Roses Oval

While I was working on garden paintings this spring, I was inspired to tackle "the oval" yet again.  I have pulled this canvas out and worked it at least 4 or 5 times and then put it away again.   I've never been quite happy with this oval floral.

The pink roses version shown was the first try.   Ironically, this was probably the best one.  The roses sit nicely within the curved shape - but I didn't recognize that back then.  The subsequent versions (which I didn't take pictures of) gradually filled up the space and the roses got bigger.  This white roses version is finally the rendering I have settled on.   I do like the addition of the bees and the warm translucent shadows of the white rose petals.

And to prove that I'm done, I'm showing it framed. :)

White Roses Oval

Pink Rose Oval - Painted Over

Garden Tour Splendor

 

 

 

 

 

Words cannot describe the beauty of the gorgeous garden where I painted recently.   It was part of a garden tour and deservedly so.   The garden lovers, myself included could not get over the many stunning scenes at this riverside oasis.   Peonies were the star as it was the third week of June and there were hundreds of blooms decorating every square foot of garden space.  I stood along a small pathway that led to the backdoor of this cedar shingle antique (circa 1740).  The underbrush mulch was dark and warm, yet the walkway was also bright and warm - sort of breaking the color temperature rules of painting.  I wanted the garden to dominate, but the house was so enticing that I gave it a bit of attention too.

Garden Tour Splendor

Doorways on Marlborough St

Marlborough Street 18

The doorways in the Back Bay of Boston shine with style and finesse all year long, but in late summer the flowers are peaking and the frontages are especially pretty.   For capturing city scenes in paint, I gravitate to Marlborough Street because it is quieter than Boylston or Commonwealth, which are just as grand.   Even the less manicured frontages have the elegance of mid-1800 architecture.

Birthplace John Adams

John Adams Birthplace

I've painted the John Adams grand manor of "Peacefield" many times, so I thought it was time to check out our second president's earlier roots.  This small, antique, saltbox-colonial, Adams's birthplace, is also located in Quincy, MA on Franklin Street.   It was built in 1681 and purchased by Deacon John Adams, President John Adams’ father, in 1720.  We learned on a guided tour that it still stands in its original location, at that time, a 188 acre farm.

The 21st century noise and traffic on this street was a stark contrast to the bucolic setting I imagined when hearing the Guide's story of the property back in the colonial era. Well, the painting looks as rural as the original description of the Homestead, surrounded by trees, fieldstone walls and wild flowers.  This 11x14 inch painting will be on display at the Annual Quincy Art Festival Exhibit called "Best of Quincy."

Old Barn at Willow and South River St

Antique Barn - Stage One

We are very lucky here on the South Shore of Massachusetts to have such a varied landscape - woods, meadows, marshes, beaches, and bogs, along with several rivers that empty into the Atlantic Ocean.   Our seaside town has done a good job preserving open spaces, which allows access and full enjoyment of these landscape features.     The town has been successful in acquiring land parcels for preservation and in many cases they are strung together forming contiguous land masses, and the number of beautiful walking trails continues to grow.

Antique Barn - Stage Two

There is an old farmhouse and barn which sits along a stretch of a (new?) walking trail along the South River in Marshfield, part of a 34 acre conservation parcel that the town now owns.   Up until today I had only caught a glimse of the antique farmhouse from the road.  It looked overgrown with weeds and twisting vines but we took a chance and pulled into the driveway, a turnoff from South River Street.  The "driveway" was more like a cartpath with its tall grasses snaking along between the antique (1700ish) farmhouse and the large salt hay barn.

Maureen Packing Up

As soon as we reached the opening at the back of the house and the front of the barn, we knew that we would stay and paint this beautiful spot.   There were several worthy subjects, but the scene I settled upon was the sunlit barn.   Its old graceful lines were remarkably straight considering its age.    I stood in a shady thicket of trees that was slightly uphill from the barn.    Dark green and burgundy cedars framed the edges of the scene.   An old window shutter opened and closed shut with the occasional strong breezes.  It cast a long vertical shadow on the clapboards below in the open position.   The challenge was to make - yet another - antique barn painting that would stand out from all the other iconic barn paintings.   I think my painting style is defined enough to know that it will be different from the rest because it has my painting style ie. signature, like it or not!  :)

Antique Barn

A handful of hikers and a mountain biker passed by, but other than those visitors, it was mostly solitude. One of the hikers shared that he had been instrumental in supporting the town's open space acquisitions and expressed that he was glad that this interesting and historic barn was being captured in paint.  I was too!

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Stream Down by the Barn

Stream by the Barn Underpainting

Another snowscape!?   But see?  There is melting going on here ... a sign of inevitable Spring. :)

The barn in this painting is located in Lee, MA next to the Devonfield Inn.   I was picturing how the barn may have looked when it was originally built.   It was probably red oxide (the cheapest and most available paint back then), certainly not white.    The mid-winter setting and frozen stream probably didn't look much different though - pristine!

The modernized barn was white so that was the way I painted it.  The strong dark shadow from the eaves was perfectly parallel with the roof line - all was well with the world.   I loved that there was a stark contrast of values in the scene.    Whether viewed sideways or up-side-down, the abstract value pattern worked - independent of the subject.



Stream by the Barn

The stream in the foreground was done with a very dark combination of transparent darks: alizarin, ultramarine, transparent oxide brown, viridian and purple.  I didn't mix them thoroughly, but rather scraped up a bit of each onto my palette knife and spread it horizontally, which resulted in a dark area where the various colors can still be distinguished.   If I had mixed all those darks, it would have resulted in a nice dark blackish color which would have been okay.  A better result came from minimal mixing of the colors, adding another dimension to the darkest dark.

Let the melting begin!



Knockdown House and Rain

I did what I said I would not do, which is to drive around looking for a place to paint.   I'm not taking full blame for wasting this time.   I'm sharing it with the weather forecaster I watched.   She said the morning mist would give way to a bright but cloudy day.   I stayed optimistic and drove into Boston. I'm also sharing the blame with the parking situation in Boston.   I was planning on snaring the first metered spot I saw, but there was none to be had.   Meanwhile the mist became steady rain and then downpours and wind.    Twasn't meant to be!

Knockdown House on Gray Day

I did errands instead and on my way back into Marshfield, I decided to stop at the South River Park which has that new sheltered picnic area.   I had set out in the morning to paint - and like a junkie, I hadn't gotten my fix.   It was misty again so this was a nice gray setting.   The old dilapidated house that I painted the last time I was here looked worse than ever.

 According to the sign out front this old house is slated to be demolished and be replaced with new commercial real estate. I suspect the new building will not have the old graceful lines of this antique that I enjoyed on this day, and probably for the last time.

Rain on my Palette

As for color, with all the grayness of the day, I used Gamblin's Radiant Magenta and Radiant Violet with touch of my usual grays.   These made some pretty (although pale) color accents amid all the silvery woods.   These soft colorful accents aren't visible in this photograph at all!   They really are there in person, I swear!

Knockdown House

The overhang worked out well for about an hour at which point the wind and rain I had seen in Boston earlier started up.   Before I realized it, the palette was covered with raindrops.  Luckily only the back of the painting got wet.  I packed up and get out of there, thinking - hot coffee needed.

Paige Street View

Paige Street - Stage One

A quaint old Hingham neighborhood called "Crow Point" is situated just 10 miles south of Boston and can boast both ocean and bay views - even a distant view of the Boston skyline.     Modern builders could benefit from studying the lines and grace of many of these old houses.  Cupolas, gazebos and ornate weathervanes made each home a little different and more interesting than the next.   I likes the hints of (just enough) age and stress that give them character.   The "too pristine" look of "new development" wouldn't fit in well here.    Many large. centuries old shade trees accented the pretty but narrow streets.



Paige Street

One of my favorite homes was at the end of Paige Street.   I could only guess how many old fireplaces may have been serviced by that big old brick chimney.    The multiple, elegant rounded bows and white window trim picked up the warm light nicely.     I painted the scene somewhat realistically, although if you look closely, the pinks and yellows in the asphalt are certainly prettier than the real thing!


Painting at Peacefield

Yorkist Rose Tree Set Out by Abigail Adams - 1788

Painting Set Up at Peacefield

Today I painted at a national treasure located in Quincy, MA and it was located only about twenty miles from Marshfield.

Historic Yellowwood Tree and Flower Gardens at Peacefield

The estate is known as The Old House, or Peacefield, residence of the Adams Family for four generations from 1788 to 1927.

 

It was home to Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams, First Ladies Abigail and Louisa Catherine Adams, and a number of other Adams Family luminaries.  The National Park Service does a wonderful job caring for and giving tours of the historic property.  And even if you are only half as big a fan of the Adamses as me, it is a must see.



Peacefield Painting Stage Two

What a spectacular setting!  The summer gardens contained a wild array of blooms, and on this August day they were absolutely stunning.  They provided a grand and colorful scene for my painting.  I framed the scene such that the Stone Library (left) and the Old House (right) were included.   The Stone Library was built in 1873 and it contains more than 14,000 books that belonged to the Adamses.  The grounds include a historic orchard and an 18th-century style formal garden, containing thousands of annual and perennial flowers. 



Peacefield

The arched doorway into the Stone Library was quite unique and it was the center of interest.  (I actually made this interesting feature a little larger than reality.)     I left my "reward" until the end, which was the thick, juicy and bright flowers.    The one element I may still add is the weathervane on The Stone Library.     This is one of my favorite paint-outs and paintings I have ever done!  It is really loose where it can be, and the strong contrast of values strengthen the architectural elements.