A DAY OF AVIATION

DANCE PRACTICE

A few weekends ago, I was in Bay City, MI for an aerobatic competition with my husband. While there, I got to do some plein air painting, but also took lots of photos of the competition.  This painting is from some photos that I took of pilots getting ready to compete.  It shows a pilot with his sequence card in one hand practicing his maneuvers on the ground before he takes off for his turn in the aerobatic box.  I think they sort of look like large birds doing their mating dance, hence the title!

Enjoy!!

PLEIN AIR ON A SUMMER DAY

SUMMER WETLAND

Last weekend, the Central Ohio Plein Air group met at a metropark south of Columbus called Pickerington Ponds. The day promised to be a hot one, so many people arrived very early to get their paintings started.  Unfortunately, I was not one of them.  I did stand in a shelter to get this view, but had to put up my umbrella to keep my easel and palette in the shade. I needed the shade to be comfortable and to judge my colors on the palette, but the shade proved to be too dark to judge my colors on an already dark toned canvas. I ended up with a really dark painting and had to lighten it up when I got home.  Another lesson learned.  Always take a variety of toned and untoned canvases along- you never know what conditions will be upon arrival at your destination.

AN OLD SOLDIER

OLD SOLDIER

I walk by this old pine tree almost every day when I take our dog for his walk.  It is in the parking lot of one of our local parks.  It is beginning to show some signs of aging.  Some of the limbs have broken off during recent rainstorms and there is evidence of insect damage.  But I love this tree, and hope that this little painting has done it justice.  I painted this one on gesso board that I painted black first.  I like how some of the black peaks through in certain areas.

Enjoy!!

A GREAT DAY TO PAINT

BAY CITY WETLAND

Two weekends ago, I drove up to Bay City, MI to be with my husband as he competed in an aerobatic competition.  I brought my painting gear along, and was able to get out in the morning before the competition got under way.  The airport is situated on the Saginaw River south of Bay City.  The river has many wetlands near there as it meanders its way to the bay. I chose this sight and set up to paint.

It was a perfect morning, and I took advantage of the good weather to get this painting completed.

NEW METHOD

A BIRDING DAY

This painting was done from a photo that I took on a recent birding trip to Buck Creek State Park, near Springfield OH earlier this spring. I'm a sucker for pathways that lead into the woods, and this one was full of dappled light.  I decided to try a different way of painting this one.  I have been following several artist's blogs on one of my favorite web-sites called dailypaintworks.com.  Two artists whose work I really admire, Karin Jurick and Cathleen Rehfield, both use a dark underpainting

to begin their work.  In this painting, I painted the gesso board with black acrylic, which dries quickly, then laid in the oil on top.  I like the way the underpainting shows through in some areas.  I'm not sure I would use this method in every instance, but I liked how this one looks.

Enjoy!!

NEW WORK, OLD FAVORITES

JUST DOWN THE ROAD

This painting was completed earlier in the year and I am just getting around to framing it.   I am going to submit it to a student art show at the McConnell Art Center in Worthington, OH that will be showing from August through October. My instructor, the very talented Steven Walker, helped with curating the show and I am delighted to be included. I am trying a different frame this time, from King Of Frames, in CA.  They are beautiful, simple black frames with a red undertone and gold liner.
The painting is from a photo trip my husband and I took up to an amish community not far from Columbus. It was one of those very rare clear summer days and I got some great photos of the rural farms in that county.