Summer Studio Painting

Gratitude
24x24 inches
Oil on Stretched Canvas

Some artists enjoy painting plein air.  I've done my share of painting outdoors, painting directly from nature.  But over time I come to realize that I'm more of a "memory painter".  I can observe the landscape in silence.  From there I record with my camera or sometimes simply from my own interpretation of memory.

Even if I paint from a photograph, the painting never looks like the photo.  For me the painting needs to come from somewhere inside.  Only then does my painting look truly authentic.  

Eucharisteo

Eucharisteo
Oil on Stretched Canvas
24x30

Eucharisteo is a beautiful word, simply meaning gratitude or thanksgiving.  Today I'm feeling healthy and whole and I'm grateful.  Back in April, I had an unexpected thing happen to me.  I caught the flu.  The kind that involves vomiting and that kind of thing.  Usually people rebound from this after about three days.  But I wasn't getting any better.

My husband had previously had the same thing but recovered quickly.  And he kept telling me that I should at least sit up, not lay down.  Long story short, my kidneys had stopped functioning and fortunately I got to the hospital in time.  After four days, I was discharged but the recovery took over a month.  

Now I'm back to normal and feel extremely grateful.  Eucharisteo.

Serenity

Serenity
16x12
Oil on Stretched Canvas

I named my latest oil painting "Serenity".  Thinking of the warm, calm days of summer makes me feel serene after the long winter we've all had this year.  I find that I usually paint a place where I want to be, even if it's only in my mind's eye.

My paintings rarely turn out the way I initially visualize them.  Most of the time, they are a complete surprise.  Only after some time has passed do I come to appreciate my paintings.  Then I wonder "where did THAT come from"?

Splendour

Splendour

20x16

Oil on Stretched Linen

I have been reading a big hefty book this summer entitled "A History of Tonalism: 1880-1920".  It isn't the kind of book that I would read cover to cover.  It is the kind where I read some and then ponder on the morsels.  In it are beautiful examples of the great American Tonalist works by artists such as George Inness, Homer Dodge Martin, John Henry Twatchtman and James McNeill Whistler.  

All of these visual delights are interspersed with the philosophies of the day by Emerson, Thoreau and Darwin.  American Tonalism came about after the Civil War.  At that time, the nation was grieving and was trying to come to grips with the horrors of loss.  As a result, there came the philosophy that Spirit is in the landscape.  And that Spirit was most apparent and visible during the Magic Hours, such as dawn, sunset, twilight and night.  

It was a time of renewal and hope.      

Evening Reflections

Evening Reflections
Oil on Stretched Canvas
18x36 inches

We're in the middle of summer already, hard to believe.  I love the sounds of the outdoors at this time of year, when it's cool enough to turn the air conditioner off and open the doors and windows.  Mostly it's the sounds of the cicadas buzzing.  Like a long exhale.

The long horizontal format in this painting is somewhat new to me.  I plan on going more in this direction with even bigger long, horizontal canvases.  This size reminds me of an actual window in a room.  

Now there is lots of time for painting in my little sun room studio.  Last year at this time, it was so busy with all the wedding preparations.  So I paint to the sound of cicadas singing.   

Dawn's Light

Dawn's Light

Oil on Linen Covered Panel

16x20

One of the best parts of summer, I believe, is getting up with the sun.  I prefer open windows in summer.  That way the sounds of the birds wakes me up before first light.  There is a kind of spiritual beauty to watching the sun rise at the start of a new day.  

Like opening a present.

Warm or Cold Weather

Evening Landscape

Oil on Cradled Panel

8x8
Sold

This time of year I enjoy the cool of the evening.  Today reached into the low nineties.  My seasonal clothes are stored in my mother's cedar chest, which I inherited from her.  Out came the shorts, sleeveless tees and sandals.  I said farewell to my favorite sweaters until next autumn.  

Even though I paint mostly warm weather scenes, I love the cooler months when I get to wear boots, scarves and denim jeans.  It seems most people will describe themselves as a "warm weather person" or a "cold weather person".  

How would you describe yourself?