Magic in Oregon

I was privileged this month to again be a part of the Alexander Art Silver Falls Painting Seminar in Oregon, and each year the experience gets better and better. This year, I had a "day off" from teaching classes and took a six mile hike around the Canyon Trail which afforded me the opportunity to shoot over 700 photos of the beautiful surroundings.

The painting shown here is of the "Lower South Falls" at the park, and was one of my favorite from the hike. The approach to the falls is from above and behind as the trail descends, then switchbacks to take you closer and eventually on walk behind the waterfall. I enjoyed the approach, as I could hear the falls growing louder and louder but couldn't see them at all, until all at once the trail takes a sudden curve and spits you out at this view. I began my hike in the mid-morning, around 9:00, so the lighting was terrific by the time I reached these falls around 9:45.

I began the painting on a lime-green acrylic primed canvas, then worked up the values in Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Umber before progressing with oils. I've grown to love working with acrylic underpainting and highly recommend you try this method!

One Track Mind

I've loved old steam locomotives since I first became acquainted with a "live" one almost twenty years ago. She thundered through my hometown and stole my heart as she demanded my attention, as well as that of everyone within ear-shot of her lonesome steam whistle. That old girl, number 1218, is now silent behind a chain link museum fence but the wonderful memories of her visit to Greeneville are still alive and vivid in my mind's eye. I became so enamored of steam locomotives, in fact, that I began working on them on a volunteer basis during my college years in Knoxville, Tennessee. It's only natural, I guess, that I wanted to paint these dinosaurs of the industrial revolution as I saw them; big, loud and beautiful.

The painting shown here depicts my favorite iron horse, the one and only 611 of the Norfolk and Western Railway. She was a stablemate of the 1218, her older sister, and she holds the distinction of being the downright sexiest machine I've ever seen. Whether sitting still or sailing down the main line at better than 100 miles per hour, this locomotive is a joy to behold. Her graceful lines and unique design have captured the imagination of thousands of people lucky enough to see her under steam. That "art deco" look was no accident, as she was born in 1950, on the tail-end of this popular design trend.

Painting the sheet metal exterior and glossy black paint under bright sunlight was a fun challenge, and afforded me the opportunity to revel in painting texture and detail. I love to simulate interesting surfaces, form and light in almost everything I paint, and the 611 didn't disappoint!

A subject like this may seem a little intimidating at first, but the trick is to relax and paint what you see. As obvious as that may sound, it's the best advice I can offer and some of the best advice I've ever received. When you choose a subject that features a lot of different textures, surfaces and highlights, you might begin by working from the image in black and white and establish the values and structure on your canvas first. Once you've created this "road map" of values, break the overall painting down into sections and begin building them up separately so as not to overwhelm your senses. You might work on a portion for a while then shift to another area that grabs your attention until the whole of the painting takes shape. Begin by painting "loosely" to establish large areas of color that are similar, then analyze and create the subtle changes in hue that create form and drama.

Always challenge yourself with your art; in the words of the very quotable Edgar Degas, "Only when he no longer knows what he is doing does the painter do good things."

Happy Independence Day everybody, and thank you to all our men and women in the armed forces.

From Camera to Canvas

A few months ago I wrote an entry advocating the carrying of a camera as often as possible, since you never know when you will meet with a striking view. In many ways, that post was as much for myself as it was for you! Sometimes I need a little help with practicing what I preach and putting my thoughts down in writing seems to help. With all that said, it seems only fitting that I follow up with some fruits of my camera-toting labor.



The painting included with this post was painted over the weekend from a photo I shot on Friday afternoon. As I mentioned in the "Shutterbuggin'" post, the benefits of having a camera on hand often come when you least expect them. On this particular Friday afternoon I was running some errands for the office and, as usual, eyeing God's beauty all around. Especially interesting to me were the incredible cumulus clouds luminated by the late afternoon sun on its trek westward.

I slowed as I turned into a residential section of town with a variety of trees, including a modest sized fir tree that caught my eye. The patterns of the boughs silhouetted against the bright, hazy sky was beautiful. How fortunate that I had my camera with me! Two clicks and five seconds later I had a nice image for the idea file. One that I liked so much, in fact, it jumed to the front of the line on Saturday afternoon and got itself painted.

Worth noting here is how I went about referencing the photo as I painted the painting. I wanted the outcome to be a "fresh" and expressive painting. The ideal way to achieve this goal would be to paint en plein air. I love to do this, but because of the location (private property) and the fact that everyone at the office would notice if I was gone for three or more hours (at least I assume they would :-)), this option was ruled out by default.

I opted not to print the photo, but rather to view it only for a moment or two from the luminous view screen on the back of my camera. This may seem a little silly but the truth is, using the original image in my minds eye, combined with the occasional "refresher" glance from the camera, helped me to put down as much information as I could as quickly as I could. I didn't want to lose the overall essence and mood of the afternoon, and painting from memory is such a nice way to capture the emotions of a scene and not just the details. Edgar Degas said it better than I..."It is all very well to copy what one sees, but it is far better to draw what one now only sees in one's memory. That is a transformation in which imagination collaborates with memory."

When a Young Man's Fancy Turns to Art

Spring has finally arrived and the great outdoors are beckoning to us to explore and record our thoughts and impressions. The painting shown here is titled "The North Falls" and depicts one of the seven breathtaking waterfalls found at the Silver Falls State Park in Silverton, Oregon.


I mention Silver Falls this month as the Alexander Art Company holds an outstanding week-long painting seminar at the park each summer. This year, the seminar will be held July 12-18, 2009. It is a week of painting and fun like none other. If you enjoy painting, learning and spectacular views of Mother Nature, this is a vacation you simply cannot miss! I'm looking forward to being out there again this summer amid the beauty of the northwest with so many friends. I urge you to check out all the details at http://www.alexanderart.com/, and sign-up right away if you want to attend. This seminar fills FAST!

I'm also looking forward to visiting and studying under one of my favorite teachers, Robert Warren. I have learned a great deal from Robert over the years and the opportunity to paint with him and learn still more is very exciting. He's an incredible talent and a wealth of information.

Learning about art (not only skill and technique but art history and the contemporary art scene) is an insatiable urge for me. It seems the more you learn, the more you want to know, and that's why I'm so thankful for teachers. My hope is that when I teach a class I'm infecting everyone else with this same urge to learn, and to learn more on their own.

Painting allows us to explore and observe as we never have before; the beauty of life and nature all around suddenly takes on a richer and more profound presence for the artist. Trees that were perhaps taken for granted at one time are now detailed studies in value, color and structure. The sky is no longer just blue, but Ultramarine or Cobalt blue...yielding to the Cadmium Reds and Oranges of the late evening horizon.

This month, if you have the privilege of studying with a great teacher, book a lesson with that person and let them know how much you appreciate them. If you do not yet have that privilege, go find yourself a great teacher today! It will open your art to new possibilities and present exciting new challenges. (And please don't forget...I have classes each month if you're in the southeastern United States and want to learn more!!)

Sketchy Thoughts...

I love to paint highly detailed, colorful and refined paintings with a "tight" look and a high degree of finish, but I also love the balance that comes with simple, quick and expressive pieces as well. These expressive, instinctual pieces may lead to more elaborate pieces with a higher level of control or I may choose not to expand on them and just enjoy them as they are, for what they are.

Artists use sketchbooks and journals for a number of different purposes. They may serve to brainstorm ideas, work out compositional problems, preserve memories or record thoughts. The sketchbook truly serves all these purposes, but usually one or two more than the others. I fall mostly into the latter categories.

I keep a sketchbook almost like someone might keep a diary or a log. I don't make entries daily, but when I do, I find I am primarily recording images from surroundings, thoughts in my mind's eye, details about the scene and an overall sense of mood; both my own and the mood of my environment. Whether I choose to make later work derived from these sketchbook entries or not, I am and will always be a sentimental and reminiscent fella. My mood and feelings toward a person, place or event are often my prime motivation for the creation of art. Life is just so powerful, it seems to me, and there is so much going on all around us in a never ending cadence that it seems only appropriate to record and appreciate as much of it as possible. These little glimpses into our past wandering can so often bring so much joy as we remember where we've been, what we've done and who was there.

The sketch on this page is a case in point. Titled "Restless Night in Knoxville", this little drawing of my dorm room was and remains one of my very favorite things I've ever made, and I've drawn and painted a LOT! I came across this a few weekends ago in my sketchbook from college while I was cleaning my studio. Looking at it, I am so happy now that I took the time to record this snippet of my busy and disorderly college life. The feelings and moods of that night are still crystal clear and easy to recall, thanks in large part to the information I've recorded. In the upper right hand corner, I recorded the date. It was late April, 2001 and the spring semester was drawing to a close. I can recall a lot of anticipation of the coming months of summer and the bittersweetness of finishing up my freshman year of college and knowing I would miss a lot of folks I had met only eight months prior.

I recorded the time...at 1:07 am and later at 1:39 am. I certainly didn't need as much sleep eight years ago! I suppose that's a major contributing factor as to why I don't make as many of these little sketches as I once did.

At the top of the drawing are the words, "Got central heat and... and I'm alright". These are lyrics from the song I was listening to at the time. I almost always have some kind of music going when I draw or paint. I like the fact, especially in hindsight, that I wasn't straightforward with a statement such as, "listening to Dave Matthews", but rather I jotted down the lyrics that stuck out to me most at the moment. If I recall correctly, the combination of studying the details of my surrounds and hearing that lyric guided me to include the air vents to the left and just above the door.

All of the information in this drawing sparks the impetus to recall the mood and sensation of that particular moment in time. I remember that wonderful feeling of expressing myself, capturing a mood; the essence of the moment. I remember the unique feeling of that time in my life, the sublime feeling of that night, the realization that such times are fleeting and a pause to acquiesce to the moment is of great worth.

The overall drawing, as stated before, is accomplished quickly and expressively with just enough detail and information to provide a record. For the investment of about $8 and perhaps 30 minutes, I have so much documented. I have so many memories I can call up! In times of financial uncertainty, how's that for a return on investment? I say it's priceless....

Shutterbuggin'

The painting shown here is titled "Friday Afternoon Hike, No. 2", and was inspired by a photograph I took this past summer in Oregon. I love to work from photographs that I have taken, and it really struck me as I was working on this piece what an asset the camera is to a painter.

My father, Jerry, is a professional photographer (have a look at his website: www.thefilmbox.net) , so I have had the good fortune to learn about composition and photography all of my life. It's exciting to be able to use one form of art to spawn new ideas in another form.

As I said before, the camera is a great asset to the painter, but only if the camera is with the painter to capture those awesome images. It is natural to take the camera along on trips or vacations, but how many of us keep the camera close at hand when we are crossing town to go to the grocery store or stop by the bank? The most mundane of daily errands can often take us by some spectacular scenes or bear witness to beautiful skies that we never expected. I can't begin to count the number of times I have been out in my truck just "taking care of business", only to come across a beautiful scene I had never noticed before or saw beautiful clouds rolling across the sky and creating dramatic, back-lit forms in front of the hot afternoon sun. I would reach for my camera but, lo and behold, it would be in my studio at home.

Cameras in the digital age continue to grow smaller and more convenient than ever before, so we really have no excuses! Keep the camera close at hand, whether on the road to the beach or the dry cleaners, as you never know when you'll see something beautiful. Inspiration may be just around the next curve!

Inagural Post

I hope it is fitting and appropriate to follow Inaguration Day with my Inagural Blog Post (although this post has nothing to do with politics!)

I'm new to blogging, but it looks like a fantastic medium for sharing information, ideas and inspiration so I figured I would give it a go! I'm so impressed with my friends Wilson Bickford and Buck Paulson who have very interesting blogs (and fantastic work!!) and I look forward to reading their posts and enjoying their new pieces which are posted frequently.

The painting "Greeneville Depot" (shown above) seems appropriate to share with you this month as we are in the throes of Winter here in East Tennessee. Although we generally escape heavy snows and below zero temperatures in the south, we are not immune to the occasional dusting and temperatures in the teens. It is in January that, each year, I thank God for our mild winters and that I was born to a family living below the Mason-Dixon line!

The painting was a Christmas gift for my Dad the year before last. I had so much fun painting this one and pushing myself to make it the best work I possibly could. I really wanted to impress my Dad, who is a great artist himself with pen & ink and his Nikon! My Dad is to a large degree responsible for my initial love of art both as an idea and a pursuit. It's so nice to paint with your audience in mind. You might be surprised how much harder you try to push yourself if you paint with the vision of someone important to you seeing the painting.

The painting began on a foam-green colored canvas primed with acrylics, which was followed with more acrylic work in ultramarine blue and white to establish almost all of the values in the finished painting. I followed that with thin glazes of oil color to "build-up" to the final details.

Please feel free to comment and contribute! I look forward hearing your ideas and feedback.