Surf Runner

A sweet little girl on father's day inspired this little 4x6 inch oil painting.  I'll add it to my people at the beach series.  Haven't yet decided if these will stay small studies or eventually turn in to something bigger. 

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4x6, Beach Art, Beach People, Canvas Panel Painting, Coastline, Figurative Oil Painting, Impressionist Oil Painting, Oil Painting

Man with a Bag

Yesterday I spent a lot of time practicing painting figures.  I began with a 5x7 inch canvas panel and some reference photos.  When I started, my intent was to paint a figure, wipe it out, paint another, wipe it out. Working on the same panel gave me a lot of practice, but didn't chew up a lot of supplies.  On this panel I painted about four different figures, wiping each out after I was finished.  This fellow was my last attempt in the session, so I let him live.  It was a really useful exercise and a lot of fun, too!

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5x7, Canvas Panel Painting, Figurative Oil Painting, Figure Painting, Oil Painting, oil sketch, Practice, Small Painting

Woman in the Water

This is another of my people on the beach paintings.  She is 4x6 inches and uncertain about the water.  Another really fun one to paint. 

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4x6, Beach Art, Beach People, Canvas Panel Painting, Coastal Painting, Contemporary Painting, Figurative Oil Painting, Human Figure Painting, Oil Painting

At the Beach

This past couple of days I was lucky enough to spend some time at the Washington Coast.  Since it was a holiday weekend, crowds were the norm.  People of all sorts were wandering along the shoreline looking for treasures in the surf, having picnics, wading in the waves, and having fun.  An elderly man walking along the water's edge inspired this little 4x6 inch painting.  I love the shapes of people--not the angles of bathing suit models, but the shapes of everyday people.  This guy is one of those everyday folks that are the most fun to paint. 

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4x6, Abstract, Art, Beach People, Canvas, Coastal Painting, Figurative Oil Painting, Figure Painting, Oil Painting, Portrait, Small Painting

Walking

Today's painting was just plain fun to paint. A Couple of young ladies taking a walk on a sunny winter afternoon inspired this abstract painting. It is 5x7 inches on a canvas panel.

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Abstract, Figurative Oil Painting, Figure Painting, oil sketch, Painting on Canvas, Shadows, Small Artwork, Woman Walking

Man Alone

One of the biggest challenges an artist can face is depicting the human figure accurately. Accomplished figure painters practice every day for many years; I am humbled by their skill. Success with painting the figure is about proportion and value. If one is inaccurate, the painting doesn't work. Thus, on the occasions when the thought of figure painting enters my mind, it is with considerable apprehension that I approach the canvas. This little 4x6 inch oil painting of a lone male figure is the result of my latest figure painting effort.

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Canvas Panel Painting, Contemporary Painting, Figurative Oil Painting, Figurative Painting, Figure Painting, Human Figure Painting, Oil Painting, Original Oil Painting, Painting on Canvas, Small Artwork, Small Painting

Learning to Fly, Original Figurative Painting

This 5x7 inch oil painting of a father and his daughter was based on another of my beach photos. It was so touching to see the two of them together on a misty beach watching a kite climb higher and higher.

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Beach Art, Beach Fog, Coastal Painting, Coastline, Contemporary Painting, Figurative Oil Painting, Figurative Painting, Figure Painting, Oil Painting, Small Painting, Summer Fun

Original Painting, Beach Talk

As the rain pours down and the wind blows, I find myself looking at photos I took when the weather was much better. This little 5x5 inch study was based on a photo taken several summers ago on a visit to the Pacific coast. I was attracted to the brilliant blue of the sea and sky. It was especially nice for the couple to stroll by and provide a focus for my study.

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Beach Art, Canvas Panel Painting, Figurative Painting, Figure Painting, Limited Palette Painting, Oil Painting, Original Painting, Pacific Northwest Artist, Painting Light

River Fishing

Today's painting celebrates fishermen who are casting their lines into Pacific Northwest rivers and hoping to haul in a salmon. When I was younger I spent many seasons stalking the rivers of Washington State with my father and angling for the big one. More often than not, I came home empty handed, but it gave me a real appreciation for the skill and expertise required to hook those ellusive fish that squirm their way up the rivers each fall. This painting was completed in oil on a 6x8 inch stretched canvas. It will be joining some of my other quick studies at the Small Impressions Gallery on Etsy when the paint has dried.

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autumn river, Carbon River Fishing, Contemporary Painting, Figurative Painting, Figure Painting, Fisherman Painting, Fishing in Washington State, Oil Painting, Original Oil Painting, Painting of Shoreline, Painting on Canvas, Salmon Fishing, Small Painting

Relaxing on the Lawn

Becoming a better painter of the human figure is a skill I contemplate from time to time. To be especially good at painting the figure takes years of consistent practice. I don't practice as often as I should, but every once in a while my brush and I put forth an attempt. A woman reclining on the lawn in the midst of a city park inspired me to try once again. She was clothed from head to toe, so I concentrated on proportion and the way the cloth draped across her body. I tried to capture the leisure attitude of summer as the figure emerged. It was a fun little painting that reminds me why I like the summer months so well.

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Abstract, city Park, Contemporary Painting, Figurative Painting, Figure Painting, Oil Painting, oil sketch, Original Oil Painting, Original Painting, reclining figure, Small Art, Small Painting

Boy and Dog

This painting is 5x7 inches and is one of several I've worked on recently with a subject of people and thier dogs. Spending the week of July 4th at the beach provided me with a much needed dose of sunshine and a lot of inspiration for painting. Dogs seem to love the beach even more than the people who take them there. Wide open spaces, unusual smells, and lots of fun draw our dogs to the beach as well as ourselves.

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Dog Walking and New Acquaintances

This painting was created from the same palette I used yesterday, alizarin crimson, ultramarine blue, and white, but I began with an underpainting of yellow ochre. The yellow ochre peaking through the cool has an interesting effect. The subject was inspired by a stroll with my daughter's dog through a local farmer's market. Many people took their dogs along as they shopped the market. The fun thing is that dogs are great at making friends. They say hello in their unique way to people and other dogs alike. It was an enjoyable experience the dog introduced us to a number of new acquaintances. This experience inspired me to begin thingking about working on a series of dog walkers and their dogs. Time will tell if the idea actually sparks and grows or just remains a little 5x7 kernal of a thought.

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American Painting, Canvas Panel Painting, Dog Painting, Dog Park Painting, Dog Portrait, Dog Walker Painting, Oil Painting, Original Oil Painting, Original Painting, Painting a Series, Painting on Canvas, Pet Painting, Small Art

Surfer Girl--American Oil Painting

The weather has been wonderfully sunny all week--just the kind of weather for water sports. Today's painting is a celebration of the surfers in my family who like to catch a wave. It is 8x10 inches on a gessoed hardboard panel. Although the sunshine may seem to be the inspiration for this painting, it was really reading Richard Schmid's book, Alla Prima, again. He states that a painter should first strive to paint the first element perfectly and the rest of the painting will almost paint itself. With this idea in mind, I very carefully measured and mixed colors for the surfer girl, aiming for perfection. When she was completed to the best of my ability, the rest of the painting was an easy abstract conclusion. She was a great subject for a hot afternoon.

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Fire Fighting--American Oil Painting

Today's painting is a 5x7 inch oil painting inspired by the fire fighters that are working so hard to keep us safe. Here in the Pacific Northwest, everything is dry. We've only had a couple of days of rain since May and the landscape has turned in to kindling. This little painting is a thank you to all those hardworking fire fighters and my best wishes for their continued safety.

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Reading and Relaxing--Upside Down Oil Painting

This painting is the last of my recent upside down paintings. I am pleased with the way the contrast between light and dark creates a strong sense of sunlight. The advantage to painting upside down is that I don't stop to ask myself what color the jacket might be in the sunlight versus in the shade, I just paint shapes and colors and let it go at that.

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Walking in the Rain--Figurative Oil Painting

I had so much fun with my last upside down painting, that another one found its way onto my easel. Looking at my reference upside down seems to ease my anxiety and actually results in a reasonable outcome. Forgetting that something is a leg, an arm, or a head and not worrying about getting it just right releases the anxiety I feel when trying to paint figures. This painting is 6x10 inches which was an ideal shape for this little composition.

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Woman Walking--Small Format Oil Painting

Today's effort is outside my usual realm of subjects and executed in a very unusual manner. This walking woman comes from Karin Jurick's Different Strokes weekly challenge. Although I've been painting some figures recently, painting them upside down is way beyond my usual working method. Yes, that's right. The challenge this week was to paint upside down. Only when it was almost complete did I turn it right side up and add a couple of last minute touches. It goes to show what I've always known, but seldom practice. Painting shapes works well. If a shape is painted, it doesn't matter whether you paint it one direction or the other, it is still the same shape. When painting, intellect some times gets in the way. Instead of painting what is seen, we sometimes paint what we think the subject should look like and quit actually looking at the actual shapes. This was fun. Upside down painting is probably a practice I should take up more often. The painting is 8x10 inches.

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5x7, American, Art, Daily, Daily Painting, Different Strokes, Figurative, Figure, Oil, oil painting, Original, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Stroll, upside down painting, walk, walking, woman walking

Scaling Up --Working Larger--Taking Chances

I'm still working with this same trio of women on the corner. With some suggestions from my friends at the Wetcanvas Forum, I tried a portrait layout of these ladies and lengthened the shadows. They also slimmed down a bit. I moved up to an 18x24 inch canvas. My goal is to create a large painting for the entry at our beach house. The ceiling is nine feet tall and the wall is entirely blank. I want something quite large. A landscape format would cover the wall better, but I want to create something more than just a wall decoration. I'm also considering cropping the top of the figures down to about their waistlines. This is turning out to be a fun experiment. The next version will be 24x30 inches. I have several canvases that size in my basement. I would like to go even larger, but I'll need to build some stretchers and order some more gesso first.

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Winter Shadows--American Abstract Figurative Oil Painting

Pouring rain for three days and finally the clouds parted. Although created from a photo that Karin Jurick was kind enough to share, this 8x10 inch oil painting reminds me of the recent weather here in the Pacific Northwest. With a break in the rain we often see long shadows such as these. The long abstract shapes were very fun to paint. It is easy to imagine myself with this trio of winter shoppers as they cross the street in search of a sale. To create this painting, I used a limited palette of Perylene Red, Ultramarine Blue, Titainium White, and just a smidge of Cadmium Yellow Light. The limited color range, the dark outline of the women and their shadows made this feel like a value study. Although this paintng is just 8x10 inches, I'm contemplating the pleasure it might bring to paint this in a much larger size--possibly 24x30 or thereabouts. What do you think?

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8x10, Abstract, American, Art, Blue, Brush Strokes, Contemporary, Daily, Daily Painting, Figurative, Figure, Oil, oil painting, painterly, Painting, Purple, Red, Road, Shadows, silhouette, Street, Stroll, Ultramarine Blue, Underpainting, Value Study, violet

In Grandma's Garden--Figurative Oil Painting Miniature

This morning I painted something out of the ordinary for me--a figurative painting. It's quite simple, but reflects a dream that I have to paint figures well. Occasionally I putter with painting figures, but usually don't share my results. Like all things done well, it takes practice. If time and money were no problem, I'd make a straight line to the Gage Academy of Art in Seattle and get some really top-notch instruction on drawing and painting figures. Until then--only in my dreams. This miniature oil painting is 5x7 inches on a gessoed hardboard panel.

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5x7, American, Art, Daily, Daily Painting, Field, Flowers, Garden, Grandma, Green, Lavender, Oil, oil painting, Original, Painting, Purple, Red