Back to the Easels and the Drawing Table

After several months of no work (i.e. lovely free time at the cabin without deadlines or guilt), work is beginning to trickle back into my days.

First, a pencil commission. (I still love to draw.)

This was the little sketch for the customer to approve or amend.

She made a couple of suggestions, and I scribbled a few notes for further verification.

This is a house I visited. Actually, I visited the people there, but the house really stuck in my memory as very attractive. It will be quite fun to draw.

I worked on the herd of buffalo for the upcoming show at CACHE, called “A Bovine State of Mind”.

It might be finished, but I will wait to sign it until I am completely sure there is nothing left to improve.

I remembered that the Holiday Bazaar in Three Rivers is coming November 18, 2023. This is the Saturday BEFORE Thanksgiving. It is time to think about beefing up my inventory of smaller paintings for this annual boutique at the Remorial Building. (Remorial, liberry, prolly. . . bet you can translate these words).

Yep, messy, but the first layers always are.

It’s great to be producing art again, both with pencils and oil paints!

Oil Painting Comparisons

Let’s compare some oil paintings: a 2006 version reworked, a 2010 painted again, and a painting begun to its midpoint.

I painted this in 2006; my friend (let’s call him Craig, because that is his name) brought it back to me upon my request. I wanted to rework it so that I wouldn’t feel embarrassed for taking his money 17 years ago.

It took awhile, but I found the original reference photograph. With limited (ahem, zero, actually) experience in painting scenery back then, I just did my best to match the somewhat gray and faded colors of the photo. I was successful in matching, which is one of the important lessons of learning to paint. However, now I like to substitute brighter colors.

Craig also asked me to repaint a 6×6″ scene that I had originally done in 2010. I was able to convince him to just trade me rather than keep 2 almost identical paintings.

Can you tell which is old and which is new? Probably not, so I’ll tell you: old is on the right, new on the left.

Then I decided to touch up the old so that I can sell it next year, assuming my places of commerce will be open and thriving again.

You probably can’t tell the difference in this photo. That’s okay, because I can and I know it is better now.

Finally, let’s look at a painting in its beginning ugly stages, and then enjoy it after it has been worked on a bit more.

I relayered the sky and clouds, worked on the trees, and began detailing the buffalo. (For some unknown reason, I worked from right to left on the herd, rather than my normal left to right.)

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I love to draw with my paintbrushes.

Progressive River Oil Painting

This oil painting of the river is inching forward. Remember this?

Here is a day of (interrupted*) painting in steps.


*Quickety trip to the next mural site to learn the best method to transfer pattern to wall; phone call to spray varnish manufacturer to ask how to deal with the continually clogging nozzle; writing an endorsement for my mechanic’s upcoming website; asking some friends to do the same; phone-tagging and texting to make an appointment to show my paintings to a new vendor; several long phone discussions attempting to keep the wheels on a project that seems to be circling the drain (that’s called a “mixed metaphor”); photographing and scanning completed paintings. . . all part of the business of art.

More Painting to Country Music

Same playlist as before. Same poor singing (on my part). Same kind of day racing by*. New paintings.

I was feeling kind of proud of this one until two different people who saw it asked if it was wildfire. 

I hate HATE HATE wildfire. (Am I being unclear here?)

After studying it, I added some blue to the bottom of the sunset-colored clouds and subdued the clouds a bit.

I relayered the distant hills, relayered the greenery, and then started all those rocks.

This will look better when you see it in person. It is intended for a show in 2024, so I may relayer everything several more times. 

Then I painted some oranges for Exeter’s Mural Gallery.

Finally, I began a painting of my friend Ed’s buffalo herd in Missour-uh, as he pronounces his state. This one is for a show at CACHE in October, as is the painting of the three cattle you saw last week.

I wonder if rock music would cause me to paint faster? 

Nah. Probably not a good idea to listen to things that I find irritating. (But I do love LIttle River Band—has anyone borrowed my CD and not returned it? —and like Toto, Kansas [or maybe it was Boston] and Don Henley.)

*How can all those sad country songs make me feel so happy? Because the music is wonderful!

Still Interrupting With Painting

. . . to Country Music, again

This time I listened to Steven Wariner (always), Emmy Lou Harris (again), Vince Gill, Michael Martin Murphy (the album that has the Sons of the San Joaquin singing backup on one song), George Strait, and Clint Black. That was the Fastest Day Painting Ever.

This is the middle fork of the Kaweah River in Three Rivers, about 1/2 mile from my house/studio/three cats. The reference photos were taken from a favorite place for trespassing.

 

Another Interruption About Art

Painting to Country Music

Recently while stuck inside on a very rainy day at the cabin, Trail Guy had to replace the batteries in the radio. That erased the saved stations, and as he was resetting them, he found two classic rock and one classic country station. We entertained ourselves for an evening by hopping around among the three stations, and I was shocked, “SHOCKED”, I say, to realize how many voices, introductions, and songs I not only recognized, but could sing (poorly) to. 

I forgot how much I used to (and apparently still do) love country music. I don’t like the really old stuff and don’t know the new stuff, but the tunes from the ’70s and ’80s float my boat.

When we got home, I dug out a stack of my old CDs*, put them in my stereo (yeah, it is probably “old” too), and started painting while singing (poorly). Doesn’t this seem like an appropriate painting for country music? Here is the progression:

This is from a photo on top of Rocky Hill. At this time of writing, it is untitled.

*Steve Wariner (my absolute forever favorite), Emmy Lou Harris, Suzy Bogguss, Collin Raye, and Skip Ewing. (Only Steve Wariner showed up when Trail Guy and I were playing “Name That Tune”).

And you might be wondering about this: In the category of country, Trail Guy usually guessed Hank Williams Sr. or Johnny Cash, but he excelled at the rock station, whereas I thought most of those songs sounded alike with repetitious screaming guitars and scratchy yelling voices. (They didn’t play Toto or Little River Band, but they did play one Kansas—I love those tight harmonies.)

Series Interruption for Painting Update

 

Recently I told an old friend that I have no commissions. He said, “I have one for you”. Many years ago he bought a couple of Mineral King paintings from me. One was when I was very new to painting, and according to Friend, I was reluctant to accept his hard-earned dollars for it. He wanted me to paint the two again, so he could see the difference. 

After he sent me a photo of the two paintings on his Mineral King wall, I asked if he wanted one or both, and what sizes. He chose one, a 6×6″, and it is the newer of the two paintings. However, it is still before I kept good records of completed work. (I started oil painting on March 8, 2006. Yes, I remember the date.)

This is his photo:

I looked through my files of completed oil paintings, and holy guacamole, look how many paintings of this scene I have in my records!

This is the first one, probably from 2006 or 2007, when I was still painting on boards rather than wasting canvas.

This is from 2010.

2013

2014

Can’t tell. . .

  •  . . .if these are painted from the same reference photos or not. I can tell that none of them are the one that Friend owns.
  • . . .if these improve through the years.
  • . . .if the 2023 version will be superior to these.

Excuses

  • It is too hot to paint for very long this time of year
  • When the swamp cooler was roaring in the painting workshop last week, I didn’t hear the plumber arrive, so the gate was closed and he left. I now have to wait AGAIN for him to show. (WHY doesn’t he call first??)
  • I am out of practice.

Beginning steps

I found two photos to help me get this right.

Ugh. It’s hot and the swamp cooler is roaring, and I want lunch. There is no deadline, so I will paint slowly with many corrective layers.

Done.

Now, we return to our regular broadcast, a series called “Cabin Life”.

August is My Least Favorite Month. . .

 

. . . but it ain’t all bad. (Cabin Life series resumes tomorrow.)

Personal

Happy Birthday, 40-year-old Niece!! 

Yardening

The little bitty almost inedible grapes are ripening, and THE DEER AREN’T EATING THEM! (Thank you, Deer Out!) If they survive, and if my juicer works after last year’s lengthy repair, I will juice and freeze them.

But Deer Out is also keeping them from licking my kitchen window clean, not that they have ever done that.

August is usually very hot. That’s why these flowers are naked ladies; too hot to be clothed.

Tucker’s wound has healed, and he loves the unmowed grass, which is the thickest and healthiest it has ever been. This is the 4th year of not allowing Trail Guy to mow it in order to let it propagate and send deeper roots (he isn’t complaining).

The cucumber plants died, the zucchini will flower but not produce, the tomatoes are weak (but the plumber shared some of his), the sweet potato plants are looking healthy, and the basil is prolific.

Art

This involuntary sabbatical has been enjoyable. I am not worried, because God is my provider, not me.

After not drawing or painting for awhile, I got another wild hair to draw.

First, I warmed up by sketching in church. (Judge not: it helps me listen with my left brain when I keep my hands and right brain occupied.)

Then, I was ready to draw “Valedictorian’s Dad”.

Finally, I began three new paintings.

Don’t they look terrible? 

No worries. That’s normal.

Bonus:

One of my favorite bloggers had a great post yesterday: Tim Cotton Writes

More Little Painting on Another Big Painting

 

If you have been reading my blog for the past 2 months, you have noticed that I haven’t been doing much in the way of artwork. Something just went silent, not “artist’s block” because I never run out of ideas. What was it? Two things: spring was so beautiful that all I wanted to do was work in the yard, and sales have dropped significantly so I didn’t want to keep building up inventory. (Too much stuff stresses me out, whether it is possessions, noise, items on a calendar, or people at a gathering; please forgive me for referring to people as “stuff”.)

After working on the Yokohl Oak painting, I worked a bit more on the big painting that I was hoping to someday hang in my dining area. It was just sitting quietly on the easel next to the oak tree, patiently waiting for some attention. The heat wasn’t too bad, I had an interesting podcast to listen to, and I had just killed a mosquito. (There is always one.) Why not keep painting?

It felt a little bit too hard, but my experience tells me that putting brush to canvas is the best way to overcome the feeling of inadequacy. So I dabbed a bit at those upper marks to turn them into oranges.

I couldn’t find a paintbrush that would cooperate. All the little ones did that annoying thing of gathering lots of paint but not releasing it. So, I moved into less detailed areas, just defining dark and light clumps, and actually counting the trees that appear in the front to match them with the trees in the photo. This is not because I need to be a Xerox machine; it is because in order to understand how things look, I need to actually LOOK at them. (or at a clear photo)

Getting better, but still lots of work ahead.

I am not in a hurry. This is for me, and I can take as long as I want and be as detailed as I desire. (“It’s my painting and I’ll draw if I want to, draw if I want to, draw if. . . “)

Someday this painting of the areas of Tulare County that I find so beautiful will be completed, Lord willing, and my vision don’t expire. (How many clichés can I butcher here?)

If you came here for Mineral King news and are disappointed, you can check the Mineral King website to see if anything new has been posted.

A Little Painting on a Big Painting

 

English is a strange language. In the title, the first “painting” is a verb; the second one is a noun. This makes for a fun title, and perhaps it incites a bit of curiosity on the part of you, O Blog Reader.

I painted “Yokohl Oak” in 2020 and showed it in two separate solo gallery shows. People liked it, particular local bike riders, who told me, “Hey, that’s the Bike Tree!” To me it was simply a beautiful oak tree along Yokohl Drive, and I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to recognize it if I drove past it again.

Alas, it didn’t sell. I put it in the 3 other galleries that regularly and steadily sell my work, and it didn’t sell. One astute friend told me it was lacking in my normal amount of detail. Really?? This looks excessively well-detailed to me.

Oh. He meant on the tree itself. It is too smooth for an oak tree. My drawing students agreed when I took it back home for a touch-up. I often run things past them, because they always tell me the truth. Besides, it lets me know if I am teaching them to be discerning, to truly see things accurately.

This got called “The Bike Tree” by a few different people, so I figured I’d just go with that theme.

Then I started adding more texture to the bark on the tree.

After that, I tried to photograph it.

The light was wrong, making shiny spots and making the color wrong. I rotated it multiple ways, cropped it, edited it with the photo program on the laptop, and finally decided it will have to wait to be photographed another time. 

In the meantime, this is the new and improved “Yokohl Oak”, after I did a little painting on this big (24×24″) painting.

P.S. Yokohl is the name of a valley in the foothills just east of Exeter in Tulare County. For awhile, there were big plans to turn the area into a self-contained town, but the combination of local protests and drought shut that down.

If you came here for Mineral King news and are disappointed, you can check the Mineral King website to see if anything new has been posted.