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| Cool Evening, 8x10" pastel on board |
It's embarrassing to be posting this a month and a half after the event but the truth is that I have been very busy.
Anyway, the Seneca Plein Air ran from Sept 31 to Oct 4th. Although I had checked the weather forecast before leaving home, I was unprepared for the windy conditions! The first day of painting I found a nice location by the side of the road and started painting. An hour and a half later I realized how cold I was when I noticed how clumsy my fingers were when I was trying to cover my painting with glassine. I couldn't feel them! I packed and got in my car and turned on the heat. I went looking for another location and that 's when I found a fellow painter, George van Hook, who let me have one of the several winter jackets he carries with him just in case. He saved my life and as an added bonus, wearing his jacket gave me the courage to paint the scene below in oils:
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| Seneca Sparkle, 8x10" oil on panel |
For my third painting I went to Roy's Marina with the intention to paint boats but the light on some boathouses caught my attention. I was allowed to use the restrooms at the marina so it was easy to decide to stay there.
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| At Roy's Marina, 12x9" pastel on board |
Later that day I went to a feed store just a few miles north from downtown Geneva. I wanted to paint a night scene and debated whether to paint it in oils or pastels. Because I couldn't find in my van the special light I had bought for this purpose I figured it would be easier to handle oils than pastels if I were to use a limited palette. So that's what I did. I worked from 7-9 and could have stayed longer but I started feeling uncomfortable working all by myself in a neighborhood I did not know, all dark with only a few stray cats and an occasional cyclist. I finished it next day but worked from 5-7 instead and the chance to talk with the owner. Happily, it sold during the sale!
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| All Is Quiet, 16x12" oil on panel --SOLD |
The second day wasn't as bright and I really had hard time finding an interesting location. I went back to the marina to add a few touches to the pastel of the day before and went scouting afterwards. In the afternoon I painted
Cool Evening, the scene on top of this post.
Saturday's Quick Draw:
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| The pumpkin, 12x9" Pastel on board |
For the jurying and silent auction the participants were allowed to submit only two paintings, but next day we could bring whatever we had produced during the event. Here is my area minus the one that sold:
My thanks to the organizers and the people who volunteered to make this a wonderful event!
