Seneca Plain Air Painting Festival, Geneva, NY

Five O'clock Cows, 8x10" pastel on board, 2nd Place Award

I'm very happy to say that I came back home with two awards from this event!
I was very lucky in so many ways. A woman I had met at a workshop I taught last June offered to host me and that made the experience even better. Thank you Bernadette!
Just to warn you, the images were not taken under the best conditions which is something I will need to address fnext time.

DAY 1:
Knowing that one should always be ready to paint a good scene no matter what time of day it is, I had my boards stamped the day before, during the orientation.
The first morning of the event I set up my alarm for 6:00 AM. I wanted to go to the farmers market but decided instead to capture the sunrise from behind the place where I was staying . I knew I would struggle with the bottom part of this painting because of the moving cars, so I ended up not framing it.

Geneva Sunrise, 9x12" pastel on board

Just when I was about to put my things away I saw a delivery truck that would have blocked my way had I decided to drive somewhere. "Should I paint it?" I thought. I have never painted trucks before and normally is something that does not appeal to me. But what's the point of painting if one doesn't find some sort of challenge in it?  I waited to see for any indication that it was going to stay for a while and seeing a man pulling forward several boxes from the back, I started planning my strategy. First, was finding the right placement for the truck, making sure I did not have any important lines escaping at the corners. Then I had to establish the truck's boundaries in case it would leave. I took several photos just in case. Fortunately for me the truck stayed half an hour or so and afterwards I felt more relaxed to deal with the background.

Delivery Truck, 10x8, pastel on board

 After lunch I took Rt.14 S in search of farmland or a lake view to paint. I found my scene on Reed Rd. under a nice shade and enough space to park by the roadside.

A Bend on Reed Rd, 9x12", pastel on board

 Afterwards, I continued scouting the area and a few minutes later found my next scene at a Menonite Farm. What attracted me first to this scene was a tree in the very distance and the yellow light. The cows could be a problem, but again, I had to try. First, I asked for permission to park in the driveway and getting it I proceeded to paint. Towards the end, the setting sun was casting beautiful orange light on the cows. I stopped painting to take photos, but in my head I remembered instructors saying that the important thing when capturing animals while painting outdoors is their gesture, so I gave it a try thinking that back at home I could fix anything I did not like. That is the painting on top. Before leaving I thanked the young woman for letting me paint there, she asked me to show her my painting. We had a short conversation in which she told me she painted on saw blades. I also ended buying fresh eggs!

DAY 2
I wanted to paint vineyards on the west side of the lake. I found a nice lake view from Travis Rd. Bernadette, my hostess, who had come along to paint, spotted a scarecrow. We asked for permission to paint under the shade of trees, which not only was granted but we were also allowed to park on the owner's driveway (Thank you Peggy L!).
There was early morning haze which I new would dissipate soon, so I worked on it first. Midway I realized I had not recorded the foreground colors of the vines, a mistake that got me into a little trouble later on. By the time I was almost finished the bright yellows I had on the foreground vines did not seem to agree with the haze of the middle ground so I had to replace the yellows with more subdued greens.  The wind blew my painting away while I was putting things back in the van, but I repaired the damage right away. Lesson learned.

On Duty, 11x14" pastel on board

  Because it was getting much windier, I felt I had to be careful with my next location. I went along Rt 14 and on Hansen Point Rd I found a house with a barn on top of a hill. There was no sheltered place to paint from so I parked by the side of the road and opened the hatch hoping it would offer some protection from the sun and wind. I had my umbrella with me but it would have been blown away. So I applied on a lot of sunblock and started to paint. The point I'm trying to make is that no matter what your plans are, when you see your "scene" you just figure how to make it happen.
I liked the hilliness of the terrain, the textures, and the soy field at the bottom, but it was the barn that I liked the most, which somehow looked so lonely withstanding the wind. There was a house in between the barn and the white (blue here) shed, but it had to go.

Farm on a Hill, 12x9", pastel on board  

Right after, I headed to the yacht club but nothing inspired me there, besides, I was afraid of the possibility of tree branches falling on me while painting, as I had seen several on the road. I continued along East Lake Rd and saw gorgeous scenery. At this time, the late sun was casting orange tones on the opposite side of the lake and the dark blue clouds made a nice contrast with the yellow fields, but there weren't that many places to paint by the roadside. Turning back I spotted a farm with a shed and some horses. I decided to try my hand at painting with oils. It went bad from the get go so it will have to be finished in my class. I wish I had painted a pastel instead!

DAY 3: Paintout

The rain woke me up. I wondered if the paintout at  Pulteney Park would be cancelled because of it, but on approaching the park I noticed several tents for registration and for anyone who needed to paint under one. I went around looking for a subject to paint from places were my pastels wouldn't get wet, but I had to settle on painting under a tent. The view I chose was somewhat complicated, but interesting so I mapped things down before starting.  Because there were buildings in the background, it was important to get the perspective right, as well as the placement of the fountain. After that, it was a matter of getting the right temperature and depth. All I can say is that I'm very happy the judges liked it. I think this was the first time they had three awards for this event. 

Pulteney Park Fountain, 9x12", pastel on board, 2nd Place Paintout

On Saturday afternoon there was the gala and auction where the winners were announced. It was also a chance to talk with fellow artists. I was really surprised at my getting another award for Five O'clock Cows (top). which also sold!

Pond at Stone Quarry Hill, 12x9" - Sold

   This is one of the paintings I did on location early in the summer at Stone Quarry Hill Art Park in Cazenovia.  I was satisfied with the results in the field, but back home I decided the focal area needed more work.
   I'm happy to say that it will have a new home after the show at Manlius Library.

Under a Cloudy Sky, 12x9"

Under a Cloudy Sky, pastel on board by Adriana Meiss

The Rose Garden at Thornden Park is one of Syracuse' summer jewels. One of my plein air buddies and I decided that even under clouds the place was great to paint. Selecting what to paint was tough though, as everywhere I looked offered painting possibilities. After spending almost an hour deciding what scene to paint I settled for this one.  This happened over a month ago. The painting has been on the shelf ever since, and I now I'm wondering if perhaps the hint of a person or a couple walking in the background could be a good idea... or perhaps that would better be left for a studio painting...

The Red Pine, 10 x 8"

The Red Pine, pastel on board by Adriana Meiss

   This is a very simplified scene from a very busy reference photo, which had willows and bushes in the background and lots of joe pye weeds in the foreground.

   For some reason I just wanted to paint the crooked pine with the open field behind it. To give it an air of mystery I added the cloudy atmosphere and subdued colors. To me it speaks of comfortable loneliness. I'm interested in knowing how it makes you feel.

Marsh on a Cloudy Day, 5x7" - Sold

Marsh On A Cloudy Day, pastel on board by Adriana Meiss

 The colorful branches of the willows in winter and the pale yellow grasses surrounding a mall parking lot were the inspiration for this painting. I imagined there must have been some open water before the mall was build...  I'm not sure the water reads as such; maybe a few ripples is all it needs. In any case, I tried to make sure its color did not compete with that of the sky.

End of the Day --Reworking an idea

End of the Day, 9x12" pastel on Wallis paper by Adriana Meiss

    I tried fixing so many things in the painting from the previous post, but the more I worked on it the worse it got. The grit of the board was gone in some areas and even though I tried applying pastel grounds, some dark shadows couldn't be covered with light pastel.

    Very frustrated, because I wanted a painting with lots of yellow for the show, I started this new one, using the same reference. I still got into trouble in some areas simply because in my hurry and desperation I didn't "think it through"  before starting so I had to do that halfway into the painting and change gears. The hills in the distance for example, were an afterthought that was needed to break the tree barrier and give distance. I know this one doesn't have the same mood of gold evening light but I like it.

   The other one, I had to wash it off completely--believe me, it hurt. I applied a mix of grounds and pumice to restore the tooth of the board so it can be reused.  I'm a little bit angry at myself for having ruined something that had some good things but  for the moment, an "Aglow" painting is still in the works in my head.

Aglow, 9x12"

Aglow, pastel on board by Adriana Meiss

This painting is based on the same shed of two posts ago, but his time I wanted to play with the yellows of the sunset on the trees.  The foreground bush was an afterthought as I felt something was needed there to give  more balance to the scene. I'm still debating about it's shadow...

This one will be included in my exhibit next month. My goal is to have 15 new paintings and I'm almost done.  I have 4 large ones almost finished, and one that I haven't started yet that I've been ruminating in my head for some time. In general, I'm happy to see there is cohesion in the selected work.

Moving Storm-Setting Sun, 10x8"

Moving Storm-Setting Sun, pastel on Ampersand Pastelbord by Adriana Meiss

The shed in the painting is an old garage surrounded by conifers, that never fails to attract my attention whenever I drive by.  When I was ready to paint it, I knew I had to modify the reference photo a great deal because of the problems with composition it presented: 1.There was a barrier of trees behind the shed, blocking the sunset. 2. Two thirds of the scene was a solid mass of green, yet I felt it was the right proportion in order to give an idea of distance.

Creating an opening was easy, but what to put behind it? I used my artist license and created more hills, thus giving me the chance to use aerial perspective. The grass, I have to admit, was the the area that took me the longest. I had to look at Richard McKinley's paintings to get an idea on how to deal with it. Sometimes there is nothing like a challenge to get you going!  

Variations on a Theme

Finger Lakes Vineyard, Adriana Meiss--SOLD

  A while ago, while fixing and old painting done on location the possibility of painting some other scenes based on that one came to mind ( see here). I liked the idea of middle ground with the path disappearing into what seemed to be a valley, and I also wanted to experiment more with yellows and oranges. The ones below are the two resulting paintings, but once you are having fun with something you just continue and that's how Finger Lakes Vineyard  above came about. While the reference is from the recent trip to Canandaigua, the color scheme is the same as that of the two previous paintings.
  I like it a lot since it doesn't have much detail. My plan was to trim most of the sky area, but I found a frame that seemed perfect for it and I ended up extending the edges instead. It sold at the Lavender Festival this past weekend!

Henneberry Field #1, Adriana Meiss

Henneberry Field #2, Adriana Meiss

A Storm is Coming, 5"x7" SOLD

Once again, I have to rely on an old painting to keep up with my blog. This one was actually not so old since I had it ready for the Plowshares show last Dec, where it sold.

I have been working on 3 large paintings for the March show. While I prefer to finish a piece before starting a new one, I feel that I have reached a point where I need to let things rest for a while to see what else I need to do to get the mood I want, so in the mean-time, what else can I do but to start another painting?

I'm getting very excited about the show and hope to share at lest one of the paintings with you soon!

After the Rain, 5"x7"

It's not nice to start the new year with a cold but that's exactly was has happened to me. I'm recovering though and even started a new painting that I hope to finish very soon. I'm being extra careful though about pastel dust as it can make things worse.

For the time being, this is one of the small paintings I did in November, based on a reference photo from the area. The place is located on Rt 175 and I wonder how long it'll be before this pasture is gone and new houses are built there.

I want to thank all the people who are following my blog. You guys keep me on my toes!