The ArtSpeak word for slowly building paintings with layers is “glazing”. You’re welcome.
This might be finished. The photo on the left was taken in the afternoon; the one on the right was taken the next morning. I’m hard-pressed to tell you which is more accurate.
Why, yes, indeed it is.
Wait, nope, I spent yet another hour on the phone with someone whose main phrase was, “Yes Ma’am”, as she tried to figure out AGAIN why my new phone won’t work. Or wait, is it the new SIM card? Perhaps it is the new provider?
See a pattern here? It is the word “new”.
STOP WITH THE CHANGES AND UPGRADES AND UPDATES ALREADY!!
Okay, where were we. . . oh yes, in the day’s accomplishments and forward progress at the easels.
Neither of these paintings are finished, but they are both much closer than the last time you saw them.
That Sequoia is called the Sentinel Tree and it is in front of the building formerly known as the Giant Forest Market. Now it is the Giant Forest Museum.
The difficult thing about this commission wildflower piece is keeping the edges of the poppies slightly blurry so that the brodiaea AKA Blue Dick really jumps out.
I love this kind of detailed realism, even if it does take (almost) all day. And both of these subjects are exactly what one would expect from a Central California artist. All that is missing is some oranges.
Hmmm, I am sort of like country music with my three subjects: redwood trees, poppies, and citrus. (Country music’s three subjects are cheatin’, drinkin’, and storytellin’.)
Wait, I also paint Mineral King, cabins, single oranges, entire groves, the foothills with mountains in the background, various views of the Sierra Nevada, Three Rivers, and whatever else people are interested in hiring me to paint.
Phew. Thought for a moment I was gittin’ real simple-like.
See? I did more than just be on hold and paint. . . I did me some thinkin’. Real high-quality thought.
This next painting is a commission. I am combining multiple photos, trying to somewhat match a looser painting that the customer admired, but wanted in my detailed style. Because it is of wildflowers, I have lots of reference photos to work from. It is fun to use bright colors, in this and in the fruit painting above.
The next one is a 6×12″ of part of the Great Western Divide, as seen from Moro Rock. I sketched it with a paintbrush while the canvas was upside down. When I flipped it over, I decided there needed to be less sky, so I scooted everything a bit higher, while improving accuracy of the shapes.
Kaweah Arts requested some Sequoia trees, so here we go again. . . This is the pair of redwood trees at Redwood Canyon, or simply “Redwood” on the Mineral King road. Some former cabin neighbors referred to them as “Aunt Tilly and Uncle Pete”. I can’t tell which is which. Must have been married so long that they started looking alike.
This last one is 6×18″ and is the Sentinel Tree, in front of the Giant Forest Market. I mean the museum. My cousin worked there one summer (or more), and used to get a kick out of customers who would ask, “Where can I see the big trees?” She would simply point out the door.
All of these need to be relayered, then detailed, my favorite part. After they are dry, I will either scan or photograph them. Next, I will post them on the blog and tell you that they look better in person.
It is time to do a few small paintings to sell at Kaweah Arts. The proprietor requested Sequoia trees and mountain ranges. I looked through my canvas sizes, looked through my photos and made some decisions. Inventory number, title, wire on the back, add to the inventory lists, crop and enhance the photos—all needs to happen before paint lands on the canvas.
Wait! This isn’t a Sequoia tree or a mountain range. What is it?
It is a scene I have wanted to paint for many years, but felt it was a bit too hard. This will be one of my long slow paintings, with many many layers. There is no deadline, and I want it to be Most Totally Excellent.
Okay, this is a standard 6×18″ painting of a big tree, AKA redwood, AKA Sequoia, formally known as Sequoia gigantea, not to be confused with the redwoods of northern California, called Sequoia sempervirens.
WHAT IS THIS???
This is a work in progress, a housewarming present for someone Very Important in my life. She showed me the pieces she has in her kitchen, and I was inspired to ask her what I could paint to add to the collection. (These might not be the actual pieces that she has, but hers are very similar to these.)
The sequoias and mountain range paintings can just hold their camels* for a little bit. I have some designing, improving, polishing, rearranging, composing ahead.
*Learned to say this while in Israel back in 2016 and decided it is more fun than horses.
Sales of my art have declined. Is it the economy? I assume so, since sales are an economic transaction. The specific reasons are: one of my regular vendors was not open this past summer; another one relied on a now-closed adjoining restaurant for foot traffic; the third place relied on traffic to Sequoia National Park, which was closed until July 1.
What’s an artist to do?
Look for a new place to sell, of course.
St. Anthony’s Retreat asked for some of my paintings for their gift shop. This is close to home, a place where I have painted several murals, staffed by many friends, and is an active place in Three Rivers. It brings in people from all over the valley for various purposes, many of which are not actually Catholic. It is a beautiful place, very bucolic, and they have very good food too.
I worked with two friends there to decide what to put in the gift shop. This is what we chose:
I am referring to finishing a large (12×24″) oil painting that I started in August, and then left to gather dust and spider webs while I worked on smaller paintings. Smaller paintings provide something closer to instant gratification; larger paintings build character.
These photos were taken in August.
These were taken in October, a progression of adding paint. You might notice that Vandever (the peak on the right) grew in height. If you are particularly observant, you may notice some angle changes too.
The painting was wet and shiny, so the final photo is not telling the true story. (. . . pants on fire)
I rotated the easel every direction, wasting film like crazy.
NO, I WASN’T WASTING FILM! I have a digital camera. But you probably knew that, because I am so modern, so quick to adopt new technology.
I can hear you thinking sarcastically, “Sure you are.”
This is Farewell Gap at dusk, in Mineral King. (I bet you guessed that already). Perhaps the title will be “Farewell Gap at Dusk”, because I am just clever that way sometimes.
These new oil paintings may look familiar to you from seeing them in progress.
Inventory was low; with the Holiday Bazaar in the near future (November 18 at the Three Rivers Veterans Memorial Building) and seeking a new vendor, it was time to start producing.
P.S. They all look better in person, but I think you might know that by now.
Yesterday I mentioned several things that I have painted from Sequoia National Park. Want to see? Some have sold, and some are currently available. (Every once in awhile, I show items for sale because I am supposed to be running an art business here, not just chit-chatting to my friends.)
This is 8×8″, using a photo taken last spring somewhere on the BLM land above our house. Some people call it Case Mountain because it is below Case Mountain (mostly privately owned and gated closed). Some people call it Salt Creek because Salt Creek runs through. We call it BLM, because it is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. It used to be relatively unknown, and then along came The Google and everyone’s need to announce everything to the entire world. (STOP IT!)
Would you believe me if I told you that it will look better when dry and scanned, and even better in person? Yeppers, it’s true.
These have more detail and are larger than the 4 small orange paintings I showed you last Friday.
That one is almost finished. It could be considered finished, but I don’t think it is as good as it could be. I’ll need to contemplate it for awhile.
This one will require quite a bit of drawing with my paintbrushes. I like to draw with pencils, and I like to draw with my paintbrushes when they cooperate.
It helps to see the shapes more accurately when things are upside down. This is not an option when painting from real life. Thank goodness I am a studio painter.
The blue bowl and its reflection will be a good challenge. I am really liking this one so far.