studio painting

This 'sheltering in place' time has been interesting for me and my artist friends. We've all found projects to work on, challenges, and time to look and support other artists (for me, via Instagram). I've found so many amazing artists working so many different ways - each having their own approach to making and sharing their work. My own studio time has changed - I've worked on more paintings in my little controlled environment than ever before. I much prefer working outside, plein air, maybe doing a little finishing in the studio. Now I took on the challenge of working from a photo reference entirely - as many of the artists I admire do. 

The photo was taken last January in Carmel Valley. We had gone there for the memorial service for a dear aunt who passed away at 95. I'd often looked at this tree, even sketched it before - but the late afternoon light the day we arrived was really lovely. It was interesting too, that since our last visit here, the tree had lost a big lower limb - something about that scar was catching my interest. The missing limb. It was difficult for me - especially working larger than usual - but I think in the end I got a nice painting.

monterey pine, carmel valley (for Ona) oil on panel, 18"x24"

Tried to keep the brushwork loose, have less detail and good design, as well as use a fairly limited palette.

Monday painting normalcy

So in this time of 'sheltering in place', social distancing, mask wearing, isolation and closings, the only 'normal' part of my week and reminder of what day it actually is, has been keeping up on our Monday plein-air painting schedule.

After getting a sense of what we could or couldn't do, Libby, Karen and I figured we could meet up someplace out of the way, drive separately, park at a distance, talk from 6' apart, and paint for a few hours. As outdoor painters, we always have distance between us - we choose our own spots, set up and work.
We text each other to know where we are and when to pack up, we meet back at the cars and take a few minutes standing apart to look at each others work. 

We found a great spot to do this - less traveled, off the beaten path but accessible and full of interesting things to look at: buildings, landscape, water, animals. It really feels normal - like not much has changed. It's been a great morale booster, creative and productive.

Old studio and shed, oil on panel, 8"x10"

Open space, oil on panel, 8"x10"

Old Stables I, oil on panel, 8"x10"

Old Stables II, oil on panel, 8"x10

Horse trail, oil on panel, 10"x8"

Old Barn, oil on panel, 9"x12"

small gouaches

Finished these just before the pandemic - adding to my ongoing series on small shacks and outbuildings. My use of gouache is much more controlled and I learned from the the 'flower challenge' to loosen up. Next paintings in this series may have a different look.

Tin shed, Santa Paula. Gouache on WC board, 5"x4"

Maybe an old electrical shed. This was done from an oil study done on site.

Farm building, Spreckels. Gouache on WC board, 5"x4"

This was a small roadside stand we drive by on our way to Carmel

Shed in Los Alamos, gouache on WC board 5"x4"

Don't know what the function of this little building is - it's almost like a bus-stop.

Floral Challenge #30days20

Next came the Floral Challenge from Dutch artist Roos Schuring. She is an amazing painter who works in both gouache and oil. Since the whole world had shut down, artists everywhere were finding ways of reaching out and encouraging other artists to keep their work going. With galleries closed and people watching their nickels, sales of art have basically tanked for most everyone. It's Spring, so let's paint flowers - #30days20 Instagram challenge.

It took me just 2 days over the 30 to finish 21 paintings (I mis-counted), some are way better than others, but the point was to get out and paint, weather permitting, or work in the studio and to learn something about painting flowers. So many people signed up to do this - it was heartening and inspiring.

1. Fremontia, Native Californian, oil on panel, 9"x12"

I found a beautiful bush of these on a walk in the neighborhood. The plant is tough and rangy, but the blooms are a beautiful yellow that turn rusty orange as they fade out. I love the structure of these native flowers.

2. Freesias, gouache on wc board, 6"x8"

First ones of the season. They have a lovely scent that stayed in the studio for many days. This one was difficult with gouache - trying to get the 'glow' of light through the petals. Also hard for me to paint loosely with the gouache as my technique is more methodical. 

3. Iceberg Roses, oil on panel, 9"x12"

I picked these from a neighbor's fence. I take small clippers with me when I go for walks now.

With white flowers I found it difficult to paint all the shadows and light coming through the petals.

4. Purple Iris, gouache on aquabord, 6"x6"

The Iris started blooming like crazy - the violets ranged from pinky to deep blue-violet. Again a challenge with gouache, trying to keep loose and keep the color alive.

5. Fremontia II, gouache on aquabord, 6"x6"

Trying the same flower with a different medium. A little bud bloomed after most of the rest of the flowers went off. 

6. Azaleas, gouache on aquabord, 8"x10"

The azaleas went off in a burst of blooming - they don't last long. Struggling with the gouache to keep and interesting surface and some life in the painting. It's much too labored.

7. Alstromeria, oil on panel, 9"x12"

I bought these at Trader Joe's when we ventured out to do some shopping. They just looked cheery. I though I should move on to more complex bunches and see what happens.

8. Red Rose, oil on panel, 8"x10"

This had such a deep red color and a heavy head. Trying to keep the color intense was difficult.

9. Julia Child Roses, oil on panel, 9"x12"

I've never seen so many blooms on this bush before - just a riot. And yes, they look like butter. The challenge was to simplify the details and see all the colors in the shadows.

10. California Poppies, oil on panel, 5"x7"

We went for a drive to see the wildflower bloom - few people out, instead of the usual hordes. The Poppies and Lupine and all the tiny yellow and white flowers were fantastic. I was determined to get the intensity of the orange - cadmium orange straight from the tube. The only painting with the flowers in their natural habitat. Notes and photo references helped.

11. Garden Roses, oil on panel, 10"x10" 

Trying to keep it simple and describe the flowers with less detail. It was fun painting the vase.

12. Big Pink, oil on panel, 6"x6"

This one started out as a beautiful bud and kept opening and opening without dropping any petals.

13. Azaleas again, oil on panel, 8"x8"

Last of the bloom held on so I thought I'd try oil for this. Maybe it's just me and Azaleas.

14. Bird of Paradise, oil on panel, 9"x9"

A friend gave me 2 stalks from her yard. This was a funky panel and I didn't like the surface, but the flower is pretty amazing so I did what I could to get the feel of it. They are so exotic.

15. Epiphyllum, oil on panel, 8"x8"

The pink ones were the first to bloom. We have some huge plants and the wind knocked over several of them one night. The first few blooms were a intense pink, later blooms on the same plant were paler. Don't know why. These literally last for about 2 days, maybe 3 before they begin to droop and close. So I had to work pretty quickly. No second chance on this.

16. Amaryllis, oil on panel, 8"x8"

A friend had a huge pot full of these on her patio. It was a bit shady, so hard to get the intensity of the bloom. This is the only one that was done from a total photographic source and I think I can tell the difference. Much harder to get depth and color.

17. Lilacs, oil on panel, 10"x10"

Every year when the lilacs come into the stores, I would buy some for my mom. She loved them so I always think of her when I see these. The second thought was how the heck do I paint them? Loosely and indistinctly, without attention to the individual tiny flowers, that's how.

18. Small red roses, oil on panel, 9"x12"

A wild and crazy rose bush with tones of small blooms - trying to simplify the shapes and color variations and work with a mass of flowers, rather than individual ones.

19. Pot of Geraniums, oil on panel, 8"x10"

A cousin asked if I ever painted geraniums as they remind her of her mother (my aunt). I looked around and thought 'why not?' These were on the patio against a whitish wall and gave me another opportunity to leave out the details.

20. White Epiphyllum, oil on panel, 10"x10"

The white ones all went off almost at once. They were stunning. I tried to keep this simple and more abstract, trying to get the feel of light coming through them.

21. Small Roses, oil on panel, 8"x8"

This was the final one, a few Julia Childs and some red roses were still coming on. I put these on the kitchen table and the light coming through the windows just made them glow. I thought of Edouard Manet and Henri Fantin-Latour and how unlabored their flower paintings are. 

I gave it a good shot. This was a truly a challenge and I got some right, some not so much. I used a different palette (Roos's) and tried using gouache in a different way. It was all a good lesson.

Spring in the time of Covid19

Spring brought not only a pandemic, but some beautiful weather including rain (with a magnificent double rainbow), clouds, sunshine, fog and an amazing bloom of beautiful flowers. Everywhere you looked - patio, garden, orchard, neighborhood, mountains - there were beautiful flowers. I started with my patio and some succulents that had bloomed:

Aloe Bloom, oil on panel, 9"x13"

Black Rose Aeonium Arboreum, oil on panel, 12"x12"

This one is a bit of a novelty for me - done from a photo of her peach blossoms that my cousin posted on Instagram. I love the image because it has an old-timey family portrait on the wall:

Vera's blossoms, oil on panel, 8"x8"

Painting in captivity

March 13, 2020 became the date for me that everything stopped. SCAPE's big annual art exhibit at the Bacara was cancelled literally at the last minute, a concert cancelled, appointments cancelled, travel plans cancelled, stores suddenly jammed with people frantic to 'stock-up' and then the word that we were to "shelter in place". Museums and Galleries closed.
Never in my lifetime have I experienced anything so completely surreal, scary and unknowable. Covid19 changed everyone's life and continues to alter the way we do virtually everything. What's normal anymore? Will it ever be like it was? Where is this headed? Everyone talks about a 'new normal' but no one seems to know what that is.
It has been interesting to see how artists have responded to this time of isolation. Artists by nature, spend a lot of time alone: working in studios, outdoors, behind our easels. How many times I've thought to myself (or said out loud) "I need more time to paint." So many other things in life to attend to. The irony is that now I have as much time as I want, but it seems fraught with an underlying sense of anxiety. 
Eugene Delacroix said: "We work not only to produce but to give value to time."

I'm grateful beyond words for a studio to hunker down in - a space I can retreat to when the daily news gets to be too much. Artists are creative people - and I've seen no end of creativity coming from individuals, art institutions, art groups and classes. It's been amazing. And because of our connectivity (good or bad) to the world, we can reach out in ways we never would have.
I've never been a Facebooker, but I got on Instagram and follow my family and artists whose work is inspiring. I post pictures of my work (nwarner13, #ninawarnerartwork) which is easier than writing the blog. I keep up with emails and texts, I write letters, order materials online, take my weekly figure class in Zoom. 
I did an online painting challenge with Dutch artist Roos Schuring and painted 20 floral paintings in 30 days. It was inspiring to see so many artists from all over the world paint all the beautiful Spring flowers around us - our backyards, patios, neighborhoods. I've watched some wonderful artists give 'webinars' - so generous of their time to share their work and methods. I've listened to podcasts of artists talking about their work - so inspiring.
And still go out on Mondays to paint. Landscape painters always keep social distance and now we just take care where we go, stay out of the way and talk 6' apart. It's the only 'normal' activity I still have.
But I've neglected my blog. So I'll try to catch up over the next couple days and post images in groups: 'plein air', flowers, studio works, oils, gouaches - however it shakes out. 

Rincon from the Carpinteria Bluffs, oil on panel 9"x12

This was the last pre-Covid painting day in March. It was a beautiful Monday and we painted plein air in the bright morning light.