intention of returning . . . good intentions but often forgotten because I'm on to a new project.

So what does one do? Go to the mat! as my son used to say in his wrestling days. Absolutely. Let's see what I did with this one painting that truly was a playful exercise in moving colors around on the paper purely because I wanted to see the flow of colors, the slow crawling across paper, the effect of 2 or 3 colors merging --

Long Climb
5" x 7" acrylic washes on Fabriano watercolor paper

Summer Pond
5" x 7" acrylic washes on Fabriano watercolor paper

Approaching Storm
5" x 7" acrylic washes on Fabriano watercolor paper

The larger piece was about 12 x 16 and, in its entirety, too busy and overpowering. These three are smaller and the mat I used was an 8 x 10 with a 5 x 7 opening. I moved the mat around the surface of the larger work until I found compositions that intrigued me. I then cut them up and will simply leave as matted and ready for framing.

I also have mats, custom ordered from Documounts (wonderful work and great prices), that are 5 x 7 with a 2.5 x 3.25 opening, and these I plan for a series of "mini-works."

Every spring I travel up to the Paradise City ArtFest in Northampton, Massachusetts. Paradise City also travels to the Boston area, Philadelphia and Miami, and is just one step below the Smithsonian Craft Show . The artists and artisans that are featured in P.C. are amazing, and one leaves at the end of the day almost breathless. But I noted that many artists and photographers offer smaller works, often matted only, that are affordable and just as beautiful as their larger works. So that's my plan for the fall -- part of it, anyway.

Again I cannot emphasize how helpful a mat is when contending with artwork that is just not coming out as you originally envisioned. Let it go, come back to it -- but armed with the mat! Similarly, my aim to paint abstractly is often stymied, and I'll return to representational landscapes and such. But if I move a mat over the landscape, suddenly I'm finding smaller, abstract images embedded within. Oh, what joy!

Try it. It's like a kind of artistic Where's Waldo? :-) ))

Hey, if we can't laugh and enjoy our art, well . . . ho, hum.