Farm in Pompey Center, 11 x 19" - reworked

Farm in Pompey Center, pastel on paper by Adriana Meiss

This is another reworked pastel. The original painting, done on location in 2009 is below, and you can read more about it here.

original pastel, done on location

 The first thing one notices is that light in the original pastel is too blue, but that was my fault when taking the photo. The real problem which, I did not see at the time, was that the rows of corn stubs in the foreground pointed to the plowed field in the distant left, thus guiding the eye outside the picture plane. Once I knew what and how to fix it, it was really fun to work on it.

The following are the main changes done:

• the plowed field in the distance was  removed 
• the color and value were adjusted in the distant row of trees 
• ochres were added to the closer row of trees to indicate late afternoon light
• blue and turquoise were added  to the barn
• the direction of the rows was slightly switched to the right in the middle ground to guide the eye towards the barn

So far I think it works and I might frame it soon.

En Plein Air Painting - Some Successes and Failures

The Deer Place - 6th painting, on brown Colourfix paper, 9x12"

 Next week it's the Canandaigua Plein Air event, and being one of the participants, I have been preparing for it by painting outdoors as much as I can.

Painting outdoors could be fun and easy if you have the right set up and are prepared. With practice, you learn to think on the spot. Very fast you learn to determine what the best composition is, how you are going to handle the masses and the values in the painting, and even where to place your set up. In addition, you learn to foresee the possible questions that passers-by might ask you, so you have an answer ready. 

This year a friend and I have formed a plein air group of sorts. There are 6 of us now, and we have been painting at least once a week in the last month. I'm very happy at the level of commitment we all seem to have.
I'm going to share with you my failures (because that's how it started), and successes of what I have painted on location so far this year.

 First One:
There is no doubt that one gets rusty during the winter months! I really forced myself to paint outdoors and not wanting to go far I decided our orchard was a good place to start. However, for a first attempt, the scene was too complicated and the sun was in front of me. A simplified version or a close up of the flowers would have been better.

1st One on La Carte paper

2nd One: 
This one was painted with the group at Franklin Square. Nice, encouraging atmosphere and wonderful colors. While painting I felt I was nailing the scene down. Back home I was so disheartened!  Could it be that I was painting under too strong a shade? Maybe with some work I could fix it. Or...I could use this as a reference for a larger scene. Well, not all effort is wasted as I really enjoyed that day.

2nd One at Franklin Square, Colourfix paper

 3rd One
This one was done at the Green Bridge, Old Forge, close to noon time with my friend Joann and a friend of hers. The bottom version is how I fixed it back in the studio. I'm still not happy with the tall tree on the right. Wallis board 12x9"

 

By the Green Bridge, 12 x9" Wallis board

4th One
 These two were done at Labrador Pond with the group. There were so many beautiful scenes but there was vegetation obstructing the view.  It was cloudy but peaceful and the birds were singing.

 After the first one I felt like painting this other view. By switching to Canson paper I automatically felt less pressure: it was going to be a "drawing" more than a painting. This one will be a good reference for a studio version.

5th One
At Green Lakes State Park with the group. There were too many choices to paint but not one of them struck me as great, so I settled for this location under the shade. I consider it "a painting for the sake of painting."

Poison Ivy, Ampersand Pastelbord 12 x 9"

6th One:
It's the one on top, and also from Green Lakes State Park. I fell in love with the place the first time I saw it when the group went scouting for other areas to paint. While painting it, the small bush on the right started to get more and more important with the light hitting just the top.
Here is a pic of my set up, the Art Attack3, which unfortunately is not manufactured any longer by Willow Wisp Farms.

If this post encourages you to paint outdoors, I've done my work!

Art by the Lake -en plein air painting

Sheds, 12x9" pastel on Colourfix paper by Adriana Meiss

Yesterday was the Art by the Lake at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown. My friend Vicky and I participated as plein air painters. There were also fine art vendors under a huge tent and I was impressed by the quality of the work.  We had all day until 4:00pm to paint to our heart's content, but the heat and my heavy set up (why do I always carry more than I can handle?) were a factor in my not being able to produce more than two paintings.

Not being familiar with the area, it took me half an hour to find the best locations to paint. Also, because it was so hot, I wanted to paint under the shade of trees.  What to paint first? Here I had to estimate or foresee how the light/shadow patterns were going to change in the next two hours and decide whether I should wait till the afternoon when the light might be more interesting. At first sight, I was tempted to paint the lake but the water and the sky being of similar value meant problems so I decided instead on the sheds.

Path by the Lake, 9x12 pastel on Wallis paper by Adriana Meiss

At about 11:30 am I started my second one, Path by the Lake. At this time the shadow pattern changed considerably but only in the distant path so I was able to work without major problems.

After lunch I took a long break to see the American Impressionism exhibit and to talk with vendors and other plein air painters. Then at 3:00pm, the  lake looked just perfect for painting: deep blues an greens. Although the water wasn't smooth I swear I could see the pinks of the big clouds reflected on the water. I hurried across the expanse of lawn to get my gear but by the time I reach it any little energy I had in me had left me. It was time to call it the day.  The area is so beautiful that it's in my list of places to visit again and explore with more detail.

The View from the Green Bridge, Old Forge, 10x8"

View from the Green Bridge, pastel by Adriana Meiss

I was in Old Forge this past weekend to see the opening reception of the pastel exhibit at View Arts Center, and to take a portrait workshop with Alain Picard.

While there, some friends wanted to see how I painted on location and for that purpose we went to the Green Bridge, which offers nice views in both directions. The "demo" was very short, perhaps half an hour, and I pointed out the most important aspects of painting outdoors: 1. select the subject,  2. Make small sketches first to determine the right composition and what the focal area is going to be,   3. pay attention to color temperature and values,  4. block in the main masses, and finally 5. provide some detail. I like to work as fast as I can so that the changing light conditions do not tempt me to make too many adjustments to my painting. This is the original piece:

en plein air, View from the Green Bridge

In the studio I continued working on it and did some minimal changes to the composition.  What took me the longest was giving the idea of a swift current. I realize that the freshness the original had is gone, but I needed to bring it to a level  I felt comfortable with.
 
About the workshop, all I can say is that it was very informative to see the 2-hour demo Picard did the day before the workshop. I tried to approach the portrait as if it were a landscape, but one thing  is sure, you won't be seeing portraits in this blog anytime soon.