Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Day 81


Today's painting is a gouche of Screw Auger Falls. On this day the place was crawling with photographers, it must have been a club outing. I left the tripod out of the painting, to leave something for the viewer to "fill in". Perhaps the figure is fishing?

Well, today all of my "birthday" money was finally spent, an order was placed for the Dakota Traveler to store the new pastels. Now to wait and see which gets here first. I will take photos and post when they arrive.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Day 80


A pastel of sunset at Lamoine State Park. This park has camping right on Frenchman's Bay, and is close to Acadia National Park. We have gone there for years, usually right after Labor Day. There are working lobster boats moored right off shore, and if you are not a sound sleeper, you can hear them take off in the early morning to haul traps.

Well, I have spent a small fortune on art supplies over the last few days! What fun. I ordered a Terry Ludwig set and can't wait to try them. One small order with just a few colors came in today for me to play with later. I finally broke down and ordered mat board, so now I will cover the pool table and get to work matting some of these 80 paintings I have done since Oct 1st. Some are going to be framed and some are going in the wood stove!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Day 79

This is a pastel of the top of Cadillac Mountain, after the sun rose.

Day 78

This is my holiday offering, just because of the red and green.

I took a break from pastel today and tried some watercolor. I got the paper nice and wet and let things flow.

Now, back to pastel. I think I just burned out my vacum and the light I am using seems to be melting around the blub and dripping plastic. It can be quite scary around here sometimes, especially when no one is around to supervise me.

Merry Christmas to all!

Day 77


Pastel again today! This is the view of sunrise from our room at Old Orchard Beach. We try to take the dogs down for a walk at least once a month in winter. Joining us on the beach are cross country skiiers, horses and riders and lots of other dogs. Large pockets are required to gather shells and other beach finds.

One of my orders of Wallis paper is here, and the other is on the way. I also purchased a few sticks of pastel from Dakota which should be here in a few days....I can't wait to try "bottle green".

Friday, December 23, 2011

Day 76

Well, time to be honest here. I am totally infatuated with pastel.... I never thought this would happen. I woke up this morning thinking about a Terry Ludwig set of Cobalt blues. I just love the pure colors, the way you can just get it off the paper and start again. I don't seem to be making as much mud as I do with oil, and it has the color that I love with watercolor. I don't even mind the mess it make on my hands since I discovered how wonderful it is to keep a chamois cloth in your hands. It gives me something to play with while I am "thinking" and it gets a lot of that dust off my fingers too.

This is a view of Tumbledown I have tried many times and just made messes....I am starting to like this one.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Day 75


Rangely Lake in the rain. Finally there is a bit of chill in the air, and the ice is forming on the ponds. I am anxious to paint the shadows on the snow.

I am still waiting for my Wallis paper. I ordered from two sources, and both were backordered. One shipment has been released and is in New Jersey. I have a painting that I don't plan to keep that I did on Wallis, and I am going to put it in the sink and wash it. This paper is supposed to be tough. A much better solution than the wood stove!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Day 73 and 74


Right at the moment many of us are hoping that this body of water freezes over in time for ice fishing and snowmobiling.

The reference for this was taken from our sailboat in the early summer. No thoughts of ice then.

Day 71 and 72


Mixed media is such fun, I really got some stuff sloshing around on this one.

New rules, I just can't post some paintings, and so, I won't. They will be posted in my Daily Painting gallery, but you will have to go there if you want to snicker! This should help me get through the rough times, and there are many.

Now I will try to get caught up on my postings. Christmas preparations are all done now, so I have no excuses. Just a week to go!

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Day 70


My first painting completed in my "winter" studio. I am pretty much limited to pastels in this space, it is to small to do watercolor and I don't want the oil paint smell in the house.

Pastel is teaching me about value and this is supposed to be a learning experience. I have conquered the urge to blow the dust off the paper, now I need to stop blending with the fingers.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Day 69


The reference for this pastel was taken when we were trying to find a "shortcut" between Fayette and Livermore. The sunset that evening was magnificent. I have another photo or two to play with.

I am a very happy artist tonight. As we approach another long Maine winter, I now have an "upstairs" studio. My basement studio is cold this time of year, and by the time I get it warm I loose my inspiration. Now I can paint anytime I want, and be warm. There is only room for one easel and a good light but that is all I need! Thank you Santa.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Day 68


I took this reference on my morning walk, way before sunrise. This gave me an opportunity to invent the colors. What fun! There are plenty more cairns around town, I can see a series coming.

Day 67


I keep coming back to this scene. The composition is a challenge. My intent here was to experiment with intentional blooms. It was fun and I can see how they will be effective once I master them. But, there is very little to master with watercolor, it master's you.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Day 66


These bulbs have grown eight inches since I planted them. Will they be blooming for Christmas?

Day 65


My other "Nephew" Tyler. This is the guy you want to cuddle with, he is a sweety and is very good at kisses....but he does give his brother a run for his money.

Painting a white dog was my challenge for this week!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Day 64


I am still working on this view of Tumbledown, this time in watercolor. Soon it will be covered with snow.

Day 63


This is a watercolor of my "Nephew" Otis. He is such a cutie, I think he is a Shia Poo. Otis has a little brother, Tyler, who I am going to attempt soon!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Day 62



My first portrait in watercolor. The reference photo is from Valri Ary's DVD. I am actually happy, we know Dan is human! I have never seriously thought of doing portraits, I have done of Willy Nelson in pastel that I was pleased with, oh heck, I will post it here! I think I did this about 12 years ago.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Day 61


This is a study I did from a DVD I bought, hoping to learn something about the "right" way to do watercolor! (There is no right way.) These are apples, and I am aware they are orange. Some things I just cannot control!

(reference photo Valri Ary, thank you!)

Day 60

This is the view from our balcony at Old Orchard Beach. One direction is an amazing sunrise, and the other is the pier. (We can see the sunrise from our bed!)

Day 59

Day 58


On our way to Rangeley we saw this view of Tumbledown from the Byron Road. The closer you get the bigger it gets!

A dear friend shared with me a precious piece of Wallis paper to try. I have an order in at two companies, and it is on backorder! I love this paper, and can see why it is so popular with pastel painters. My fingers did take a beating, next time I will try using a chamois for some of the blending.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Day 56 and 57




I think this catches me up on my missed posting due to the Holiday. I celebrated Thanksgiving with a lot of family, and it was wonderful. I did not participate in the much hyped Black Friday madness, I need to save my energies for painting.

These narcissus were a gift, as they grow I hope to paint them many more times, and the bowl will be in a lot of still lifes.

Day 54 and 55



This is a tiny island in Boothbay Harbor, with a very elaborate structure. And the sunrise is from our room at the Lord Camden Inn in Camden (of course).

Day 52 and 53


Camden Maine has the most charming light fixtures, in town and on the waterfront. These are from the dock.


The Pemaquid Lighthouse also has a weight tower and bell. I am very pleased with the figures.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Day 51


Crazy weather today, we took a nice ride up north, looked at a range of windmills, poked around in Rangely, and got home in time to watch the sky get really dark. Now it is time to enjoy the fire and think about what to paint next week. It would be nice to have the week all planned out, so that is my goal.

My intent with this landscape was to make it as simple as possible. This reference was taken close to home.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Day 50


A water color of Mooselookmeguntic Lake. I seem to be drawn to this scene.

Today is my 50th day doing daily painting. I celebrated by doing some studio cleaning. I pulled out and organized all my work on paper and designated a huge pile to be either burned or gessoed. Actually, looking at all those "failures" was wonderful for me. I can see a huge improvement from what my watercolors looked like last year and now. I might progress faster if I stuck to one medium, but I would be bored silly.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Day 49


Today's painting is my response to waking up to a coating of snow...this Calla Lily was grown in nearby Strong, at Maine Cottage Garden. Carolyn is an artist with seed. I have taken a lot of reference photos there, and hopefully they will sustain me when it snows.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Day 48


One of the best parts of living here is this view of Tumbledown Mountain. I like this format for landscapes, I think I better order a few more packs of this paper.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Day 47


I spied this pumpkin, (among many others) perched on a stone wall when I was out walking this morning....a fine time to break in those Inktense pencils...I LOVE them. It was a bit difficult to get used to the colors, they have non paint names, like "Willow", no new gambogue or aureolin. They are very handy to use, just a brush and some water and we are off. They can be used for painting on silk also...I think you need a fabric medium for that. I am so excited!

Day 46

This is a pen and wash for Doug and Bills Pen and Wash Challenge on Wet Canvas. (thanks for the reference photo Doug). After several hours of work, I still did not finish.

These are supposed to be Morris Men, I had no idea what that meant, so here is the link on wikepedia if you are interested. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_Men.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Day 45


My intent with this was to do a watercolor of an architectural subject, and to NOT use ink to save it. I managed to not fiddle to much also. Still not loose, but leaning...


After careful observation, it is clear I need a brush up on perspective! I just downloaded a book into my nook that should do the trick, but I will have to read it and practice!

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Day 44


Wet in wet watercolor is fun, and it just has to come out loose! This little flower is the last of a bunch that grew up in cracks and crevices out front. We planted them two years ago, and their seed seems to have taken.

An earlier attempt at a plein air pastel is happily burning in the wood stove. I sprayed it first with fixative, then I realized it was not possible to post it, it was really ugly...so off it went, and what a great feeling! The fixative made it burn extra fast.

Day 42 and 43



The height of land on Route 17 offers a spectacular view of Mooselookmeguntic Lake. My intent for this plein air was to capture the mood of the cold windy day...well, to me it looks like there is ice on the lake. I am still having trouble rendering accurate values when I am outside. Umbrella is on my Christmas list.


Over the last few years cairns have mysteriously appeared around town. Unlike in most places, they are not trail markers, in fact if you follow some they lead right to Weld Pond!

Day 41

We have promised for years to get up and greet the day on top of Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, this year we did it. In fact, we were 45 minutes early.

There were a lot of people milling around, taking pictures, chatting. Right before the sun rose, everyone found a comfortable position and it was quiet, just like church. There was this glorious sunrise, and behind us there was a full moon. As it became lighter, people slowly left, and everyone was smiling.

This pastel is the first sunrise I have done in years. I remember I used to be obsessed with doing very intense India ink studies of sunsets, with the typical mountains and boats in silhouette.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Day 40


There are a cluster of old inns in Boothbay Harbor Maine that must compete for the most glorious flowers. Most are built on steep hills, and I wonder how many people really enjoy them, you need to park that car and walk!

Day 39

Finally I am getting the hang of pastels. My "intent" with this painting was simply to get the correct values and I feel like it was a success!

This home is one of my favorites it town. A beautiful spot with excellent views of the mountains. The owners generously allow snowmobiles to cross their land, and kindly let me ride my horses through their fields for years. One of the special things about Maine are the many landowners that allow others to enjoy their property.

Day 37 and 38



One of the wonderful buildings on the way into Vinalhaven. The ferry ride from Rockland is such a nice treat for the eyes. There are some parts of this watercolor that I am happy with!

This study of our sailboat is my first go at Inktense pencils. They are very interesting, bright colors. Next time I will select just a few and work with those....I got a little carried away here. And a poorly drawn boat cannot be saved. More practice!

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Day 36


I have promised to donate a painted shelf fungus for an auction in the near future. The subject will be something to do with the town I live in.

I primed this one with Daniel Smith Watercolor Ground, and it did receive the pigment well. This is a "practice" piece. I am going to think more about the subject matter, and maybe try using acrylic. This is to boring.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Day 35


I braved the cold and went out for some Plein Air time. I learn so much from painting outside in the real world it does not even bother me that my paintings come out looking so blah....it really doesn't.

I think the problem I am having is a lack of one more piece of equipment..and umbrella. My paintings look fine when I am outside, but when I bring them in...yikes...it must be the sun.

My new easel is just perfect, and my art supplies finally arrived while I was away. Play time!

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Day 34


My entry in the Wet Canvas November challenge, Emerald Lake in Rocky Mtn National Park...(thanks for the reference photo jaystile!)

I did this twice, still not loose enough. I need to get back home to my studio!

Day 33


This was my attempt at Bill and Dougs pen and wash challenge on Wet Canvas. Thanks for the reference photo Bill.

Here I am trying to loosen up, and I am doing pen again....secretly I think I love pen, and for some reason all those tedious lines relax me....not like the oil I did this afternoon that got wiped off. I have a lovely tinted canvas to work on tomorrow.

Still tired from to much time in the car. Must recover soon!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Day 32

Quick painting in my Moleskine book after a full day of travel. Funny to be painting Pemaquid Light here in NY. Tomorrow I hope to find time for photos and a visit to an Ansel Adams exhibit.

The area between the NY throughway and the Adirondacks is amazing panorama of rolling hills and working farmland. There are several Amish farms, and we were lucky to see buggy's out, pulled expertly by retired Standardbreds.