Aldo Leopold Foundation Center Studies

This study is nearly finished...the sun just broke through for this picture...once you start painting you realize how complex a small patch of ground is 

It was a beautiful day to sit and look at a mullein plant!  I met so many wonderful people.  I especially appreciated all the information I learned about the mullein plant!  My favorite was that if you view the leaves under a microscope, each fuzzy "hair" looks like a palm tree!  My imagination was really tickled by imagining all those small palm trees.  Additionally it answered a question about how all the droplets of water are suspended on the leaf....they are resting on all those microscopic palm trees!   Ed took this photo of me painting!  Thanks Ed.  Such a wonderful day.  Thank you to all those at the  Aldo Leopold Foundation Center  especially Anna for coordinating the event.

 “Photo by Ed Pembleton ©2016.”

lots of visitors ... kids, adults and beautiful insects...one dragon fly rested on my painting hand for about a 1/2 hour before flying off! 

Aldo Leopold Foundation Center Art Day

I am very pleased to be painting en plein air during this years  Aldo Leopold Foundation Center  Artist Day.

If you attend, I hope you will stop by and see my work inside at my table...and come find me in the field to say hi.


Ground Study Aldo Leopold Artist Day 2014

Ground Study Aldo Leopold Artist Day 2014

In progress Shack Study Aldo Leopold Artist Day 2014

First image to post but last study of the residency!  Not quite complete.  Ten days and nearly 30 studies later....whew!  I have only posted a chunk of them and will post more later.   I am so grateful to La Napoule Artist Residency Foundation and the Grand Central Atelier for the award.

Savannah Tate-Cuff is a real sweet heart of the rodeo and a terrific painting mate! And Senga Nengudi and Ellioutt Fittz are a pleasure and inspiration! 

I painted my compositions all vertical except this one...I brought many golden mean size panels!  Chateau La Napoule, France.Suncream all around!  Swimming between studies and really warm pools of oil paint!

This one is one of my favorites...I just found that little blue and white shack so sweet!  I also enjoyed painting the children at the beach...

I am pleased with these two simple buoy studies... 

St. Marguerites is the cliff side building on the island.  I was trying to lead the viewers eye to that point...not such a great study but....

This is my last study...tomorrow the last day...I know I am beginning to understand something about water and light...so much information!

Peaceful lake

Didn't have much time for this study but thought I would try sight size ...I also really have to practice atmospheric perspective...I think I see things more like a tapestry...I want space and light!

Velazquez at the National Gallery Scotland

I love this painting!  The rapport between the old woman and the boy, the visual rhythm, the composition, how it is painted...really I just admire it all.   I really struggled with my study of it.  I thought it would be easier, but this little head study gave me a run for my money.  I struggled on all the major fronts; shape, value, color and edge.   I thought I would post it anyway because sometimes it looks easy and the effort and the struggle is forgotten.

A drawn study I did the day before.

I was already struggling with looking up at the study but "seeing" his head as Velazquez did from above.   Not to make excuses but there is glass over the painting and it is more difficult to 'see the paint'. 

I tried putting in some darker transparent to help the drawing, but I didn't go far enough with compressing the shadow values...especially the orbits of the eyes, or the side and lower facial planes.  I can see that now...but I jumped in with color.

At this point I did a bit more and then called it a day.  I felt pretty discouraged.

I did a bit more when I got back to Dalkeith..and a bit in the morning from memory.   This is basically where I left it....so much to learn.  You can see that I 'undid' some of the structure of the nose...but I did get the further eye back into better proportion.

National Gallery; a Glimpse

Here is a brief video I took at the National Gallery.  It is a wonderful collection.  I will eventually do a detail of the Velazquez "Old Woman Cooking Eggs".  I am not sure if I will do a study of the boy or  of the woman.  I love this painting.  I will post the study soon.

Kelvingrove Museum James Guthrie Study

This was a bit of a fiasco but we worked it all out and I got the studies done!  Honestly, it is an absolute pleasure to do these studies.   I am learning but it is still much easier to paint from a painting than from a person sitting in front of you!

Here I am with study #1  of "Old Willie".  It is a close up detail so I can have some "room to paint".   I am at the Kelvingrove in front of another masterpiece by Guthrie.  I think his chunky brush shaped forms may have inspired Ann Gale?  I feel a real affinity for this work.

 Study #1 of the "Old Willie" painting.

This was the start of my second study...I was a bit rushed.  Looking back this feels so line driven I think I got fixated on the planes of paint instead of the planes of the head!  I had to finish in a hurry so I did not yet correct the asymmetry of the eyes....lots to learn.

Here is study 2 finished.  I really shrunk his shoulders...one of many mistakes.

Here is a detail of study #2...I could have defined that shine on his nose much better...I tweaked this with a small round bristle brush at the end..it left so many tracks...oh well on to the next one.

National Gallery Scotland Ruben's study for St. Ambrose

Thank You to Joanne at the National Gallery.  She has been so helpful as have all the staff.
I am very grateful for the warm welcome.

Very small thumbnail drawing of Rubens study for St. Ambrose

You can see how small this is in my journal.

I forgot to take an earlier stage,  this is about an hour and half into the study.  Each time I paint in the museum I feel grateful, pumped- up and humbled.

I did do a light imprimatura and a painted sketch including a kind of value map...now I think I am I just trying to get some color and values and keep thinking about the whole painting.  

Someone came by and took my picture and emailed it to me!  Thank you to all the people who were so respectful of my time but also encouraged me with words of support.  I can see here that I made his ear too long!

A little further along.  It is suggested that this is an alla prima portrait study.  But I am convinced he did not do this all in one sitting.  There are some hints at an underpainting and some surface scumble that had to be done when the pass beneath was "set up".

I took these last two just before cleaning up...I did tweak two little areas but I didn't bother to re-document.  Yep, that ear is too long...oh well, maybe St. Ambrose is known for his fine listening skills!

A detail...sorry for the glare.

National Galleries today with Rembrandt

I did two small drawings in my journal: value map.

Not quite done...

 

The gallery staff were very kind and thanks to all the passers by who encouraged me.  I painted for about 4 hours today and I think I might ask to go back to do another study...so much to learn!

Out today painting Snowdrops...I will post the finished painting soon.
Tomorrow I am doing a study  at the National Gallery!

Can you see my cluster?