Plein Air Hancock, NH

It took just under two hours to get to Hancock, NH for our February painting getaway. My husband and I were each able to get two paintings done in the three days.  The conditions were rough the first day as it was cloudy, freezing cold - and windy.  Additionally, I was standing in snow.   I was quickly chilled to the bone.  It did make me paint faster than usual, although the paint was quite sluggish.   Hahaha...it was great!   I sought hot tea immediately once we got to the Inn and happily let their elderly Golden Retriever rest his warm head in my lap.

Snowy Gate

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By contrast, the next day was glorious. The full sunshine gave a brilliant glow to everything in sight. The black and white world from the previous day was now full of lively color, blue sky, yellow inn, red barn, and golden, sunlit pile of firewood.  I never did clean off my palette from the first day, so its no wonder that the snow colors look very similar.   The photo belies the bright color in the actual painting, especially the red, and now I'm thinking I should make things brighter still.  Paintings that reside in the studio are never really done!

Barn Out Back

 

 

 

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!

 BUY NOW

First Snow of the Season

First Snow of the Season

This week an arctic blast finally pushed into New England.  The frigid temperatures, "warm" ocean water and wind whipping from the north resulted in several hours of "ocean effect" snow. Similar to summer fog, the ocean moisture blanketed the shore with swirling flakes while just a ten minute drive inland it was a bright, sunny sky.   This constituted the first measurable snow for the season - which got me thinking "snowscape."   I set up at the Daniel Webster Audubon in Green Harbor, planning to paint snow.   Most of the snow was in the shadowy areas, although the terrain sloping away from the sun was also snowy and sufficiently illuminated. Many areas had already melted or evaporated, but that was fine; just enough snow!

I painted this same scene a year ago without snow so it may look familiar.     As a wildlife refuge, it is pristine as can be, and as such there is always hope of seeing deer, fox, and hawks.   The most action I saw today was in the air, a red helicopter practicing landing and takeoffs.      

BUY NOW

Check out the scene in the following video (4:30 sec).    

https://youtu.be/95yx1hzkPwI

Chicken University

Chicken House Stage One

Little did I know when I set up to paint toward the back of a property near Bluefish Cove that the "shed" I was painting was actually an elaborate chicken house, or as the owner called it, "Chicken University."

Chicken House Stage Two

As I painted I could hear chickens and still didn't know they were in and just beyond the white garden structure I was putting into my scene.   It wasn't until I saw the owner walk to the double doors and say "hello girls" that I made the connection.   I was looking uphill so the sky was nice and blue and the light on the grass was just catching the tips of the blades from where I was standing.  From my angle there were no visible chickens.  The white chicken house had no light on the walls (so they were painted a dark bluish gray), but the roof had some dappled light.  A border of tulips stood out brightly against the dark shaded backdrop.

After completing the painting, I made a visit to the property to buy eggs and the owner was nice enough to let me see the 32 chicken operation.   Fascinating to me - having never lived on or near a farm.  The photo shows the inside of the chicken house with its roosting compartments - like a chest of draws.   These are some pampered chickens, each one with a name by the way.   Oh, and the eggs were outstanding!

Chicken House Stage Three

Inside Chicken University

Horse Barn Harrison St Duxbury

Stage One

Last year I noticed a beautiful farm on Harrison Street in Duxbury where two horses were enjoying a large grassy area that was located just below an old farmhouse and barn.   On this day I set up hoping that the horses would appear at some point (they never did - unfortunately).  

It is the first week of May and there is no green brighter than the initial buds and blades this time of year.  In fact it was so green that I hesitated to paint it as (fluorescent) green as it was;  it would not even seem quite right -I think. 



Stage Two

Another thing I did today was to time myself (executing a typical 9x12 painting) in preparation for the "quick draw" competition I'll be doing in a couple of weeks.  I seldom think about time when I paint; in fact everything drops away while in the trance. :)



Stage Three

For the quick draw I'll have 120 minutes to paint and frame my painting.  This painting took between 90 and 100 minutes to get it to a presentable point.




Here are the times in case anyone is interested:

Unload gear and set up easel:                                         4 Min
Line sketch:                                                                  10 Min
Refine Drawing (paper towel wipe out                              11 Min
First layer  (cover sky, treeline, barn, foreground)            42 Min
Second Layer (thick lights, middle tree, grassy brushwork)  26 Min

The total time then was 92 minutes.  That leaves 28 minutes for framing so I am more comfortable than I was!   I spent another ten minutes on it in the studio.

Horse Barn Harrison St Duxubury



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!



Winter Day at the Audubon

Winter Day at Audubon - Stage One

It looked like it would be a dry day - but gray - so I set up at the Daniel Webster Wildlife Refuge in Marshfield, MA.   As I painted it got windier and cloudier and chillier so I told myself to paint more quickly!

I decided to face southwest to include the brightest part of the early winter sky.    I mixed up some cloud colors, but made them high key, ie bright.   I'm still using the Gamblin's Radiant Violet and Radiant Magenta - not alone - but mixed with my usual blues and whites.    I painted down to the treeline, and beyond in a couple of places.

Winter Day at Audubon - Stage Two

My treeline was a swirl of asphaltum (a transparent brown), burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and green. The metal roof of the barn had a bluish color, strongly influenced by the sky.   Inside the barn, the farming equipment really caught my attention.   In fact, the items inside were the reason I chose this scene.   There was an old red trailer with bales of hay, tools on the wall, and a small tractor. Ironically, when it came time to paint them, I realize that their values were too dark to distinguish.  I settled for some dark hints of what was there.

Winter Day at Audubon - Stage Three

For the grasses, I used the stubby pastry brush to scrub in the fading winter grasses (ochre, sap green, burnt sienna, a little sky blue to tone it down).   Finally, I carved in the foreground trees.   Cutting them in right over the barn that just got painted is somewhat scary, but it really works to boldly represent the scene as it is.   (The sky paint was quite thick to carve through, so the branches will be restated back in the studio.)

Winter Day at Audubon - Stage Three

I thought I was painting quickly.  I only stopped once to wrap my neck in my warmest fake fur scarf, so I was surprised to discover that over two hours had elapsed.   My body temperature did confirm it had been two hours; I was frozen!     Painting endomorphins were coursing just fine through my veins and it didn't take long to pack up.  Sadly, the canvas fell face down onto the ground!  What?!?  The grit didn't cling as well as it would have in summer.   If you examine the upper left corner of the sky, there are some flakes of dead leaves - actually, just the right spot if I was going to add them.  :)


I still have work to do on the tree branches in the studio before I post to the shop or gallery, but the last photo is where I stopped for the paint-out.

Golden Waves of Grain

Golden Waves of Grain

This painting was done as part of a demonstration for my friends at Compass on the Bay Senior Residence.  I decided to use a beautiful photo of a farm in autumn for my reference.  Each person in the audience had a copy of the photo in hand so that they could have a good look at what I was painting.

The painting session became an interactive experience with many seniors offering input into the painting process.   Seniors are refreshingly direct, and they freely offered their opinions and suggestions.   The farm scene provided a bright and colorful subject, working out well even for those with more limited vision. 

Dandelion Park

Little Blue Shed - Stage One

I remember when we first moved to Marshfield there was a plot of land at the corner of Webster Street and Ocean Street, a major intersection, that was an unsightly patch of weeds and rubble.   I'm not sure what had been there in years past, but someone had a dream to transform it.   In 2010, thanks to the Molly Fitzgerald Memorial Fund, it was transformed into a lovely little oasis dedicated with paths, greenery, and a water feature.   Molly was a remarkable fourteen year old Marshfield girl who died unexpectedly in 2006.  You will be as touched by her spirit as I was when I visited both the website link above - and Dandelion Park, the location of this painting.

Little Blue Shed - Stage Two

It was a pleasure to set up right in the middle of this serene little spot.   I could hear the water trickling from the small fountain.  The petite and perfectly-in-scale blue-gray shed stood out against the orange fall foliage.  Yes, I am always predictably attracted to a rustic shed, my center of interest.   I loved how the sun was lighting up the roof shingles and the white trim contrasted with the purplish blue shadows.  The photo is washing out the trim to a stark white although in reality, the white trim and light shingles have color when the painting is viewed in person.

 On the right, there was a butterfly bush and since we are well into October, the drying leaves looked silvery green.   I used a rainbow of pale lavender, pale pink, pale green and naples yellow for these silvery highlights.

Little Blue Shed at Dandelion Park

After completing a realistic rendition, it was time to stop looking at the scene and decide by looking - just at the painting - if changes were needed for the sake of a better painting (aka - artistic license).   I pumped up the orange foliage beyond the actual scene to counterbalance the complementary blue shed.     Are there any other changes readers could suggest for this painting?

Thank you to the Molly Fund for creating this beautiful open space!

Something Out of Not Much

South River Park in Progress

I've been painting enough to know that it is not necessary to drive around, wasting time looking for the "right" place to paint.   A few other factors now take precedence over a perfect vista, like a convenient, safe, free parking spot for one.   There is a fairly new open space in Marshfield called the South River Park on the main drag in Marshfield directly across from the Hess Station.  

The first time I visited the park I was a little disappointed.  I thought it would lead to a long river trail, but discovered that what you see from the street is just about the extent of it.   It is my understanding that this little park project is a piece of a longer range plan to connect some open spaces along the South River, so perhaps my expectations will be fulfilled at some future point.



South River Park Final

So I took advantage of this convenient, safe, free parking (with a brand new sheltered picnic area) to paint this scene.    The light was pretty on the variety of summery greens and the paved walkways.   The condemned structure in the background was rustic enough to translate into a pseudo-farmhouse.    The layout of the park was interesting enough to inspire the light and colors you see in the photo.

Old Barn

Old Barn Stage One

This old barn was located near the North River in Hanover.   One side of this street looked like an average suburban neighborhood with houses and their two car garages sitting behind emerald green manicured lawns. The other side of the street looked as if it was out in the middle of the countryside.   The barn looked old and weather beaten, it's red iron oxide trim bleached to pink by decades of sunshine.   The roof was missing large sections of shingles and the large barn doors were wide open.   Another farm structure sat beyond it by about 150 yards, also looking rough and weathered.

Old Barn Stage Two

It was cloudy but bright at first and as time went on, it became more overcast and damp.   For paint-outs, the clouds offer a more consistent scene for a longer period of time since there are no distinct, shifting shadows.  Although the light and contrasts weren't as pronounced, effectively matching this scene meant using a middle range of values.   Since it was October, I toned the greens down with naples yellow and pink.   The meadow grasses had a burnt sienna and gold look to them, and I added some sky blue to account for the distance.   The metal gate was teal gray with splotches of rust.  I liked how its cross rails pointed toward the barn.

If you can feel the moisture of the day or imagine smelling the earthy grasses and fermenting apples through this scene, then it was somewhat successful.  Those are the aspects of the scene I would remember along with the fall colored muted by clouds.

When I finished this up, my initial impression was that it was somewhat dull.   When I got it back to the studio however, I was happy with the harmonious palette.  It matched the day, bright but gray.  A minor issue required adjustments as my easel must have been crooked since the barn verticals appeared slightly skewed.   Would you believe that a barn this old could actually be out of plumb?   Of course - but it wasn't out of plumb - my easel was.   I straightened the cupola and walls back in the studio.

This is one of my newest favorites, lots of thick plein air paint.  I'll post the final version to my website soon.

Corner of Ferry and Ireland

Corner of Ferry and Ireland - Stage One

Just behind the Bridgewaye Restaurant near Humarock, the South River runs alongside Ferry Street.   The banks of the river are lined with rocks and sand with just enough space to pull the car over.   I was going to paint the river and the Sea Street Bridge when I noticed a different scene.   The house at the corner of Ferry and Ireland was positively beautiful - a mini-Holland with hundreds of Spring bulbs.   The tulips were set off by the fresh and newly green shrubs and grass.  Additionally there were pretty stone walls lining the property and winding up Ireland Street, an appropriate name.   



Corner of Ferry and Ireland - Stage Two

The gardener extraordinaire who created this natural layout used a keen design eye, and I was told by neighbors walking by that for every season, the property provides them with a beautiful scene.   I must to remember this spot for painting.    Although in the Stage One picture looks like I may be painting the house on the left, I actually painted the barn to the rear.  After laying in the armature, I continued to smear on the color thickly with my palette knife.   The bright red tulips were the most prominent.  The pavement was where I cleaned my palette knife so that a colorful gray started to develop and I wasn't wasting any paint.

 The tops of the posts of the decorative ranch fence in the middle happen to be right at the same level as the row of tulips behind.   I felt this was bad for the design, so I made them taller - mistake.   They looked awkward and if a sharp eye studied this, they would see that the hedges on the left were shorter which wasn't likely.  I cut the posts down.   I stopped the paint out there.   Once I start correcting, I feel like the freshness is lost.



Corner of Ferry and Ireland Stage Three

A couple of days after painting this and I tried to take an objective look.   If I analyze each section or element of the painting, I really like it, but as a whole, I don't.  For example, I like the rustic barn, the receding distant trees up the hill, the stone walls, the red tulip border that transitions from shade to sun.  Then why isn't this painting working for me?

Take a stab at identifying the problem.   It may not be salvageable, but I'm curious as to what everyone else thinks.     Here is the current version (Stage Three).

I will post the results in a second blog soon.

Audubon Farm Day 2012

This past week, the local weather forecasters had been predicting wet weather for this weekend.  Our Saturday paint out plans at the Daniel Webster Audubon would be hanging in the balance.   It did start out somewhat murky, but the clouds eventually gave way to some sun by mid afternoon.   Temperatures soared and it was a bonus given that were in October.



Farm Day Paint Out

I've painted here before, and have at least one previous blog post on it.   Today it was a vastly different place from the quiet, pristine reserve it usually is.   This event attracted hundreds of people, mostly families with small children.   The old barn was transformed into a hot soup station for the day.    Bales of hay were used to construct a children's maze, borders between events, food lines, bumpers for the hayrides and of course, sitting areas. 

I set up at the top of a dirt path that led down to the old barn.   Pretty foliage was almost at peak, a mixture of rusty green, golds and cool yellows.   A white sun umbrella was set up in front of the barn and it caught me eye right away.  It provided the sharpest contrast, against the wide black openings.   A large yellow and white striped tent was positioned on the left, a pretty counterbalance to the bright trees behind the barn.



Farm Day Oct 20

Most of the attractions, beekeepers, blacksmith, wool spinners, animals, hayrides, merchants, etc., and the hundreds of people viewing them were behind me and only occasionally would someone use the path I was painting to descend to the barn.   Pretty scene in all directions, and so much to enjoy while getting to paint! 

Once I had completed most of the landscape, I sketched in a young man with a black backpack when he got to the bottom of the path.

Miramar Grounds

The Miramar Retreat Center is across Route 3A from Bay Farm in Kingston, MA.   The retreat address is actually in Duxbury.    The campus is amazing with its trails, ponds and grottos.   There are some very old structures and a mixture of new and old stonework.   A pretty cartpath skirts the property to the south and was the perfect spot to set up on a quiet Sunday morning.   The temperature was a cool and dry 55 degrees at the start.  



Underpainting

For my painting surface, I brought with me a less than satisfactory painting that I had then pre-treated with a splash of autumn colors.   The previous painting had been a barn with a dark barndoor opening.   As I strolled around with my viewfinder, I was having trouble deciding how best to use the spirit of the previous painting.  I moved three times and was getting frustrated.   I was suffering for my soup.  (Seinfeld fans will understand :)).




Miramar Easel Set up

I finally decided on the spot in the picture to the right.   The thick texture of the underpainting was perfect for designing the greenery.   The barn from the underpainting was converted to the structure on the right, an old stone garage that had a patio on top of it.    The steps lead up to and are perpendicular to the cartpath.   

As I look as this photo, I can attest that the photo didn't record the reds, rusts, browns and golds that were present in person.   Thus, the photo could not serve as a color reference (they never do) for the final studio tweaks. 



Steps to Stonewall Path

 The photo did help to verify the structures.  Also although the sunlight pattern was not an accurate color in the photo,  I loved the lacy pattern of it and used the photo to add these lightest light highlights in the studio.   One other adjustment I made in the studio was to paint a warm oxide brown glaze over the entire shaded stone wall which had been looking too blue, given the cool light/warm shadow temperature scheme.  

This one is really thick and textured...everything about this one is me.



Adams Farm Paint Out 2012

Maureen Painting in Back Field

Today, we spent the day at Adams Farm in Walpole, MA.  What a great place this is.   The Adams Farm property includes approximately 365 acres of town-owned land, additional acreage held in adjacent land conservation trusts, and land owned by the New England Forestry Foundation and the Norfolk County Agricultural School, for a total of over 700 acres open to the public for low-impact recreation. The Friends of Adams Farm is a group of area residents dedicated to the preservation of Adams Farm. Several of the group were present to welcome and organize the day for us.

Adams Farm from Back Field Stage 1

Twenty painters participated in the one day plein air event which was conceived and organized by JT Harding a local artist who knows the farm well and has painted there many times.    Part of today's event was also a raffle for a JT Harding oil painting.

Adams Farm from Back Field Stage 2

The weather cooperated for the most part, although the wind was relentless.  After experiencing two tip overs we further weighed down the easels with bungy cords and whatever bags we could attach to them.  

From the outset I decided I would try and get two paintings done, one from the back field facing east looking at the red barn and one from the access road facing west looking at the red barn.



Adams Farm from Back Field Stage 3

I brought a 11 x 14 canvas, a large size for plein air, at least for me.   I began with my 1 1/2 inch pastry brush for the sky, and major block in - everything except for the barn itself.   In the picture to the left (Stage 3), all the painting done to that point was done with the large pastry brush, and I loved how fresh and loose it looked. 

Once it was time to do the barn I switched to my #4 and #6 flats.   I have a very old tube of Rose Madder so this is what I used for the red plane that faced me.   The side of the barn that faced north and in dark shadow, I painted with Rose Madder, Transparent Oxide Brown and Ultramarine Blue.    For the roof, I mixed titanium white, cadmium red light, cad yellow light and some of my blue sky mixture.   For the roof shadows I used raw sienna and dioxide purple.

Adams Farm from Back Field Stage 4

My first attempt at the flagpole  resulted in a disproportionately small flag compared to its roof shadow.    The flag was flying straight out and needed to be taller and bigger.    I completed these adjustments as well as added the path from my vantage, winding up to the barn.

By this time it was 12:45 and I was feeling pretty parched.    I packed up my things and made my move to my next painting site.

Adams Farm from Road

This blog post is long enough, so I won't go into the gory detail, but this is the second painting.  The only thing not routine about this painting session was the scary flyover - low and slow - by a military cargo plane.   As the jet approached it banked toward us as it if was looking for a field to land - and we thought - crash land!   Obviously that was not the case and we later heard that a low and slow flyby was scheduled for the UMass football game at Gilette Stadium.

At the end of the day we assembled in the barn and met the juror, Artist Bill St. George.   He chose his favorites and a lovely ribbon ceremony was held.

First Place Winner Diane Paranelli Miller with JT Harding

One of my former teachers, Diane Paranelli Miller took home the first prize and deservedly so.    She had set in the middle of in the community vegetable garden with the barn in the distance.   On a day when there was so much green all around, she managed to inject an amazing amount of beautiful color into her loose and lovely 16 x 20 painting.   She even had brought a frame for it and displayed it fully framed!    Her extensive plein air expertise was fully on display.   Congratulations Diane!

Audubon Paint Out

Audubon Barn and Truck Stage 1

Audubon Barn and Truck Stage 2

On a perfect day recently, my husband and I drove a short distance to the Daniel Webster Mass Audubon site in Marshfield, MA.   It's the end of August and everywhere we look, it's beautifully lush and green.    For my composition, I chose a two phase barn structure with a farm truck in front of it.     It was early morning and the shadows were warm and long.   The weathered roof and sides of the barn was a lavender bluish gray. 




The structure to the left housed the baled hay. The low angle of the sun was shining in on the  the hay which was stacked at different heights within the barn.   I liked the variation of the stacks in the light.

The contrast between the trees and the sky was pretty dramatic and at first I found that I didn't paint the trees dark enough.  I didn't like having to come back to make them darker, but I did.   The distant grass was a light green which I made from viridian, lemon yellow and white. I gradually added more cadmium yellow as I painted down the canvas to the foreground grasses.  

 At the end of the paint out a rustle in the bushes drew our attention to a young deer with six inch antlers.   He crossed the area I had just painted and I thought about adding him in.   It's still a work in progress, so I still may do that.



Audubon Resident