Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Plein air in Maine II




Morning at Songo Lock, Sebago Lake, Maine
9x12 oil on panel

I worked on this painting for 3 morning sessions. Next time I'll try a lighter underpainting, as the overall cast looks very dark. But I really enjoyed painting the lichen on the trees, and the lilypads on the water surface. Whenever I start a painting outside I have grand plans, but then realize the level of study I'd like to explore would require several sessions per square inch on the canvas!



Study of Trees at Songo Lock
9x12, oil on panel

This one was a quick alla prima study, done in a couple hours. I just started from a point of interest and worked outwards. I realized I should have started with at least a light color wash to knock back the white ground, as I ended up trying to figure out how to fill in background around brushstrokes I liked. A great learning experience.

I am painting on New Traditions Painting Panels
http://www.newtraditionsartpanels.com/index.html
I like the portrait grade linen, oil primed, mounted on gator foam.

I am also loving my Open Box M, it's a fantastic, lightweight, and flexible plein air easel and palette for use with a tripod. This is the one I have:
http://www.openboxm.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=OBMIPAPS&Product_Code=480&Category_Code=PPHp