Plein Air Paintings

Over the past several years, I have enjoyed plein air painting with several artist friends, and we have organized ourselves into a group named PleinAirSouth.  We have painted many locales in the Mobile Bay area, including but not limited to the Mobile Causeway area, Dog River area, Mobile Botanical Gardens, Bayou La Batre, Dauphin Island, and downtown Mobile.  Our group has also traveled to Apalachicola, Florida for the Forgotten Coast Plein Air Paint Out for the past three years.  This past August, we were able to show some of our work at the Mobile Arts Council.  Below are some photos showing my artwork in the PleinAirSouth exhibit last August, some of my other recent plein air paintings, and a few photos of myself enjoying painting outside.

My artwork included in the August 2015 PleinAirSouth exhibit at Mobile
Arts Council.  These include a close-up of lotuses at the Japanese Gardens;
a shrimp boat at the Beachcomber Marina on Dog River; Merlin's Barn at
Deer Park farm near Citronelle; and an old cottage along Dog River.        

"Grassy Meadow in the Pines" - painted in the Long Leaf Pine
Preserve at Mobile Botanical Gardens, during the Long Leaf
Conference in October 2014.                                                   



Painting in the Long Leaf Pine Preserve at Mobile Botanical Gardens.              



Shrimp Boats in Scipio Creek Marina, Apalachicola, Florida.                          
                     

Windy Day on St. Joe Bay, Port St. Joe, Florida; during the Forgotten Coast
Plein Air Paint Out.                                                                                        
 

Painting Old Cottage on Dog River.                                  
 

Painting Merlin's Barn at the farm near Deer Park, Alabama.                       

Painting boats at Beachcomber Marina on Dog River.       

Fort Gaines on east end of Dauphin Island.                                                    

Painting the Fort on the east end of Dauphin Island.         

Divine Managerie Exhibition - Reception on Friday, December 11, 2015

I thought I would post a few photos from the opening reception for my first solo exhibition:  Divine Managerie.  The reception was held during the December LoDa ArtWalk.  There were lots of Christmas Elves wandering through, as well as many of my dear friends and art lovers from the Mobile community.

Me with some of my Bovines and a couple of Equines.

My friend Kathy with her grand-daughter, Lizzie - a young art appreciator.

Me with my friend, Suzie Rouillier.  This portrait of the Baldwin County
Brahmans is based on a beautiful photograph Suzie shared with me.       

My artist friends Conroy and Kathy.

 

Me and my friend Connie.

Gail and me.

Satomi was so sweet to come see the show and brought me a rose!

Jeff contemplating the Brahmans.

 

I enjoyed discussing my art with these enthusiastic art students f rom the
University of South Alabama.  Future artists to look out for!                   

 

 

Roxann, Gail and Bill, and me.

Divine Menagerie: Bovines, Ovines, Equines and More . . .

Divine, adj. 1: of or relating to or proceeding directly from God or a god; 2: supremely good, superb.

Menagerie, n. 1: a place where animals (household or farm) are kept and trained, esp. for exhibition; 2: a varied mixture.

For the past ten years I have been working on a series of cow paintings, or shall I say paintings of the cow (Bovines).  Recently I have expanded my work to include other pastoral or domestic animals such as goats and sheep (Ovines), and burros (Equines), as well as a few family pets.  My paintings of these “divine” creatures are treated as portraits, rather than animal paintings.  As such, I attempt to capture the personality of my subject, and also hopefully establish a connection between the subject and the viewer. 

I am having my first solo exhibit during the month of December.  The opening reception is Friday, December 11, at the Mobile Arts Council during the LoDa ArtWalk.  This show includes artwork I completed over the past 10 years.  Many of the pieces in the exhibit have been previously posted on this blog, which was interrupted over three years ago by the extended illness and death of my mother, and the subsequent family responsibilities I inherited. Although I have continued to post highlights of my artistic experience on my Facebook page, I think it is time to return to my ArtSpace on this blog.  I thought I would take this opportunity to post some of the "newer" artwork in my show that has not previously appeared in this space.  And I hope that some of you will be able to see the work in person during the month of December.

Misty's Eyes, Watercolor on Paper, 7 in. x 10 in, 2013.



Audubon Petting Zoo Sheep, Acrylic on

Matboard, 3.5 in x 2.5 in, 2014.



Blount County Goats, Watercolor on Yupo, 16 in. x 20 in.,

2013.

 

Nellie and the Turkish Rug, Watercolor on Yupo,

18 in. x 24 in., 2015.

Baldwin County Spotted Ass and Burro, Don Quixote and

Sancho, Acrylic on Canvas, 36 in. x 48 in., 2015.

Suzie's Baldwin County Brahmans, Oil on Canvas,

36 in. x 36 in.,  2015.

Mary's Little Lamb, Acrylic on Canvas, 24 in. x 30 in., 2015.

Last month was June? And now it's July!

Well, time does fly nowadays!  Last month was June and we had our Watercolor & Graphic Arts Members' Exhibition at the Mobile Arts Council. this show hung until June 30th. I had entered two paintings - a simple little watercolor of one of the wagons full of produce at the Cathedral Square Saturday Market Day; and a small watercolor monoprint I did integrating one of my figure drawings.  Here is a photo of my monoprint.  This is called "The Bamboo Garden". 

I've been enjoying doing the watercolor monoprints and experimenting with this medium.  I've now ordered some lithographic supplies and hope to experiment with this other traditional printmaking medium in the next few weeks.

. . . And on the 30th of June we took down the WGAS show and took in artwork for the "Dog Days of Summer" exhibit, also at the Mobile Arts Council.  This show will hang for the month of July. The show is curated by my friend Kathy Friedline, and the artists will also make up notecards of their dog artwork to sell as a fundraiser for the Alexander's Place rescue organization for Great Danes and other large dogs.  The opening reception will be during the LoDa artwalk on July 13th.  Here is my dog painting:  "Morgan's Sad Hound-Dog Eyes", acrylic on paper, approximately 10 in. x 10 in.  This is a portrait of my college room-mate Kathy's "grand-dog" - her son Aaron's dog Morgan.  While visiting with her a couple of years ago I promised her I'd do a portrait of Morgan, and have been feeling sheepish that I'd never yet gotten around to completing the portrait.  I was delighted that this show came up, because it gave me the spur I needed to go ahead and paint Morgan's portrait.  Hopefully I have been able to capture those sad, hound-dog eyes.

Hope you can make it to the exhibit to see all the wonderful dog artwork - there are 31 artists participating and lots of diversity in the artwork.  And please consider making a contribution to help out the dog rescue organizations!

And here is a wonderful article about the Dog Days of Summer exhibit by Thomas Harrison of the Mobile Press-Register.  We will really miss Thomas and all he has been doing in support of the local arts scene - he will be leaving us later this summer as the local newspapers go digital and consolidate resources throughout the State. We wish him well in his future pursuits and wonder how our arts community is going to survive this loss.

Turning over a new stone?

I just realized I haven't updated my blog for a while. Here's a follow-up on the Spanish Moss Miniature Art Show. We had artists from 13 different States, and one artist from Iran. We also had 6 local artists in the show this year. Here is a link to the AMAS site with the information on entries and awards; and a photo of some of the representative work from the show.

We took the Spanish Moss show down at the end of March. I had good news from the show - both of my mini paintings won an award. "Let's Play Ball" won one of the local artist's awards - one of the best possible awards since it was a gift certificate from Alabama Art Supply! And my "Longhorn Calves" painting won a purchase prize from the Nall Foundation. Nall was the judge for our show, and I was very honored to have a fine artist, and our judge, choose my painting for one of his purchases. His other purchase was a very fine painting by a miniature artist from California. Frances Ashcraft and I delivered the two purchase award paintings to Nall in Fairhope yesterday. Here is a photo of Nall with the mini cows.

And today was the quarterly Sketchcrawl - which was held at the Mobile Botanical Gardens this time. Satomi and I hurried over to the gardens after our morning Figure Group session and only had an hour or so there to sketch - but the weather was cool and the gardens were beautiful, so it was a wonderful day for some outdoor sketching. Here is the watercolor sketch I completed of the herb garden fountain area. And a link to the FB website posting of all of the other sketchcrawl sketches. This is a great way to join with a community of other artists for some fun sketching, and a good way to hone your sketching skills. Sketchers all over the world go out sketching the same day and post their results on the web so you definitely get the sense of a global community of artists who all enjoy the act of sketching.

http://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.420446421317810.115042.218060441556410&type=1

And I could not resist posting a couple of photos of my newly acquired Lithographic Stone!! Two of my artist friends who are fine printmakers took me with them to check out some antique litho stones offered by a fellow whose father had long ago owned a commercial printing shop here in Mobile. Fred and Conroy helped me pick out a small stone (a size that I can handle myself), and Fred took it home and grained it for me. I brought it home today and it is now in my studio looking beautiful and ready to go. I've ordered some litho crayons and tusche, and a couple of handbooks, and hope to get started soon in the new (for me) media of lithography. I'm inspired and excited about the new challenge, and hoping to get some mentoring from my printmaker buddies. This is an 8 1/2" x 11" stone, so I'll probably be able to make prints around 6" x 9" in size.

Miniature Art - 2012

Our annual Spanish Moss Miniature Art show is coming up - we take in art tomorrow (Sunday). This year our show will be at the Cathedral Square Gallery, hanging for the month of March. There will be fine miniature art from all over the United States, and possibly from other countries overseas as well. We have also been trying to stimulate interest from more of our local artists, so it will be interesting to see how much local participation we get this year. I think you would be amazed at the quality and diversity of the artwork, so why don't you check out the exhibit during the LoDa artwalk on March 9th - or any other time during the month. Here are the 2 pieces I painted for the show. (They actually look better in person - I was having trouble getting a decent photograph due to the glare off the varnish - next time I'll photo before I varnish!

"Let's Pay Ball!", acrylic on matboard, 2.5 in. x 3.5 in. (2012)

"Longhorn Calves, Jackson County, MS", acrylic on matboard, 2.5 in. x 3.5 in. (2012)

Yupo Critters

I'm trying to complete a few paintings in preparation for next month, when I will be one of several featured artists at Cathedral Square Gallery. The theme will be Animal Art: All Creatures Great and Small. I've been doing some watercolor sketches on Yupo paper during my Saturday morning figure group, and have liked the loose effect as the polypropylene paper repels the wet medium and the resulting "puddles" of color. I decided to attempt a couple of critter portraits for display at the gallery. Here are two I have just completed. Come see them in person during the LoDa Artwalk on Friday, February 10th.

P.E.I. Cow No. 4 - "Cleo", Watercolor on Yupo Paper, 7 in. x 7 in. (approx.), 2012

Audubon Petting Zoo Goat No. 3 - Young Billygoat, Watercolor on Yupo Paper, 7 in. x 7 in., 2012

Hot Art for A Cold January!

The Watercolor & Graphic Arts Society of Mobile sponsored a Hot Art for A Cold January Exhibit for this month at the Mobile Public Library West Regional Branch. Opening Reception was on January 5th, but the show will hang until January 31st - so check it out if you haven't already seen it! This was a non-juried/non-judged show. We have 21 artists represented in the exhibit, which gives the community an idea of the quality artists we have in the Mobile area.

I've recently been posting a little bit of the progress or methodology used for several of my recent art creations. I've been experimenting with some low-tech printmaking, and completed my 2nd watercolor monotype for the Hot Art show. The image is painted with watercolor on an acrylic/plexiglass plate which has been "primed" with gum arabic to make it easier to lift during the printing process. After the image painting was completed, I soaked sheet of Arches hot press paper (for the smooth surface) for an hour or two. After letting the paper drip and then blotting it to get rid of excess moisture, I placed the damp paper over the painted plate, laid a paper towel over that and then a piece of newsprint - then began the rubbing process to transfer the image from the plate to the paper. I use a smooth marble doorknob (purchased from a local antigue shop) to rub the print. After thoroughly rubbing the entire image area, I pull the print paper from the plate. And Ooollahlah! - a monotype print!

I really like the effect, but have to warn that this still takes some practice to get an acceptable image. I had success with my first attempt at a handrubbed monotype (see my blog entry for September 24, 2011); but my initial 2nd attempt was totally unsuccessful. I learned that it is important to thoroughly soak the paper to rid it of sizing and to make sure it is uniformly dampened; and that textured watercolor paper gave a very crude image due to the amount of detail I was trying to capture - thus this time I used smooth hot press paper. Also, the watercolor paint must be layered on relatively thickly on the plate if you want brilliant rather than "washed out" colors; and you cannot rush the rubbing process. But if you are successful, the colors are wonderful and luminous in the printed image and I believe they have more impact than if directly painted on the paper. I intend to continue to experiment with low tech and non-toxic printmaking techniques. Here is a link to a low-tech "Kitchen Lithography" video - using common materials found in the kitchen. I'll try this sometime soon and hopefully be able to post a successful print using this method as well.

Here is my set up for making the monotype print. The image is painted on the acrylic plate - paint brush; water bowl; and the marble doorknob stand ready. I placed a sheet of white paper under the acrylic plate so I could more easily see what I was painting.

The completed image on the plate. It is important to remember that the image will be reversed during the printing process. That did not matter to me with this image, but if it is important to the completed image, then the plate must be painted using a reversed image.

The completed Monotype Print: Water Lilies at Audubon Pond, Dauphin Island, AL (2011), Watercolor Monotype, 8 in. x 10 in. (approx.).

Celebrating Our Maritime Heritage: A Coastal Holiday

The Mobile Museum of Art is hosting a show for regional artists to celebrate our Gulf Coastal Heritage. The show is hanging at the museum from December 9, 2011 - January 8, 2012. I entered 2 pieces into this show: my watercolor "Bayou Resilience, Bayou LaBatre, Summer 2010" (commemorating the shrimpers who helped with the oil spill cleanup); and a newly completed oil painting, "Live Bait, Mobile Causeway", which started a couple of years ago as a plein air sketch. My small painting "Live Bait" (8 in. x 10 in.) won the 3rd Place award in this show. I was pleasantly surprised and pleased that my work was juried into this show, and very surprised to win an award. There are a number of other beautiful pieces in this exhibit, so hopefully you will be able to make it by the museum over the holidays to catch the show. We should all be grateful that the museum provided this opportunity to showcase some of our local talented artists. Here is a link to the Coastal Holiday exhibition news article in the Mobile Press-Register.


I thought I would show the evolution between my original plein air oil sketch of "Live Bait" and the final completed oil painting that I submitted for this exhibit. I think this demonstrates the value of doing onsite or life sketches to enhance the immediacy of the subject.




My oil sketch was quickly painted using thin washes with the oil paint diluted with turpentine and linseed oil. The main forms and blocks of color are laid in the area of vegetation and the body of the boat. The amber underpainting shows through, which tones down most of the colors. But the areas of reflected light and shadow observed onsite are apparent.









I picked out this oil sketch from a stack in my studio when considering what I could enter into the maritime heritage exhibition. Using a couple of reference photos I took when doing the oil sketch, I was able to refine a few details and clarify the colors on the boat, in the marsh and background wooded vegetation, in the water reflections, and on the pier. I built up the color and detail with thicker paint, mixed with a little linseed oil. My challenge was to continue to paint as quickly and lightly as I could in an attempt to keep this painting looking fresh. I think I was successful in capturing the spirit of that day at Scott's Landing.

Plein Air Excursion on Dauphin Island - Nov 2nd-4th

For the past couple of months, my artist friends Missy Patrick and Gail Bramer and I have been planning to spend a few days plein air painting on Dauphin Island. We decided to spend 2 nights at a Bed and Breakfast (Dauphin House) on the island and thus spend 3 days painting to our hearts' delight. We completed our trip last Wednesday through Friday. Although cool and breezy, it turned out to be perfect for some intensive plein air painting, and there were endless subjects to paint on the island. We also had a few others join us for the day the first day or two of plein air painting. This turned out to be a wonderful way to learn from each other and hone our plein air painting skills; figure out what type gear was best; and scratch the surface on painting subjects on the island. Once we started painting, the cares and worries were left on the other side of the bridge. The island has a slower pace and a definite laid-back atmosphere; and parks and scenic views abound. The days started with the hearty B&B breakfast; ended with relaxed conversation and a glass of wine; followed by seafood dinner and early to bed. As Gail said, she was suffering from DI withdrawal once she returned back to Mobile. I completed a couple of watercolors in my journal the first day; and spent the rest of the time trying out my oils and palette knife. I don't know how well I captured the scenes, but it was definitely fun trying. We are looking forward to our next foray into some intensive plein air painting, and planning some day trips back to the island before too long.

Two views of the pond in the Audubon Bird Sanctuary.

Below is marsh view next to the Ferry Landing on the East end of the island.

Below is photo of Missy and me painting the marsh scene.

Below is scene in Little Billie Goat Hole looking toward the Estuarium and the Gazebo overlooking the marsh creation site.

Below is fishing pier and weather tower on the East End, with natural gas rigs in the background. There was a grey sky as a weather front moved through for these two oil paintings on the water.

Below is bench along one of the nature trails at the Shell Mounds park. This was such a meditative place to explore.