Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Field Sketches and Plein Air painting


This little painting (4x6) was painted on location on a chilly morning a few days ago.
.. I have passed by this wetland area many times, it's one of the places I go run with the dog. This particular morning, I saw the light hitting the tops of the trees on the left, and shining on the mostly bare branches of the trees on the other side.That's what "got me" and I grabbed the Guerrilla Paintbox and bushwhacked through the trees till I could get a good clear view. (ended up standing right at the water's edge, and had to bend down a few limbs out of the way) It was pretty cold, but I had brought a thermos of hot tea, and bundled up in several layers to paint. I went to work quickly, following my "20 min. field sketch" method, and then after blocking all the major shapes and values and colors in, I refined it enough to bring it to a nice conclusion. With a few minor tweaks back in the studio, it is done!
I'm really loving the Guerilla Paintbox that I recently purchased for plein air painting. It holds everything I need, will accommodate anything from a small 4x6 panel or canvas up to much larger sizes ( I recently painted on a 12x24 canvas, and just had to lean the canvas against the lid (which serves as the easel) The whole set up, including tripod and the paintbox, will fit in my large hiking backpack, and I can take it just about anywhere I can get to on foot.

2 comments:

J.R. Baldini said...

Hi
This is a really lovely sketch.
Reminds me of home near the Adirondacks.

Unknown said...

Thank you JR! Coming from an artist of your stature, these kind words are very special indeed.
You made my day!
Thanks again,(going out to that same area in just a bit with the dog, but heavy overcast today - won't look the same!)
deb