Waterfall - A Work in Progress

Today I didn't have a lot of time to paint with preparing the Treasurer's Report for the Executive meeting at KAGS.

I lightly sketched out a waterfall and put on the masking to keep the whites in the waterfalls and left it to dry.

I will post this painting later once I have gone in and put in the rocks and background.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and enjoy the artwork. I hope you will return often.

Taking the Bait - A Work in Progress

Today was the opening for the Miniaturia show at the Kawartha Artists' Gallery and Studio and my two submissions were of juvenile Spotted Drumfish (see my postings on 21 and 23 February 2011).

I thought it was only fitting that I should paint a freshwater fish this time.

I have the under painting completed and will work on the detail next. I will post this painting once I have it finished.

Flat Out 1

I often doodle in my sketch book with pencil and my imagination.

Once I have them down I will come back and ink them in. These doodles are often the basis for paintings at a later time. This one needs more work on the composition but I think it has potential.

The picture shown here is an original 4-1/2" x 7-1/4” pen and ink drawing and is available matted and shrink wrapped for $25.00.

OSWOA - Snow Clouds 1

This is a painting using a limited palette of French ultramarine blue, burnt sienna and raw sienna.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.













The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper.

This framed painting is available for $125.00. SOLD

ACEO - Mystique 1

Only two colours were used in this misty looking painting French ultramarine blue and raw sienna.

The sky was washed in with pure French ultramarine blue.

While the background was still wet raw sienna was added to the sky colour and the trees were painted keeping them soft looking and unfocused.

The water was washed in with a slightly darker green and a highlight just below the tree line was lifted using clear water.

As the paper dried a darker mixture of French ultramarine blue and raw sienna was used to paint in the foreground grasses.

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.

The ACEO shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on either 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Spotted Drumfish - Juvenile 2

As the Drumfish gets older the dorsal fin gradually is reduced in size, the body thickens and lengthens as the fish darkens and develops its spots.

Spotted Drumfish - Juvenile 2 is an original 4" x 4" acrylic, sold unframed for $125.00.

This is the second of two acrylic paintings that I am submitting to the Miniaturia Show at the Kawartha Artists' Gallery and Studio. For Spotted Drumfish - Juvenile 1 (see posting 21 February 11).

I am currently working on sketches of an adult Spotted Drumfish as a companion piece the two juveniles.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and look at the artwork.

Sunflowers 1-3 - Three Works in Progress

Today the Buckhorn Tuesday Painters had Janet Skrepnek as our guest artist to give a workshop on painting Sunflowers.

The sketches of the Sunflowers are lightly drawn onto the paper.

The inside area over all of the Sunflowers are carefully wet with water and a wash of pure aureolin is painted over the entire Sunflower as a base colour.

Sunflower 1

Raw sienna is used to give a little depth of colour to the some of the leaves, stalks and flower heads.

Next the flower heads are painted in using various mixtures of aureolin, raw sienna, burnt sienna, Antwerp blue and French ultramarine blue.

The leaves are painted using various greens made from mixtures of French ultramarine blue, Antwerp blue, cobalt blue, burnt sienna, raw sienna, aureolin and a touch of alizarin crimson into the shadows to darken the colour.

Sunflowers 2

The petals are painted next using mixtures of aureolin, raw sienna and burnt sienna.

Lastly the sky is washed in behind the Sunflowers.Using pure cobalt blue for the top of the sky and a mixture of cobalt blue and alizarin crimson where the sky colour touches the Sunflowers. Be sure to leave some white areas for clouds.













Sunflowers 3

I will post each of these paintings at a later as more work on them is completed.

Spotted Drumfish - Juvenile 1

The juvenile Spotted Drumfish has to be one of the most enchanting fish I have come across on the Caribbean reefs (next to the seahorse, of course).

This is a painting of a very young juvenile with the extremely long dorsal and tail fins which flutter like twin black and white striped streamers as the fish moves along the reef.

This is the first of two acrylic paintings that I am submitting to the Miniaturia Show at the Kawartha Artists' Gallery and Studio.

This is a 4" x 4" original, acrylic sold unframed for $125.00.

Pleasant Place - A Work in Progress

The sky has been painted with storm clouds rolling in and a little blue showing on the distant horizon.

A space has been left for the trunk of a foreground pine. Then the background trees were painted and their dark reflections have been put into the water.

I will post this painting at a later date once the main pine tree has been painted.

Forest Shadows - A Work in Progress

I wanted to keep everything soft and slightly out of focus using only three colours which were aureolin, French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna.

The painting is almost complete. It still needs a few more dead trees in the background.

I will post this painting when it is finished.

Autumn Roadway - A Work in Progress

I have sketched in the roadway, background fences and a jogger.

The background trees have been painted and the trunk of a pine tree in the foreground has been indicated.

I think the jogger needs a dog for company and I will put that in next once I decide on the breed.

I will post this painting again once I have more work completed.

Meadowpond's Bonnie Charlie

While all the dog breeds are eligible to compete in the Obedience Ring most of the time you will almost always find at least one Shetland Sheepdog, Labrador Retriever, Poodle, Border Collie, German Shepherd Dog or Golden Retriever.

This is a sketch of a Golden Retriever as he sat waiting during the long sit for his owner to return to the ring. He never moved, he just stared at the last place he saw his owner, ignoring everything going on around him the arena.

It was not surprising that he took High in Trial with an almost perfect score of 199-1/2 out of a possible 200 score.

Congratulations to Mr. & Mrs. Jack McKissock of Nepean, Ontario on their selection of this charcoal painting of their Obedience Trial Champion Meadowpond's Bonnie Charlie UD.

Winter Wonderland

Since the forecast is snow, snow and more snow I may as well just do a painting of snow.

I used three colours on this painting; French ultramarine blue, burnt sienna and raw sienna.

The sky was washed in, soft trees were added into the background while the paper was still fairly damp and a little salt was sprinkled into the sky and background to create "snowflakes".

As the paper dried closer foreground trees were painted in with small amounts of salt added to each layer.

Once the painting was completely dry the "growies" were painted in and a few brighter snowflakes were picked out with a razor blade.

Thank you to new collector Mr. Jim McLean of Toronto, Ontario on his purchase of this original 10-1/2" x 13-3/4” framed watercolour.

Harvest Time - A Work in Progress

The barn had been drawn onto the paper and the background maple trees have been indicated as well as a few pine trees.

I have to decide what I am going to have in the foreground, whether it will be a crop of pumpkins, corn or another crop being harvested.

I will post this painting at a later date when I know which direction to take this painting.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork.

Spanish Moss - A Work in Progress

One Monday a month I paint with the Creative Art Guild in Lakefield.

Diana Charlebois asked if I would try to paint Spanish moss and gave me this photograph she had taken in Florida as reference material.

I sketched out the main tree trunks and indicated the road. Using French ultramarine blue I washed in a little sky into the top of the painting.

Since this is my first time attempting to paint Spanish moss I thought using a dry brush technique to apply the colour would be the best way to proceed and to keep the image looking light and delicate.

I added some darks to the main tree trunk and a little to the branches. It still needs a lot more work before I am happy with the final result.

I will post this painting at a later date as I get more work completed on it.

Training Mile

A lot of work goes into the training of Standardbreds to get them into condition to qualify and keeping them sound for racing.

The regular routine of jogging the horse five to eight miles a day to keep them in racing condition and two days of the week with training miles usually three miles, each one faster than the one before.













Thank you to Jam Stables of Pickering, Ontario on their commission to paint one of their Stakes Colts.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and look at the artwork. I hope you will return often.

Bunny - A Work in Progress

This is another painting I have developed from my sketches while on location at the Riverview Zoo.

I have was Antwerp blue behind the rabbit and will probably not do anything more to the background.

Most of the rabbit is completed; it just needs a little more detail added to the hair and the face.

A mixture of Antwerp blue and raw sienna was washed in below the rabbit to give it a base. I will have to add a few more detailed grasses and a shadow to ground him in place so he doesn't seem to be floating.

I will post this painting at a later date once it is completed.

Peter Cottontail

This is an original 5" x 7” oval, framed watercolour available for $135.00.

While at the Riverview Zoo I took photographs of a number of rabbits running loose on the grounds. They were very friendly and would often approach if you offered food to them.

I did a number of sketches while there and this is one of the paintings that I completed.

OSWOA - Golden Moment 1

The sky is a graduated wash using new gamboge down to the bottom third of the painting and then gradually darkened.

While the paint was still fairly wet the background trees were put in using mixtures of Antwerp blue and French ultramarine blue.

To give some interest to the background trees a little bit of alizarin crimson was dropped into various areas.

The lake was washed with raw sienna to create the flatness of the calm water. With burnt sienna and a touch of French ultramarine blue the rocky outcrop was painted.

Once the paper was dry the pine trees were painted in using various mixes of French ultramarine blue, Antwerp blue, raw sienna and burnt sienna.

To complete the painting reeds and grasses were painted in using mixtures of Antwerp blue, burnt sienna and raw sienna.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.

The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on either 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $40.00 and sold unframed.

ACEO - Marsh Grass 1-2

I am always amazed at the wide range of marsh grasses, reeds and bull rushes that can be found at the edges of the lakes, by the islands and in the shallows.

Usually around the patches of water grasses you will also find a wide variety of fishes in various sizes from small fry up to large game fish looking for a meal.


Marsh Grass 1

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.

The ACEO shown here are all original watercolour paintings using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. They are priced at $20.00 each and sold unframed.



Marsh Grass 2

In the Past

After having Emil VARGA demonstrate how to paint barns at the last meeting of the Buckhorn Tuesday Painters, I thought it would be a good idea to work on another barn painting today.

I pulled out all the barn paintings I had started and couldn't believe that there were seven of them; Winter Barns (see posting 27 April 10), Summer Barn, Spring Barn and Home, (see postings 22-24 July 10), Abandoned Farm (see posting 13 October 10), Barns in Autumn (see posting 03 February 11) and the one I decided to work on today In the Past (see posting 24 August 10).

















I darkened the leaves on the main maple tree and added another two more maples on the left side of the barn. I also added a few brighter fallen leaves on the ground and darkened the shadows beneath the trees.

The barn needed to have the areas that were missing boards darkened and a little more detail had to be added to the roof.

Then to tie everything together I added a fence line into the back fields and a few windblown leaves into the sky.

This is an original 8" x 9” framed watercolour available for $185.00.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and enjoy the artwork.

Cloudy Day - A Work in Progress

I came across a couple of photographs I had taken of the Power House - Clock and Chimes Tower before it had been restored and thought this would be an ideal background for the charred remains making them stand out in stark relief against the stormy sky.

It was during a fireworks display on 06 August 1939 that the roof burst into flames and soon the entire framework of the building was ablaze.

The local fire department arrived with the village pumper towed in on a scow, but the fire was impossible to contain and everything burned with the exception of the granite walls of the building.














The Power House - Clock and Chimes Tower remained a burnt out shell for 52 years.

The Alexandria Bay Rotary Club donated the funds to replace the three faced clock in the Clock Tower. The building was restored by the Thousand Island Bridge Authority at a cost of approximately $350,000.00 and was reopened to the public in 1991.

I will post this again once I have transferred the drawing of the shell of the Power House - Clock Tower and Chimes and started the painting.

Dawn Horizon - A Work in Progress

While going through my photographs of Boldt Castle and the surrounding buildings I came across a couple of the Arch of Honour and Peristyle before and after restoration.

What I find interesting in the history of Boldt Castle is that Elizur Kirke Hart purchased the 5 acre (2 hectare) island which was then known as Hemlock Island and renamed it Hart island on 31 July 1871.

On 21 June 1895 Edward Wallace Dewey purchased Hart Island from Elizur Hart's widow and subsequently sold it ten days later to Louise Augusta Boldt.














George C. Boldt and his wife Louise renamed the the property from Hart Island to Heart Island; and the first major change was to turn the island into a heart shape.

The Arch of Honour and Peristyle serves as a water gate allowing the St. Lawrence River to flow into the lagoon surrounding nearly half the island. It is over 500 feet (152 meters) in length and at one spot is 100 feet (30 meters) wide. The lagoon was built out into the water in such a way as to make the heart shape of the island more pronounced.

I will post this again once I have transferred the drawing of the Arch of Honour and Peristyle onto the paper.

Dawn Delight - A Work in Progress

This is a sky I would like to use for a painting of the restored Power House - Clock and Chimes Tower which is one of the buildings belonging to Boldt Castle.

Boldt Castle is found in the Thousand Islands region that straddles the Canada - U.S. border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from Lake Ontario. It is part of Alexandria Bay, New York.














Boldt Castle is accessible by ferry, private boat or by tour boat from Alexandria Bay, N.Y. USA or in Gananoque, Rockport, and Ivy Lea, Ontario, Canada.

There is a U.S. Customs and Border Protection office and visitors coming in from Canada or other countries must produce appropriate identification (passport, etc.) when visiting Heart (Hart)Island as you are entering the USA.

I will post this painting once I have the drawing transferred to the paper and have started work on the building.

Haunting Reflections - A Work in Progress

I was in the mood to paint skies and this is the background for a painting I would like to do of Alster Tower which was used as a play house and games room; there is even a bowling alley inside the building. This is one of the buildings belonging to Boldt Castle.

Over the years I have taken many photographs of Boldt Castle and the various buildings on Heart (Hart) Island.














It is one of my favourite places to visit and I try to go at least every other year and see what new improvements (which has been under renovation since 1977) have been made by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority.

I will post this painting once I have the drawing of the building transferred to the paper. Thank you for coming to look at my artwork and I hope you will return often.

Barns in Autumn - Work in Progress

With having completed a barn with Emil VARGA last week (for Barns in Summer see my posting on 25 January 11).

Heather and I decided that we would continue with paintings of barns at her place today.

I enjoyed doing last week's barn so much that I have transferred my sketch down onto another piece of watercolour paper and and masked out the barn.

While I was waiting for the masking fluid to dry I repeated the transfer on two more pieces of watercolour paper will do this barn in all four seasons.

I washed in the sky with French ultramarine blue, leaving some white areas for clouds and then added a little burnt sienna to the blue and painted in a little bit of shadow into the base of the clouds.

Using a sponge and mixtures of raw sienna, aureolin, alizarin crimson and cadmium red I decided to make this the autumn version and put in the Maple tree leaves.

Using pure raw sienna I brushed the under paint of the foreground grasses making sure to leave some areas of white.

Once the paint was dry I removed the masking fluid from the barns.

I will post this painting at a later date.

Buckhorn Artists' Group Blog - Show Updates

I have updated the Buckhorn Artists' Group blog with a listing of shows some of the various artists in the Group are exhibiting their work in during the month of February.

If you get a chance come out and visit them at one or all of the shows.

Confirmed Shows for 2011 - February

This is a listing of confirmed shows that I will be exhibiting my artwork at this year. I will update the list as more shows are added.

Kawartha Artists’ Gallery, Peterborough, Ont.
KAGS
27 Feb – 10 Mar Miniaturia
Opening Reception 27 Feb 11 from 1-4pm.
13-31 Mar Figuratively Speaking
Opening Reception 13 Mar 11 from 1-4pm.
05-23 Jun Temperatures Rising
Opening Reception 05 Jun 11 from 1-4pm.
11-29 Sep Changes
Opening Reception 11 Sep 11 from 1-4pm.
30 Oct – 16 Nov Outdoor Painters' Group Show
Opening Reception 30 Oct 11 from 1-4pm.
04-23 Dec 11 & 03-05 Jan 12 Christmas Show
Opening Reception 04 Dec 11 from 1-4pm.

St Matthews Church, Buckhorn, Ont
Buckhorn Artists' Group
21-23 May 23rd Annual Among Friends Art Show
06-14 Aug 21st Annual Shades of Summer Art Show

Fenelon Falls Fair Grounds, Fenelon Falls, Ont.
02-03 Sep 22nd Annual Kawartha Arts Festival