ACEO - Autumn River 1

Today I wanted to complete this painting that I started last year (see post on June 2015).

Using French ultramarine blue I put in the sky and the river and set it aside to dry.

While the painting was drying I mixed various autumn colours for the tree leaves using raw sienna, new gamboge, aureolin, burnt sienna, alizarin crimson and cadmium yellow.

I started with the trees in the background first and then used raw sienna to put the reflections into the water.

Again the painting was set aside to dry.

Next I mixed the tree trunk colour using French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna and then, I painted in the tree trunks of the maples in the middle area of land followed by the ones that were on the right side in the foreground.

While the tree trunks were drying I put in the grasses and growies in the middle areas and in the foreground using mixes of raw sienna, burnt sienna, new gamboge and cadmium yellow.

Using a sponge I put in the leaves on the maple trees in the middle area with mainly yellow mixes and a few, with areas of orange.

I did the same with the foreground maple trees, using a smaller amount of the yellow mixes and more of the orange mixtures.

Next I put the reflections in the water from the middle trees.

Lastly, using pure cadmium red, I dotted in a few brightly coloured leaves throughout the painting to create interest.

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 Windsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Fence Posts 4-6 Three Works in Progress

It is another sunny hot 86F (30C) and humid 93F (34C) day and I am going to go along more of the back roads like I did earlier this month (see post on 17 July 2016).

I thought I would continue using the same two blues: French ultramarine blue and Antwerp blue for the sky and mixtures of the two blues together with new gamboge, aureolin, burnt sienna and raw sienna for the trees and grasses.

The first place I stopped at had a bent pine tree in the background, deciduous trees in front of them all behind a fence line.

Fence Posts 4

As I did at all my previous stops when doing quick sketches I took a reference photograph before going to another location.

As I continued down the road I came upon a cluster of intertwined cedar trees close to the fence with a hay field in the background and a distant line of trees on the horizon.

First I put in the sky with a graduated wash of the two blues.

Next I blocked in a rough outline of the mass of cedars and the small pine tree with a dark green.

Fence Posts 5

That was followed by indicating the hay field and background treeline.

By this time the sun was coming around and I decided to take the next road in the direction of home.

After coming to the top of a hill in the distance I could see a part of the Miller Creek Wildlife Area.

I did this piece the same way as the others, starting with the sky, followed by the areas of woodlots and open fields.

Fence Posts 6

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

Northern Lights - A Work in Progress

Around 3:30 a.m. this morning Kyora woke me up due to the sound of thunder in the distance as the storm was approaching. Normally thunder storms do not bother her, but by her actions I knew that it would be a major storm.

It certainly came in with a vengeance, the rain started and got harder as the storm came closer until we had this tremendous thunderstorm right over the house. The sky lit up and in less than a second the booming thunder clapped over the house causing the windows to rattle.

Since I enjoy a thunderstorm I sat out on the front porch for most of it, but for the better part of almost an hour you couldn't see the lightning,  just a flash as the sky light up and the crash of the thunder overhead.

It wasn't until around 5:00 a.m. that I could finally see the lightning and the rain gradually started to slow down. The storm finally abated around 5:45 a.m. when it moved out of the area.

Usually, after a major storm like this one you can expect the temperature and humidity to drop; but that didn't happen with this one as it remained hot 86F (30C) and muggy with the humidity at 100F (38C).













One benefit of the storm was with all the rain we had, the grass was no longer crunchy when I took the dog out for her walk.

Even though I didn't get a lot of sleep I wanted to get a little more work on this piece that I have been painting on over a long time (see posts on 09 December 2010, 21 February, 29 May, 10 July and 29 August 2012 and 25 May 2016).

Using a dark of alizarin crimson, burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue I started by putting in an indication of the tree trunk on the furthest left side of the painting.

This was followed by indicating the trunk of one of the background trees closest to the completed trees in the background.

Next I started with the closest tree on the left side beside the finished area of the painting on the right. Once again starting with a line indicating the trunk before proceeding with applying the bark onto the tree trunk beginning at the bottom and working my way up toward the top of the tree.

It wasn't long before I decided to stop before I made a mess of the painting due to being tired.

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

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

Poster for Shades of Summer Art Show

Today is the second day of Art @ the Locks, hosted by the Lockside Trading Company in Young's Point, Ont. and it is going to be another hot 89F (31.7C) and humid 95F (35C) day.

It is located by Lock 27 on the Trent Severn Waterway and we will be able to enjoy watching the boats go through the Lock all weekend.

While at the show I was also handing out some of my redesigned posters for the upcoming Buckhorn Artists' Group's 26th Annual Shades of Summer Show held at St. Matthews Church in Buckhorn, Ont.

I would like to thank Ron and Barbara Pereman of Blackstock, Ontario on their purchase of On the Edge (see post on 11 April 2010), Haven 1 (see post on 20 June 2011), Shoreline 2 (see post on 29 June 2013) and Flower Bed 5 (see post on 30 July 2010).

6th Annual Art @ the Locks Show

Today we will set up the exhibit for Art @ the Locks, hosted by the Lockside Trading Company in Young's Point, Ontario.

It is located by Lock 27 on the Trent Severn Waterway and we will be able to enjoy watching the boats go through the Lock all weekend.














First the tent was set up that Norma and I will use for our display, it was close by a couple of cedar trees which would provide shade during the course of the day.

Tables and grids were set up next and it was time to decide how to display the various paintings in the space available.














Originally I had a large watercolour painting on an easel by the front of the tent, but as the sun came around in the morning it was in direct sunlight.

With the high heat (32C) and humidity (38C) it could cause the glass to sweat and damage the painting, so I moved it to the back of the tent where it would be shaded throughout the show.














After getting myself a cup of tea, I set up my equipment and pulled out a number of small paintings and began working on them.

I find it is better if I work on completing small pieces that will only take an hour or two to finish. This way I can stop at any point and talk with the people who come into the show.














I was surprised with the number of people that came out to the show on such a hot and humid day, but with the temperatures remaining unseasonably high for so long, perhaps everyone is simply getting used to the heat.

I am looking forward to another enjoyable day by the Lock tomorrow.

Early Morning 1 - A Work in Progrress

I was up early this morning and enjoyed watching the sun come up over the hills on the east end of the property.

While it was rising I quickly pulled out this little sketch that I did a number of years ago (see post on 26 April 2013) and brushed in the sky.














It is supposed to be another very hot 91F (33C) and extremely humid 102F (39C) day and unfortunately, I do not have the time to do more work on this piece, but I will post it at a later date once it has been completed.

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

Barracuda I - A Work in Progress

It is typical hot July weather with the temperature reaching 91F (33C) and the humidity making it feel like 99F (37C).

This is another sketch I transferred onto paper from my diving slate when I was in Roatan, Honduras at the CoCo View Resort.















I was on Newman's wall after the first morning dive on my way back to the Resort when I came across this small school of barracuda slowly moving along the reef.

I did a quick sketch of their placement in the reef and thought it may turn into a nice painting later.

I will post this sketch once more work on it has been completed.