watercolors

A few watercolors from the past years I have recently framed.

"Cold Morning on the Colorado" 2013, watercolor $375

"Rock Curtain" 2012, watercolor $375

Untitled 2011, watercolor $200

Plein Air Moab day 1

It is cold here in Moab. I am usaully painting in shorts, a tee shirt, and sandals when I am here. Today I was working on a watercolor wearing a hoodie, knit cap and gloves! There is another weird complication that I can see affecting the entire event down here; the parks and campgrounds are closed because of the government shut down. I can't paint in Arches National Park, and I can't camp along the Colorado River. Since those have been the mainstay of my trips here in Moab, I am in new terrain.

 

Had my headphones on today listening to Les Miserables, my all time favorite book. It has been a long time since I last read it. I have to say I enjoy having George Guidall reading to me as a change. I heard these lines about work, written By Victor Hugo a Century ago, resonating in my mind today.

“He had stopped working, and nothing is more dangerous than stopping work. It means the habit goes, a habit that is easy to let go of, hard to get back…”

I have a parallel thought about momentum: In all we do energy is needed as a source of combustion to achieve forward momentum. When in motion energy needs to be expended to keep the wheels turning, with a constant application of earnest effort great feats can be achieved. 

A very good thing about Plein Air painting competitions is the artificial constraint of time that forces this application of effort, or at least creates a situation that necessitates moving out of your warm studio, and straining under sub-par situations. Struggle is good. Hard work is its own reward.

 

Plein Air Provo

This week has been really busy; I have two Plein Air competitions in this week, and I have been working on frames to supply them.

Plein Air Provo is running Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (paintings due Friday before 1pm), So I have been in Provo painting the cool old houses in the Maeser and Joaquin Neighborhoods.

Update 10/4/13- this painting was awarded 3rd place in the show!
Update #2 (later) it was also awarded People choice!

Spring City Plein Air

The Spring City Plein Air event happened the last week of August; I am just getting around to adding some picture from the event... My bad.

 

 You can't help but be inspired around this place, the combination of old houses, farm land, and mountains makes for magnificent scenes.. pictures and paintings rarely portray the full beauty; you have to be there sucking it up to really get it.

 This was my first painting, felt sorta choppy, but I like the variety of textures not only in the garden but the home that was an amalgamation of many eras.

 Holly Hock with Shadow, I might paint this sometime....

 

Using the back of the Maxima for my studio, it has been a good car studio with 230K miles on it...

When I wasn't painting I took the time to go explore and find photos to work from later. I like these trucks, so retro, I bet I could get this green truck up and running again...

The mountain range in the back ground always seems to be an Ultramarine or cobalt blue that subtly changes throughout the day and into the evening...

 

I asked some very nice folks if I could paint this rock wall from the inside, as I could not see very much from the road








In the end this painting did not need the big red barn in the middle...



 

Here are the 4 paintings I completed for the main competition. Saturday was a tad rainy but the 3 hour paint-out stayed 99% dry. I was painting this old granary that was next to Randal Lake's Studio, about 1/2 way through the painting, just as I was feeling nervous about my composition and time left, Randal came out to talk to me and inspect my painting. He's a nice guy, but it was a little intimidating painting while he watched. (I have always admired his work, but only met him that day)

Progress shot.....and then I forgot to take more progress shots.....

 

My new collectors that bought both this painting, and the garden house at the top of this post. I went to their house before I left Spring City and got more acquainted, great people.

good times

I'm back now from Moab. It was a crazy Saturday. I did not sell anything at the show, I somehow decided after all the paintings were in that I needed to paint more street scenes. I pumped out these 3 5x7s on main street.

This first one is the same view as the painting I did in the quick draw that won 2nd place, only the other side of the street...

...this one was looking north on main, I tried to keep it under 45 minutes..

...this one was right next to Miguel's Mexican restaurant. One of the owners came out while I was painting and commented on it. It turned out really nice. I had to use this picture taken by headlight in a parking lot. I asked a nice couple to give me a jump start, they had just been married that day in the Timpanogas Temple (here in American Fork) they were both from Utah county! I gave it to them as a wedding gift. 

Moab Plein Air 2012

Its Friday here in Moab, the Competition is over, we are waiting for the judges to award the ribbons. It is hailing at the present moment, I hope that my tent is still standing....

I got into moab Wednesday about 3 pm, I wanted to get a painting of Moab from the cliffs to the west of town. I thought I could hike the cliff trail I had painted form last week ( I came down to registar my surfaces and paint one day), but I was running out of time, energy, and water. I was close to the top but couldn't take any chances, so I stopped near the top. I painted looking toward where the Pot Ash road and Highway 191 meet up. I hiked down the mountain in the dark with a headlamp.

I spent the first night camped on the Colorado, right on the banks. A very relaxing night of sleep, and the best thing to wake up to in the morning, I could hear the fish jumping in the water.

I painted the Cliffs across the river, here is the start of a painting (the finished product is at the bottom of the page.)

In the Afternoon a "Quick Draw" was held, the rules were 3 hours, and we had to paint within a block of center and main street. I was parked in the street with my easel facing south (toward Eddie McStiff's). My wife and mom would say I am being to critical on myself here... but I didn't think the painting I did was the best ever. But I also don't usually paint cityscapes.

I got 2nd place in the quick draw! it comes with a couple of gift certificates too! I'll post a better picture when I get it back on Saturday.

I didn't have time to work on another painting last night, and I thought maybe I would get one done this morning, but the rain and thunder woke me up around 3 and I don't think I really ever went back to sleep. There was a nice waterfall at the top of Moon Flower Campground (that is where I am staying tonight too) and I was tempted to take a shower here... but I was rather cold already.

I entered the 9x12 cliff painting I did the other morning.. I called it "Moon Shadow" because the hills in the background look like a bum sticking up in the air... HA.

I have about 30 hours to paint and take pictures now.. I'll report on the results of the competition and sales, if there are any.

8 pm in progress...

I am back in Moab on the last leg of my Kickstarter project, boy it is hot down here! I took a few pictures as I was painting this last night, you can see the stages the painting goes through on its way to feeling complete. Sometimes I over work pieces... this one is about right, especially for  a study.

show is fast approaching...

here are a few shots around the studio right now, there is a lot of work ready to frame and hang, and many things in the process of getting done.

more from Moab....

My Camp is right off the water, I could probably jump in, I would have to crawl up the river bank to get out and get all muddy in the process. It makes a good base camp to paint in as well.

 

 I did this painting last night as the sun was going down, there was still light reflecting off the cliffs behind me, making the foreground warm and vibrant

I woke up at 5:30 this morning to paint this one. From my time here last year I knew I had to get up that early to beat the sun. as it was the sun lite up the cliff in the background as I was finishing.. it was tempting to add that light to the painting; maybe another painting...

It is interesting how flat the morning light is. very cool light. The contrast between these two painting really shows that.

1st Kickstarter trip to Moab

I left home today at 6 am. Its about 3 1/2 hours to Moab from my back door. First things first; campsite. Found one, paid for 3 nights in advance, and set up my tent. Next I drove up toward Fisher towers so I could get my feet wet... the water is really nice. If I wasn't in the middle of the picture you could see Fisher Tower in the distance... but this is the was the best shot I could get setting my camera on a rock in the water on self timer... so...

I set up my easel further down the river and painted this... I call it "Lazy Fish Shadows" because a big fish was feeding near where I set my easel, almost oblivious to me, he was rolling and making a lot of noise, but just moving real slow. Of course when I reached for my camera he recognized movement and shot away. I like the cliffs and the background..Not sure I love the water.

I turned my view down stream next to paint this big rock in the water. It stood out against the cliffs that were farther away... I left it unfinished, I might return to the site tomorrow to complete it, the wind picked up and changed the water from calm and reflective to choppy and light blue... just didn't seem to be working.

I will be adding updates the next few days as I complete paintings. There are only 2 days left on my Kickstarter project. It will fund... that's why I am here painting, I need to get a jump on the Work!