End of Summer Commission

We All Love Summer

View from the kayak

Research and painting.  That's what makes up summer for me, and I am in heaven.   Spending time on Lake Tahoe, in kayak and rowing shell or on my SUP, I weave my way through the massive boulders that decorate the shore of Tahoe bringing back to the studio mental images of those granite monoliths that become inspiration for my paintings.  

It has been a summer of commissions and the newest is currently on the easel.

Presented and Selected Palette

Presented and Selected Painted Sketch

The Beginning of the Painting

Under painting some of the shadows

The Rocks begin to take form

More above the water line work

Continuing the work on the rocks

How the painting looks today.

This is the beginning of the commission, with more to accomplish during the daily painting time in the studio.  I am still out on the lake enjoying the never ending research, observing the beauty of Tahoe so that I can bring it back into my studio and interpret what I see.

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Summer Time Studio Work

A New Beginning

Under painting the background.

It's been more than a month since I stood in front of my easel.  That is a very long time for me.  Travel and the move to my Northern California studio kept me busy and away from my work. Today I am back at it.  What looks like the beginning of one of my Tahoe Rock inspired paintings is actually an experiment.  Keeping the work small (12x12) will allow me me try what is nagging at my creative spirit, asking to come out, without devoting too many hours.  

Painting in the boulders.

I will post photos of how this progresses and let you know what I think.  And maybe, just maybe, this experiment will move from a small canvas to larger.  

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September 2015

It's September And Fall Is In The Air

Summer Mementos 2015

Acrylic on Canvas

48 x 60

6,000.

Though it is blowing a gale outside and the temps have dropped, this painting is all about Summer. Summer at Lake Tahoe, or more precisely, on Lake Tahoe.

From the kayak, SUP and rowing shell the lowering water level is visually apparent as horizontal marks leave behind the history of where the lake surface has been.  

This summer, during numerous trips out onto the lake I was surprised by stacks of rocks created by unknown artists. Coming across cairns in open locations as well as hidden, secret areas, happened over and over again.

Summer Mementos 2015

Acrylic on Canvas

48 x 60

6,000.

The influence of both the lowering water levels and the rock cairns worked their way into this painting. Just off the easel, Summer Mementos 2015, is a statement about Lake Tahoe during the summer of 2015.  

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Commission Continued.

Lake Tahoe Boulders

It was a productive week in the studio, working on this Lake Tahoe Rock and Water commission.

 The boulders are beginning to take form on the canvas with the use of a limited palette.   This could be considered under painting, or laying down basic pigment colors, because eventually there will be glazing over these rock forms that will add additional color which will give these rocks a luscious form and texture.

For now, the rocks grow and change.  And there are a few minor changes to come, however this is the progress so far. Compare the image above with the image directly below to look for a couple minor changes that cause the balanced rock to move forward in the composition.  Can you see it?

And now look at the image below to see how the addition of a little lighter pigment on the rock below the balanced rock lets the eye see a more rounded form.

There is already another slight change, to show you next week, so come back.  The install date for this painting is coming up quickly, so I am running back to the easel.

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Commission

And So It Begins

 In all actuality this commission began a couple months ago with kayak trips out to one of my favorite spots on Lake Tahoe to sketch a variety of locations to present to the customer.  They selected a composition inspired by a huge balanced boulder in a small cove off Crystal Bay Point.   

After additional presentation of the palette the actual painting begins. 

This is how it happens:

The big (48" x 48") canvas is coated with white gesso.  

The first pigments go into the palette.

 I typically paint from top to bottom and left to right, and that being the case, after the composition was sketched onto the canvas the sky was painted onto the canvas.

As of this morning this is how the canvas looks. One of the boulders has begun to come to life.  There are hours and hours to spend in front of this canvas, so check back to watch the progress.

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Lake Tahoe Paintings

 Three Weeks of Mild Weather.

That's it for Northern California and the Lake Tahoe area. Mild.  That is not what we are all seeing for the remainder of the country.  Brrrr...it looks cold out there.  But here, at Tahoe it has been unusually clear and warm.  This is not a situation that is good for the lake level or the local businesses, but one that must be accepted since there is nothing any of us can do about it, but live with it and enjoy it.

Lots of people are out on bikes, hiking, and using the water.  It's pretty amazing to see paddle boarders skimming across the lake in January.  I choose my kayak because I can load it up with my sketch book, camera and other art related items. Posted here are a a couple little paintings created using the inspiration from these kayak trips.  Yes, back to my passion, painting.  And back to painting Lake Tahoe Boulders from the water instead of winter inspired work, but that's how it is when the weather is mild day after day.  

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How Long Does It Take To Paint A Painting?

Yes, I have talked about this before...

Kayaking Into The Rocks

48x30

2000.00

However I have run into an interesting situation, one that has helped me understand something you might see in a museum or art gallery.  And what has just happened in my studio may help you understand this as well.

So, how long does it take to paint a painting?  Artists are asked this over and over again.   I truly believe it has taken a life time of doing what ever one has done before to get to the point of creating what ever it is that was just created.  That explanation is not always readily accepted though it is true.  But what about those paintings that sit in the studio, unfinished.  Or what about the painting that was completed and then worked on again some time later.

This is exactly what just happened to me.  I completed a painting several years ago, about ten years ago.  It has been exhibited and just recently returned to my studio.  During those ten years, between the completion of the painting and its return, my work has changed, evolved, moved in new directions.  I see the world and my inspiration differently.  I portray my inspiration a bit differently than I did ten years ago.  So when this painting came back into my studio I felt compelled to work on it again knowing I could ruin it and knowing I could improve it.  I had never done this before because I think that once something is done, it is done, leave it alone.    Oh boy.....brush in hand, I tackled the work, changing what had been there, working to improve the painting.

So what is it we see in museums and galleries that I refer to at the beginning of this post?  It is information given about the artist and the work.  The date a work was created is typically on the descriptive tag next to a painting, and sometimes that date spans several years.  I have always wondered about this.  Why so many years?  Well, now I have one answer to this question and now this particular painting will have the date listed as 2003-2013.  And I guess if I am asked how long it took to create this painting my answer may be: ten years.

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Artist's Statement

If you are an Artist,

You are frequently asked for an Artist's Statement.

Not only can you be asked for a statement about your work in general, but for a statement about a group of work or an individual work.  The other day I was asked to describe my work in one word.  I chose BOLD.  That seems to sum up my composition. 

The Big Split

48x36

3500.

Currently Exhibited at Vista Gallery in Kings Beach, CA

I might have chosen DRAMATIC.

Golden Boulders

48x60

6000.

Currently Exhibited at Village Interiors, Incline Village, NV

I thought about STYLIZED.  And CONTEMPORARY entered my mind.

Serenity

16x20

650.

Currently Exhibited at Vista Gallery, Kings Beach, CA

Or even COLORFUL.

Three Birds

36x36

3500.

But in the end I settled on BOLD, as a one word description. Taking it a little further my description becomes:  

Bold, colorful, representational paintings presented with contemporary stylization.  

The process of distilling a description of your work into one word helps with the process of creating a succinct, understandable description.  Give it a try.

To contact me click HERE

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