Stone bridge (revisited)

I don't always revisit a painting site but I did yesterday. This old stone bridge is a fun subject. I'll probably do some more paintings from different angles.

Award

I was awarded the Passion for Painting Award from Sarah Lynch. Thank you Sarah. With this award I am to name seven things I like and name seven more painters that I feel are deserving. Let's see...seven things I like.....hmm:

My kids (Both in college)

Painting (naturally!!)

Art History (I like an eclectic array of mostly European and American art history)

Genealogy (I've been lucky with this and have traced my mother's family back over 350 years in Virginia)

Socializing at my favorite bar (I really don't like beer all that much but I drink it anyway. I'm chided for drinking light beers but I dislike being drunk)

Baseball (I'm not that much of a sports nut but baseball will always be my favorite game. I loved playing it when I was younger and follow MLB closely)

Fishing (I hope I don't disturb people who do not like the concept. I release almost all of what I catch with a few exceptions...usually catfish and bluegills; I eat them on occasion)

Seven more painters deserving of this award ( I am trying to remember who else I've seen receive this award and not duplicate it but I bet I do anyway):

Paolo Mendes http://postalguarelas.blogspot.com/

Nancy @ Every Photo Tells a Story http://everyphototellsastory.blogspot.com/

Galina Nikolova http://galyaart.blogspot.com/

David King http://picsandpoems.blogspot.com/

Patrice Lynne Young http://patricelynneyoung.blogspot.com/

Benjaminlois http://benjaminlois.blogspot.com/

Morgaine http://morgaineart.blogspot.com/

Two watercolors from Sunday

Here are two watercolors I did yesterday during a short spell of warm weather we had. I usually keep watercolor supplies in my truck for use at a moments notice but yesterday I was intending to visit the art museums in Washington D.C. until I was informed by a friend who lives in Texas to stay clear because of the Cherry Blossom Festival. Wow!! I live 15 miles away from Washington and my friend lives 1,700 miles away and she knows more about what's going on around here than I do..haha!! Anyway, this left me with a good reason to paint outdoors, so I did. Both paintings are of Manassas National Battlefield. The first was painted when the sky was gray and overcast but as I neared completion the sun popped out making changes necessary. By the time I had walked up from the stream the weather was changing rapidly, so I painted the second piece at the top of the hill away from the stream. I tried fishing later on but broke my rod tip and had to call it quits. What a bummer!!!

Fountainhead Park

Jeez!!! A landscape that isn't Manassas Battlefield Park. I did this one a year ago at Fountainhead Regional Park. Fairfax Co., Virginia is loaded with parks; a decided advantage for anyone wishing to paint outdoors like I do. I sure hope the weather turns soon so I can get back out. I tried today but it was 50 and rain, so I decided to wait. This painting is awfully blue but I still like it, although is has been sold.

Old Stone Bridge

It was here that the first major engagement of the American Civil War occurred. This is the old stone bridge over Bull Run. I wont bore you with a history lesson about the battles of First and Second Manassas, suffice to say this bridge was decimated twice during the Civil war but is restored now to its original configuration. It is a wonderful structure made from red stones identical to those that line the banks of Bull Run. The only fish I've been able to catch in the small stream are suckers but I don't mind, I release everything anyway. it was a a pleasant day to paint when I did this painting and the sun was bright and clear.

Brownsville II

Another re-post. This was the last painting done plein air before it got too cold to sit outside last November. I continued to make watercolors through the winter while sitting in my truck but I'm still waiting for it to be consistant enough to go oil painting outdoors. This painting was done very near the place I painted the last one.

Small pond

No sooner do I declare that I cannot post images, then I post the painting I did this last Saturday (I will be glad to get my computer back). I did the photo editing from my work computer. I actually fished this pond (unsuccessfully) before I got out my paints. Sitting in the pathway painting, it was a cool slightly breezy day with the sun graying over than reappearing but never making that strong clear sunshine that creates such good shadows. This pond is lined with bird feeders that have clanging metal parts to scare off something; squirrels, I guess. I hope to do more paintings from this location. Just over the slight hill in the background is interstate 66 and all its noise…haha…landscapes are such a lie!!!!

computer woes

Unfortunately, my computer is in the shop and I cannot post images to my blog until things are repaired. What a bummer, because I've done some new pieces and wanted to post them. Hoepfully by mid-week I'll be up and running.

Portici

This is also a re-post from when I first started my blog. The painting is of a place known as Portici at Manassas Battlefield, Virginia. There is a ton of history associated with the site which you can read about if you care to go back to the original January post. I did this wok the following day after I did the Brownsville painting. Once again, the colors of autumn helped immensely in adding vibrancy to the work. The clouds were making some interesting configurations that day which added a nice focal point above the red and orange trees.

Battery Heights

This kind of blond looking painting was done back in January. The location is a place known as Battery Heights. I had not posted this watercolor before because I'm not sure I like it but here it is anyway. An interesting aside about the large tree in the picture, the park service catalogues trees for maintenance or removal, this one had a glittering metal tag flapping in the wind, nailed to the trunk. The number was 4701, so that's what I titled my painting. I doubt this tree will be pulled down since it's condition is not bad.

Brownsville

I don't often re-post a painting but I had posted this one way back when I had first started blogging and I don't think many people have seen it so I felt I'd post it again. This landscape was painted in November when there were still some leaves on the trees. It was just about at the end of warm weather and getting outside was still an enjoyable experience. Lately, our weather has turned cold again and I've gotten sick so anything I paint right now is going to be done indoors (since it rains every day). Currently, I have a large canvas I'm painting that I'd like to finish this week if I'm lucky. I will spare the history about my post since you can read about it if you leaf back through my blog.

Side by side

I thought you might find it interesting to see a photo of a scene that I painted so I posted this side by side comparison. This is not to indicate fidelity to the original or the lack of it but basically to show how a scene leaves its impression on us (or at least, on me). In the photo, I feel my digital camera has actually stretched the scene out too far laterally due to the short focal length lens. The small tracks from a truck that had passed through the field are barely visibly in the shot. I am pretty sure I took the photo after I had finished the painting but this was a year ago and I don't remember exactly. Nonetheless, you can see I have compressed the scene somewhat, wanting to include the small clump of trees at right within a limited space on the canvas. The curving tree edge at left where it meets the ground is also more exaggerated than as the photo recorded it. I've also been able to pick out the variation and subtle modulations of color and light in the tall grass field probably better then the camera was able to do. The sky was a fast moving one due to a windy day, so that changed so much it is hard to make a comparison there except to say, the wind direction is evident in both images. I am astonished that the blue tone of the sky in both pictures is so close to each other. The color latitude in the camera exposure was too narrow to record the bright yellow of the field in relation to the bright sky. What I feel I 'm left with is a painting that interprets how I saw this scene in a superior way to the one my camera took. I'm not trying to say I'm any great shakes at what I'm doing but the elements that stick in our mind when we see something leave an impression as to their significance that a camera does not pick up.

another view

This painting was done on the opposite side of the creek from the other painting in my last post. It is also of Dogan creek. The day was very warm when I did it but a pleasant day to paint. When I do these small (12" x 16") oils they take me about two and half to three hours to complete. That seems a reasonable amount of time for a plein air painting since the light begins to change pretty drastically if I spend more time. I also have a tendency to paint around mid-day, which is good for consistent shadows but not so good if you want dramatic lighting. I'm a pretty stubborn individual and use inexpensive materials because no one has proven to me that they are inferior to the more expensive variety. All of these small plein air landscapes were painted on canvas panels (Please don't go into shock!!!). There is no evidence that these supports deteriorate any faster then any other support. Yes, they will warp but that is easily remedied when they are placed in a frame. I have originals hanging in my mother's home that are 50 to 60 years old and are just like the day they were painted. In fact, there is an old photo hanging in my abode that is of my great grandmother. It was taken sometime around 1885 and is stuffed in a frame with a piece of cardboard for backing. The photo and cardboard have held up better then the wood frame holding the work.

Dogan Creek

I did this oil last summer; the location is called Dogan Creek. I was walking along with my easel and paints looking for a view of the creek but decided upon these trees and bushes. I feel you never can quite put your finger on why one view is selected over another. Certainly, some prominent feature to what you are looking at arrests the imagination but most likely it is the combination of many elements coming together in a preconceived idea in your head. That idea seems to lay dormant in the thought process until an external scene triggers it. I've often felt that this preconception or mental slot results from the many paintings we so often study. Everyone who paints, buys art books or goes to the galleries if any are near them. This stored data bank in our head of landscape images is like a round hole, when we see that round peg, it falls in. The case could be made that we (I) lack originality in this approach, no matter how innocent or unconscious the process, that all we do is recreate what we have already seen. I am really out to lunch on this issue but it seems to me that this brings into consideration whether originality in landscape painting is even important. Anyway, if I write much more than this people might not read to the end so I'll cut the conversation here (almost) but I am curious if perhaps as evolved humans, we have an innate and primeval relationship with landscapes, even though perspective space is a highly developed way of seeing, that the ocular truth found in it stands comfortably for our idea of reality. Thus, we react to that portion of a convention (perspective space) that aligns with our personal experiences in nature and these experiences repeat themselves over and over and over without becoming tedious or boring. We certainly are not bored walking in nature and perhaps not while viewing landscapes.....jeez!!!! can I ramble or what!!!

James Parker Award

It is an honor to receive the James Parker award http://jamesparkerart.blogspot.com/ from Morgaine http://morgaineart.blogspot.com/

If you are not familiar with Morgaine's work please visit her blog. She paints and photographs evocative and mysterious images that lodge deep in our subconscious mind bridging the relationship between the human form and nature.

In keeping with the principal upon which James' award is based, each recipient is to, in return , nominate two more recipients.

Thus, I nominate first: Isabel, Sketching in Mauritania http://mauritania-isabel.blogspot.com/.

Isabel immerses herself in the culture and life in Mauritania and paints incredible on location sketches and notations that brings animation to the indigenous people that she shares her time with.

Then, I nominate: Arthur, "Who is Arthur Simo the Outsider Artist" http://simoartcorner.blogspot.com/

Arthur brings a fresh new perspective to how we view the world with his bold compositions, his excitement and his wonder about a world many of us simply take for granted. His special insight is a breath of fresh air

Early spring, late winter

I took the day off today so after doing a bunch of stuff that I had been neglecting, I managed to get out to my favorite place and paint a watercolor. It was pleasant to be able to sit beside this stream without freezing to death (although, it was plenty windy, I saw two trees come down) and also to be outside of my truck, sitting in a field. I'd like to get some paintings done of these streams before the ticks arrive next month. Last year I got so eaten up by the nasty little deer tick, I was worried about Lyme's disease and had to see the doctor.

This location is Young's Branch as it just about crosses underneath Rt 29 at Manassas Battlefield. I've painted here before but from a different view (obviously).

sketches from the weekend

This past weekend was very warm, so outdoor activities were in order. I went into the District to sketch and just do some walking. The first sketch is of the Smithsonian Castle as it faces the National Mall. The next is of the Capital Grill restaurant on 6th and Pennsylvania Ave. This is a very expensive restaurant, of which I only know the outside..haha!!! The last sketch is of the Rodin sculpture, Burghers of Calais in the Hirshhorn sculpture garden. From what I've read about this sculpture, the Burghers were the ransom paid by the French town of Calais after it was placed under siege by King Edward III in 1347. Ultimately, their lives were spared by a benevolent queen who convinced Edward to see their sacrifice as courageous.

Last one; N&W 1218

This is the last of my railroad pictures. I have done countless others but it was a long time ago and I failed to keep a record of them. The locomotive is Norfolk & Western 2-6-6-2, number 1218. This was the strongest locomotive for tractive effort ever built for American rails. With a top speed of 70 mph, it was used for fast freights, limited passenger service and coal drags where the grades weren't steep. Like the Big Boy, it is an articulated locomotive, technically known as a Mallet (named after the person who created this type). All articulated locomotives have two independent sets of drivers with the rear set rigid to the frame and the lead set allowed to follow the track curvature. It is fascinating to watch these locomotive on tight radius curves because the boiler swings out overhanging the outside bend in the track. 1218 is still around; in the late eighties she saw quite a bit of use hauling excursion trains, of which I was fortunate enough to ride behind. Currently, she is housed in the Virginia Transportation Museum in Roanoke, Virginia, alongside N&W 611.

Big Boy

This watercolor is of the Union Pacific steamer, Big Boy. The 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement made it the largest steam locomotive, (total length not including the tender) ever run on American railroads. The H-8 Allegheny (built for the C&O and Virginian railroads) was a slightly longer locomotive (due to a longer tender) and slightly heavier. 25 of these behemoth Big Boys were built between 1941 and 1944 being used for steep grades in the mountains of Utah and Wyoming. Their efficiency kept them in service up until 1959, long past when most roads had fully switched to diesel locomotives. American railroads have been given credit for tipping the balance of power in the allies favor during the second world war. German officials rejected, as impossible, the claims from their agents working in this country that the United States was moving vital supplies over mountains at full speed. The Big Boy shouldered it's fair share of that effort. My watercolor comes from a photo that appeared in Don Ball's famous book, America's Colorful Railroads. The background I stole from a J. M. W. Turner painting.

611

American rail fans will certainly recognize this locomotive, it's Norfolk & Western's 4-8-4, number 611. This locomotive was built late in the reign of steam locomotives; 1950. Most roads had already began the conversion to diesel power by then but Norfolk & Western made their own locomotives, thus becoming the last major U.S. railroad to run steam up to the 60's. The streamlined cowling and bullet nose gave 611 that classic art deco look. She ran in passenger service until 1959 along with a fleet of 14 similar locomotives. In the mid 80's she was put back on the rails for fan excursions until 1994. I was fortunate enough to ride behind her in that short span. My watercolor was done from a photo I shot as 611 passed near my home on one of it's excursion trains in the 80's. I added a background that I stole from a watercolor by British artist, Samuel Palmer.

Virginian RR

Another older painting; this one was done in a similar fashion to the previous post. The locomotive is a Virginian Railroad 4-6-2 Pacific (those were used exclusively for passenger service) but it must have gotten side tracked somewhere because it is pulling into Edward Hopper's "Dawn in Pennsylvania" with Virginian railroad detective, Elias Hatfield waiting for the train. I had a photo of Elias and added him since he was part of the famous clan of West Virginians. The Hopper painting I reversed; in the original the light comes from the right. The Virginian Railroad has long since disappeared being merged into the old Norfolk and Western (now Norfolk Southern) in the early 60's. I have a 1948 world atlas published by the Encyclopedia Britannica and the map of the U.S. is knit with hundreds of railroads and no highways. Over ninety percent of those railroads have disappeared with only a very few lines left. Too bad, the more efficient rail transportation could have proved useful in these times of needed energy independence and the rails would have proved more environmentally friendly reducing the effects of global warming. One locomotive pulling hundreds of people is better then hundreds of people driving hundreds of cars, especially if the locomotive is under cantenary wire.

Blast from the past

This is a quite old watercolor painting that I sold to a friend years ago. I am old enough to have actually seen steam locomotives in service when I was very young (7 or 8); once in Norfolk, Virginia and again in Saskatchewan, Canada. The engine pictured, I've never seen; it's a Louisville and Nashville Class M-1 2-8-4 (for the uninitiated, that means two lead wheels, eight drivers and four trailing wheels) . I combined several photos to arrive at the picture. The photo of the intimate snow setting actually had a L&N diesel locomotive in it and the billowing steam from the pistons and coal smoke from the stack came from a photo of a Southern 4-6-2 leaving Hull Street Station in Richmond, Va. (how do I remember this stuff!!!) and the photo of the actual locomotive was a very uninteresting shot of the 2-8-4. All photos appeared in the late Don Ball's book, America's Colorful Railroads. I try not to work from photos much these days but I have done so almost exclusively in the past.

Still life

Lately, I have become re-involved with abstract art, so please visit my new blog: http://steves-art.blogspot.com/ In the meantime, I thought I'd post this still life I did a few weeks ago. Reflective surfaces are fun to do because you seldom get them wrong, or better said, you usually come up with something that looks like a reflective surface, whether exact or not. Objects, buildings, landscapes, trees, shrubs, even animals to a degree, have some latitude in them that allows us to be less than dead on in our rendition of them. Faces (especially if they are known) and automobiles do not. Small inaccuracies in these are readily caught by the eye. How strange that seems to me; I wonder if we share something in common with our cars. I would suspect we carry around in our heads a generalized concept of how the world is suppose to look sufficiently vague enough to allow a broad spectrum of shapes stand in for our concept. In the eighties there was an art mania for photo realistic still life. The art publications were filled with enough of these to bore us to death......(I don't know where this is leading)... many of them were artfully composed and deftly painted but the intention seemed to be about how faithfully these could be rendered. That in itself is a daunting challenge (to which I admit, I can't compete) but it always seemed odd considering that an artfully composed photo might prove more interesting. I am not alibiing my still life here; I only consider it marginally good anyway. What intrigues me about all this is how we think about what we see. I have given some marginally accurate clues as to what is pictured in my still life: a box, a light bulb, a stapler, some paper, a coaster and a black object (actually, a chess piece). We seem to read them close enough to tell us what they are but the way I've painted them would not take too many more steps to cloud over their recognition and become more about my gestures and marks than the objects depicted. At that point, I wonder if there is a space where both realities can exist together. Howard Hodgkin comes to my mind. he'd be a good one to google.......(sorry, I really digressed..haha!!)