ROOF VENT, PART 2

 

After working on the painting for a further few days, I put it aside for a while then came back with a fresh eye to take another look at it. There were a few areas that I continued to darken such as the brick wall at the bottom. I think at this stage, I am almost finished. I'll leave it in the studio then pull it out in a week or so then see how I feel about it, perhaps I will do a little more -  one can never tell. If so I'll repost a updated photo. Size is 15 x 11 in ( 380 x 280 cm), acrylic on Grumbacher paper.

ROOF VENT, PART 1

 

With this work, I am getting closer to finishing a series of paintings that I started when we were in Baltimore. This one, like all the others, was seen along one of the streets on our almost daily walks around the inner harbour. Initially, this large vent caught my eye as a powerful motif standing against a lighter sky. When I looked closer, I was delighted to discover how it and the roof had weathered over the years. Apart from the subtle greens which was all that was left of the initial paint, there were many textures and streaks of rust which I knew I would enjoy recreating in a painting. Here I am about half way through the process but there is still a lot more to come....

EAGLE OWL AT DUSK

 

Yet another of my older paintings. In this one, I wanted to contrast the softness of the owl's feathers with the hard textures of the rocks. This is just how I saw it and while I didn't have a sketchbook handy, I retained the image and composition in my mind long enough to create a small study when I got back home. The painting grew from there.... Size is about 20 x 16 inches (510 x 410 cm), oil on canvas.

COMMON SNIPE

 

It has been very cold with quite a lot of snow lately and over in the nearby wetland area, I saw two Common Snipe. That sighting brought to memory a painting I did some time ago of a single bird in a snowy landscape much in the same way as I saw the recent snipe. This oil is about 15 x 30 inches (38 x 76cm).

ACROSS THE WATERS - STUDY

 

I painted this one in the field while looking across a typical Maine scene. The sky took on a wonderful feel as the sun slowly sank in the west but the focus here was the distant water and headland. This study spawned a few larger paintings of the area and one day, I would like to go back to do more. There is something about this state that speaks to me as an artist and I can fully understand why Andrew Wyeth did so many paintings there. This oil on canvas as about 7 x 12 in (18 x 30 cm).

TIGER PRINT

 

Some time ago I designed, carved and printed a white tiger woodblock print. This time I wanted to do something similar and the way I usually approach woodblock printing is to first draw out my idea and if that goes well, do a full-size watercolor study to see if it would work in color. This one seemed to come together okay so the next step will be carving the blocks. I estimate there will be 5 blocks for this one but maybe another one will have to be carved depending on how it looks at the end. Below are the series for this one from original drawing then on through the watercolor layers, just as I would create an actual print.

Interesting to note that the last two colors (grey and black) really brought this image to life! Size of the print will be 5 x 7 inches (13 x 18 cm).

WOODLAND AT DUSK

 

I was walking through the wood one evening when I saw this scene before me. The sky had taken on an amazing clarity (as is often the case in winter) and the lower sky merging into the horizon as the light diminished. The woodland floor quickly faded into dark but water from recent heavy rains reflected both the trees and the sky. I painted it almost exactly as I saw it - perhaps deleting some of the branches to allow more of the sky effect to come through but keeping much of the mystery that I saw and felt. This watercolor was painted on Arches paper, size 11 x 7.5 inches (28 x 19 cm).