A Sense of Place

I just finished a seascape painting and when my husband walked into the studio he immediately recognized the place depicted as the California coast near San Simeon.
 Many years ago we took our family on our first trip to California while  our kids were on their summer break from school in early June. As I recall, it was the coldest June we all could remember!
The rocks and Tidal pools near our motel were a source of pleasure and exploration for all of us. We hiked along the Rocky coast and marvelled at the seabirds, unusual flora and the sounds of the ocean waves breaking against the rocks. It seems that memory of a place or a unique feeling found at a particular spot can last a life time.
 Recently, I read a line that stuck with me," collect experiences not things". The couch and the house we owned at the time of our California vacation are long gone. My recollections, that sense of place and time remain with me.
I think that a personal expression can become richer, deeper if we allow ourselves to tap into a meaningful moment in time and place. Artists can tap into this sensitivity and use it to convey a particular theme or emotional response. A shared sense of place can take a viewer along for the ride!
I thought it might be fun to share two new  images that are very similar in subject matter but vary widely in "place". Can you sense the difference?

Here is the painting of the California coast, "California Dreaming". oil 14 x 18 www.bonnieparuchfineart.com

"Maine" a watercolor of the bald, rounded rock outcroppings of Maine near the sea.
approximately 16 x 20  not yet matted or framed.

To create a unique sense of place ask yourself a question: what is the first image you see in your minds eye when you think about your chosen location? Paint the essentials you recall.

The Art Spirit

When I was first beginning to see myself as a "serious" artist a good friend and fellow painter introduced me to a small book, "The Art Spirit" by Robert Henri. It was a revelation to me. The author's words took me on a journey to a place of self discovery. The place where my art spirit grows and sets its roots has always been in nature.

I am blessed to have a wonderful studio, but I've often thought that if I didn't have my workspace I would find one, as I always do, outside. Sometimes family obligations, show deadlines, and the other demands of life seem to make my studio walls close in. This warm and early spring has opened the door to plein air painting again and I'm thrilled to be out there!
Last week I spent a morning hauling my gear into the cedar woods at The Ridges natural area near Baileys Harbor. I set my sights on a favorite spot, the solitude swale (great name isn't it?). My anticipation for a great day en plein air deteriorated a little as my pastels found a way to bump out of my cart and decorated  the trail. My frustration quickly vanished as I took in the spring wildflowers along the trail.  Hepatica, Anemone, Dutchman's Breeches, Dwarf Lake Iris were blooming and lead me along the trail.
 Not a soul was in sight at the swale boardwalk and I found a group of cedars and pines near the shoreline that made my art spirit soar.

Nature presents challenges for the painter. When I settle on a spot, I look for a long time and ask myself many questions: How will I paint this? Why do I want to paint it? Can I build a design using nature as a guide? Where do I begin? Am I finished? The quest and the questions are often enough for me to leave a plein air painting session feeling fulfilled. The natural world always grounds me regardless of the success or failure of my efforts.
Here is a little photo journal of my morning at the Ridges. If I try, I can still smell the water, feel the breeze and hear the birdsong of that day. That is the gift, the spirit of plein air.

 off the easel...from the Ridges and me.

Pastels, my tools

I know that a picture is worth a thousand words, so I thought I'd share a little photo journal of my pastel gear .
It always takes me some time and experience to figure out what works best in terms of the tools I use to create.

 I have two setups for working in pastel, one for my studio and one for plein air. In the early 2000's International Pastel Artist  Magazine and American Artist Magazine both featured my work in  pastels. Since those articles and magazine covers were published I've changed some of my working methods.

In the past, I used three or even four different brands of soft pastel sticks. Now I  limit my materials to the largest set of Nu pastels and a large assortment of  sturdy Unison sticks. These large pastels suit my passion  for a painterly and Impressionistic approach to painting with pastel.
My taboret for oil painting consists of an old Zoltan Sazabo watercolor easel ( it must have taken a mule to cart around) that I took apart and attached to an old microwave cart.My pastels are concealed by the lid and are readily available when I put away my oils and French Easle-pal palette.
My pastels are simply arranged in two groups; warm and cool. I like to look at the surprising differences between the hues in each large group because interesting color combinations can jump out.

My plein air pastel kit is Jerry-rigged as well, one part someone's attempt to create a portable box with legs, and one part an old M-box painting palette lid. I added a quick release plate, took off the legs and attached the m-box lid and well...there it is and it works!!

Reuse, Re purpose, and  Renew are my new three "R"s.


Hardware stores are wonderful!!!
In my studio I often set up both pastel arrangements and then have a wonderful, large space and assortment to work from.
Have fun, tinker with your tools.

Pastels and Oils, "Birds of a Feather!"

For many years my two mediums of choice have been oil paints and soft pastels. Switching between the two has always seemed to me to be seamless. I see these two mediums as painting mediums. I think that may be surprising to folks who consider soft pastels a drawing medium. Let me make a case for a painterly approach to pastel painting.
Like oil paints the best and most traditional way of applying soft pastel is to progress from dark to light. It is much easier to place a light over a dark than to do the opposite. Light tones under the dark layer will tend to lighten and muddy progressive layers ( this relate to alla prima painting-wet in wet with oil or in the case of pastel dry over dry!).
Simply put, place the dark tones first.
In the case of oil paint the initial dark values are also put on thinly, following the oil rule of working lean to fat. When applying the first layers of pastel, my thought process is similar except thin = hard, thick = progressive layers of soft pastel.
I use the hard Nu pastel sticks for my first dark layers of pastel. At the early stages I don't worry about matching colors as much as I consider the tone, warm or cool, and the value of the dark shapes.
Did you notice I said "shapes"? Using either pastel or oil, I am concerned with shape making not drawing lines and filling in the spaces between. Some artists take a linear approach to pastel and would be more apt to describe pastel as a drawing medium, I paint with them. The choice is yours.
As an oil painting develops, the paint applications become thicker. In my work I allow the brush to shows its mark. With a pastel painting, the progression to softer and softer sticks adds a brush-like stroke, a lovely mark on the pastel support. Energetic or refined , a pastel stick can make a painterly stroke.
In oil painting we can layer, blend, optically blend, soften...all of these characteristics are present with pastels.
In color mixing, pastels may actually be easier than oil. You can see a color in your subject and then pick out the closest color and value stick and Viola! a match. In oil painting you must mix both the color and the correct value.
Oil will allow great variety in color mixing. If you know your palette you can mix any color you see. With pastels, save for a limited ability to blend, you may need a fairly large quantity of a pastel sticks to get the colors you want. That said, if you get your values right your color palette will work.
In both oil and pastel the texture of the support makes a great difference in how the marks look. In oil, I prefer a medium textured support. When I work with pastels the "toothier" the better!
So here are a few ideas for you to consider. Play with your tools!
Here is a very simple plein air pastel painting that I just completed in my studio.

"Track Side" a pastel nocturne
11 x 14
pastel on sanded art spectrum paper

Elusive Plein air

Today was "one of those days" when the pursuit of a plein air painting can seem like an elusive goal. I started my day with my pastels packed and ready to go. The temperatures were mild, the sun was out early and so was I.
Every time I've driven through Ephraim of late a group of buildings clustered on the hillside has got my painting chops in motion. So as I pulled the car out of the drive, my sights were set on Ephraim. By the time I got to my spot the wind had picked up, the sun was gone and my gear blew over with the first healthy gust. A pile of soft pastels on the ground is not pretty!
After packing up I basically drove around from one spot to the next up and down the county. Perhaps the disappointment that I couldn't paint my painting kept me from engaging in a full battle with the wind. When my hat blew off at Newport where-ever I went in the park... I was about to pack it in.
With a little hope I drove down Timberline and there it was...my spot!
A large red barn caught the sun and a flock of goats wandered in the warm field. The sun came out to say hello (as did the big farm dog) and I positioned myself behind my trusty van, a great wind break.
As soon as I pulled out my gear the farm yard full of goats emptied. It seemed that it would be me, the dog , and a barn in the field.
Since I know a little bit about critters, I decided to be very still, very quiet and slowly a few brave goats resumed their play. By the way, if you ever happen to set up next to a field of cows, they all come to the fence to chew and gaze, up close and personal.
My frustrations with the day evaporated and I enjoyed painting the unique spot that came my way. You have to be flexible to paint plein air and maybe a bit stubborn. I've realized yet again that its just paint ( or pastel). It's the experience that matters.

                                        Timberline Tails
                                        Pastel on Ampersand Pastel board
                                        11 x 14 plein air 
                                        available

Chasing Spring and hope

                                          "Beehives and Blossoms"
                                          16 x 20 oil
                                          Private collection

The past two weekends we were on the road. We enjoyed two trips "down south"; one to Milwaukee and the other to Madison. As we travelled, we left  behind an early spring , wandered through late spring and arrived at our destination in early summer!
Our tiny buds gradually gave way to fully unfurled leaves as we concluded our journey from Door county to the south central part of our state.
One of our destinations en route was the small resort town of Green Lake. Recently, a gallery owner there  contacted me and invited me to show my work at her gallery. I was impressed with her art spirit and her passion for the artists she represents.
 Like most Wisconsin resort towns Green Lake was sleeping. The small town is waiting for visitors to come, waiting for spring, and holding out hope for a vibrant summer.
 I think that most artists and gallery folks are optimistic risk takers. We sell dreams and beauty ,ideas and ideals.  Buying and selling  art is much like the promise of springtime. A work of art unfolds and blooms but only when it reaches the individual who can see it's promise.
I recall a movie called "Hope Floats" I love this title for its simple affirmation and its implied promise.
The act of creating anything is an act of hope. Galleries who begin an association with an artist are performing an act of hope, and the collector who brings a work of art into their home completes the cycle of hope.
There is something joyful about new beginnings, so I'm excited to begin a new relationship with another gallery. Like everyone else, I'm looking forward to spring and summer and fall with hope and fingers crossed. Hope floats.

Natures gifts

Wind fall - Apples and Copper

oil

Private collection

This has been an unusual spring! Very early in March we enjoyed wonderful warm temperatures that made it seem like summer had arrived. The unseasonably warm weather fooled the maple trees into producing sap. It brought the flowering trees to budding. Now each night the apple and cherry growers are crossing their fingers and holding there breath as the thermometer drops into the low thirties.
Before National Geographic presented the Door County Peninsula as the Cape Cod of the Midwest in the 1970s, the economy up here revolved around agriculture.
 Apples and cherries brought visitors and much needed economic support to a region that was somewhat isolated from the rest of the state and dependent on industries like fishing and lumber. The orchards are embedded in the culture of this county.
One of my good friends has a "small" orchard of about 250 trees. We shared a lunch yesterday and I could see the worry etched into her face as she talked about her sweet cherries and apricots. It seemed that she was speaking of old friends, ones that sometimes demanded as much as they provided.
The subject of the weather, global warming, strange trends is often a part of the conversation these days. Even the bees are a topic of concern; is it too cold for them to pollinate the orchards if we do finally get blossoms?
The very first time I saw Door County in Spring, in full bloom, I was enchanted. I still am but I won't be taking the harvest of the first summer cherries or the crisp fall apples for granted.