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Deprecated: Assigning the return value of new by reference is deprecated in /home/raineyde/public_html/wp-includes/theme.php on line 1109 Thoughts and Musings on Art, Life, Dreams & Such — By Lorraine Mulligan (Dewey) — watercolor blog, blog, art blog
"Sunrise on the Lake" (top) and "Sunrise Water Study" (bottom)
Despite it being a gray and misty day the heavy rain had graciously stopped making a perfect welcome for the few days my friend Anne and I would be spending in the Adirondack Mountains in Upstate New York.
After making more than a half dozen trips to my car unloading food stuffs, clothing for all weather conditions, reading material and my most important cargo - painting and drawing supplies - I started a pot of coffee brewing while Anne and I each prepared our respective lunches to be enjoyed beach side (rain or shine)!
I don’t live near a significant body of water. With the exception of accumulated rain in ditches and deep puddles I rarely get the chance to spend time near water though I have been known to bathe from time-to-time. So with a mug of hot coffee in-hand I wandered onto the deck to take in the view of Fourth Lake. There are two small islands just off shore and thousands of evergreens covering the “young mountains” that surround the Lake. An indigo sky and rainy mist provided a soothing monochromatic backdrop for eating my lunch lakeside.
After lunch Anne and I decided we’d head out to Inlet - the closest town - and check out the local shops. We were far from alone in this remote Adirondack wilderness as other vacationers with the same agenda had converged there. We strolled and browsed in the local bookstore and what-not shops filled with everything bear-related.
Black bear are known to frequent these parts. The Adirondack Mountain Club website clearly states, “When you camp in the Adirondacks, you’re in black bear country.” Posters warning visitors to refrain from feeding the bears can be seen in nearly every shop. I personally had no intention of sharing my porridge or my PB&J with a hungry bear. Though I secretly would not have minded seeing a bear I would prefer to be safely inside while doing so.
After looking at more than my fair share of “Made in China” mementos trying to be passed off as authentic Adirondack keepsakes we checked into the local pizzeria ordering their vegetarian delight covered in mozzarella and some cold beverages - delicious! Having eaten our fill we headed back to our temporary lakefront home to paint the evening away.
It was nice to be disconnected from television and Internet temporarily. I’d decided before leaving that I would use this trip as a time to focus on sketching. Sketching and flexing my artistic muscles without the pressure of producing a finished piece. Ultimately that decision has set me free in a way. Free to try anything…and why not… nothing ventured, nothing gained. And after all that’s what sketching is for - to practice seeing and translating what is seen onto paper.
We painted into the night in silence much of the time. It was easy there to let go of your worries and breathe in then breathe out releasing pent up tension and just being in harmony with you’re your creativity.
August 25th, Eagle Bay, Watercolor Sketch "A Light Mist"
Wednesday morning was overcast and gray. My friend, Anne, and I were scheduled to meet early and head North on I-87 toward Glens Falls, New York. Our first stop - as we headed toward the Adirondacks - would be at The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls where the Andrew Wyeth exhibit is on display until September 5, 2010. Since our room would not be ready until early afternoon what better way to “kill time?” The Wyeth exhibit was awe-inspiring and included more than thirty works in watercolor, pencil and egg tempera.
I’d never visited The Hyde, which is a real shame being an easy hour and a half hour drive from my home. The Hyde was the residence of Louis and Charlotte Hyde whose wealth was accumulated as owners of Finch Pruyn & Company, Inc., a paper mill located a short distance from the mansion. The Hyde’s collection includes works of Botticelli, El Greco, Raphael, Rembrandt, and Rubens plus modern masters Cézanne, Degas, Picasso, Renoir, Seurat, and van Gogh as well as a significant group of works by American artists including Eakins, Hassam, Homer, Peto, and Ryder. After Louis Hyde’s death in 1934 Mrs. Hyde continued acquiring artwork and became responsible for more than two-thirds of the overall collection. Impressive and a real bonus to the Wyeth exhibit.
The works of Wyeth on display were diverse from loose and spontaneous watercolors (”The Road to Friendship”) to the more tight and controlled egg tempera (”Her Room” and “Cooling Shed“). And then there were those few pencil drawings - my favorite - (”Christina’s Head” and “James Loper”) seeming to have been executed with precision coupled with a relaxed ease.
I examined each piece with deep concentration and observation wanting to imprint the details of these master works in my mind for retrieval later. Nothing can replace seeing the original work. Nothing can replace that kind of visual education. What a treat to be near a well-known painting like “Master bedroom” seen over and over again in print but proving so much more captivating in real life. I was a smitten Wyeth groupie seeing the “artistic rock star” for the first time.
With my mind full to overflowing Anne and I headed north again on I-87 exiting in Warrensburg in order to pick up Route 28, which would take us all the way to our destination, Eagle Bay. Winding along Route 28 with its rising and falling mile after mile generously revealing panoramic views around every bend was a treat in spite of the “slap, slap, slap” of my windshield wipers cleaning away the steady rain.
Small and large lakes with misty views and evergreens reaching for the sky made it difficult to watch the road at times. We drove through only a few small towns where weary and wet vacationers were browsing with beach time out of the question on this wet and rainy afternoon.
"Room With a View" Watercolor Sketch (Top) and "Gift of Sun on August 26th" Watercolor Sketch (Bottom)
Our early afternoon arrival was timed perfectly with “check-in” and the rain had kindly stopped by then. Let me clarify that check-in simply means driving by the office and unloading into an unlocked, lakefront efficiency. Anne and I both agreed that we’d only forgotten to pack “the kitchen sink.”
I’ve been painting quite a bit over the past few days, but don’t have much to show for all my effort. I’ve got several oil paintings in various stages of completion on my easel and I’m determined that the oil paints I’ve squeezed onto my palette won’t be left to dry there. Instead I’m making a real effort to paint a little each evening after work.
That’s one of the difficult things about being a part-time artist. Time is always in short supply and in order to improve your skill and understand your chosen medium it’s imperative that you practice. With my sons grown and on their own I have more time that most and am grateful to have a passion for the arts to turn to now that my parenting role is - for the most part - done. Without my art I would be lost - like a captain with no ship.
Lately I’ve taken command of my artistic direction and am steering my vessel toward pencil drawing (which I feel somewhat comfortable with) and oil painting (which I feel out of my comfort zone with).
I’m realizing now that having a epiphany and deciding on a direction is only the beginning. Now comes the hard work, stepping out of our respective comfort zones and persisting in the face of frustration. I can tell you that tonight I ended up with far more paint on my rag, face, forehead and hair (not kidding) than ended up on my canvas.
Surprisingly, I did end up with one small corner of my painting that I felt satisfied with. What’s more I learned a little something and tomorrow I will build on that “corner” and eventually I will have a finished painting. Some parts may be successful and some parts may be lacking, but I will have given myself an education. A hands on education.
There’s just so darned much to learn! Please excuse my profanity, but there really is a world of things I just plain don’t know.
And when it comes to painting the only way to really learn is to practice - practice and explore new subjects. I tend to stick with things I consider safe; things I’ve painted many times before with relative success. My nasty little “safety net approach” to painting has held me back and I believe kept me from finding my niche artistically.
And after all these years of painting I’ve still many new frontiers to explore and since I’m not a full-time artist (yet) - I earn my “survival cash” as a secretary - it may take me a little longer to find my place in the art world.
One of many great lessons I’ve learned is that no matter how overwhelmed I may become about how much there is to learn there is no chance of Rainey giving up. I’ll paint and draw and read and learn from other artists with joy and anticipation.
The truth is I may never find my niche, but I’ll never give up the search. My intention is to enjoy my creativity and share what I can so long as I’m here on this earthly plane.
Creativity feeds my soul and brings peace when there seems to be none. Turning my back on this gift from God is not an option. I am grateful.
I’ll bet you thought I’d forgotten it’s Art Auction Saturday. Nope… I surely didn’t, but today was busy and now that half the crew has settled into bed for the night I’ve got a few minutes to chat.
Michael, Kathy and Grace are still here and I’ve got them for just a few more hours as they’re heading for home in the morning. It’s been nice - having them here - and all the liveliness they bring by just walking in the door has been a breath of fresh air for me. The unending chatter and laughter brings our house to life and when they walk out the door and head for home this house will fall into a lonely silence once again.
It’s at those times - the times of letting go over and over again - that I find comfort in my art. I will immerse myself in the the process of creating art and allow this gift to bring me closer to the hand of God where I find there is great solace.
We raise our children to be strong, independent people and sometimes their life path will take them to distant places - geographically speaking. But the bond you create during those early years will keep you connected for a lifetime and while you must let them walk out the door to head for home - you know you are all still connected through a deep and abiding love that no distance can diminish.
Snow… Finally, the winter snow is nearly gone, but I’m still painting the “white stuff.” Truthfully, I’ve got several oil paintings - summer, fall and winter scenes - that I’m trying to push to completion. As you may recall I attempted to paint this scene in watercolor sometime ago and just knew that I could get a better result using oil paints. I was right again. What a burden, this always being right!
I’m really enjoying the oils even though I feel like a real rookie with every stroke of the brush. In time if I continue to practice and explore I’ll feel more comfortable and eventually confident when using oils.
Gotta love all the technology we have available to us these days! How else could I share these painting demonstration videos? If you’re anything like me - a visual learner - you know that watching someone else paint provides loads of valuable information. While I’ll not abandon the “still shots with commentary” it’s nice to mix it up a bit from time-to-time.
What you see here is part 2 of my watercolor demo - Winter in Upstate NY. Since I didn’t record any commentary with this video I wanted to share a few comments here in an effort to explain the techniques I’ve used.
As you can see, much of my painting is done on dry paper with watercolor washes applied in specific areas - controlled washes really. While I love the spontaneous nature of the watercolor wash, I like to decide where to use it (I admit to being just a bit a of a control freak).
Recall the sky wash in part 1 where I painted around the barns - that is a controlled wash. Throughout this piece I’ve used controlled washes and layering.
The foreground trees/brush on the right are started with strong brush strokes using a loaded brush, then softened with water, dried and repainted - over and over until you achieve the effect you’re after. Knowing when to stop is of paramount importance.
What I love about watercolor is that spontaneous nature that can be coupled with control. Watching water and paint dance on the paper -there’s really nothing like it!
I hope you enjoy the video. You can watch Part 3 - Final by clicking here. Please feel free to email me directly or leave a comment or two!
I’m trying something new and this is the first - a short snippet of my painting process. This is my first attempt at doing a video, editing and posting. Bear with me… next time I hope for a better quality video.
Anyway… as you can see I’ve continued to apply layer upon layer of color (watercolor washes) always referring to my color study as a guide in my color mixing process.
While some artists are confident enough to apply dark, splashy washes with only one or two applications of paint, I tend more toward the “building process.” Building by applying one wash of color over the next (drying each layer thoroughly) until I get the desired dark value.
The beauty in creating art is that there’s no right or wrong way to get where you want to be. It’s all a matter of personal preference and style. I suppose that’s what I like best about art - in math 2 + 2 is always 4, but when I’m painting the answers are what I want them to be!
Once I have my foliage and such as dark as I desire I will then remove the masking fluid by erasing or rubbing it. I find using an eraser is cleaner as the oils from your skin can leave a residue on the paper that is hard to remove. Once those whites (your unpainted protected areas) are exposed then it’s time to paint those lilacs and make them bloom (as seen in this video)!
Something important to remember is that while our brain knows these lilacs are made up of hundreds of small blossoms in each bunch we need only focus on painting a “shape” that says “bunch of lilacs.” I have found keeping that in mind - paint a shape that says what we want to say - is freeing and keeps me from getting caught in fussy little details when a shape and color is all you need to say what needs saying.
What I wanted to say with this painting is, “Wow I just saw this beautiful, old country home with mature lilac bushes in full bloom. So vibrant and beautiful! Here look . . . see what I mean?” That’s my message. Can you smell them? Can you feel them tickle the end of your nose as you take in their sweet aroma? That’s my message. Sharing what I see and how I see it through my painting.
