oil in the studio

Mum, 12 x 9, oil

A rainy day last week provided the perfect opportunity to have a friend join me at my studio to paint a still life. You can see Roxanne Clingman's beautiful painting here.

I only recently got back from a road trip to California. The travel time inspired my enthusiasm to practice more with oil paint and put to work the good instruction I have received from Thomas Kitts, Eric Jacobsen, and Elio Camacho.

Speaking of California, I completely enjoyed my time at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. I saw paintings by early California plein air and Impressionist painters, including work by William Wendt and Collin Campbell Cooper. Just around the block from the museum, at a small art gallery, I was thrilled to see work by Joseph Goldyne. Seeing good art makes me even more excited about making art myself.

Music to paint by on a rainy day: Erik Satie "Gymnopedie #1."

Wolf Kahn tells it all and product problems

cradled birch panels prepped for landscape or figure work

 I'm experimenting with painting surfaces for more work with acrylics and oils. Our local independent art store, Art Media, has sold out (!) to Dick Blick this month. In the meantime, they had some great deals of cradled birch panels. Inexpensive and beautifully crafted and a DEAL! I bought many. You can see them in the top photograph, prepped with gesso and layers of acrylic paint. What a joy to work on these! 

I also bought a number of boxes of cradled wood panels from Cheap Joe's when they were on sale. I prepped them with gesso without a problem. Then, when I slopped on some acrylic and water and worked to create a somewhat abstract ground, something happened. 

The gessoed surface took the water and lifted in wrinkles as you can see in the second photo. 

Now I don't know what to do. Should I sand it down and re-apply gesso and see if I can get it back to a flat surface? Go ahead and work over the top of the wrinkles?What would you do?

Wolf Kahn always makes me consider how I can become a better painter. In his lecture, "Six Good Reasons Not to Paint a Landscape," I am challenged by his call to not making "wall furniture" with my artwork. I hope that you feel likewise inspired when you listen to his words here!

"Art is any object that's created to elicit feelings. If doesn't do that, it doesn't really do its job." -- Wolf Kahn

Thanks to Elio Camacho for sharing this lecture on his Facebook page.

everything emptying into white

Lilies and Hydrangeas, 8 x 10, oil on canvas panel

Plugging away at my assignment from Elio Camacho. Number 20 above. 180 to go. As I prepare to apply each new stroke, I ask myself, "is this lighter or darker than what's next to it? cooler or warmer?" and I mix the color on my palette to match what I see. This is one of the more successful all white still life studies. But, more to come!

And, it seems that Cat Stevens was right, even Carly Simon thinks so. Everything's emptying into white!

white

He said it many times during the course of our workshop last month, so I decided to take Elio Camacho at his word.

"Find your weaknesses," he urged. "Start with all white objects in a still life and see if you can see and paint the changes in temperature, value, and still describe the shapes of your objects."

10 x 8, oil on canvas panel

I understand that I may be a while at this particular exercise. Say, 200 or more. I won't share all of them on the blog, but here is the first. All white still life. In oil. Per Elio Camacho. I painted it, photographed it, then wiped it away. This was fun to do and I can see that I have plenty to learn.

I am using one of the limited palettes Elio suggested. Yellow Ochre, Viridian, Alizarin Crimson, white, and black. I think that this is the "Zorn Palette."

Speaking of white makes me think of the Beatles' White Album! What is your favorite song? I have many favorites, here's one ...

last day of Elio Camacho workshop

 

11 x 14, oil on canvas board

Another wobbly step in the way I want to go. I leave Elio's workshop feeling encouraged and excited about painting more and painting better. Elio is a great teacher. He works to understand the level of each student, and then pushes them to the next step. 

I know I feel inspired. Inspired to paint. Inspired to be better. Inspired to do those exercises he suggested. And, with many helpful ideas and suggestions for handling the medium, I am inspired to put miles on my brushes.

From this workshop, I received much more than I expected. I expected Elio to be a wonderful painter himself. He is. I expected him to do demos and talk about his painting process. He did. I expected instruction on color mixing, brushwork, composition. He delivered on that expectation, too.

What I didn't expect is his genuine interest and concern about where I am in my painting journey. His gentle curiosity. And with his interest came accurate suggestions for moving ahead. And names of other artists whose work I might study to get me to move ahead.

I feel just a bit like a fledgling, pushed from the nest. By his words, actions, and presence, it is as if Elio has given me, personally, these parting words:

Find your weaknesses and work on them.

Paint every day.

Paint outdoors.

Find the form.

Paint the light.

Put down the right color in the right spot in the right way each time.

Don't make more work for yourself by having to correct mistakes.

Where is your "bride"? (center of interest)

Do the work.

That's exactly what I will do. Thank you, Elio Camacho. I hope to see you again.

day 4 -- hitting the wall

The previous three days of intense learning, time in the sunshine, hauling gear around, setting up, tearing down, painting, listening, stretching, driving to locations, ... it's compounding as the days pass and today I hit the wall. I painted two small paintings (one I scraped down). 

Today I tried to put into practice what Elio has been saying about directional strokes and rhythm of forms and within forms. Coupled with a more liberal application of paint and I feel like I succeeded in what I set out to do. These are baby steps, but what a delight to take these wobbly ones! No wonder I feel like a need a nap!

hump day at Cascade Locks

11 x 14, oil on board

looking into the glare to paint it -- a challenge!

Elio Camacho

How do you select a plein air painting subject? Today, I walked along the edge of the island at Cascade Locks Marine Park and was captivated by the glare on the water. I thought, "That will be hard to paint! Pick something else. It will strain your eyes. It will be hard to see colors. Pick something else." But, nothing else interested me like the glare, so I jumped in.

I'll get a better photograph of this painting another day, but you can see how I am really piling on the paint. I like the painting. And I liked my experience of painting it. Well, except for the part where the wind picked up my palette and all of the Quinacridone Red paint went into the grass. Oh, and the part where my trash bag blew up and into my palette and became very friendly with my Ultramarine Blue paint. But I enjoyed looking at the scene and mixing the paint and laying it down. All of that was fun.

The great thing about painting in the Columbia River Gorge is the fantastic Columbia River! Makes me think of this great song, done by many artists, but this is the fantastic Eva Cassidy. Take Me to the River!

workshop day 2 -- the stretch

It was just 1/4 mile walk from the parking lot to the Bridal Veil overlook. I am so glad I brought a collapsing cart in my full little trunk. I was able to load all of my supplies on the cart and then wheel it along the paved trail to the overlook. I have now used absolutely everything I brought with me on this trip (except for clean clothes!). 

I knew I wanted to paint the basalt columns across the river. In the top painting, you can see that I saw everything in shades of gray. Many things went wrong with this painting, but it set me up to discover what I wanted to focus on in my second painting. 

Standing on the Oregon side, looking across the Columbia River to Washington

My personal goals for this painting: to apply paint more liberally, to use more pure color, to use interesting brushwork. And, I accomplished all three!

 

A good workshop teacher gives you new ideas for your personal growth and development, as well as generously sharing how he/she "does it."  A great workshop teacher takes the time and interest to ascertain where each student is on his/her art journey, and then helps them figure out the next step and how to get there. 

Elio Camacho does all of that and more. What a wonderful experience! 

(I do feel a bit like the "Far Side" comic where the pin-headed student raises his hand and asks the teacher if he can be excused now because his brain is full.)

Elio Camacho workshop!

little car with a very full trunk ... I know I forgot something!

Elio Camacho painting at sunset

acrylic frame turned into my traveling palette

Over the last several years, I have heard so many good things about Elio Camacho and his workshops I just had to sign up! Lucky for me, I got in before he discontinued giving workshops. Wow. I feel very lucky to be here.

Here's my first painting today, from the Women's Forum lookout, facing east toward Beacon Rock in the scenic Columbia River Gorge. It's a fair painting, but I failed at seeing and putting in enough color in the water. Among other things. More tomorrow!