plein air painting – Page 6 – Marianne Thompson

January 25th, 2016

January 25th, 2016
Rocks & Sea at Half Moon Beach
Stage Fort Park, Gloucester MA
Oil on Canvas, 16 x 20 in

It was a beautiful day to go painting. While the snow was the most logical subject, being a temporary treasure for an outdoor painter, water is my catnip. Particularly at Half Moon Beach, the colors of the water contrasts so beautifully with the color of the stone. It was a good day and I’m not displeased with the painting, though there are a few little patches to tend to tomorrow. I learned a pro-tip for winter Plein air painters – standing in one place in the snow for a number of hours will result in the snow turning to ice. If, (inspired by a recently circulating meme perhaps) seeking to emulate the mountain goat and opt to perch yourself on a pitch or angle, the inevitable and unenviable result is that you will slide ever further away from your work at that point when you most wish to be near it. A helpful trio of passing boys suggested cleats – real metal snow cleats, “Not the ones for soccer” as a solution to my difficulty. Wise beyond their years.

January 9th, 2016

January 9th, 2016
Cox Reservation, Essex, MA
Oil on Canvas, 16 x 20 in

It was a dense communion of colors I was taken by, so it was a dense communion of colors I painted. It definitely has an abstracted feel – I was not worried about having a linear subject, only a true patchwork of tone which I think I achieved. I stopped when my hand was too cold to hold my knife, which is always the cue in winter that a painting is done. So, on to the next!

January 7th & 8th, 2016

January 7th & 8th, 2016
Good Harbor Beach, Gloucester, MA
Oil on Canvas, 24 x 30 in

Well you can see, I hope, that this is a fall painting, painted in winter primarily from a photo I took.
I walk this beach at least once a day, and have spent time studying the colors so I think it counts as ALMOST a proper Plein Air.
Again it was the clouds I was focused on. Getting there.

December 19th, 2015

December 19th, 2015
Cox Reservation, Essex, MA
Oil on Canvasboard, 12 x 16 in

I think it is because I have been so non-plussed by this unseasonal weather that the day I finally get out to paint happens to be one of the coldest ones this season, and again I make the fatal mistake of standing out of the sun and in the wind (in my defense, I was shielded from the wind initially, but not for long.) It was a “I will keep painting until my hand can no longer grip the knife” day. I had wanted to practice clouds – trying to get a softer and more airy weight to them than I generally do with the knife. I feel like I learned something about the subtlety of the value shifts within clouds, thanks to David Curtis who gave me key advice at a key moment.

December 7th, 2015

December 7th, 2015
Done Fudgin’, Gloucester MA
Oil on Canvasboard, 18 x 24 in

It always looks odd to me, when the sky and water are bright and blue and the weather is mild and springy – but the trees are all bare and the grasses dead because it’s actually December. I don’t love this painting, but I love that I got out and painted properly. I look forward to going again, with steadily improving (in my eyes) results.

Sunset, Ring of Fire

Nov 18th – 22nd, 2015
Sunset, Ring of Fire
Oil on Canvas, 24 x 30 in
(sold)

This week is one of anniversaries and memories, and either the three months of shatteringly beautiful sunsets at the lake or a year full of endings – or an inspiring blend of both – has me very fixated on painting sunsets.

November 13th, 2015

November 13th, 2015
Cox Reservation, Essex Greenbelt Essex MA
Oil on Canvasboard, 12 x 16 in

I only had an hour and it was very windy, but David (the leader of the posse) had said they’d be painting today and I didn’t want to miss yet another. It was the kind of day where all the clouds and wind with patches of sun and sky mirrored my internal landscape. I used a small panel and painted on a clipboard rather than deal with the frustration of wind wiggling a fragile easel. I jumped in, painted hard, then packed up and came home. Something, ANYTHING, is always better than nothing. Now I am off to teach but glad I decided to paint, regardless wind and time constraints, and mental tumult. Grateful David keeps sending the posse invites in spite of my poor attendance in recent months.