Rain Clouds - A Work in Progress

Today I was painting with the Buckhorn Tuesday Painting Group and thought I would like to do more work on the trees I put into this painting last month (see posts on 14 January 2011 and 05 January 2020).

I started by washing a in a base colour onto the trunks and main branches of each of the trees using mixtures of Antwerp Blue, French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna.









Using darker mixtures of the same colours gradually added the bark texture to the tree trunks and main branches, as well as adding smaller branches and twigs.

I will post this piece at a later date one all the branches on the trees have been completed.

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

OSWOA - Country Road 1

Today I wanted to finish this painting that I started in a Colour and Composition class with Neil Broadfoot many years ago (see posts on 29 January 2012, 11 December 2015, 20 February and 11 August 2016), this painting started as Colour and Composition 6.

I started with the main tree in the foreground on the left side o f the road, using various combinations of French ultramarine blue mixed with burnt sienna, and continued by putting in the rest of the tree trunks and branches on the background trees.

From there I lightened the tree colour and brushed in the road, followed by darkening the colour slightly to put in the ruts in the road.














This was followed by mixing various greens using raw sienna and French ultramarine blue to put in a few pine trees and add more definition to the grass.

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. It is priced at $40.00 and sold unframed.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork and I hope you will return often.

Rain Clouds - A Work in Progress

Today I had a little bit of time ans I thought I would work on this painting that I had started many years ago (see post on 14 January 2011).

I washed in a sky behind the clouds using Antwerp blue and set it aside to dry while I decided what to put into the foreground.









Next, using a pencil I lightly drew a few trees into the foreground against the rain clouds.

I will post this painting at a later date once more work on the trees has been completed.

Changing Season 1 and 2 - Two Works in Progress

Today I wanted to do a couple of small autumn paintings, so I used a couple of photographs that I took while canoeing on Eels Lake earlier this week.

The first one is taken from the dock of the shoreline area nearest where the boat launch is located.

It is a nice mixture of coniferous and deciduous trees at the edge of the lake.

It shows how low the water levels are in the lake at this time of the year, with so many of the rocks and stumps being above the water.

Changing Season 1

Next I chose the area in the inlet on the far side of the parking lot for those using the boat launch.

This view shows even more of the exposed rocks that are normally below the surface of the lake.

Most of the deciduous trees are higher up and further back from the shoreline, while the pines and cedars are lower and almost on the edge of the water.

I decided I would do these paintings just at sunset as I saw them.

Changing Season 2

I started by putting in the sky in with a mix of raw sienna and alizarin crimson.

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

Little Lake Trees 1 and 2

Today I set up the display at the 9th Annual Purple Onion Festival held in Millennium Park in Peterborough.

I was joined by fellow artists Jewell Allington, Jane Hall and Emil Varga.

We had a fairly steady stream of people coming through the building throughout the day.

In the afternoon I took a break and walked along the pathway by Little Lake.

I did this drawing of a maple tree with the sun on the lake and the autumn colours in the background.

Little Lake Trees 1

On my way back to the show I stopped at this spot which featured four maple trees with various coloured foliage with the sun lighting up the autumn colours on the far shore.















Little Lake Trees 2

When I returned to the building it wasn't long before I had to take the show down and head back home.

Last Day of the Shades of Summer Art Show and Sale

Today is a little more busy than it was yesterday and as usual I am sitting at the back of the building working on my art work.

I worked on this drawing of a small island on one of the lakes that had a solitary, large dead tree.

The tree skeleton had been bleached to a shimmering pale grey.

At a later date I may turn this drawing into a painting, but I will have to give a lot of thought to how I can have the tree stand out boldly against a dark background.

All Alone 1

One painting was sold by Rebecca Bilcox and small items were sold by Diane Collins and Emil Varga.

The hours for our show are:
18 Aug 19 - 12:30pm - 4:00pm

Hopefully some of you will make it out to see the show today.

Winter Trees 8 - A Work in Progress

Today the temperature is hovering around the freezing mark 32F (0C) and it is raining, but it could as easily change to freezing rain or snow.

I started by putting in the sky with washes of cobalt blue and alizarin crimson and continued with slightly darker mix of the same two colours into the snow.

Next I ran a little bit of the red in a few spots on the top of the snowbank.

Using a mix of cobalt blue and burnt sienna I put in some of the main tree trunks and branches.

I wanted to think about what more I would like to do with the trees and I set it aside to dry.

Once it dried I indicated a few pine trees and more branches on the trees.

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

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork and I hope you will return often.

Benched

Today I went through a stack of unfinished canvases and pulled out this painting that I had started a couple of years ago (see post on 02 October 2016) when I entered the 1st Annual Outdoor Painting Festival Cavan/Millbrook plein air competition.

Using various greens made from Hansa yellow, ultramarine blue, manganese blue, cadmium yellow lemon and raw sienna, I put the remaining leaves on the tree.

This was followed by adding some highlights using Hansa yellow, titanium white and shadows using and burnt sienna.

I added a little more of the pale green into the sunlit area behind the bench.

This original 8" x 10" acrylic painting is available for $150.00.

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

Farm by the River I

Today is the first day of painting with the Buckhorn Tuesday Painting Group at St. Matthew Church in Buckhorn, Ontario.

I thought since I was there, I may as well change my painting hanging in our display area, so I exchanged Strawberries with Single Pear.

I brought one of my pen and ink drawings that I had started a few years ago (see posts on 11 November 2015, 31 January and 13 October 2017) and thought I would complete it.

I started by putting in the third large tree trunk into the foreground.

Next I added in the grasses and growies on the edge of the water and at the base of the two trees on the right side of the drawing as well as a few small bushes.















Lastly I added in the trees on the far shoreline and the ripples into the river.

This original 9" x 12" pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $95.00.

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

ACEO - River Morning 1

This morning I looked at the two Monarch butterfly chrysalis on the outside of the front porch.

The first one that was at the lower part of the porch window frame had changed and you could see through the outer shell the darker veining in between the areas of the orange on the wings and some of the white markings.

More than likely the butterfly will emerge either later today or very early tomorrow morning. I will keep checking on it and hopefully be able to watch it happen.

The second chrysalis, which is on the corner of the upper window on the porch, hasn't started to change colour and probably won't emerge today, perhaps sometime tomorrow.

I will just have to be patient.

In the meantime I thought I would work on this painting that I had started a few years ago (see posts on 13 September 2015 and 26 February 2018).

The first thing I did was bring the orange and peach colours from the sky further down into the water making the river wider.

With a pale mixture of burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue I put in the furthest back tree trunks on the far shore and gradually darkened the colour and increased the size of the tree trunks as the trees came closer to the river.

Darkening the colour more I put in the largest tree trunk on the shore in the foreground.

Next I mixed a pale green of raw sienna, French ultramarine blue and Antwerp blue and using a sponge I put the leaves on the furthest back trees first. Then I slightly darkened the green mix and put in each layer of trees on the far shore.

At this point I put the grasses at the edge of the shore leaving some areas untouched for the rocks at the river's edge.

I wet the river with clear water and using the green brushed in the reflections of the closer trees into the water.

While the river was drying I darkened the green mix and with the sponge I put the leaves on the foreground tree.

Lastly, I painted in the grasses and the growies at the base of the foreground tree and on the closer shore.

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 140lb. Fabriano 100% cotton, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Dusk 7 - A Work in Progress

Today I was going to work on a couple of small paintings and try to get them finished.

I pulled out this little piece that I had started last year (see post on 09 March 2017).

Since I liked the colours in the top of the painting, I decided to put in a low horizon line so I could have a lot of sky showing.

Next I added a few rocks on the shoreline, followed by placing in some of the larger pine trees on the shore.

Before I could go any further with this painting I had friends come over and I will post this piece at a later date once it has been completed.

Twisted Trees 4-6 - Three Works in Progress

With this last week of unseasonably warm temperatures and today's high of 56F (13C) making it feel like a nice spring day.

There is very little snow remaining on the ground and I decided to take Kyora along to keep me company as I went for a little longer walk along the fence line.

I brought my sketchbook with me and planned on doing a few more drawings of the bent trees. Hopefully, I will find some more of the birds we have in the area and be able to add into my drawings.

Twisted Tree 4

I went along the fence line at the back of the barn to the north west corner and started sketching one of the maple trees.

It wasn't long before I heard a crow calling as I looked around and I soon found my crow, which Ron named "Squawky"  that I rescued a couple of years ago (see posts on 10 and 18 March 2016) perched in a nearby tree watching me.

Twisted Tree 5

I will put out some bread for him when I go back to the house.

The next tree I did had a black squirrel in it, which scolded the dog for sitting under the tree watching him.

As we headed back to the house I stopped once more to do a drawing of another tree, this one had a nuthatch peaking around the tree trunk at Kyora and I.

Twisted Tree 6

I will post each of these drawings as more work on them is completed.

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

ACEO - Long Shadows 1-3

After the 8" (20.3cm) of snow we had yesterday on top of all the previous snowy days we have had over the last week, I wasn't surprised to see a pair of snow buntings arrive for the cracked corn I put out for the small birds.

With a lot more snow in the forecast over the coming week I know that I will have a lot more flocks of snow buntings coming to visit.

I thought it would be a good day to work on a few paintings of snow scenes, so I pulled out these three that I had started quite a while ago (see posts on 30 November 2013 and 18 December 2016).















Long Shadows 1

I decided that I would work on all three of these pieces at the same time and began by painting in the tree trunks with various mixtures of burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue as well as the building in the background.

Next I mixed the shadow colour of Antwerp blue and French ultramarine blue and put in the shadows across the snow being sure to follow the depressions in the snow to create interest.















Long Shadows 2

Using raw sienna, burnt sienna, alizarin crimson and new gamboge I put in the dead grasses, growies and leaves at the base of the trees, peeking out of some of the snow drifts and in some of the branches.

Lastly, I added a few pine trees into the background using raw sienna and Antwerp blue.















Long Shadows 3

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.

Twisted Trees 1-3 - Three Works in Progress

Along the fence line of the farm there are a number of windblown trees which have had their branches twisted due to the elements.

Most of these trees are found along the north fence line which takes the full force of the north wind.

There are also a few of these bent trees on the higher hills just south of the north fence line.

Many of these trees are fairly large and with the exception of the pine trees are hardwoods such as maple, beech and apple.

Twisted Tree 1

It was a fairly mild day with the temperature reaching a high of 45F (7C) and it had been raining overnight and during the morning which melted a lot of the snow.

I thought I would take Kyora out for a short walk along the fence and take a sketchbook with me so I could draw some of the trees without any leaves on them to hide the trunk and branches.

Twisted Tree 2

As I stopped and sketched different trees along the fence I encountered a different bird in each of the trees and decided to add them into the sketch.

In the first drawing there was a pileated woodpecker, in the second drawing there was a bright red male cardinal and in the last drawing I was fortunate to capture a great horned owl on a branch of the tree who sat motionless.

Twisted Tree 3

I will post each of these drawings as more work on them is completed.

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

Winter Island and Open Water 1 – Two Works in Progress

Today I wanted to paint a couple of small winter scenes on boards and I thought I would work back and forth on both pieces at the same time.

For the first one I painted in the sky using titanium white and ultramarine blue. I then added a small amount of alizarin crimson to the sky colour and painted in an area of open water.












Winter Island

Next using burnt sienna, raw sienna and white I painted in some trees on the horizon.

Adding ultramarine blue to the background tree colour I put in darker closer trees near the horizon line before setting it aside to work on the second painting.











Open Water 1

Using the same colour for the water as in the first painting, I painted in areas of open water on the second painting.

At this point I wasn't quite sure how I would progress with either of these pieces. But I found four small wooden frames and I make cut them down to fit the frames.

I will post each of these paintings at a later date once I decide what direction I wish to go with them in the future.

Shades of Grey - A Work in Progress

Today I pulled out this painting that I have been working on (see posts on 22 March and 17 August 2017), which I thought would be fitting for Hallowe'en night.

Using a dark mix of French ultramarine blue and raw sienna I put in the grasses with a little more detail on the closer field, leaving some areas of the white paper showing through which I will fill in later.














With light and dark mixtures of French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna I started painting in the trunks and branches of the three closest trees in the foreground.

I will post this painting again, once more of the trees have been completed.

Three Rivers

The heat 81F (27C) and humidity 91F (33C) are back again and having the temperatures this high in are unusual.

So to think cool thoughts I decided to do a few drawings of partially frozen rivers in the winter with snow on the ground and trees.















Bend in the River 1

 For the first one I wanted to have a covering of snow on the ground with thin ice forming along some sections of the river bank; together with an ice fog in the background to keep things misty.















Evening River 1

For the second one I wanted a deep layer of snow on the ground and in the branches of the pine trees. The river would have a thin layer of ice across most of its surface and some grasses and growies poking out of the snow.















Sunset River 1

On the third one I wanted a light dusting of snow on the ground which would allow the rocks to show through the snow. The river would be open water and the trees would be a mix of coniferous and deciduous trees.

Any of these sketches could easily be developed into paintings in either watercolour or acrylic, which I may do at a later date.

Back Forty I

Today I wanted to complete this sketch that I had started while out in the back fields with Ron (see post on 25 June 2017).

I started with the main maple tree in the foreground and then added the beech tree in the middle area.

On the right side I put in another smaller maple tree and added the grasses and growies beneath them.














Next I added some grasses to indicate a small rise a little further back in the field, but it looked a little plain so I added a couple more maple trees.

Lastly I added in a tree another field further back and put in the edge of the distant forest.

This original 4-1/2" x 6" pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $40.00.

OSWOA - Evening Marsh 1

I wanted to finish this painting that I have been working on for quite a while (see posts on 11 December 2011, 31 January, 19 March and 12 May 2016 and 19 August 2017).

With various mixtures of burnt sienna, raw sienna and French ultramarine blue I first painted the reeds by the dead cedar behind the fallen tree trunk.

Then I put in some grasses and growies at the base of the trees in the background on the left side of the painting.














Lastly I added more grasses and growies at the base of the foreground trees on the left side

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 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $40.00 and sold unframed.

Front Field I

Today is the last day of the Kawartha Art Festival held at the Fenelon Fair Grounds.

I arrived at the show a little bit earlier to change some of my paintings around to fill in the space left by the painting that was sold yesterday.

The weather is a little different than yesterday with it starting off with rain, which is to clear around noon, but the temperature is going to be just a little warmer at 72F (22C).

The rain didn't stop the crowds from coming out.

For most of the morning I did little bits on a number of drawings, but couldn't settle down and get into working on one of them.

It wasn't until after I had lunch that I decided to work on this piece that I had started earlier this year (see post on 18 June 2017) while Ron and I were out in the fields at the farm using my new toy.

I started by putting in the clouds and then proceeded to work on the trees along the fence line, finishing with the foreground.

This original 9" x 12" pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $75.00.
















I would like to thank new collector Mrs. Christine Martin of Peterborough, Ontario on her selection of A Spring Bouquet (see post on 20 September 2011).
















Thank you for coming to look at my artwork and I hope you will return often.