Sunset Paris Hill Pass 2

 

This is today's pass with Gouache over the charcoal sketch below.  The Focus was mostly on the sky and distant mountains.  The house had a particular shade of blue which is work for another day.  Feels great to be painting again.

"Just Paint"

Charcoal Compositional Sketch
18" x 24"

I fell into my bed - exhausted. Drifting off.... "Just paint" 

It could have been the tinnitus, but the voice was persistent. "Just paint" 

I dragged myself out of bed and stumbled down cellar to my studio where I had previously taped four blank note cards to my easel. 

 For a host of reasons, I've been unable to paint for quite awhile - too long for my liking. But where to start? "Just paint" 

Many years ago on Paris Hill a particularly striking sunset looking west from the village green beyond Hannibal Hamblin's house to the mountains beyond was seared into my mind. It was breathtaking.... I soaked up every minute of that sunset. 

 "Just paint" 

 I did a few quick Pen and Ink compositional drawings and then broke out some gouache and did these four quick compositional studies.   From the top left to right - sketches 1,2, and 4 were closest to the actual scene as it was. Three was a combination of the scene with a cloudscape at sunset from a different time and location. 

The color was way off (off-full you might say) but for my purposes it didn't really matter. I just needed to push some paint around and work out a few ideas that though they would not be exact representations of the scene but that would capture the feelings it provoked in me. 

In looking at the sketches - a combination of numbers two and three let to this larger charcoal sketch (18" by 24") which will be the basis for a finished painting

These are all quite loose for sketches, but each one informs me a bit more and helps me catch errors in composition before being heavily involved with the final painting.  

I thank God I'm no longer held captive by the thought that each and every painting and drawing must be perfect and "finished."  It relieves so much unrealistic self imposed stress to not make any "mistakes."  I wish I'd figured that out well before my mid 40's 

Each and every effort informs the next one and so on.

Just Paint!

Nor' Easter

Nor' Easter

Charcoal on Tissue Paper

This drawing was accepted for the exhibition "storm" at River Arts Gallery in Damriscotta.

The opening reception for “Storm” will be Saturday  afternoon, March 14 from 3 to 5pm.  This show runs until April 11, 2020.

Winter 4-6

Winter Paintings 4 - 6

These three paintings were not completed on location, but resulted directly from on location observations.  In each case, I went home after visiting a location and completed these drawings and paintings from memory.

Fort Williams and Moonlight, Ice, Androscoggin were competed very rapidly in one setting.  I didn't have my paints with me  at the time, but I wanted to capture my enthusiasm and the excitement of the moments as soon as possible. The bulk of the larger oil was completed in one sitting as well.

I enjoy working through the design process as well, but when producing a finished painting, I like to keep things as spontaneous as possible.  Painting on location helps me to "keep things fresh."

Charcoal on Paper - Fort Williams Winter
8" x 11"

Moonlight Ice Androscoggin
Watercolor 8"x12"
(First Prize, Watercolor 10th annual Joy of Art)

After the Storm - Oil Painting
24" x 36"

Winter Landscapes 1-3

I have a complicated relationship with winter. The older I get , the less I enjoy winter (shoveling and driving really).  Yet there is an undeniable beauty in winter with all its moods.  The morning shadows and the reflection of sunsets in the snow will steal your breath as sure as the frigid air will.

There is a crispness and clarity to the landscape unlike any other season.  The patterns of shadows on the snow and reflections on brooks and rivers   And the blue moonlight nights are truly magical.  I thought I'd completed a handful of winter scenes over the years but in going through my paintings recently to get ready for an exhibition, I found that I'd completed more than a dozen which I will post over the next few weeks while waiting for more fresh snow to paint.

Nor Easter Maine Coast
Charcoal on Tissue Paper

After the Ice Storm, Lisbon ME
Acrylic on Canvas

Watercolor - on location
Ammonoosic River

Low Tide Dennis Mass

Low Tide - Dennis Mass

This large charcoal was an elaboration of a quick on site sketch from last summer on Cape Cod.   I will likely do another sketch based on this but with high tide / storm surf.

With this drawing I experimented with applying charcoal and blending with a brush in parts.  There are so many different ways to blend charcoal and the effects of different types of charcoal are also so different.  This drawing was completed with both vine charcoal and compressed charcoal.  Compressed charcoal produces a very rich dark stroke.  For me, vine charcoal also can produce a wide variety of shades, but not as dark as compressed charcoal.

I prefer to use vine charcoal - its very thin and fragile, but I enjoy both the visual effects of the vine charcoal as well as the tactile feel of utilizing it.  It may sound kind of strange, but the vibrations of the charcoal over the tooth of the paper is as close to running your fingers directly over unmarked drawing paper as is possible.

If you are wondering, I utilized a paint brush for blending in the sky and in part in the mid ground.  The remainder of the painting I utilized both my finger as well as a kneaded eraser to blend and lift out highlights.

If you read the recent post on the Lone Pine, you would  turn 180 degrees to see either view (with a little artistic license) - the actual background of the lone pine would have been more dunes and no ocean.


https://robertkahlerlandscapepaintings.blogspot.com/2019/07/lone-pine-cape-cod.html

Cape Cod - Dunes and Pines in process

Cape Cod - Dunes and Pine

Charcoal on Paper

Cape Cod - Dunes and Pine in Process

This subject was from our trip to Cape Cod last summer (2018).  The sun was very low so that the near dune was completely in shadow, only the top of the pine was illuminated as well as the far dune.  This is another example for me of the benefits of painting on location.  This was an effect on a brilliant sunny day that lasted for probably 10-15 minutes.  I would not have imagined this scene with the back dune illuminated - but there it was.  It was such a striking contrast.

On the right are half a sheet of small sketches done on location at the Cape.   I then did the large colored pencil sketch the top.  I don't work with colored pencil often, but decided to shake things up a bit and do some experimenting.

The small pen and ink sketch was a composition sketch resulting from a feeling from the other sketches and wondering if the background dunes closed the picture in too much.  I then began to work on the large charcoal sketch to further work out the composition.

Eventually I will complete a watercolor and or acrylic of the subject.

There really isn't one way I approach a picture.  Sometimes I work from pencil to charcoal to watercolor to oil.  At other times, I work from watercolor to charcoal.  It just depends on what I'm trying to express and at other times - what I have at hand. 

Every artist develops their own shorthand I'm sure.  I've seen studies by some of my favorites including John Stobart that made zero sense to me, but they weren't for me or even for public consumption.   I also find the process of doing preliminaries is very freeing, and sometimes wonderful things happen that wouldn't have if I had feared to "color outside the lines"

Eastport Maine Afternoon Light

Eastport Maine - Abandoned Cannery, Tides Institute

Charcoal and Gouache on paper

This painting is an elaboration of an on location watercolor sketch that I did in Eastport last summer.  The effect of the light striking the abandoned cannery and the strong shadows was what drew me to this subject.   I'll set this aside and go back to it at a later date.

Its also another example to me that I'm never quite sure where a painting is going to lead me.  When I think of Eastport and the coast of Maine in general - I don't think of barely including the ocean in a scene painted on the coast.  

I plan to do five or six variations of this subject, including increasing the space between the buildings to show more of the harbor and the working coast.

While working, I had a visit from one of my studio assistants (Whisper).  I think he likes the painting - but he's not saying.  The cat has his tongue.  

Eastport Cliffs

Eastport Cliffs

This drawing was inspired by the view from the outside deck of a restaurant in Eastport.  As I've mentioned before throughout this blog, my love of nature fuels my art, but often requires some adjustments to create a composition for a painting. 

This scene is calm, as the sea was calm.  Still, for me the calm the cliff with the tree creates a tension.  How many more storms will the tree last?  Will it grow too large for its roots to support or will the foundation of rock tumble into the sea taking the tree with it.

In this case while remaining true to the subject:

I've moved the house down the hill toward the cliffs and moved the houses chimney to reduce distraction.  

The islands in the distance did exist, but I've added a channel in between to add distance as a landmass across the picture would stop the eye from moving into the painting.

The cliffs existed, some of the patterns of of the rocks and shadows were altered for composition to lead the eye into the drawing.

The tree existed as well and drew me to the subject in the first place.  I've emphasized and enlarged the tree slightly.

In a conversation with another artist who was readying for a show of abstract art, but who often sketched from nature, we each discussed how our preferred style stretched our creativity.  It was very respectful conversation despite our very different perspectives.  While he saw value in sketching and drawing from life, his view was not to change anything, but to accurately record what was in front of him.  While he found abstract painting to be a far more of a creative exercise.  

For me, trying to capture a moment in time and to interpret nature in two dimensions is far from constraining.   Just the opposite actually.  I find that pulling and rearranging elements that I've experienced first hand into a new composition to be as rewarding as being able to capture those elusive moments in nature that too many of us regularly pass by without noticing. 

I will most likely do a variation of this subject during a storm with a tighter focus on the cliffs, tree, and house.  I've often visited the coast during storms.  I find the ocean to be mesmerizing in all its moods and colors.   This idea occurred to me while working on the cliffs.  Adding the water effects on the rocks during a storm will be an enjoyable stretch.

Group Exhibitions and Juried Competitions

I currently have three works on display at the Crooker Gallery in the Topsham Public Library as part of a combined show for award winners of the 10th annual Joy of Art and Joy of the Lense exhibitions.  The show runs through September 20th.  If you are interested in purchasing any of these paintings please private message me.

Acrylic - 12 x 16

Cape Elizabeth

Painted on Location

Lisbon Farm

Watercolor 8" x 10"

Painted on Location

Stroudwater Colonial

Charcoal on Paper

12" x 16"

The painting below is currently on display at River Arts Gallery in Damriscotta as part of a juried exhibition - local color.  This exhibition runs through the next two weeks.

Lisbon Farm

Acrylic

18" x 24"

I also have submitted two paintings for a juried exhibition ArtinME in Boothbay, ME.  Fingers crossed that one will make the cut!   Am trying to live and take risks according to the motto "Go Big or Go Home!"

This charcoal is an elaboration of an on location watercolor sketch of a farm in Bowdoin.  Haying has begun in the foreground.   One of the things that impresses me most about the farms in Maine is how farmers utilize nearly every inch of arable land, be it for Hay, Corn, or other crops.   Hay fields in various shapes and sizes are tucked away alongside roads as in this case.

I may well take the view of Mt Washington from Lisbon and add it to this scene in an alternate composition.

Pembroke Stone Bridge

Here is one of two large charcoals I've begun since my return from a trip Down East.  This is a stone bridge in my mother's hometown of Pembroke Maine.    The river is the Pennamaquan river which drains Pennamaquan Lake into Cobscook Bay.  

As a child I spent many hours playing by the river.  When the tide was outgoing the river flowed rapidly through the stone arch ways.   I used to launch "Boats" that I found throughout the woods.  The river flowed so rapidly in fact, that the waves created by the flow of the river reminded me of the wake of my uncles boat on Sebago Lake.   When the tide was incoming, there were many small whirlpools formed as the saltwater and the freshwater collided forming intricate designs of flotsom and foam on the surface of the river.  On windy days, the river foam would be blown rapidly upriver, sometimes on the surface, at other times taking flight.

I never fished, not sure why,  but the fishing was good as evidenced by the bald eagles that regularly snatched fish from the river.   Most likely river herring.  The Eagles nest was high in a spruce overlooking the river in the woods behind my grandparents.  Eagles weren't very numerous in those days (the early 70's) but I had their company daily whenever I was in Pembroke.

The House indicated at the right side of the bridge, is actually the Masonic Hall which would not be visible (and to the right of the bridge).  The Masonic Hall was at the entrance to Masonic Lane, and my grandparents house was at the end of the lane.  Below is a sketch I did years ago entitled Pembroke Memories.

According to the Maine DOT Historic Bridge Survey, Phase II Final Report & Historic Context. 2004

"The Arch Bridge in Pembroke (#2021) is among the most complete, extant stone arch bridges in Maine. It was built in 1894 by the town."  

What is your gut telling you?

"I like what I like.  I can't tell you why, I just do."  That was my Dad's oft repeated saying about Art.  He was a huge fan of Norman Rockwell and one of his favorite books was a book of Poetry illustrated by Maxfield Parrish.  Dad liked a 3d painting of mountains and a lodge in Japan, it was given to him as a present from an inn keeper in Japan and was always up in the house.   The styles could not have been any more different but he liked them all the same.

I do find that the different mediums I work with all inform one another.  For instance, I find working in pen and ink makes me think further about composition and design as the medium is so direct and unforgiving.  I know that I've barely scratched the surface of Pen and Ink.

I enjoy studying the many moods of the ocean.  The power of the waves.  The color and the shapes in the rock and in the surf, the reflections of the sun and moon, the mist, sea fog and foam, and , the movement of the waves create constantly shifting and new fascinations to me.  This is all purely the visual and doesn't even take into account the impact of the sounds and smells of the ocean.

The same composition of rocks and beach or a cove could literally be painted daily or throughout the day and every painting would be different.   Claude Monet studied the effects of light on subjects in series such as haystacks, Rouen Cathederal, Houses of Parliament and more.  The same subject in different light and atmospheric conditions held his interest (not to mention ours for more than a century) because the challenges presented and, therefore the subjects themselves were, in fact, different.  Sometimes subtle differences, sometimes dramatic differences.  

I remember reading a note from Winslow Homer describing one of his paintings to the dealer, describing in great detail the lighting effect of the clouds being 15 minutes before sunset and how different the lighting would be 15 minutes after sunset.  It's not something that the casual observer would even notice, but master artists such as Homer and Monet could never be described as casual observers of the world around them.

It's interesting to note that even people with little to no interest in art can, if they are familiar with the subject matter, can "tell" if a realistic picture "rings true" with their expereience.  They may not be able to describe what is right or wrong with a picture but their "gut" will let them know if something "isn't quite right." 

Acrylic

Acrylic is my second choice for on location painting.  It dries incredibly quickly - which can create some challenges but it allows for many of the same properties I mentioned about watercolor.  The primary advantage I find in acrylics is that areas can be quickly painted over and it can also show brushstrokes which can add greatly to the feeling of movement within a painting.

Pen and Ink - Breakers Two

I'm not sure what started me on this particular exploration of pen and ink but I do find it quite enjoyable.  I work in a variety of media: Watercolor, Charcoal, Acrylic, Oil, Pencil, and most recently Gouache, and Mixed Media experiments.  I'll write more about the differnt media in subsequent posts.

Charcoal 

Charcoal is probably the medium I enjoy working with the most.  I love its flexibility and the acutal feel of working with Charcoal.  It's a medium that can be worked with very rapidly and can create both fluid compositions as well as highly detailed drawings with very wide ranging tonal values.  Charcoal can also be layered and built up over time should one choose to do so.

Watercolor

Watercolor is another medium I enjoy very much.  It's my first choice for painting on location.  I find watercolor is able to capture so many of the effects found in nature very quickly - which is especially important as the light is constantly changing.  I also believe watercolor to be far more flexible than the common public perception.  While its true that its important to plan your lightest lights and darkest darks - beyond that I find it to be a very maliable medim.  I personally prefer transparent watercolor and "untouched" watercolors done in one session - but thats simply a personal preference.

Oil Painting

As of this writing, I've only done a couple of oil paintings on location.  I find it challenging to store the wet paintings while on the move.  I haven't really taken the time to explore what exists for this beyond the paintbox itself nor have I taken the time to try to invent something due to the ease of working with watercolor.  I enjoy working with Oil Paint in the studio, but have done little of it so far.  I currently use water soluble oils as I don't really have a ventilation set up for oils.

Show Me - Oil over Acrylic Base

24" by 36"

Gouache 

I've just begun working with gouache so I have very little experience to comment on.  I've just begun experimenting with this medium, having experimented with working gouache over charcoal drawing and to add a few highlights to abandoned watercolors.  I think there certainly are possibilities.

Gouache over Charcoal - New Hampshire Memories

12" x 18"

Mixed Media -Experiment -  Abandoning worry about what "could happen" is incredibly freeing.  I had a charcoal sketch that I'd set aside long ago.  Never quite satisfied with it.  I decided to experiment by  putting watercolor over the drawing.  Below is the result.

Mixed Media - 12" x 18"

This process helped me work out different compositions.  Although the "look" is different I ended up liking it more than I thought I would.

Lisbon Farm Charcoal

Here is the current state of the large charcoal of a nearby farm.  Below is the on location watercolor sketch and the very beginnings of this charcoal.  This drawing is relatively complete.  I'll do a little more work on the grass in the foreground, the sky,  and the pond in the mid ground but very few small adjustments.

I've added the pond and the rock wall to the composition.  Not original to the location, but as I worked on the sketch the idea occurred to me and is something I've seen throughout many New England Farms - including one in my hometown of Westbrook, Maine, at a classmates family farm (Wormell's).  I hope to go back to paint the farm pond there sometime soon if it is even still in existance.  

The pond in this drawing is another example of something that isn't there in reality, but is not so far out of place to be totally fictional or unrealistic.

I'll set this aside once completed but later use it as the basis for an oil painting.

Moonlight on Mountain Pond

I spent a few hours in the studio the past couple of evenings matting drawings and paintings to see what I'd like to enter in my next juried exhibition.  Sometimes framing or even simply matting a painting or drawing help expose any compositional flaws.

Moonlight on Mountain Pond

There is a stillness in the wood

That is hard to comprehend

As I hike away from civilization, from the “should’s”

I leave the car and my worries behind

The daylight views are dramatic enough

But the night sky and the dance of moonlight and shadow

On clouds, mountain, forest and stream

Leave me spellbound

Like the sirens of myth

It is possible to become lost in natures song  

But the sound of my heart provides the rhythm

To the silence

Provides the anchor in the storm

The storm we all carry inside

In a few days

I’ll be back at work

Surrounded by activity and sound

The “should’s” will have returned in full force

In moments of decision,

I strive to remember

The mountains

The dance of moonlight and shadow

The silence

I am learning to be still

Charcoal and Tracing Paper Experiments

I occasionally like to experiment with tracing paper.  Not to trace compositions, but I enjoy the feel charcoal on tracing paper.  Using tracing paper and even newsprint was also recommended by noted illustrators Robert Fawcett and Charles La Salle for practice.  I enjoy finding instructional books by artists such as these for inspiration.  Andrew Loomis is another favorite of mine.  The effects that Loomis and La Salle were able to achieve in Charcoal were amazing.  And Fawcett is an acknowleged master of line.  They make it look so easy.  Any expert does.  

I also like to see what the composition looks like in reverse.  While looking at a few of my paintings and drawings in preparation for entering another juried exhibition, I also noticed the difference the colored background makes.  

In this case I imagined a stormy sea where visibility was quite limited.  This was done from imagination, through I do enjoy storm watching along the coast.  The first image is simply with a piece of white paper behind the tracing paper charcoal drawing.

In the second picture, I've simply moved the white paper to the right and left the natural color of the drawing board (brown) to show through.  It does demonstrate a different mood.

The image below is with the image reversed.  Tracing paper makes this quick and easy - of course this can be done even more simply with basic computer software - but for me I prefer to go "old school"

 I'll share another example of working with watercolor on tracing paper in my next post.

I continue to be reminded on a regular basis that in art, and in life, there is no substitute for doing the work.  Reading about drawing or painting does no more to make you an artist than reading about playing the piano makes one a piano player.

Nana's House

I recently took a trip Down East with family.  This post was from more than a year ago.  A picture drawn from strong childhood memories.  I was watering plants in the backyard yesterday, including a cutting from the lilac tree in front of the house (to the right outside this picture)

I hope you enjoy the picture and poem.

Pembroke

A few half buried fieldstones are all that remain

The house is gone

The Barn and Shed…

Gone

Gone. Not forgotten

I see Nana’s house

In abandoned farmhouses 

In bowed barns

In my dreams

I remember walking up the dirt road from one adventure or another

Taking the short cut up the hill toward the house

Avoiding the old well (Not really – Sorry Mom)

The tall grass tickling my hands

was laced with animal trails

At the top of the hill

The horses were shuffling in their stalls

Anxious to get out

The shed

A large barn connecting the barn to the kitchen

A magical place to me

Could that have been Santa’s sled?

Why one barn was “the barn”

The other the “shed”

I don’t know – it just was

The geese tap at the low kitchen windows

Hoping for some of our breakfast

Grampie looks up from his coffee

Shaking his head “No” at the geese

Morning ritual complete

The geese move on

The memory remains

I wasn’t yet six and he was gone

I prefer this memory

To those from the nursing home

Back to Pembroke, Masonic Lane

Dining Room

Sloping floors

Great for marbles and Matchbox cars

Enough room for seven story baseball card forts

As much fun to take down as to build

From kitchen to bedroom

Stairs narrow and steep

There was always a chill in the air upstairs

The only source of heat radiated from downstairs (or so I was told)

I’ve never gotten dressed and undressed indoors as quickly

Before or since

It was so quiet

You could hear yourself think

No T.V.

No Streetlights

Few cars

Lots of cats and dogs

Bald Eagles nesting by the river

The wind rattled the windows

Full of imperfections

Creating unique views and

Moonshadows on the wall

The house spoke in soft whispers and groans

As I drifted off to sleep

When my brother speaks

to his girls (Geese) and his pugs

I sometimes hear Nana’s voice.

The lilac in her dooryard has spread

To each of our homes

So has her hardy laugh

And her fierce spirit

The house is gone

So much more remains

New Hampshire Memories

This painting is an experiment with an old charcoal drawing that I completed after a trip to New Hampshire with my wife and daughter.  Both the trip and drawing were completed many years ago. 

Like many of my drawings, there were things I really liked about it and some things that didn't work the way I wanted them too. What I've learned over time, is that by observing a subject closely,  there is more that I retain / notice from the location than I'm able to capture at the time. So I simply put it aside and moved on to other subjects knowing at some point I'd return to the subject.

This painting is gouache on paper (over the charcoal drawing).  I'm really learning to enjoy gouache, though I must admit that transparent watercolor is still my favorite!