Ode to Hollywood - The Party

What a night!!  Pinch me...I felt like, "what am I doing here?"

The "Ode to Hollywood" Art Exhibition opened in the Jeanie Madsen Gallery on Ocean Ave in Santa Monica last night.   From the time we arrived to the time we left there was a steady stream of people - artists, friends of the artists and collectors enjoying a diverse but cohesive show.

A Hollywood-style red carpet led the way to the gallery from busy Ocean Ave. and a photographer took pictures of artists with gallery owner Jeanie Madsen.   Her sweet, peanut-sized frame belied her powerhouse of energy, enthusiasm and charisma.  She was the thought leader in creating the event and collaborating with international magazine, Blue Canvas.   All that had me a little anxious of what to expect, but we couldn't have felt more welcome, thanks to Jeanie and her staff.



Jeanie Madsen and Maureen Being Photographed on the Red Carpet

Any worries about fitting in or "what to wear" quickly gave way to relaxation and enjoyment as we observed outfits from jeans and tee shirts to formfitting mini skirts to long silky gowns. Anything goes in LA...free expression. We didn't remember to bring our funky hats, but others had their fedoras, flowery headpieces, turbans and leopard top hats.  

All around the gallery the friendly, positive, creative, and can-do messaging for artists and collectors alike.   Jeanie admitted to diving into this event not knowing what to expect.   It started to take on a life of its own and the goodwill generated was more than she ever expected.  At the start of the awards announcement, my own welcome was complete with Jeanie making note of my cross-country trek, stating that I had come the furthest to be there.

The common denominator in the gallery was love of art and all experience levels of artists boldly putting their best work forward. Among the show's collection of artwork was mixed media, photography, sculpture, and digitally altered images. Each piece had a write up describing the inspiration for creating the artwork and its connection to Hollywood.  Here is a link to the gallery.   Photos are forthcoming.

http://www.jeaniemadsengallery.com/index.html



Maureen with Ode to Hollywood Painting

During the course of the night, Jeanie brought people over and introduced us. We met an artist, a young woman from Kingston, MA, who just relocated to LA seeking a gallery position.  Several people came over because they had ties to Massachusetts.  I don't remember all the names, but I remember them expressing genuine interest in my painting too.   It was an energizing shot of adrenaline feeding already my panabsorbing art obsession.

I even chatted with the two men who own and run Blue Canvas magazine.  Thirty-something Justin Yun is the Publisher and CEO of the magazine.  They seemed genuinely interested and happy to hear that I was a regular user of the online features of Blue Canvas,  including art collecting, rating favorites with stars, and maintaining a personal gallery.   They shared that there was an upgrade in the works.  Both made a point to study my painting and were complimentary of it.   We exchanged business cards and they signed my complimentary issue, another nice momento.

I am obviously really glad we came and I promise not to make a habit of shameless self promotion in future blog posts.   But this definitely was an exciting first in my art life and I was ready to just bust....so here it is - dedicated to my best cheering section - you know who you are :)

Ode to Hollywood Exhibit Opening

A couple of days ago, I forwarded the following link to my family members.

http://laartparty.com/

I got a boot out of the fact that in this Entertainment Publication in Los Angeles was touting the "Ode to Hollywood" Exhibit Opening as an LA "pick of the week."   Mentioned in the article was the "MA to LA" connection - that meant me - and further on listed my name among other artists who were selected for the show.

A painter doesn't typically stay wired to email all day so imagine my reaction when I signed on later and read a flurry of emails that amounted to a grassroots family uprising.  They said,  "you're going, right? " ...  "Seriously, you have to"  ... "it doesn't happen every day..."  "I know a guy in LA..."   Even the flight numbers and times were supplied to me.

We took the plunge and booked flights and hotel and within an hour our vacation plans were altered.   The Red Sox tickets were reassigned.   (We aren't in love with them right now anyhow - good riddance Beckett).   Thank you to the family for providing clarity on the situation!

I am looking forward to visiting this very cool and welcoming gallery. I've been so impressed with Jeanie and team from the Jeanie Madsen Gallery.   Look them up on Facebook if you want.  They have been outstanding to work with and the following philosophy seems to be more than just good words.

"A home for "Real Deal" Artists. No fluff. Not searching for fame and fortune, only searching for truth and passion before all. Not doing what society or Mom and Dad tell you to do, but what your inner soul tells you to do. Did I mention, incredibly humble Artists. Or just Real. Real Deal Talent. What can I say, see for yourself."  Not all that is true about me, but I like that they want that in their artists.

I will post on this some more, but for now, I'm boarding.  On to LA!!!

A Backyard that Gets Used

My Grandpuppy, Opie was staying with me for a few days and the pick-up logistics resulted in a delay.   Luckily, my complete obsession with painting had driven me to be ready for such an opportunity and that morning and I had packed my paints just in case.  I was glad I did.

Wooded Hillside Backyard

The multi-family structure where my son lives is situated at the base of a large steep wooded hill.   A three foot retaining wall forms the back barrier against the woods.   I was struck by the family friendly, lived-in look of this shared backyard.   A collection of grills, chairs, bikes, and trikes were scattered across a nice grassy lawn.  It was mostly shaded, but where the light filtered through the trees on the hill, a lacy pattern of light decorated the grass and bikes.    Missing were all the children and people that go with these items.  It was a weekday though and all was quiet.  


My observation was that all the dark areas of the woods seemed warm and more brown than blue or purple.   Also the brightly lit grassy areas on the slope were almost "white green."   These two observations told me that I had a cool light, warm shadow scheme.    I am learning that if I establish this at the outset and stay true to it though the end, I will have a harmonious painting.

I was just about done with my painting session when it was time to take Opie home with me.   He was a good boy!  

As always I came back to the painting a week later for touch-ups using a photo I had taken.    The trap here was being tempted to use the photo to adjust color temperature to a blue shadow scheme, which is typical of photos.   I stuck with the cool light, warm shadow.   Here it is for comment.

"M" Street Beach

It's August and there is plenty of mild weather still to come in summer and, of course, all of the autumn to look forward to.  I find myself thinking however about the later sunrises and earlier sunsets.   Have I been taking advantage of the early sun for painting?  Not enough.

M Street Beach Stage 1

I decided to get up and out early so that I could paint in Boston prior to making my regular visit to my aunt.    I parked on Day Boulevard near "O" Street and crossed over to a grassy spot just before the South Boston Yacht Club.   I set up facing west, aligned with the shoreline.  The L Street Bathhouses were straight ahead of me and the tall, white handball court was visible beyond the M Street beach fence.   



M Street Beach - Stage 2

It was only 7:30 AM when I set up, another warm and humid day.   The sun was behind me and it was illuminating the sand and lighting up the trees along the boulevard.   It was a very warm light.   I commenced with a warm sand color made from terra cotta, naples yellow and white.   Toward the waterline the sand was darker and greener.   The horizon line, the distant shore of Columbia Point and Carson Beach was mostly green, but when I held up the loaded brush, I had to make it much bluer.   This far treeline color called for cool combination of viridian green, alizarin crimson and lemon yellow, contrasted with ultramarine for shadows.

M Street Beach

I liked the idea of adding the metal fence that curved away from where I was standing.   It was a blue-green color, but it was effectively reflecting the blue sky overhead at the top.   It formed a cool - warm contrast against the warm sand as well as a dynamic lead in to the painting.  



This canvas is 9 x 12 so for the small details, I waited until I got back to the studio for my small brushwork.   I added just a couple of people to it because in fact there were no people on the beach, but usually there is!   As always comments and suggestions welcome.

Pond Reflections 2



Old Oaken Bucket Stage One


This was the second painting I did at the Old Oaken Bucket Pond today.   It is efficient to do multiple paintings at the same spot, not just because you are in a groove, but you have your paint mixtures and brushes from the first painting.  This is a 9 x 12 inch linen on board with no underpainting.   In this painting the structure on the far side of the pond was my focal point.


Dragonfly in Blue Paint



This was a perfect weather day.   Low humidity and warm temperatures - being outside painting, what could be better?  And as if my appreciation of the gift of a perfect day wasn't enough, I had a visit from a winged creature, a bright green dragonfly.



Dragonfly Visit

As I worked on the sky, it landed atop my canvas.  I'm sure it was standing in blue paint.   It hung out with me for quite a while.    It then moved to the top of my easel.  I took pictures and it never flinched.    Maybe it was stuck by blue paint?  Reincarnation believers, what say you?



Old Oaken Bucket Stage 2

I worked the darks above and below the shoreline.   Like in the first painting, I turned the canvas 90 degrees to check the symmetry of the marks on either side.   I continued to work lighter and lighter greens.    The barn in the distance has three visible planes.  The left side in shadow was a dark purplish gray.  The roof is a similar hue, but lighter and bluer taking on some blue sky reflection.  The sunlit side of the barn was titanium, raw sienna and cadmium red light.   For the reflections of the barn sides I used a little extra medium in anticipation of using the wide brush to draw down its reflections.


Old Oaken Bucket Pond Stage 3

Once this dries, I will add some sky colored ripples and a few water lilies.

Old Oaken Bucket Stage 4

Pond Reflections 1

Underpainted Square

I enjoy painting water and I especially like painting pretty landscape scenes with placid water and their reflections.   I made a return trip to a little spot in Scituate adjacent to the 3A Rotary called the Old Oaken Bucket Pond.   The pond itself is fenced off because it feeds the Scituate water supply.   Despite the fence, it was still easy to see.   I used an 8 x 8 inch square canvas on board that had been underpainted with a soft palette of grays, blues, greens and peach.  

Old Oaken Bucket Smearing Reflections

I sold the previous painting I did of this spot and although the two scenes I painted today are similar, the first time I painted here it was autumn with the variety of color you would expect. 

Well it's summer and it's green.   The amount of green in this scene was glorious in person, but as I started to record all the greens, it quickly became overwhelmingly green.  I even falsely injected reddish purples in my cool shadows, just to break up the amount of green.  I scanned the scene for any hints of non-green and where I saw it, I added it to the painting and pumped it up.


Once I had my canvas covered, I turned it 90 degrees and compared either side of the shorelines to make sure they mirrored each other.   I turned it back face up and used my two inch housepaint brush to draw down all the colors in the water to create the reflections.  

As a last step, I will use my palette knife to apply some ripples that pick up the sky color to paint in water lilies in the foreground.   Look for the finished painting on my website in a couple of weeks.

Ode to Hollywood

This summer was full of excitment for those of us who witnessed first hand the behind the scenes action related to a movie filming in our Green Harbor neighborhood.   Hollywood came to town to shoot a movie called "The Way, Way Back."   What has always been a mostly quiet street became a busy thoroughfare during the months of June and July. 

Several of the cast and crew members including the Executive Producer, Directors/Writers and Actors lived in several of the homes around me.   In total, we heard that around one hundred people were involved in the making of the movie.    It was commonplace to see stars and cast pedaling their bikes, or riding in golf carts to and from the filming site including Toni Colette, Mya Rudolfand Steve Carell.

One Saturday morning in June many cars started arriving for what seemed like a movie kick-off meeting in the Directors' house next door.  We saw many of the primary figures working on the movie such as George Parra (Executive Producer), Jim Rash and Nat Faxon (Directors/Writers), Liam James (Boy Star), Toni Colette (Actress).    Other nights including the infamous 3rd of July attracted the cast and crew to the house to enjoy our annual party and fireworks spectacle for as far as the eye can see.   My interest in the movie didn't take over my life, but I do confess that I was keeping close tabs on the activity whenever I was around.

I wasn't the only one.  Interested observers from near and far made a daily walk, bike ride, or car ride down our street to investigate what was happening on the movie during the weeks they were shooting.  Although I did hear some neighborhood grumbling at times regarding traffic and road closures, I was thinking how lucky we were to have all this excitment happening right in our midst.   It's not every day that a movie is filmed on your doorstep.


They left yesterday so things are getting back to normal.  There are no transport vans and equipment trucks rumbling by, nor is there any police detail preventing stray cars from wandering down to the movie set.

I thought it was quite a coincidence when I came across an advertisement for an art contest entitled "Ode to Hollywood."   I immediately thought of a couple of "in-progress" scenes that I had witnessed that captured the feel of the movie being filmed, and something I could paint.    I decided on a scene depicting a segment in which a car was driving down the street toward a young girl on a bicycle.   Multiple takes were done of this scene using a big white screen measuring about twenty feet high and fifteen feet wide.   The screen was erected across the road, presumably to mask the houses and spectators further down on the corner.    To the right of the white screen, some under a white umbrella, were a dozen or more movie crew members with equipment, filming, directing and watching the scene unfold.

I began with a previously painted canvas of bright warm blocks of color, entitled "three." (Triplets, three legged dog, three breasted woman). I turned it upside down to do a block in of the painting it was going to become.   If you want to see the old painting right side up, either turn your computer up side down, or stand on your head - haha.


For the painting, I liked working on the challenge of various distances from the far beach houses to the crowd of movie crew characters, the car and the primary focal point, the girl on the bike.   The span of distance was probably a quarter of a mile.  The bright colorful crowd balanced the larger blocks of neutral areas (screen, houses, pavement).   I painted the very busy area of the movie crew crowd by thinking of it as an abstract area colored shapes and dots, at least for the first pass.   Then I stepped back and assessed if this area looked like a crowd of people.   Because the photo I was working from was taken from a long distance, the bumps in the street make the yellow double line disappear and reappear with the changing levels.



Girl on Bicycle - Take Two

Okay.  I am out of time.  No danger of overworking this painting for the contest as I will submit it today.   I still welcome comments and reserve the right to fine tune further as always.

 I cannot wait to see this movie and match up what I saw to what is actually happening in the film.   Fascinating!








Postscript:   The painting was selected for display at the Jeanie Madsen Gallery in Santa Monica, CA as part of the "Ode to Hollywood" Exhibition, from August 25 through September, 2012.

Sunflowers and Hydrangeas Demo

DAA Lobby Demo - Start

I love to look at art and I like to take my time enjoying every piece I see, so I don't mind one bit when there is a need for gallery sitter volunteers.   Today I was the sitter at the Duxbury Art Association Mid-Summer Show.    Would I consider doing a painting while I was minding the shop I was asked?   No problem.   I could look at the art of others and use the time to produce something of my own, a double benefit.

I brought some props with me to use in a still life, but when I got to the Ellison Center in Duxbury, I saw that the beautiful floral arrangements for the Art Party were all set up.   They screamed of summer freshness - sunflowers, hydrangeas and coneflowers.   More than one person were compelled to touch them to see if they were real or artificial, because of their perfection.





DAA Lobby Demo - Finish

My temperature scheme was cool light and warm shadows. I began with my transparent oxides - brown and red - to chisel in the drawing.   The sunflower petals that were in light were done with a cool bright yellow (titanium white, lemon yellow and cad yellow light), and the shaded petals were warm dark yellows (terra rosa, cad yellow deep and a touch of transparent oxide brown).     The hydrangea petals were various shades of lavender (cobalt blue and permanent rose) and in some places light blue (titanium and cobalt blue)   The shady petals actually looked greenish so I used a warm green in some places and a warm violet in other places.     


As I told some of the people who came by to observe,  I think that the painting was at its best about one hour before quitting time.   In the last hour, I may have taken some of the freshness away.    The photo to the right shows the painting at the end of the day.    As always, I will review it in a few days and make any other revisions.