Working on the Square

This week I discovered a box of 12x12x1.5 inch canvases in my closet. I usually order in bulk to save a few dollars, but storage can sometimes be a problem, so the extras end up in the closet or under the bed. Sometimes I forget where they are, so it was exciting to discover a set of four wonderful little square format canvases. The discovery set in motion a series of sketches and a nice collection of square format landscape paintings.  Here's where I began:

I like to make little value studies that help me formulate a good composition. I did several pages of sketches before deciding on a design for the first square in the series. Here is the result of my first square of the week:

The original painting is for sale at Ugallery. Prints are available from my print shop. The rest will be sent to Ugallery as soon as the rain quits falling and I can get some better photos. Below is a quick shot of the four completed paintings. It was so much fun creating these guys that I just ordered some more square canvases. Can't wait for them to arrive.