PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

 March 3, 2010

    March arrives in our neck of the woods with gusts of wind and snow on its breath. A good sign, me thinks, as it points toward more normal weather and some hope for spring.

    Practice makes perfect – that’s my mantra for this week. I have focused, re-focused, kept my focus, renewed my focus and acknowledged my new focus. Now it is time for Practice.

  I’m not moving as fast as hoped (interruptions from every direction), but I’m gonna share these paintings with you anyway.

  Perhaps you will recall my new theme of Large Montana Water, which I have already adjusted to Big Western Rivers and will probably change again as I get deeper in the process. Choosing the first scene is difficult. You know, when you begin some new journey you never know in advance what the outcome will be. You just begin somewhere and little by little you find the courage to get more adventurous, assert yourself and rise to the challenges presented and somewhere along the way you begin to understand the true meaning of your undertaking. Did you get that? Whew! Maybe I should re-state that in a couple of sentences. 

 Some of the excitement comes in the very beginning. You have a rudder, a sail, a direction to travel, the skills and equipment, the desire and focus, but you have no idea if you will succeed or fail or even what the adventure will bring. So you just start. I chose a scene I love dearly, one filled with memories stretched over many years. 

 

Good Morning 14 x 18 oil

I’ll probably work on this one some more. It gave me a gentle beginning as I thought about those chilly summer mornings with the night’s rain clouds slowly lifting in the fresh sunlight. The earth is refreshed and the pungent fragrance of wet grass and forest matter underfoot permeates the air. Lots of fish will take the bite today and around every corner ideas for new paintings abound.

    Now with one nearly done, I jump headfirst into the next. The reins are in my hands now and my confidence spurs the beast into action.

 

River Run 30 x 40 Oil #1

I’ve chosen a large canvas; a grand river scene, dramatic afternoon light, heavy summer foliage and rocks! 

 

River Run 30 x 40 Oil #2

I’ve advanced to here in two full days of painting and I am having so much fun. These big paintings are such a treat – one huge brush and lots of paint! 

     Paintings (especially large ones) create their own sort of energy. It is as though you are pulled into the scene as you paint. Literally, I could feel the air and sun, smell the river and grass and pine needles as I walked along the shore or in the water over rocks unaware that only my memory was at play – this was not reality. If a long interval occurs between painting sessions this intense, some of the magic disappears. And so, to return to work on this painting, now a week later, I must paint another similar scene, get involved once again in a new beginning and then in the heat of the moment, jump back into the original painting with the same fervor. Not easy – unless you can build in a large block of time. I didn’t have that opportunity last week and so I grabbed this painting which has been hanging out in my studio needing attention for about a year and completed my re-work in a couple of hours.

 

Short Stop at the Falls 16 x 20 Oil

I began this painting a year ago, hit a brick wall for some reason, and stacked it against the wall. I love this falls in the Tetons. Initially I used one photo which showed a large log jam in the river. More recently, I took photos of this falls without the log jam and decided the warm water color was a better compliment to the warm earth colors and removed any hint of a log jam!

Now to get back into the flow of the large painting, I have begun a small water scene – again with a subject of water, rocks, trees and scattered sunlight. This will be fun.

 

Welcome Wilderness Trail 12 x 12 Oil

    I can see my day ahead of me full of hours in the studio. It’s time to get back to the magic of painting. Thanks for heading out on this new journey with me. I wonder where it will take us.

 Don’t forget the

SECOND FRIDAY STUDIO WALK

March 12

4:00 pm to 9:00 pm

At my studio in Castle Pines Village, Colorado

Email or call for directions.

    Thanks again to my faithful readers for allowing me this dialog. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter. 

 Ciao!

 Ginger

 

iTS ALL ABOUT FOCUS

February 17, 2010

    I’m really on a theme these days – not only on my blog but in life too. I have concentrated completely on the word focus – initially to complete the English Collection, as I have come to call it, then on the esoteric subject of harnessing my creative (right) and analytical (left) brain into one cohesive entity, then on my future major goals as an artist and, finally, in focusing on my relationships and non-art related goals.  

 After a little more than a month, I have completed 16 paintings to form my English Collection, but I don’t want to bore you. Instead, today I will post only those finished or changed in some way since my last blog plus a few new ones too. You can review them all on my Wet Paint page by clicking here. The plan, affectionately called the Big P, is to put them into a collection and print them as a book, so if you want one, let me know very soon. Right now I have no idea what the price will be.

 

England # 6, Snow Predicted 11 x 14 Oil	England # 10, From the Top of the Ridge – Isle of Wight 12 x 16 Oil
England # 11, Headlights in the Fog  8 x 10 Oil	England # 12, Christmas Wishes 8 x 16 Oil
England #13, Afternoon Stroll 9 x 12 Oil	England #14, Life on the Farm 18 x 24 Oil
England #15, Stone Wall Sunset  11 x 14 Oil	England # 16, Cold But Sunny 9 x 12 Oil

 I did jump around in time a bit, and #13 and #14 will get need attention, but satisfaction is mine in the task! I’ve learned a lot – not only about painting, but also about myself. Now all this useful and revealing information must be put to use more or less immediately lest I forget! Next on my agenda (besides entering shows, looking for galleries to represent my work, having Open Studio Nights, writing blogs and e-newsletters and traveling quite a bit) will be to begin a new “Theme”. “Theme” sounds better than collection, though I will keep the “English Collection” name intact. 

    I long to paint water again – heavenly western water – water the giver of life - the water I know and love – and so, the new theme will be Large Montana Water. The name may change as I may find it hard to keep to the “large” or “Montana” focus. Check out my blog in about 2 weeks where I plan on posting the first of maybe 5-10 paintings.

    Thanks to those of you who attended my February Second Friday Studio Walk! I loved your comments and questions as I demonstrated and thank you for your interest and support. Oh, and by the way, the painting I demonstrated at the Studio Walk was England #16 – Cold but Sunny. Hard to believe this is near London – it looks more like our East coast to me!

 

Wade in the Water 18 x 24 Oil

   I am thrilled to share with you the news that one of my paintings was juried into the Salon International 2010 hosted by International Museum of Contemporary Masters of Fine Art and held at the Greenhouse Gallery in San Antonio, TX on April 9 and 10, 2010. Y’all come on down for the opening! 

    Have you noticed the conflict yet? This great honor has required me to cancel my April 9^th Second Friday Studio Walk.  I will be attending the Salon International instead! When my plein air schedule for spring and summer develops I’ll plan another Friday Studio Walk. It would be sweet to have one in the summer – perhaps even set up to paint in the garden. In the mean time, here is the latest invitation:

 SECOND FRIDAY STUDIO WALKS

March 12

4:00 pm to 9:00 pm

At my studio in Castle Pines Village, Colorado

Email or call for directions.

   Thanks again to my faithful readers for allowing me this dialog. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter. The next one will be published this week.

 Ciao!

 Ginger

 

THE RESULTS OF FOCUS

 February 3, 2010

Wade in the Water  18 x 24 Oil

Available through Salon International 2010

   First let me share with you my good news that one of my paintings was juried into Salon International 2010 to be held at the Greenhouse Gallery of Fine Art in San Antonio, TX in April. I am honored and very excited.

---

   The subject of focus continues. I have taken my own advice, finally, and am happy to report that concentrated, focused effort using both sides of my brain actually creates results. Tell me what you think….. Here are the first 4 (you saw in the last blog) and the next 8 paintings of England all done in about 3 weeks. If I had chosen to paint larger paintings it would have taken longer and you can gather that some of these are really just sketches. 

 

England # 1, New Forest 8 x 10 Oil	England # 2, Winter Solstice Sun 9 x 12 Oil
England # 3, Beach Huts 12 x 16 Oil	England # 4, Customs Buildings 9 x 12 Oil
England # 5, Clouds to the North 12 x 9 Oil	England # 6, Snow in the Forecast 11 x 14 Oil
England # 7, Tangled Boats; Low Tide 16 x 20 Oil	England # 8, Marsh on the Solent 9 x 12 Oil
England # 9, Cotswold Christmas 11 x 14 Oil	England # 10, From the Top of the Ridge – Isle of Wight 12 x 16 Oil
England # 11, Headlights in the Fog  8 x 10 Oil	England # 12, Christmas Wishes 8 x 16 Oil

 All of this took a lot of hours in the studio and I will probably re-work some of them and others are simply playful sketches.  A sharp critique will and has been ongoing and I know there is room for growth. Nevertheless, I have succeeded in the steps I set out to accomplish my goal.  Not only have I found that when focusing on one subject (England this time) I didn’t get bored, once I really got started, and I began to feel more in tune with my subject the longer I painted. Initially I got antsy and jumped to another painting, but almost immediately I felt the urge to complete the English painting goal and I never looked back. You probably won’t notice, but I did jump ahead in time in the sequence. In reality we visited the Isle of Wight before we headed to the Cotswolds for Christmas. Did that constitute a lack of focus or just a desire to allow some freedom in this quest? I really can’t always follow the rules, you know, but you probably already guessed that.

    I usually jump around from one geographic location to another and from a broad and grand view to a more intimate one. Will I continue to focus on a single subject for a collection of paintings? Will my dedication to one geographic location for a series of paintings bring me eventually to boredom? Will the results of this focused effort help me grow and learn and get better as an artist? 

  I know one thing for sure: it really is all about FOCUS. “The art of focus is elusive and difficult to maintain.” True.

    I’ve many more mistakes to make. Let’s hope they aren’t repeated mistakes! And I have many more steps to accomplish in order to reach my ultimate goal.  Life is a problem to be solved, a journey of understanding and growth; so enjoy every human moment of it. 

 Before I forget: YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS ARE INVITED TO MY:

SECOND FRIDAY STUDIO WALKS

February 12, March 12 and April 9

4:00 pm to 9:00 pm

At my studio in Castle Pines Village, Colorado

Email or call for directions.

    Thanks to you, my faithful readers for allowing me to carry on writing from the heart. Hang out on my web site for a while and return often as I always have new paintings to share. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter. The next one will be published in a couple of weeks.

 Ciao!

 Ginger

Focus for Results

 January, 19, 2010

    Here are the first four paintings of England……the last one, England # 4 is just a color layout and will take more work to complete. Just thought you would like to see these as I paint them.

England # 1, New Forest 8 x 10 Oil	England # 2, Winter Solstice Sun 9 x 12 Oil
England # 3, Beach Huts 12 x 16 Oil	England # 4, Customs Buildings 9 x 12 Oil

It’s all about FOCUS.

    Without focus in our lives we drift – maybe even to places we should not go. I think we all suffer this threat – I know artists are not the only ones – but the art of focusing is elusive and difficult to maintain (pun intended).  Companies, individuals, families, groups, countries, organizations succeed or fail if they loose track of their focus or maybe they just never had any focus, just scattered ideas without goals. My dialog about New Years Resolutions continues, but it’s not just about making lists. First you have to analyze yourself (or company etc) admitting where correction, growth or education must take place. Then and only then can you set appropriate goals which will need sets of steps with which to bring the goals into focus.

    Humans find difficulty being humble, dislike admitting faults and have trouble knowing what they should improve or change because they are in self denial. For artists, this self analysis can become debilitating. Every painting you do reveals your very soul, with all of its faults, aspirations, insecurities and hopes. When we share our work with others, we reveal our failings to the world. What other profession reveals so much of the individual? But to grow, we must reveal our weaknesses. Okay, so now you have revealed yourself and it becomes obvious (if you have the audacity to admit it) where you need improvement. Now you are ready for goal setting. You make a list of your goals, but without a focused set of steps to reach those goals, you will never accomplish what you set out to do. It’s all about FOCUS. Do you know where to focus for success?   Here follows my tale of loosing focus – a very recent and eye-opening event.

    Regularly, I flip-flop back and forth from feeling confident to uncomfortable about my painting skills and development. In the past, I jumped right in knowing that no matter how badly I painted today, progress came regularly and over the period of a year I grew considerably. Sometimes I even felt like a by-stander, anxious to see what growth would occur. Now it seems the steps are smaller and definitely harder to make. Or are they? Was I in a state of denial before and therefore took no responsibility for my own growth? This summer I awoke to a serious need for artistic improvement and instantly understood that, to do so, I would have to buck-up in the self analysis department. I could then see where my concentrated efforts should be placed. But this was all too vague to actually accomplish. I kept loosing sight and reverting back to previous approaches to painting. In the middle of all of this I took a workshop with Scott Christensen and suddenly I understood where to begin. You can read about my right brain/left brain awareness in past blogs and e-Newsletters. Now my course was set – no guarantees that my discovery would lead to improvement, but I now had real work to do – in other words a focused set of steps I needed to pass through to attain my intended goal. 

    Last week, as I knew I would, I got bored with painting scenes of England consecutively. So one late afternoon I grabbed this already laid out complex scene of a waterfall, rocks and green leaves…..Feeling confident from 3 quick paintings of England, I began to fully engage myself in the new painting. Soon, evening duties called and I left the studio.

 

On the Easel Breck Falls 20 x 24 Oil

   Many days later with household chores competing for studio time, my right brain dreaming about an exciting up-coming trip, and my left brain planning re-organization of my entire life, I returned to the studio and continued to work on this painting. I painted by rote – right brain not fully engaged and the left brain completely somewhere else. I had lost focus, forgotten my goals and my need for right/left brain communications. The result was awful.  I learned a valuable lesson. Studio time takes total concentration if I want to succeed. Without focus you will find failure regardless of your list or set of goals. You probably already guessed correctly about my failure, why didn’t I acknowledge that and spend time refocusing first? 

 

On the Easel Breck Falls 20 x 24 Oil

Okay so it isn’t as bad as you thought it would be. But look carefully. The distant leaf forms and rocks are suggested only, appropriately colored for distant objects and understood – these I painted the first day while in focus and control. But the middle ground is too tight, too complex, too cool in hue and generally lacking in understandable placement and purpose. I have the answers, thank heavens, so watch for progress once my two brains return to communication.

    I am human, I make mistakes, I fail and I forgive myself. But, if I can keep myself focused, I will eventually light the fire. 

    Thanks to you, my faithful readers for allowing me to carry on writing from the heart. Hang out on my web site for a while and return often as I always have new paintings to share. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

    Thanks for your strong support and interest. Without you, I would loose sight of my goals and my focus would fade away.

 Cheers!

 Ginger

 

new year’s resolutions 2010

 January 4, 2010

    We arrived home safely from our journey to the UK just before New Year’s Eve and on January 1, 2010 I opened my studio door and stepped in to re-introduce myself to this delightful space. I’ve a head full of ideas for paintings; thoughts on new direction and growth begin to set up in my mind and I am anxious to get to work. But first, I needed to write down my ‘resolutions’ to help bring my ideas into focus.

   Last year I dutifully wrote my resolutions, kept them at the forefront of my thoughts for a few months, moved them around my studio and home trying to find the optimal location for them to remind me daily and finally they landed in my “to do” pile all but forgotten. As I began to write my resolutions for 2010, I found them sounding rather familiar. I located last year’s list and, with satisfaction and relief, re-hung the old list now the worse for wear from abuse.  Recycled Resolutions! Hummm…..Does that constitute going GREEN?  Never-the-less, my search for renewal and growth remains intact and un-tarnished.

 

2009/2010 New Year’s Resolutions!

  The United Kingdom! We were exceedingly lucky. Though very cold and damp, the Southwest Coast was mostly sunny while London and the rest of the country succumbed to seriously cold temperatures and SNOW. Roads were closed, stranded vehicles clogged major motorways, non-functioning trains held passengers captive in the tunnel to France and most of the country ground to a halt. We, on the other hand, walked in the New Forest and along the pebble beaches, took the ferry to the Isle of Wight for a delightful day of hiking, found numerous warm and welcoming pubs and celebrated in typical English fashion! The second week or our trip involved driving into the Cotswolds from the South – a journey of about 90 miles – which took 4 hours or more and the remainder of our stay included the occasional snow shower, icy roads and frost on our breath.

 

On the coast near Lymington, England – 12/17/2009

We walked along the beaches, around the harbors, over bluffs, into small villages and to the pubs. Each day presented scenes such as this, with a John Constable sky and many shades of green. 

 

 

John Constable 1776 – 1837 English Harwick Lighthouse

John Constable’s paintings of England with building cloud forms have always amused me. Many times I have witnessed these clouds myself and I find them fascinating.   I’ll have to work hard to compete with his representation!

 

 

Driving north into the Midlands of England – 12/22/2009

If you are from my home in Colorado, this just doesn’t look like a lot of snow – why such public disruption? But remember: few folks own 4 wheel drive cars, no snow plows clear the roads, temperatures hover at freezing for days creating icy fog AND the sun doesn’t rise until 8 am sets about 3:30 pm and usually hides low in the sky behind clouds – now you begin to get the picture.

   I take hundreds of photos on our once or twice a year travels to Europe, but find paintings of these delightful scenes difficult to sell. Consequentially, you’ll find few European scenes in my portfolio. This time though, while the images are fresh in my mind, I plan on swiftly painting a chronological series of small paintings from our trip. I’ll continue to work on other paintings too, but if you follow along on this blog, you will see England in perhaps as many as 20 paintings. Enjoy and give me you comments please. 

   I’ll keep this blog short – I’m very anxious to return to the studio so spending any more time at the computer would be wasteful. Thanks for understanding my haste and my absence.

    Thanks to you, my blog visitors, for traveling with me as I banter away. Hang out on my web site for a while and return often as I always have new paintings to share. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

    Thanks for your strong support and interest. Without you, I would loose sight of my goals and failure would greet me around every corner.

 Cheerio!

 Ginger

 

BEST wishes for a prosperous 2010!

 December 4, 2009

 

Winter Arrives Early 12 x 16 Oil 

  Lately, I have been thinking a lot about time and the lack thereof. The end of the year always catches me off guard. About the middle of August, I awaken to thoughts about how this fast track I have put myself on will once again limit my enjoyment of these last beautiful months of the year. I love fall….I look forward to the upcoming holidays beginning with Thanksgiving. The first snowfall blows me away with its beauty and I actually enjoy the shorter days which bring us humbly together by the fire. But every year, fully understanding the toll the duties, traditions, pressures and expectations of the season will take on me, I dive head first into the fray. Days fly by, I promise never to do it this way again, deadlines and desires slip away and suddenly, the New Year arrives. Instead of relaxing with warm hearted memories of the season, I only feel exhausted and relieved. 

 If I chew over this bit of holiday angst I go through each year, I just might find disgust at my inability to stop my participation in the chaos and commercialism….and maybe, just maybe I will find winds of change in this part of my life too. Maybe next year I will just paint all day, sit by the fire and read in the evening, plan simple meals with friends, give more to my favorite charities and fewer presents to my family, make a toast to all my collectors, followers, friends and neighbors, fellow artists and suppliers – WITH THANKS FOR A GOOD YEAR AND HOPE FOR THE NEXT.

 

Wade in the Water 18 x 24 Oil

 Of course, artists aren’t the only ones feeling this way, but I think the artists’ life presents some different dynamics. In case you were wondering, artists simply love to paint – to create on some surface the visions that spring from their very souls. True, we can’t always be painting – sometimes we have other obligations – after all we are all in “business” and that calls for accounting, marketing, purchasing, studying, communicating, traveling etc. And of course, there are always the dishes or grocery shopping to do – you know the drill. As we frequently work from home, we are usually expected to take responsibility for all home related activities from cleaning to calling the plumber. Okay, I’m a woman and automatically take charge of lots of home ‘things’ and John always helps when asked, but still, when I worked away from home, we seemed to share most home responsibilities and I found time to include painting as relaxation each week.  I also know plenty of male artists, who work from home (or from the studio out back) and get caught in ‘honey-do lists’ just because they are available – sort of.

  I’m really not complaining, just ruminating about the facts of artist’s life. This year of change for me continues and my head swims with new thoughts about painting, creating, enjoying, sharing and living. I hope you are as excited as I am about the New Year and what expected and unexpected changes and challenges it will bring to all of us on earth.

 

Mid-Summer Water 14 x 18 Oil

 "Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus." (Alexander Graham Bell)

   We are about to depart for two weeks of holiday festivities in England! I won’t be blogging from there for sure, so expect the next one to be posted in 2010! Can you believe we are already a decade into the 21^st century?

   Thanks to you, my blog visitors, for traveling with me as I banter away. Hang out on my web site for a while and return often as I always have new paintings to share. Please sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

    Thanks for your strong support and interest. Without you, I would loose sight of my goals and failure would greet me around every corner.

 Cheerio!

 Ginger

 

LAST PLEIN AIR ADVENTURE FOR 2009

 October 30, 2009

Elk Afternoon 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air

SOLD

 Thanks to all of you who joined John and me at our Annual Studio Open House. A boisterous crowd gathered to share some nice wine and food with us. I painted a while in demonstration in the studio – always fun and always draws an interested group. THANK YOU – THANK YOU to all of you who made purchases that evening! Your support and continued interest keep me contentedly painting in the studio. Remember, if you would like a personal tour of the studio and paintings, call me for an appointment – I’m usually in the studio and available most days.

 

Lair of the Bear 6 x 8 Oil Plein Air

   Over the last few months, I have been in a funk – well, you would know that if you read my previous blogs. And then I participated in a workshop with Scott Christensen! OMG! I feel reinvented, rejuvenated and ready for a long winter in the studio. And so it seems I shall have that long winter. Snow began falling on Wednesday and ended on Friday morning leaving a sculpted blanket of 22 inches of snow disguising the contours of the land, drifting over bushes and trees and muffling all sounds. Now the morning sun sparkles on the tops of distant hillsides and ponderosa pines reminding me of many snowy winter mornings from my childhood.

 

Morning Light at Home photo 10/30/09

    My studio, being the warmest room in the house in winter, beacons.  My head swims with profound messages from the workshop. I can hear Scott’s drilling words about thinking while painting – where “that lovin’ feeling” while painting just may be a bad place to be – how we need to harmonize the painting as a thought process before we even begin - and that we must simplify and reduce the painted information in order to allow the viewer some involvement and on and on ad nauseam! . 

    The last couple of days have been spent looking through my thousands of photos, reading from various books on art, painting, rubbing out, trying again, being frustrated, succeeding occasionally and wondering if I can keep all this information front and center until it becomes habitual! It’s not that I didn’t already know all of this, but the workshop presented a force directing my focus. I needed that impetus and shift in direction. Now I wonder if I am woman enough to make it work!

 

On the Easel Evergreen Lake 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air

I would love to get back to this plein air painting from the workshop to complete it, though perhaps I should just save the information and move the idea into a larger painting. I captured important information here and continuing may mean loosing some of that good information. Hummmm…….

 

On the Easel Lake #1 6 x 8 Oil Plein Air

 

On the Easel Mount Evans 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air

and

On the Easel Mount Evans #2 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air

One afternoon we stopped to paint in this lovely pasture with a view of Mount Evans (one of Colorado’s 14ers.) Oh, the light was changing fast as clouds raced overhead and then by late afternoon, with the sun now low in the sky, the colors in the meadow became alarmingly vivid. The mountains shifted into the lavender/blue spectrum as the wind blew in a cold air front . The next day we were treated to a few inches of snow! Thanks heavens we met inside for composition challenges, demonstrations and critique. And so my reputation as a fair weather painter remains intact. That was close!

   Of course, I have many more plein air paintings from the workshop, but boring you is not my intention. And so the last plein air painting session for 2009 ends. Awesome! Thanks Scott Christensen for your insight, critique and humor. (I am having trouble linking to Scott’s website through this blog, but you can get there at www.christensenstudio.com.) You will be amazed by the wonderful selection of paintings – and while you are on there, purchase his book and a couple of videos too.

    Thanks to you, my blog visitors, for traveling with me on these adventures. Do hang out on my web site for a while and return often as there should be new paintings popping up shortly. Wish me luck….and don’t forget to sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

    Thanks for your strong support and interest. Without you, I would loose sight of my goals and failure would greet me around every corner.

 Cheers!

  Ginger

 P.S. My special thanks to Barbara and Phil, owners of Evergreen Fine Art, for hosting the Scott Christensen workshop for members of American Impressionist Society of which I am a member. Evergreen Fine Art provided a comfortable and creative atmosphere for the workshop and even hosted a small gathering in their wonderful gallery as farewell. Check them out on line at www.evergreenfineart.com and visit their beautiful space and enjoy wonderful work by the highly regarded artists they represent. My best to you both!

 THE MUSES THAT CONSUME ME

 October 9, 2009

Elk Afternoon 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air Colorado

   In case you were wondering why I have been so silent for a month, let me bring you up to date. Two weeks in Montana, two big shows in Colorado, lots of late summer plein air painting, and some additional marketing has kept me away from the computer….and then I damaged my camera. It was all my fault. I fell amongst some sharp rocks while hiking in Montana, but, let me tell you, I felt totally helpless without a camera. New work couldn’t be photographed, submissions couldn’t be made, photos to use as reference for paintings were marginal at best and with these economic hard times hitting me straight in the face, finding cash for a new camera was difficult. But, with the help of the internet (thank heavens I didn’t fall on my computer) I found a reasonably priced camera quite similar to the old one. The learning curve was marginal and I was up and running in a matter of hours, not days. 

Summer Bridge 8 x 10 Oil Plein Air Montana

   Over a month ago I was lamenting about getting back into studio painting and feeling winds of change in my creative right brain. The month passed with the speed of light and I find myself in the same position today. If you think about the speed of light and the theory of relativity you will understand this phenomenon. Nothing seems changed in time or space to me, but by gosh, the world has moved on a whole month! So I must tackle the demons once again.

 

Movin’ Cattle 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air Colorado

   I think artists go through this all the time – over commitment creates a hurried life style not appropriate for creative growth. Artists need meditation, concentration and contemplation. Through this mental focusing, we recognize and meet the challenges of our own creative truth. 

Sweet Spot 8 x 16 Oil Plein Air Colorado

 

Ranch Creek 12 x 9 Oil Plein Air Montana

   With snow falling outside (yes, here in the Denver area in early October!), I begin to feel the womb of winter encircling me. Winter is always a contradiction – I don’t really like the cold, short days, but, with the garden put to rest and my longing just to wander out for some plein air painting over, I find my studio warm and welcoming. Winter months bring large blocks of time in the studio, accelerated growth, many enlightened studio moments and a plethora of paintings! So with winter approaching early this year, perhaps I will be able to slay the demons and find myself contented with my work before winter really settles in.

   I left you’re here with the Iris and Dunes painting:

 On the Easel Iris and Dunes D 20 x 30 Oil

 

Iris and Dunes 20 x 30 Oil

Today, Iris and Dunes looks like this. Can’t really say it’s finished, but with a few “hits” here and there, it will be as done as it’s gonna get. 

   I left you a month ago with this painting – incomplete and awkward. 

On the Easel Grassy Pond 16 x 20 C Oil

   Today, though still incomplete, it’s not giving me headaches anymore.

 

Estuary End 16 x 20 Oil

   Many more paintings are taking shape in my mind, the snow falls heavily outside while I sit here warmed by the fireplace writing of the muses consuming my attention. Thanks for spending this time with me and allowing me to unload my thoughts through writing this blog. You are important to me, though I don’t even know your names. Please feel free to comment or add insight. Let me know about you and your ideas too.

   Our Annual Studio Open House is next weekend, Friday, October 16, 2009 from 4:30 to 10 p.m. and you are all invited. Email me for directions, please, as Google and MapQuest have it all wrong!

   Wish me good painting on one more fling of plein air painting in Colorado when I join the American Impressionist Society for a workshop with Scott Christensen! Should be challenging and just what the doctor ordered for me. Check Scott out here I know you will be impressed..

   Don’t forget to sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

   Thanks for your support and interest. Remember, you can make comments, ask questions and even suggest topics for me to discuss in future blogs. Don’t forget to tell your friends who might be interested in my blog and web site. 

Ciao!

Ginger

Artists’ angst

September 1, 2009

    With fall approaching rapidly, I feel a symbiosis with the wildlife in our garden seeking shelter and sustenance for winter. I feel the metamorphosis in my bones. I am moody, uncomfortable in my skin, filled with uncertainty and lack of confidence. The last four months of the year fly by ever so fast and I am caught up in the accelerated tempo, knowing that many tasks will be left undone including the attention to my craft; all left in the dust of that pace. Yet, what stirs inside me demands that I paint – forces me to grow, learn, practice and eventually make that great leap of increased skill. If I don’t respond to the stirrings inside me, this time for growth may never come my way again.

    I don’t suppose only artists have these transcendental moments. But I have experienced many. Each take me forward into new territory with increased knowledge, observation, understanding and skill. They are profound and enlightening. The transition is difficult and debilitating momentarily, but the results are well worth the effort of the journey. 

    These two paintings were fun to paint, comfortable to execute and reveal the level of skill and learning I have accomplished over the years. I like them, enjoy them hanging in my studio and hope you like them too.

Echo Reflection 20 x 20 Oil

Clear, nearly freezing water rushes down one of Colorado’s Fourteeners (Mount Evans) forming this high mountain lake filled with some marvelous fish. Cold water creates very dark, shimmering reflections while at your feet the underneath rocks appear only slightly darker and cooler in color than those on the shore. 

 

Old Red Hot 8 x 16 Oil

How many times can I paint these ranch scenes? I never tire of them. Memories of places such as this reside in the root of my being. Perhaps, you too have fond memories of this disappearing way of life. Our ranch truck was an old (maybe a 1957?) Chevy pick-up that could climb over anything while in low gear. She was temperamental but solid and we called her Red Hot. You’ll find her in the barnyard.

    At some point after beginning these last two paintings, I laid out the next three. I was on a roll and feeling very confident, but within that confidence were some stirrings of discontent. I began to paint this Iris and Dune painting, hoping that by some miracle new understanding and skill would appear as I painted. Never happens like that, I knew, but “just maybe once?”, I thought.

 

On the Easel Iris and Dunes  20 x 30 Oil Layout

 

On the Easel Iris and Dunes B 20 x 30 Oil Color Values

 

 

On the Easel Iris and Dunes C 20 x 30 Oil

Here I came to a stop, placed the canvas against the wall where I could see it every day and began to fret. Seemed to me as if I had gone backward not forward….I thought this painting would flow together from my unconscious mind – maybe not effortlessly, but with some cool moments of Aha! It didn’t happen and now my angst becomes real.

To relax a bit, I took some art instruction books from the shelf to read, watched some videos I have from well known artists (Richard Schmid, Scott Christensen, Kevin MacPherson, Tim Deibler, for example). My head began to swim with ideas, new directions, exciting thoughts and a huge desire to “get painting again”. So I took this canvas below, already at the stage of color value wash, and began to experiment with my new thoughts on large shapes in the composition, the value of certain planes, color temperatures, shadow vs. light and atmospheric perspective. All subjects I have worked on with every painting, but now with some adjusted new vision – I thought.

 

On the Easel Grassy Pond 16 x 20 Oil

 

On the Easel Grassy Pond 16 x 20 C Oil

I don’t even have photos to show where I have been with this painting! But today, it looks like this, believe it or not! After hours of painting and re-painting, I haven’t even started thinking about the water! So now it rests against the wall where I can see it every day and fret!

   So I returned to the Iris and Dunes painting:

 

On the Easel Iris and Dunes D 20 x 30 Oil

I’ve a long way to go with this painting and I confess that I just may never get there at all. As usual with these transitions, there are parts of the painting I like and others I will rework again and again until I do get it right or just give it up. Sometimes, just learning from the mistakes then letting the painting “go” become the catharsis one needs to start anew. 

And I still have this one left untouched on the easel:

 

On the Easel Breck Falls 20 x 24 Oil

This composition is a complicated scene of rocks with water cascading over some and others forming a narrow canyon with trees here and there. I have laid out the initial darks and will next do a color value wash before I begin the finished painting. Hummm….will I really paint it that way or will I begin to feel comfortable in some new skin and skill level and approach this painting in a different frame of mind? Stay tuned.

   Thank you, for your patience in allowing me to bare my artistic soul, consuming your precious time with my artist’s angst. Admitting to all my failings, uncertainty and lack of confidence and then writing it all down for everyone to read has been difficult but cathartic too, thanks. There is no perfection in this world and I am but a brief traveler here pursuing a simple dream. 

   I am off for a couple of weeks of R and R in western Montana – where I will plein air paint, hug my son, enjoy the company of my sister and her husband and watch my husband unwind and relax after hours of fly fishing. We travel up through Wyoming and Idaho and return through central Montana including a visit with our ranch family. Need I say more?

   Sorry, but there simply will not be a blog until late September. It could be filled with news and maybe even some great new paintings. Until then……..

   Don’t forget to sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

    Thanks for your support and interest. Remember, you can make comments, ask questions and even suggest topics for me to discuss in future blogs. Don’t forget to tell your friends who might be interested in my blog and web site. 

Ciao!

 Ginger

Mountain plein air painting

August 3, 2009

    Painting outside on location with the summer sun hard on my shoulders, a gentle breeze stirring the air and a peaceful view in front of me transports me into pure heaven right here on earth. Add to that other contented artists doing the same thing at the same time and I feel blessed. But this last plein air adventure brought wonderful enlightenment each day too 

 I had been invited to participate in the Painting the Landscape/Preserving the Land plein air paint-out in Frisco, Colorado hosted by the Continental Divide Land Trust. Day one I chose to paint along the Dillon Reservoir at Giberson Bay – a nice little spot with views across the lake to towering mountains. I set up rapidly and painted this one:

 

Along the Bay 9 x 12 Oil Plein Air

   By now I am really in the swing and instead of moving to another location, I swung around 90 degrees and, holding an 8 x 10 panel in my hand, I began to paint another. Suddenly out of nowhere there arrived a bus load of primary school kids out for a summer adventure. “What are you doing?” they asked. “Are you an artist?” “How do you do that?” Their wonderful inquisitive up-turned faces absolutely captivated me. These were Denver inner city school children; a wonderful mix of ethnicity and I am sure of economic circumstance too. The old teacher in me surfaced immediately and I engaged them in conversation about art, school and themselves. I demonstrated some, found quite a few wanna-be artists in the bunch and was rewarded with very real respect and a gracious attitude. When I announced that I needed to pack up to leave many joined in to help haul all my paraphernalia back to the car. I was overcome with memories of my years as a middle school teacher. If you let them know you are really interested in them, trust them and show respect, they, in turn, will treat you the same. Isn’t that really the Golden Rule in action? 

 

Away from the City 8 x 10 oil plein air

Please note that I have titled this painting in honor of those delightful school children. May they thrive and achieve all their desired hopes. I have dedicated this painting to the Denver Inner City School System. 

 But that’s not all……

 The next day I hurried off to the beaver ponds at the estuary end of the lake. Great location and I quickly started this one. Suddenly, the light became flat and I lost the early morning feel in the painting, so I will rework the ponds in the studio. I really like the colors in the mountains as the sun began to fill the far valley with light.

 

On the Easel Beaver Ponds 9 x 12 oil plein air

 Then, what to my wondering eyes should appear but….an old friend dropped by to watch me paint; all the while he blew-me-away with his desire to share and chew the fat. This old friend is my ex-husband, with whom I shared my Montana adventures in the early 1970’s. Our time together while I painted presented me with more emotion and joy than I can easily share. We talked about our kids, our grandkids, parents still alive and our spouses. We are both happily married now and know and enjoy each other’s spouse; we see each other for family affairs and enjoy those times, but to spend an entire afternoon together is a first and was absolutely delightful in every way. He helped get my things back in the car, went to the gallery to help me unload then treated me to a glass of wine. And he told me he always knew I was a good artist, always knew I had it in me! Holly Cow! THANKS, JIM!

 

On the Easel Willow Preserve Pond 9 x 12 Oil plein air

I’ve a lot to repair/repaint with this one – concentration while my ex watched and talked was difficult at best. And if you remember I paint in my right brain – communicate and socialize in my left. Guess which one was engaged that afternoon?

I’m keeping this one short – sort of – as I regroup in the studio to get some good work done for up-coming shows. Next blog just may be about the choices and differences between small and large paintings. 

 Don’t forget to sign up for my Email Newsletter which comes out monthly, or so. 

 Thanks for your support and interest. Remember, you can make comments, ask questions and even suggest topics for me to discuss in future blogs. Don’t forget to tell your friends who might be interested in my blog and web site. 

 Ciao!

 Ginger