On Beaver Pond

 

I have lately focused on the waters of ponds and wetlands, the lush color in the landscape of the bog, winter fading, spring not yet glorious.  It is a time of anticipation.

Falls Series

 

Steelhead Falls Two

16x20 oil on board

I find myself enthralled with this part of the river, the rock bluffs and vegetation that is different from my own locale.  And especially the water - I need to return to this spot and jump in to fully engage with it.

Here are a couple progress shots:

Steelhead Falls, Deschutes River

 

Steelhead Falls, 16x20 oil on canvas

I'm relieved to discover that even when I don't paint much for long periods, when Life interferes and business makes demands, at least when I do pick up the brushes again I am sometimes able to execute my intention.  There is still a lot to learn, but sometimes a rough stab at things is good enough.

Going Larger

 

Bryant Wood Alley 24"x30" oil on canvas

Occasionally I will like a small painting enough to want to try a larger version of it, and I was pleased with the light/shadow effect of a recent sketch and decided to go large with it.  I can't say that I prefer one of the other: the scale and detail definitely make this one seem more like a "finished" painting, but there is also something in the energy and looseness of the original exploration that adds value to it that can't be translated when it is blown up.  A friend recently wondered if I used a graph or measuring device of some sort to transfer an image from one place to another, but in reality, I just start in with the paint, loosened with mineral spirits, and sketch in the darks first.  It's easy enough to wipe out errors and move things around at that stage.  Oddly, I can return to the exact scene that inspired me initially and I can never see it in the same way again; the emotions sparked by a scene are so dependent on the lighting, the weather, the time of day, and they constantly change.  Other areas in this park caught my attention this morning when I returned there, but this spot I couldn't even locate with exactitude.  It was a little bewildering.

The Painting Goes On

 

Bryant Woods Dogwalk

For those of you who might wonder where I have gone, or why I stopped posting (I tend to post a painting on Instagram, where my images are tossed into the pile with all the other paintings out there), here are some recent examples of smaller paintings I have done this year.  I paint now with less regularity, though I do find that when I pick up the brush I have more confidence than in the earlier years (thank god all that effort wasn't for nothing!) and I do tend to see small advances in certain aspects.  Edges and brushwork continue to be my weakness, but I focus more on value and color temperature, trying to get the "feeling" of the scene more quickly.  Sometimes it seems like that is enough to have the effect I intend.

West Fork Wallowa River

Steelhead Falls, Deschutes River

Along the Willamette

Luscher Fields

Listless Blogs

 

Goat Island Gold - 16x12 oil

When I first began this blog, its purpose was to push me to create paintings in order to have something to post, the carrot and the stick for my progress.  It served its purpose well over several years, but once I joined Instagram, the ease and immediacy of posting there overtook the clumsy needs of this blog, and therefore it has been idle for some time now.  If I  had anything pressing to say here, it might encourage me to visit more often, but my goal has been to work at learning the art of painting, not to talk about it.  So my apologies to any who might be hoping for more.  And my deepest thanks to those who have found my posts interesting enough to visit.

The Soft Willamette 16x20 oil

Bryant Woods Sketch 14x11

Dreams of the Landscape

Côtes de Bergerac

 

Côtes de Bergerac 11x14

After spending a month in the south of France with close friends, painting en plein air for a number of those days, I feel refreshed and relaxed and ready for the change of season that is upon us.  There is something about the countryside in that region (Lot-et-Garonne and Dordogne) that appeals to my spirit; I enjoy driving around absorbing the view endlessly.  The land has been cared for by a sensitive people over the centuries, and it shows in the land divisions, the artistry of the architecture, and a respect for natural beauty.  It's a far cry from the American rural landscape of broken down cars and abandoned appliances that blemish the view.

Throw in some good wine, excellent meals and shared laughter, and life is good on the other side of The Atlantic.  

The Shady Side of the Island

 

The Shady Side of the Island, 16x20 oil on canvas

In the blistering inferno that may regrettably be our new normal in the Pacific Northwest, I seek refuge in cooler ideas.  What can be more soothing in the heat than the deep shade of these towering trees on Goat Island?  

Early Summer

 It seems that climate change has gifted Oregon with an early summer, though I think most Oregonians are reveling in this sunny treat with a sense of foreboding, because the less it rains now, the more likely we will have another long summer of wildfires and smoke.  Still, who can resist the beauty of a fecund land exploding in lush splendor.

This below is a small painting done as a study for a possible larger piece.  It is the old boat ramp at Maddax Woods in West Linn, the rails defunct now, but a remnant of a time when larger boats were built at this site and launched into the channel this side of Goat Island.  (The channel was once called Clackamas Rapids for some reason, but there are no sign of rapids here now.)

A study of a small copse of birch trees off Rosemont Road.  The painting is somewhat bittersweet, not in and of itself, but because it exposed a failing in me that I had not recognized: I recently heard someone use the word copse pronouncing it like the TV show "Cops".  I had encountered the word often in reading, but never in spoken language, and in my mind had always pronounced it "copes".  I think there are a lot of words like that, ones we understand from reading but do not use when speaking, and I fear now that I am probably mispronouncing many of them to myself.  I know I am not alone; once I heard my wife use the word albeit, but she pronounced it as if it was German ("all-bite") and I didn't know what she was talking about.  When she spelled it out, I said "you mean 'all-be-it'?"  It isn't being wrong that bothers me, it's being wrong my entire life and not realizing it.  Like trying to paint or play golf, just another lesson in humility.

And then a couple of attempts that didn't make it:

Luscher Hills in Springtime

 

Luscher Hills 16x20

It has taken me years to realize that I can sometimes create the effect of what is real by using rough and careless brushwork instead of careful and tedious application of paint.  Some effects require specific techniques, like using glazes to achieve the look of stream beds, but sometimes just a crazy scrubbing with the paintbrush can do what deliberate effort cannot.