In Memory of Professor Harington

I was so saddened to hear last week of the death of Professor Donald Harington, a former teacher of Art History at the U of A, Fayetteville, AR, and also a very well-known author. He was the most influential and fascinating teacher I've ever had, but I'm only one of countless others who feel the same way. I'm constantly reminded when looking at art or architecture of just how much I learned from this great man, and will always treasure my memories of his teachings about art and life.

To learn more about Professor Donald Harington, and the service to be held at the U of A, Fayetteville, I've listed some sites below:

Memorial Service, U of A, Fayetteville
Fayetteville Flyer
NY Times
Books by Donald Harington , Last book published, Enduring, Special tribute by his editor at Toby Press
His official website
The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture
Interview with C. L. Bledsoe, Ghoti Fish
Trailer for Brian Walter's future documentary on Donald Harington

Peel Mansion, Pratt Place Inn, Plein Aire...

Peel Mansion
Watercolor, 12 1/2" x 9"
S. Waterford, cold press, rough

Well, I finally got around to photographing these paintings. The painting above is the viewpoint I had while participating in the first annual Peel Mansion Paint-out held in Bentonville, AR, (click on 'Peel Mansion' in the archives for details). My original plein air painting was pitiful. But I try not to let that discourage me. I know from what I read by noted plein air artists that I should look at my plein airs as a 'study', to be finished in the studio. That relieves me from the burden of thinking every painting must be finished on site or must be a success. I'm then able to relax and enjoy the painting process and also not even mind if someone is looking over my shoulder, expecting a decent painting (well actually, this still bothers me somewhat), or wants to see my painting after I finish (most of the time I throw them in the car before anyone can see them!). I myself know, that over time and with much much practice, my 'got luckys' will come with more frequency and that it will ultimately take years before I will be doing the majority of my 'keepers' entirely on site. This painting was produced using my sketches and original, plus photo references. Notice the possum in the cage at the lower right. I couldn't resist putting him in (I think I spoke of him in my original post on the Peel Mansion Paint-out). I kept glancing at him the whole time I was painting. Then the groundskeepers came and took him away, hopefully to release him in a new safe location. I think the scale is off on my figure. Need to work on this - it's something I've always had problems with.

Pratt Place Inn
Watercolor, 10" x 13 3/4"
Saunders Waterford,
300 gms (140 lb.) cold press, rough

This was my viewpoint at Pratt Place Inn. As for the 'imaginary' figures I placed in the painting (sorry they're hard to see in this image-I placed them in the furniture on the porch), I think here I was more successful with them being in scale than the Peel Mansion figure. My struggle with this painting was the foreground shadows on the flagstone. I really wanted to capture the dappled sunlight among the shadow area, but after three attempts, I thought I'd give it a rest and try again later. I don't use projectors to sketch my preliminary drawings, so it can be time consuming (at least for me) for an architectural drawing such as this one. Sketching and re-sketching allows me to become more intimate with the subject, while also giving me the opportunity to improve my drawing skills, which is something I feel that one never achieves, much like art in general. As for intimacy, it always amazes me how much sketching refreshes my memory, it puts me 'there' again, as well as sparking new ideas regarding my approach to the painting.

Pratt Place Inn was a fun place to paint. I was immediately intrigued by the old dead tree shown in my painting. Other than its obvious sculptural interest, I thought, this must be one of the original, if not the only, tree left from the time this house was built back in the late l800's. I also wondered what the house itself must have looked like before it was refurbished.

Another subject which I was very interested in was the small cottage on the grounds as one drives up the private drive to the inn. It had a mysterious European quality as it sat half-hidden among the trees that reminded me of all my old Daphne Du Maurier and Victoria Holt Gothic romance novels. I took some reference pics of it for a future painting.

I'll probably attempt this painting again, because I'm not satisfied with it totally (are we ever??), but other painting subjects are piling up so I feel the need to move on for the time being.

Yesterday, PAPO (Plein Air Painters of the Ozarks) painted at West Fork park and can I say IT WAS FREEZING!! I did not dress warm enough and chose to paint by the river's bank, which of course was all the more chilly. I had fun though and really needed the practice of painting rushing water. The wind gusts were threatening to send my painting and easel airborne into the river, so I held it down with my knees as I painted.

There were good subjects to paint - walkers, bluffs, the distant mountains (which seem to have passed their peak with the fall foliage by the way), a bridge, some mini waterfalls on the bluffs, and even a couple of horseback riders paid a visit. They brought back memories of my riding days...aah, the countryside is sure grand. It does a sole good to visit, if only for a short time.

I heard that the Ft. Smith Arts Center's Plein Air Competition was a success. That's good to hear. Plein Air competitions seem to be catching on in the area. I heard there was some really good work produced in the competition. Well, that's all for now, until next time, hang in there, set goals, take care and enjoy your art...

End of Summer Update

This is the longest I've gone between posts since beginning my blog back in January, but I needed a break from my computer, especially from blogging! It's sooo time consuming but it sure has helped me in the discipline department. I've just been enjoying the summer, or what there was of it, considering it was such an unusually rainy and cool one. I've not painted near as much as I planned to - gotta get that in check! I just got back from a visit with my mother who turned 85 and we had a great Bday - just the girls. Mother said it was one of her best birthdays ever.

Roaring River State Park

My husband and I went a few weeks ago over to Roaring River in Missouri. It's a trout hatchery which is fed by an underground spring.







The hatchery was quite fascinating. It would be interesting to take one of the tours which are offered a few times daily, I think. Never saw so many trout!





When the hatchery announces they're releasing fish, people come from all around, lining up along the river trying to catch their dinner. It's almost comical to see; you'd think those poor trout don't stand a chance, but not too many were getting caught compared to how many were released that day, which if I remember correctly, were around
10,000.

Although I only took reference photos that day, it's a good site to paint, as there are plenty of subjects i.e. shallow rapids, people fly fishing with their waders on, families swimming in the sun, and campers at the campsites.

You'll have to look hard to see two waders fly fishing way upstream...

PAPO (Plein Air Painters of the Ozarks) had painted there earlier this summer, but I chose to go with my hubby as he has been wanting to see it for a while but has not had the chance to get away from work. It was a pretty river and would make for a nice fall destination when the leaves are turning (for more info click on the ' Roaring River State Park' title above).

We also finally went on a weekend vacation to Vegas to see two shows: Cirque Du Soleil's Love and Carlos Santana's concert. Both were great and it was good to get away (1st real vacation in years) if only for a weekend.

I've been into pastoral paintings lately, fields, cows, and such. Probably due to reading so much about tonalism and looking at Zbukvic paintings. Anyway, below is a painting I made of a field behind Battlefield Park in Prairie Grove, AR:


I painted the field en plein air but was not satisfied with it. After taking a couple of snapshots of my subject, I attempted it again from my original plein air painting, reference snapshots, memory, and a value sketch. My goal in my landscape paintings is to achieve better atmospheric perspective and tonal (value) relationship/contrast. In the first painting, below, I'm satisfied with the background hills, but not so in the second studio painting. I think I should have made the two hills in the background a little more distinct from each other as I did in the first. Funny, the first one I'm happy with the background; the second one, only happy with the foreground. Good Grief!!



Studio painting I:
Study I: Battlefield 2, Prairie Grove
9 3/4 x 13 1/2,
Arches, 300 lb., cold press

Studio painting II:
Study II: Battlefield 2, Prairie Grove
9 1/2 x 13 1/4,
Watercolor, Sanders Waterford, 140 lb. (300 gms)
cold press, rough




Some cows:

This is another studio painting from photo references. Sometimes I just drive around taking photos of anything I think would be good reference material or has the potential for a good painting. The original photo didn't have the cows in it. I sketched them in from photos taken 'just down the road' from this same location.

Morning, off Goosecreek
watercolor, 9 3/4 x 13 1/2
Arches, 300 lb. cold press


Well, that's all for now. I can't believe it took me half the day just to get this posted, because of the photoshopping of these images, etc. Until next time, happy painting, and I hope to post (and paint) more frequently now that I'm back from my summer hiatus!

War Eagle Paint-Out, another Learning Experience...

Last Wednesday I painted with the PAPO (Plein Air Painters of the Ozarks) at War Eagle Mill. It was a gorgeous day, a cool front had rolled in and the skies were a crisp cerulean blue. The sounds of the falls and waterwheel were refreshing on a mid-summer's day!

The photo above shows my viewpoint. This is the exact spot from where I viewed the mill some 10 years ago and vowed to some day capture it from that bank along War Eagle Creek. I just thought it would make a great spot to paint from, so it was a no-brainer for me upon my arrival to just go ahead and set up there.

As I began my climb over the fallen trunk of a huge tree that had succumbed either to the ice storm (most likely, as it looked recently fallen) or a flash flood, my eyes zoomed in on what I felt sure to be poison ivy creeping across the very spot I needed to cross over. Great. A fellow painter was saying to me as I spied it, "there's a trail that goes around if you don't want to climb over that big trunk." Well, I was anxious to get set up, as I was already running late in getting to the site, so I decided to take my chances. However, I made a point to take the short trail around the suspicious ivy when I returned to my car that day. Needless to say, now I know that I can positively I.D. poison ivy, as I've broken out precisely where it brushed against my hand and ankle. Anyway, back to the fun part...

The below photo shows what I decided to depict in my painting:

It was a beautiful scene I thought, but my painting was pathetic. I need so much practice when it comes to plein air painting (painting period actually). But hey, there are no failures, just learning experiences, right? That is what I tell myself every time I paint out, and believe me, I say it a lot. My perspective on the mill house was off (need to sketch buildings more), my colors were drab, or dead, as Joseph Zbukvic describes it. It was also too high key- not enough tonal range (although I ran out of time before putting in all my 'darks', and had planned to put those in at the studio). However, I made some copies of my photos and plan to do some studies, so when I return maybe these things will have been corrected in my mind and on paper to save time.

As I was painting, I couldn't get over how many people and tourists were arriving at War Eagle Mill on a Wednesday morning. I thought it would be pretty much just us, the painters, but people were coming by the carloads, along with a couple of bikers, just during the couple of hours I was there. It looked like families which included generations - grandparents, kids, and even great grandchildren. The poor guys running 'The Bean Palace' upstairs in the Mill were a bit overwhelmed during lunch. But things settled down after a few minutes and everyone got their plate. I ordered a chef salad and was pleased to see that it wasn't just 'iceberg lettuce' but instead select dark green leaf lettuces, which I enjoyed (picky about my salads!). I mentioned to a painter that I was surprised to see so many folks there during the middle of the week and he asked me if I had seen 'War Eagle, Arkansas' the movie. I said, "No," but after he described it to me, it seemed vaguely familiar. Another said, "That probably explains all the tourists." I hear the movie is getting good reviews.  War Eagle Mill is a beautiful place. If you're ever in the area, you really should check it out.

Even though my painting was not a 'keeper', I enjoyed every minute of it, and that's what it's all about for me, the learning experience and ultimately, the experience itself of painting outdoors. While painting, there's suddenly that realization that comes over me of being in the moment of painting outdoors. The same feeling that I have experienced all my life when in nature. Experiencing nature while painting adds a whole other dimension to painting for me. And even though it's often frustrating, I love the challenge watercolor offers in plein air and honestly, I do learn a lot with every painting, as I'm sure you do too. It's all part of the creative process, don't you think? It would be a huge mistake to think I didn't learn a thing from that experience, which is something I've heard people say before. Well, I'll bet if they really sat down and thought about it, they would find a number of things they DID learn from that experience!

I'm getting a small amount of clay and a new kiln shelf today from Flint Hills, so I really need to get back soon to working with my pottery. Oh, and photos to archive(so what else is new?). 'Til next time, keep on creating and remember, NO FAILURES, just learning experiences...

A quick note to say that I finally was able to adjust the strap on my 'Packer' by Guerilla. It took a good wrestling with it though before I could force it through the adjustment loop but I managed, so thought I'd put in that word since I complained about it when first purchased.

I've been so busy working in my yard the past couple of weeks that I've not spent much time painting. I did however, paint the 2 paintings below en plein air early one morning of the hollow:

Study 1: Sunrise in the Hollow

Study 2: Sunrise in the Hollow

I was pleased with these two paintings for several reasons:

• I have really been striving to be consciously aware, while painting, of what Joseph Zbukvic refers to as 'visual language', otherwise I get too caught up in 'technicalities' and lose focus of what it is that I'm trying to capture in the first place which is mainly the mood of the scene. I feel I succeeded in capturing the mood of the hollow as I viewed it that morning. And this was accomplished I think, because I was able to capture the atmosphere as I explain below.
  

• I was able to paint them without the struggles that I usually have when plein air painting and I think it shows that I enjoyed the process.

• I was able to make use my new tripod easel without frustration. Just my second time to use it but I'm getting familiar with it.

• This is HUGE for me: I think I was able to capture the atmosphere of the woods (thus creating the mood) which is so hard for me when working in a woodland setting. I've been struggling with this goal [of atmosphere in] painting a woodland 'landscape' of the hollow for a long time, several years off and on, not just of a single tree, or small group of plants, but a true landscape scene. This can be daunting, because in the deep woods there's not the obvious common backdrops to use as reference for atmospheric perspective. No distant hills, mountains, fields, etc. All I have to work with are layers of the same objects - not too distant foliage and trees with sometimes a touch of sky. So I have to rely on color choice - cool vs. warm, soft and hard edges, texture, and all the other 'tricks' of artistic license to create depth all while trying to be decisive about each brush stroke as I near the end - watercolor doesn't wait. That's what I love about the medium. It forces me to think on the fly, make a judicial move - just do it!

I only had to make one little correction (of course you may think I need more) and that was with the first study. After I got it in the studio and stuck it on the wall as I always do to catch any mistakes, right off the bat I noticed I had slapped a very dark limb smack in the middle of the painting. I pulled it out carefully with a barely dampened brush, dabbing with tissue after each stroke, and replaced it with the more of the 'blue' that was just beneath it to add more of that initial [blue] color placement.

The first painting has a 'softer' look to it that the second. That's because the paper was not as rough as the paper used in the second study. It creates a different mood than the second; however, I like doing plein air paintings on a rougher paper because you can get that 'sparkle' as your brush skims across it, imitating sunlight.

The best thing about these plein air paintings was that I did it from the comfort of my back yard, no worries about copperheads, deer ticks, mosquitoes, or chiggers. It was wonderful! I plan on doing many more this summer from various spots in the yard. Overall, I'm pleased with the results of these paintings mainly because my goals were accomplished, but to each his own. I'm never completely satisfied with my paintings, or any art that I do. I can always find something that could have been executed better. Comments or questions are welcomed. Until next time, happy painting, potting, gardening, or whatever...