Just Three Photos Today

I had a stack of 8×10” paintings from my various plein air sessions last fall. It’s taken awhile, but I am finally accepting that my plein air attempts will probably always require several touch-up sessions in the painting workshop. When people who know me or my work see my unretouched plein air paintings, they say things like, “That doesn’t look like your work,” or “Are you finished with that painting?”

Therefore, I studied each of these paintings without looking at the photos of the scenes. What could be improved?

The answer was usually more color, brighter color, more detail, and/or cleaner edges. Only one had a signature.

This is the most satisfying aspect of painting to me. Those tiny little changes take a painting from “meh” to “nice!” (I hope that ’s what they do.)

The day was great for drying outside by the wood stack on those hot-from-the-sun metal panels. (old roofing?)

They are fairly light-weight and tend to blow off the adirondack chairs. Those chairs work just fine for the wrapped canvas, larger canvas panels, and masonite panels.

Looks as if you’ll have to wait for the scans or come to my show opening (August 7, Tulare Historical Museum, 5-7 PM) to see them right-side-up. Well, not Sawtooth or the Sequoia tree, because those are for stores to sell to visitors passing through.

Looks as if Tony is almost finished with the steps. I went spelunking in a box of found and saved random treasures to locate something to make the steps a little more special.

That Tony does great work! He is going to add another step at the bottom, where the concrete is sloped and gets slippery and treacherous. It is always wise to listen to an expert tradesman and consider his ideas.

Everyone is Focused

TONY WAS FOCUSED

While I was focused on painting, Tony (you don’t know him but you may remember when I painted a goose for someone—that was Tony) was focused on replacing the worn wooden steps to my studio. Trail Guy originally built them for me, not once, but twice. I’ve been in this studio since January of 2002, so it is time to have something more permanent.

JACKSON WAS FOCUSED

Jackson has been focused on getting my attention lately. He meows quite a bit, occasionally bites me, and one day he carried a squirrel into the workshop for me to praise him, and then, thankfully, he carried it back out.

CENTRAL CALIFORNIA ARTIST WAS FOCUSED

With my painting days rather limited in the summer, I have to focus on using time wisely and getting paintingsdry quickly.

Having finished the most urgently required paintings, I pulled out several that have been languishing, or perhaps just mulling for several months. That sequoia was recent, but the balance of foliage wasn’t right, so it joined up with all the Focus/Fix/Finish crowd.

I was so focused that I didn’t take any “After” pictures; when they are scanned, I’ll show you a couple of them.

Time for another Sawtooth. This is #67, an 8×10” since one recently sold in that size.

These all got finished, and will have their turn outside to dry so that I can scan, show you, and deliver. But I must remind you that EVERYTHING looks better in person (except celebrities.)

Painting With Focus

With the upcoming show (opening August 7), with many days and nights away from home, with a little stretch of mild summer weather, I have shifted into overdrive when it comes to cranking out paintings. I am focused on getting some inventory ahead for the local shops that sell for me, along with finishing things that previously didn’t feel very important.

This means that I sometimes set up paintings assembly-line-style.

Does this make you wonder where the creativity comes in?

It takes thought to decide what subjects and sizes will best meet the “demand”*, to prioritize, to organize, and to be highly efficient with my limited time. Then it takes focus to be sure that each painting is the best it can be. I don’t go for perfection, which is basically driven by anxiety. Instead, I view each painting as if I am a critical customer unwilling to part with my hard-earned green pieces of paper with dead presidents’ faces unless something really speaks to me. (Because I have been that person many times.)

Oops. Sometimes I flip my canvas upside down to paint and forget to see if the hanging hardware is going the correct direction. That’s easy to fix once the painting is dry.

*No one I work for is demanding—every last one is wonderful to work with.

Somewhere in Oregon

These paintings of rural Oregon scenes were high on my list of Want To Paint, but rather than go to a retail establishment that caters to visitors to Sequoia National Park, they will get framed and then be part of my upcoming show, Around Here, and Sometime a Little Farther, in August at the Tulare Historical Museum and Gallery.

I wonder if I should title it “Somewhere in Oregon”.

Then this one could be called “Somewhere Else in Oregon”.

New Paintings, Local

I painted these two Sequoias one day, then set them outside in the sun and breeze to dry. They dried quickly enough to be scanned and delivered to the store two days later.

Sequoia Gigantea XXI, 6×18”, oil on wrapped canvas, $195

Sequoia Gigantea XXII, 4×12”, oil on wrapped canvas, $175

The smaller of the two is a new size to me. I found these canvases while in Oregon. They are probably available somewhere in my county here in Central California, but since I only go to The Big Town of Visalia to either see my mechanic or grocery shop, who knows?

The proprietor decided to accept both paintings. The smaller of the two sold off the counter before she could even hang it on the wall, before I even made it back home!

I guess we know what I’ll be painting next.

Tryna New Idea

Have you noticed that I am really enjoying the use of the non-word “tryna”?

While in Oregon, I loved seeing those rural scenes with barns, but only took photos through the car window because we were always on a schedule without time to meander along back roads. Freeways don’t often have scenic turnouts, and many country roads don’t either.

I lamented that I had no reason to paint Oregon subjects; then, my artist friend Krista told me to paint them and then look for an outlet to sell them in Oregon. (She is full of bigger ideas than I ever think of.) My sister said, “I don’t know why a barn picture wouldn’t sell. It is a thing to have a barn picture.”

Then I remembered that my upcoming solo show in Tulare is title “Around Here, and Sometimes a Little Farther”.

So, I went for it, using 11×14 canvas boards instead of my usual wrapped canvases. Why??

That was so satisfying that I did another one. (The photography part was an interruption so I skipped all the steps on the second barn.)

I wonder if that hay stack is a little too weird. too centered, perhaps.

Whenever I finish something in fairly short order, I almost break my arm patting myself on the back. Inevitably, when it is dry, I scan it, view it on my laptop screen, and groan: “WHY DID I THINK THAT WAS FINISHED??”

At least I know what to expect after these are scanned.

I also figured out that in the upcoming show, all my paintings of local scenes are on wrapped canvas, and all the “sometimes a little farther” paintings are on boards. These will require easels or frames. Aha! The visitors to the show might be able to differentiate just by the format (and possibly by all the ocean scenes. . . duh.)

Ka-Ching! That’s just part of the business of art.

New Notecards Coming Soon

Notecards have been a mainstay of my art business since 1987 (maybe you weren’t born yet). There used to be many stores throughout Tulare County that sold these steadily, and I spent copious amounts of time packaging cards, sometimes with the help of my parents or my friend Gnat.

The packages had two each of five designs and retailed for $5.00. It was possible to make a profit because I worked at a print shop and received a discount, but had to order large quantities to make this work. “Large” means 1000 or more of each design, instead of the 100 or so I now order. Since this was before email, most of polite society used cards. (Impolite society didn’t send thank you notes.)

Now notecards can be ordered online, and if I wait for a discount sale from the company who prints the cards, I can make a small profit selling four cards (all same design in a package) for $10.

Have you picked yourself back up off the floor? Okey dokey, let’s see the new designs coming soon. These were chosen to please my higher selling stores’ customers, many of whom are visitors to the area in the summer. The pencil drawings aren’t new; the paintings were completed recently (within the last year).

Kaweah River
Generals Highway
General Sherman Tree
Lake Kaweah
Sawtooth #65 (such an elegant title!)

These are all scenes drawn or painted from my* photos, sometimes embellished and made up from several photos and my memory, all specific to eastern Tulare County: Three Rivers, Sequoia National Park, and Mineral King.

The notecards will be available at Kaweah Arts in Three Rivers and on this page of my website.

*Except Lake Kaweah, generously supplied by my friend Rachel.

Two Starts, One Finish, One Start-to-Finish

Translation of the title: I started two new paintings, finished one painting, and completed one in a single painting session (called alla prima in ArtSpeak, which means you layer wet upon wet).

With a sequoia painting in the queue but not wanting to waste paint in non-sequoia colors on the palette, I chose to begin another little beach painting. Why not? I have the boards, and the colors were just waiting to be used. (Fret not—this will look good eventually. I made it really small here so you wouldn’t get scared. I’m thoughtful that way.)

A sequoia gigantea painting sold and needed to be replaced quickly at Kaweah Arts, because this is Sequoia Selling Season here in Three Rivers.

Another painting hasn’t garnered proper appreciation, so rather than just wait indefinitely for the right customer, I will turn it into something else. What else might that be? The Honeymoon Cabin in Mineral King, the little museum of the Mineral King Preservation Society.

Finally, here is our alla prima painting, another speedy piece of work because one sold and needs to be replaced quickly at the Silver City Store.

The paintings were all painted during a not-too-hot day when the swamp cooler was adequate, while knowing very hot weather was coming, perfect for quick drying. Paintings need to be dry before getting scanned (duh), and they need to be scanned (or photographed at the very least) before delivered to stores and galleries. This is particularly important when one paints the same scenes over and over and over. . .

A Little Painting Session

Recently, I had to leave Three Rivers at 10 a.m. This presented two choices: A. waste time until 10, or B. paint for an hour or two before leaving. Being the responsible mature adult that I am (oh hush, you!), I wisely chose B. Creating Tulare County-based paintings is what I do; wasting time is normally not what I do (or want to admit to doing here on the world wide web.)

After viewing this on my screen while it was still wet, I decided it needed some leaves.

It looks better in this photo because the previous photo was taken at the end of the day. Morning light makes better photography conditions in the painting workshop.

That’s better. When it is dry, I’ll scan it and maybe remember to show you.

There was paint left on my palette and time left on the clock. It is prudent to always have a 6×18” sequoia painting ready for Kaweah Arts to sell to the thousands of visitors who pass through our town on their way to see Sequoia National Park’s sequoia trees AKA redwoods AKA the Big Trees. (These are sequoia gigantea, not to be confused with sequoia sempervirens, which are coastal redwoods.)

Yeppers, I worked from a black and white photo and began the painting upside down. I can fake these trees, so I can certainly guess how this snowy scene might look in summertime.

I started this one differently than usual. I “drew” it on the canvas rather than completely covering the canvas with thin sloppy paint.

It’s a little sloppy, but this was as far as it got when my internal chronometer said to make like a tree and leaf. Or was that to make like a cowpie and hit the trail. . . such colorful images and language from that internal chronometer.

Growing an Oak Tree (in Oil Paint)

Let’s review. I really liked this painting, but no one was willing to give me green pieces of paper with dead presidents’ faces on it in exchange. So, after going through some photos and thinking about my current inventory, I decided to grow a big oak tree on the canvas.

Jackson required some attention. He had a lot to say, but he wasn’t commenting on the painting.

Am I finished? Or shall I add some leaves?

More will be revealed in the fullness of time.