Workshop Critique

Parkway Series #277   12 x 16   oil    SOLD
The painting workshop and the holidays have been a refreshing time of rest and reflection; I plan to slow down even more during the Christmas season.  However, I will be thinking about all the new ideas from the workshop and how I can work them into new paintings.  For example, this painting bothered me for a reason I could not explain.  During the workshop, Ron Boehmer talked about having main characters in your paintings just like a book.  Just by adding more thickness to the tree trunks, I created three main groups of trees/characters rather than the mass of foliage that you can see in the previous photo of this painting (#277) posted on October 28th.  Something as simple as this can improve a painting.  I'll share more tomorrow!

Early Morning Mist

Parkway Series #284   12 x 16    oil     Sold

I caught this image of early morning mist with my zoom lens one morning last week around 7 a.m. The mist rising from the frosty morning and the sunlight hitting the tops of the trees was intriguing to me.  I wanted to try to capture the effect in paint.  On this beautiful day, I am headed to the Parkway again to record the last of the fall colors of 2010.  I will continue to paint these incredible colors well into winter but I do plan to take a few days off.  I have a show at WVTF on Friday night Nov. 19th 5-7.  Please come if you are anywhere near Roanoke Va.  Then I will be leaving for a few days on Saturday morning for a plein air workshop with Ron Boehmer in Lexington, and of course, lots of family fun the following week of Thanksgiving.  I am so thankful this year for a completed year of daily painting and for my incredible family who has given me the freedom to accomplish this and for my God who has given me the abilities that I have!

Down the Path by Otter Creek

Parkway Series # 283   12 x 16   oil    SOLD

As I walked down the path beside Otter Creek, on this crisp, beautiful day, the incrediblely blue sky reflected in the water.  Even though clouds covered the blue above the trees, the reflection captures the deep azure of October skies.

Mill Mountain

Parkway Series #282    12 x 16   oil    SOLD

This is a view of Mill Mountain from the Explore Park spur.  The contrasting blue and yellow-oranges were spectacular this fall.

Essence of Impressionism

Parkway Series #281    12 x 1 6   oil    Sold

The pure, clear colors of this scene attracked me to the image.  There was very little mixing of colors and the background shapes went on easily.  With a little detail, done in my usual upside down painting style the painting was completed in less than two hours. I love it when a painting comes together so quickly.  That is the essence of impressionism!

Yellow Trees

Parkway Series #280   12 x 16    oil    sold

The graceful sway of this tree by the water and the golden yellow leaves persuaded me to paint this scene.  It seems that this fall has produced more yellow than red.  The leaf colors are a bit more muted than last fall but the yellows have been fantastic.  I have several more yellow trees to paint.

Missing Milepost

Parkway Series #279   12 x 16   oil    Sold

Now that the cold weather has set in, I am painting from the studio most of the time.  The 500+ photos from late summer and fall will be my inspiration for the next few weeks!!!  I do not know the name of this overlook;  the sign was missing.   And I failed to get the milepost, which I will look for next time I'm on the Parkway.  But this overlook is breathtaking!  The panorama is 180 degrees and  hard to capture in a painting!