Earthquakes, Hurricanes and Flooding, Oh My!

I made it back safe from Alaska (no problems coming back) and what do I find when I get home? First, an earthquake. Then, a hurricane. Cleanup from the flooding is going to delay me painting so many of the wonderful landscape scenes I encountered on my visit north.

I did sneak off for a few hours to paint a quick sky study and decided to see how close in value and how neutral in color I could make it and still have it "read" well. I tend to go for bolder colors and values that range from 1 - 10, so I thought this would be a good exercise for me. Did I succeed?

Grey Day Above    9" x 12"

Painting Turnagain Arm

Painted along Turnagain Arm today and was glad I didn't meet up with the black bear up the trail that several hikers encountered throughout the day. Lucky for all of us the bear turned tail whenever he saw anybody. I was in the same spot, morning through afternoon, and though I heard some noises I never actually saw the bear.
Several people stopped to watch me paint. All were courteous and encouraging.

Glorious weather, quiet painting time to myself. A good day!

Along Turnagain Arm they have some of the strongest and fastest bore tides ever.

Todays painting from the same spot as the photo.  9"x12"

Flightseeing in Alaska

I finally made it to AK and am coping with sensory overload. Too much good stuff!!

Went flightseeing around Denali and collected enough material to paint on for years.  The scale of everything is unbelievable. Talk about supersized!

Here's some pics.......

Flying toward Denali, still 40 miles out: highest spot in North America.

The two Peaks of Denali. South Peak (in front) is the true summit.

"The Moose's Tooth" - Love the names of some of the peaks!

I once heard a comedian say, "What America needs for vacationers is a good ocean in the mountains." Well, Alaska's got it.

Looking across Turnagain Arm. When the tide comes in it rushes up this river in a wave called a bore tide and can be 10 feet in height. Don't get caught in it.

If you are looking for a place with endless subject matter for the landscape painter, Alaska is it!

Alaska Vacation Start

Well, well, well.

I had everything so carefully planned. My Alaska Adventure has hit a snag.

The first leg (Philly to Boston) was delayed because of a thunderstorm. But, I still might have made my connection had they not discovered a "baggage count discrepancy". So, after waiting on the tarmac, it's back to the gate to resolve the problem. then back out onto the tarmac for another hour and half of waiting. I was 3 hours late for my connection. Thank you, US Airways.

The next flight I was able to get was for the next day and since the only motel in the area that wasn't full was $349 a night (airline wouldn't pay) I spent the night in Logan Airport in Boston. It's hard to sleep sitting in a chair. Supposed to leave on the new flight at 3:30  this afternoon, but my confidence is shaken and I am taking all promises with a grain of salt...a big grain of salt.

No pictures this post, though some of the people passing before me, lo these many hours, are interesting (if not downright strange). Was roundly cursed by a man (homeless?crazy?) who accused me of "running him off" when I sat down three seats away from him.

Thank you, whoever invented Excedrin Extra Strength.

Framing: this Artist's Bane

Wall of frames: be afraid, be very afraid......

Why can't someone invent a Universal Frame? I'm not talking about size. I'm talking about a frame that looks good on whatever style of artwork you put it around and doesn't cost an arm and a leg! Perhaps the only part I hate about painting is having to frame the thing. And yet I know that if you choose the wrong frame you can effectively kill a painting, so care must be taken.

When I was in college I often just "stripped" the paintings (nailed thin strips of wood to the outer edges). It was cheap, I could do it myself, and it went fine with the strange, abstract, and odd things we were required to create in order to get that degree. But the kinds of things I am doing now need more than that, and I would rather be painting than sawing and nailing frames together.

Custom framing (even with my 60% off coupon) is out of the question, so I haunt art stores looking for frames on sale and comb the internet (always a risk since you can't actually touch the frame and computer colors can lie). I also recycle frames that I already have. Paintings of the same size going to competitions at different times can wear the same frame, but for a big show where all your works are exhibited this doesn't work. Right now I have approximately 25 paintings sitting around waiting for a frame of their own.

My latest foray has been to frame my painting, "Heart of the Mill", that is off to a competition. It was the usual agony and the results were only adequate, I couldn't afford spectacular.

I have no solution except to soldier on. But if someone ever invents a Universal Frame they should get in touch with me. I'll buy a few!!

An Image of the Mill

Heart of the Mill   14 x18

Here's my entry into the "Images of the Mill" competition. Though I think most will portray a distinctive tall red building that is on the mill grounds I was struck by the sun hitting an old millstone leaning against the side of the mill house. It created a formal composition of basic shapes that captured me. The rocks beneath the stucco seem visually complicated until you just think of them as spots of color. Forget what you are looking at and put down the spots. When you are done it will be a rock wall.

Detail: Heart of the Mill

Now to find a frame!

Keep It Soft

The Clouds Roll In  8x10

Hay Days  8x10

 

Evening Falls  8x10

I have grown more interested in atmospheric effects as of late. Most of my works were concerned with the landscape and its varied appearances, but lately I have started to look up and see how interesting the sky can be.

I, also, have always painted in terms of sharp contrast and strong color. So with these three little studies I set out to keep the paintings soft and undefined for as long as possible. How much information can you convey without getting specific?

It turns out, quite a lot! These little paintings were done, almost exclusively, with a #10 flat brush. Only at the finish did I use a small round brush (#2) to make a few small lines and to sign my name.

*Tip: As long as you keep the edges soft, it is easy to make changes and suggest shapes. As soon as you put down a hard edge, you "pin it down". But, if a painting is all soft edges it can look mushy, and all hard edges can get boring. So beware of going too far in one direction or the other.