MID-DAY MARSH

 

It was late fall when I walked through the marsh close to where we were staying. The grasses had already turned ochre-brown and it was a cold but warming day. Earlier I had sat for awhile sketching then drawing different views looking south before moving on and making studies of this scene. I watched as an approaching Bald Eagle got closer and closer until it flew right over me, through my binoculars I could see that it appeared to be blind in one eye but this didn't seem to bother it - at least not while in flight. It landed in some shallower water and began to bathe. Ducks and geese hastily taking flight as it neared them only to circle around and land back again a little further away.

Looking east, I decided to do a painting looking across a slightly larger expanse of water with small grassy tufts and islands in the distance. The clouds were slowly breaking up and thin patches of blue began to show through. There was an incredible feeling of peace and tranquility within me as I painted, listening to the sound of the wind sighing through the grasses as well as the bird calls nearby as I worked. This to me was how I truly wanted to spend my time, alone in nature doing what I love to do the most.

RECENT ILLUSTRATIONS

 

A few new illustrations done mostly in my sketchbook. These like many of the earlier ones are part of a long term project that is slowly drawing to a conclusion. Hopefully I will have more to report early next year.

I found this Loon feather washed up on the beach along with quite a few more. Not sure if these were part of their natural moult or if a bird had died. The black area had a slightly greenish-purple sheen - depending on the light.

During last winter, it had snowed overnight and when we walked down to the lake, most areas will still covered with a layer of snow. These Lord of Baltimore seed heads looked wonderful against the bluish-grey of the water. Done on Strathmore watercolor paper, the Black Vulture and Loon feather are about 5 x 8 inches each, the seed heads about 10 x 8 inches.

LOW TIDE

 

Walking across this beach was the culmination of another amazing morning spent in Costa Rica. We had set out from where we were staying an hour of so before walking slightly inland then turning and coming back towards the coast and following the tideline back towards our hotel. The walk was full of fascinating plants and birdlife, and I saw many species I hadn't seen before. Here at low tide, the beach was a contrast of bi-colored sand, rocks and verdant greenery all set out under a stunning blue sky - most of this I tried to capture in my painting. More and more, I seem to be creating a visual diary of my travels and this has been the inspiration behind my work. Size is 9 x 12 inches, oil on canvas board.

CLOUD SHADOWS - ALASKA

 

I stood for some time watching how the light and shadow played out over the side of this mountain in Alaska. At times, the cloud cleared till I could see the peaks more clearly but I liked this look when they were more shrouded and the further ones draped in shadow. The water was a deep glacier blue of the shade I have only seen in Alaska or Canada - probably from the icemelt. I am still drawing heavily from the inspiring period I spent there and hope I am able to capture some of it in my paintings. This small oil on canvas is 8 x 10 inches.

ALONG THE CHRISTINA

 

I painted this scene looking upriver from a viewpoint next to the Rowing Club. The boats are launched from a floating dock which you can see just in front of the building. On this early morning, sunlight illuminates the water and far bank but the foreground is shaded by a large trees that trail over the river. I noticed sunlight filtering through the trees in spots onto the grass and this was an effect that I wanted to included in my painting.

 

Shown above was my initial block-in using thinned oil paint after finalizing the layout and details. I don't always start a painting this way but because of the full range of tones from dark to light in this scene, it helped me better decide how to proceed. Size of this one is 8 x 10 inches, oil on board.

HEADLAND - SAGRES

 

Here at Sagres, Portugal, I was standing on the beach next to the fort which was above and behind me. I liked the way this headland stretched out into the bay but decided for this painting, to focus on the just the tip. A collapsed section had created this darker shadow which I found exciting against the sunlit areas of the almost sheer rock faces. On the extreme tip, two fisherman dropped long lines down into the sea and a few gull patrolled just offshore. Since this bay is secluded, the wave action was mild compared to the one on the other side of the fort which was very popular with surfers, even in winter. Size is 8 x 10, oil on board.

ALASKAN MOUNTAIN IV

 

While on board the ship, I managed to do a few paintings and studies during our trip to Alaska a few years ago, this painting came out of those studies. Mainly I was trying to capture some of the incredible beauty surrounding us and how small we felt next to some of the massive mountains we found along the way. In the painting, you may see some tiny trees which do give somewhat of a scale to the actual size of these ranges. As it was late in the season, there were only a few icebergs around but we often came across smaller clusters of ice floating near the shore. Soon, the winter snows and blizzards would come to this part of the world but for that day, we had perfect weather. A cool breeze but beautiful sunny skies - perfect for viewing vistas such as this. 8 x 10 inches, oil on board.