Number 58: First Portrait!

First Portrait - 6x8, Oil on Gessoed Hardboard

I've been watching portrait videos by Jeff Watts and Morgan Weistling and thought to myself, "That doesn't look too hard!" So, I set out to see if I could actually paint a likeness of a human being and make it look somewhat like the human being I used as my subject.

I'm pretty happy with this little study! There are some details that I'm thinking "Hmmmm..." about, but all in all not a bad first portrait, if I do say so myself.

I also discovered that I really enjoy painting the human head, particularly the face and eyes.

Maybe I have a future in portraiture! Perhaps in the future, hehe! I have a lot of work to do!

Enjoy!

Number 59: En Plein Air - The Chicken Coop!

I had so much fun yesterday painting outside that I decided to do it again today!

There's an old chicken coop on the farm that was used by the previous owner to raise calves. I spent the last weekend clearing out all the tall grass and weeds from the fenced-in area as well as around it, not to mention fighting with snakes and a well that stopped working for a while! Anyway, I thought to myself that the results of my labor would be a good subject for a quick little painting.

My chosen subject. Pretty, huh?

Composition and layout...

In the Country - Chicken Coop, 6x8, Oil on Gessoed Hardboard

Yes, there are HUGE FOOTBALLS growing in my background tree! And I could have softened the hill top a little! But my main objective with this one was just getting the shadows and lights as well as the warm and cool foreground and background right. I don't think I did too terribly bad with either, so next time I'll work on edges too!

Number 60: En Plein Air, Round 2!

I got a wild hare, actually Jen (Thank you, Honey!), and went outside yesterday. It was absolutely GORGEOUS out!

I was a little hesitant, given my last bout with painting en plein air. But out in the country there are no people to watch, oggle, ridicule, laugh at you, talk to you, so I wasn't distracted at all - and I think it shows!

I picked out an old, short, unused grain silo with a farm gas tank next to it. I think that the bluishness of the silo and the bright orange of the gas tank caught my eye.

This one was SO MUCH FUN!!

My Subjects...

Set up and composition.

Yes, another new Open Box M!! I love them both!! They are so enjoyable to work with. I've put a piece of glass in the bottom and I can't believe how EASY it is to clean them now! Just a glass cleaning razor blade is all it takes!

In the Country - Silo and Tank, 6x8, Oil on Gessoed Hardboard

I really like how this one turned out. Yes, I could have opened up the trees a bit and worked a cloud or two in the sky, but I was so happy to be outside again that I just didn't want to muddle this one up!

BONUS!! Jen got some new photos of me painting outside, so I'll be updating my profile picture with something that makes me look a little more approachable, instead of Mr. Grumpy, hehe!

Number 61: Still Life - Mango

So, I haven't been keeping up with my painting like I should. Life has a tendency to zig when you want to zag. But things are settling down again, and I'm back to painting!

My Set Up - The Mango

And here is the first painting I've done since January - my 39th!!

Still Life - Mango, 6x8 Oil on Gessoed Hardboard

Number 62: Going Nautical!

Sunset Cruise, 5x7, Oil on Canvas Panel

Since I seem to be on a roll with the nautical theme, I thought I'd do one from a trip I took to Key West a couple of years ago. This is actually a composite of two different reference photos that I took of a bunch of boats out cruising the South Florida Keys sunset.

I really like this one, too! The sky and the water were fun, particularly combining them from two different photos.

Enjoy!

Number 63: Sailboats...

Remember the sketch I did last year while sailing? Well, here it is to refresh your memory!  ;-)

Here's the painting that I did from the sketch and my memory.

 

Rounding the Marker, 5x7, Oil on Canvas Panel

It's amazing what you can remember when you've drawn something like this! While painting it, I was drawn back to that day with the warmish wind blowing through the sails, skimming along the water to the first win for the boat I was on!

I REALLY like how this one turned out! Next up is a larger, stretched canvas version! Stay tuned!

Number 64: The Tree II...

OK, let's try this again - from scratch!

The Tree II, 5x7, Oil on Canvas Panel

Looking better, but still not what I'd like to see... This is going to be a subject that I'm going to be focusing on A LOT in the coming days!

Number 66: The Tree (Revisited!!)

I had just finished The Tree, took pictures, and decided that I was really going to include it in this blog when I read Stapleton Kearns. He did a post on TREES!! Almost as if he were reading my mind!!

Well, I revisited The Tree and made a couple of 'fixes'.

The Tree, 5x7, Oil on Canvas Panel

I added some snow on the branches and thinned their appearance down a bit. It's simply a fix, but it DOES make it look better!

Number 65: A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose...

Closeup of a Rose, 5x7, Oil on Canvas Panel

OK, I got tired of looking at tree pictures and paintings so I decided to paint this rose. It's a close-up that I took when I was into close-up photography a while back. Another product of the close-up photography is the bird of paradise I did last year - you may remember that one!

Anyway, I've already gotten a little critique on this one - it looks very Van Gogh! Not what I was going for, but a tremendous complement nonetheless!

Number 66: The Tree...

Still cold and snowy here in the frozen heartland!!

I haven't had access to the internet to upload all that I've been painting, but I've worked around that problem by finally making it into town!

I've been passing by this tree on my way to work for a while now and it's always called to me to paint it.

So, I made my first attempt. There will undoubtedly be future attempts as I learned from this project that I have to learn how to paint trees in the winter with no leaves!! LOL!! The branches and twigs get me every time!!

The Tree, 5x7 Oil on Canvas Panel

I like the sky, the fence line, the distant trees, and the snowy hill. The tree, however, is needing a little work!

Number 67: Belize Dinghy...

This one is from a reference photo that I took this past year on a small island off the coast of Belize. I enjoyed the appearance of solitude that the dinghy portrayed at the time.

Dinghy, 5x7 Oil on Canvas Panel

Since the weather here has been so cold, I've been dreaming of warmer places. This one helped me get over the chilly situation I'm currently stuck in.

I've been working on my clouds and I am very happy with the clouds in this one. I still need to work on my water, though.

Enjoy!

Number 68: It's a Start!!

This one was/is a collaberation between me and Jen. She's learning to paint and wanted to paint from a reference photo of a canyon in Hawaii. The jist of the story is it's a blind leading the blind scenario - I'm telling her the things that I'm learning as I go. All in all, I think that this one is a really good start.

Hawaiian Canyon, 9x12 Oil on Canvas Panel

We're going to park it somewhere and revisit it later to add detail and make it more finished.

Let us know what YOU think!

Happy New Year, and an Anniversary...

Happy New Year, everyone!! Wow! I can't believe that 2009 flew by like it did! Here's to 2010 and the health and prosperity I hope it will bring!!

Well, it's been a whole year since I started painting! It sure did go fast! I've had a couple of friends ask me to post some of the 'early' works - my Bob Ross pieces, hehe!! Well, here you go!

Mountains and Trees, 16x20 Oil on Canvas Panel

This is my very first painting using the Bob Ross painting style. This is what got me into painting with oils! I really liked the style and the results, but I developed a fascination for painting from life as opposed to painting a 'happy world'...

Crashing Wave, 16x20 Oil on Canvas Panel

Another of my Bob Ross-ish paintings. This one looks like the background of a Japanese movie poster, haha!! As with all of my painting experiences, this was one that I learned a lot from...

Hunting Cabin, 16x20 Oil on Canvas Panel

Still using the Bob Ross technique, but this one was from a reference photo. One could say that I was expanding my horizons. You might recognize this one from one of the last ones I just did on 5x7. I used the same references...

January Sky, 16x20 Oil on Canvas Panel

Finally, this one is my first true plein aire. I didn't know what plein air was at the time, but the sky was just so amazing during this sunset last January I just had to take my 'easel' out on the back deck and try to capture it!

I've come so far in the last year and I just want to thank everyone that contributed to my growth during this very short beginning! I've learned so very much from all of you and I hope I learn much more in the coming years!

And a special thank you to all of you that check in to this blog from time to time. It's nice to know that there are folks 'looking in the windows', so to speak. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll take a moment and leave a comment or two in the coming year. It really does help to have feedback - both good and bad - it's all a learning experience.

Thanks again, and have a Happy New Year!!