Painting at the Fair

It was the nicest weather in a long time for our plein air painting at the Arizona State Fair. It was sure a different subject after so many desert sessions. We started early before the crowds came. It was fun to watch the fair come alive with people showing up, rides starting up, music going. My 10x10 oil is of the view towards the merry-go-round and ferris wheel. (After the judging I found out I got second place in the contest.)

Paint Out at the Farm at South Mountain

Yesterday was the perfect day for the paint out at the Farm at South Mountain. The event had 70 artists registered to participate! Sandi Ciaramitaro is an artist in residence there. She arranged for Oil Painters of America to sponsor the day. The Farm has some restaurants, gardens, cool buildings, big trees..so many nice spots to paint that we were all spread out. I quickly settled on this view and had shade all day. It was wonderful. A different subject for a plein air painting than what I usually do here in Phoenix.

Sedona Paint Out

A "paint out" is a gathering either formal or informal for plein air painters to work at the same location. It is a lot of fun to find a new spot to paint at and meet new artist friends. Arizona Plein Air Painters had a paint out yesterday at the Sedona home of Sue Davis. It was a beautiful day and Sue's backyard is 360 degrees of views of Sedona's famous red rock scenery. It was bliss! Sue and her husband were gracious hosts sharing their art filled home and a delicious lunch. I got three 11x14 oils done...photos are a bit tricky with the paint too shiny in the sun and a bit dull in the shade...but here they are. I started "tighter" with the one with the big tree in the front right. The middle one is catching some of the yellow flowers and junipers and red rocks. Then I turned back to the same view of the mountain as the first one.and did a quick one (40 min.) before we left. You can see how the time of day changed the colors. I really hoped the Davis' would invite me to move in their guest room, but they didn't so I am back down in the valley.

Back Painting the Desert

Finally the weather has let up and we are back to painting the desert. I was walking away with 2 paintings most mornings before we stopped in July. So far after a month back at the weekly plein air session I have only been able to complete one painting each morning. I guess I am rusty! One day we had lots of moving clouds that changed the lights and darks a lot. You really have to decide what to "chase" and what to stick with.  This week I challenged myself by doing the painting with only painting knives. No brush work at all. It really put me through the paces. I had to think and be very deliberate with each bit of paint. It was hard work, tiring and fun at the same time. I knew it would use up a lot of paint so I loaded up my palette with a generous bit of each color. I had a variety of knives, but ended up using only a few and one in particular was the main tool. I think you will be able to tell which painting it was by the globs of paint.

Here's the Exception

I have always loved books. I grew up in a home where books were always given for birthdays or Christmas. It was a favorite pass time to read and still is. In fact even with a Kindle I accumulate books without even realizing it. Of course when you are an artist looking at beautiful art for reference, inspiration and pleasure is a given. All of this has made me treat books reverently. Notes were not in the margins, but on separate papers. Book marks are used instead of folded page corners. But Brian Dettmer makes books into amazing pieces of art. His altered books are the exception to the rule when taking care of books. Instead his precise cutting makes magic of those pages. Check his work out and don't look at books the same way again. (Google his name to find his website. It doesn't seem to link properly from the blog. It is worth the effort to see his interesting alterations of not just books, but those old cassette tapes too!)

Steve Jobs Made Me Do It

The other day Steve Jobs passed away. The media coverage was extensive, as it should be. Besides covering the genius of his inventions there were several airings of his graduation speech made after his cancer diagnosis. This speech tells the audience that it is a gift to know you are going to die and to therefore be compelled to "live your life." I sometimes spend a whole day watching the tube or sitting on the computer. I know my days are not infinite and yet I often squander the hours away. After hearing Steve Job say more than once that day to "live your life" I set up for a day of painting. It is finally that glorious time of year where Arizona can once again brag about the weather. I love setting up on the patio once the summer gives up.

This painting is of Oak Creek Canyon in Sedona Arizona. It is acrylic on a tall skinny canvas 60x15". I love the idea of showing a slice of a view. The photo was a little hard to take and didn't quite get the top couple of inches but you get the idea. I also put a shot of a portion of it...I tried to not over tell the story..give enough to make the impression, but stay just a bit loose....