The Wheat Harvest

Pieter Breughel the Elder, inspired me with his painting “The Wheat Harvest”…probably because we had an exceptional wet winter and the summer hillsides as they dried into summer had a beautiful golden color, which I saw, Breughel the Elder had in this painting. After some research I found out Breughel was the first painter to paint regular people working and playing instead of the usual stogy religious or wealthy persons… Breughel may have changed and van guarded how artists painted and selected their subject matter.
Breughel’s Wheat Harvest really inspired me to emulate his painting best I could. I used an 18×24 canvas which was already prepared and primed in white flake, (which is very toxic for those who work with it, when wet, though I only painted on top of it dry) I have never used paint with white flake. I must say it was an interesting surface to work on, very smooth and white flake really accepted the brush strokes with pleasure.
You can see the original “Wheat Harvest” on many links, but I found this one from Penn State to be interesting; http://www.engr.psu.edu/mtah/articles/wheat_harvest.htm

Here is my rendition of Piter Breughel the Elders “Wheat Harvest”

Harvesters

Fall Redwoods

Fall Redwoods

Okay…backing off of politics for a much more pleasant part of existence…art.

I painted this redwood painting several years ago, it was painted from a photograph taken during the fall. Fall and spring provide those long casting shadows which provide a pleasant beautiful setting for the eyes. This is oil on canvas, 18×24.

A red rose is a rose

A Rose is a rose

I painted this rose from a photograph which I took awhile back, it came out quite nice. Actually I painted this in order to practice dry brushing technique. Every time I learn a new thing in art it becomes another tool I can use when facing different challenges or even to have more fun in my painting.

Oil on canvas, 18×24

Ps: I am not crazy about the red background… but what the hey!

Summer Redwoods

Summer Redwoods

This is my second or third oil of Coast Redwoods, for a time I worked in the redwoods so I felt a bonding with them. I call this “summer redwoods” to separate from my fall painting. Fall is a much better time to take photos of redwoods because of the longer shadows, even so I am happy with the summer painting. This is oil on canvas, 24×30.

Picket Fence

Picket fenceWell, I used the “New Post” at the top of my blog and from what I can tell nothing worked?  Live and learn comes to mind.

Picket Fence was a lot of fun doing, …of course I used a pallet knife for the pickets.  This was from one of my photos taken during my travels, a simple composition. One person told me I should have placed a gate in the painting?  I told them the gate is to the right out of the picture.  Orrsprings

Late Spring Snow

oil on canvas, 24x30

oil on canvas, 24×30

Okay, This is an oil painting done using impressionist technique, one of my favorites. We had a late spring snow, which is rare around here, so I took several photographs and this one was my favorite to paint. Sorry for the small size, I suspect when I took this photo, my camera was set for a smaller pixel?

Reeds on the River

As so many artists have done before me… rising in the wee hours of the morning and packing tons of their art supplies to be on location… just to be there for the first rays of the sun, to capture those perfect shadows and the ever so evasive blue morning tint. Packing hot coffee, watercolors, bushes, easel and a never warm enough cold weather parka, always a very long hike to a vantage point on top of the highest hill… only to find out they forgot the water.

Mixed Media on full sheet

Mixed Media on full sheet

This abstract is called “Reeds on the River” it is mixed media on a full sheet.

Ps: Actually I do most of my work in studio.

Abstract

Recently I have been on an abstract tear. I really enjoy the freedom of experesson when in the zone doing an abstract painting, this one is a watercolor, if I recall a half sheet which means it is about 15 inches by 22 inches.
Fyi: I made the error of not taking a photo of the painting before having it framed, which is a problem trying not to get a glare, same problem for oil paintings which have been varnished.

In the zone

In the zone

Horse logging

Working Together

Working Together 4 X 5 oil

Several years back, actually longer then I wish to dwell on, I took photograph’s of a horse logging operation as my work entailed doing photography and video. The horse logging was used to demonstrate low impact on the forest as they selectively logged trees and the horses were believed to have less impact on the forest environment compared to heavy equipment.

Seabiscuit

Since my blog is supposed to be about my art, I thought I would start with a painting I finished several years ago. I was inspired to paint Seabiscuit from the famous 1938 photograph by Jack Shipply…link: (Google Jack Shipply Seabiscuit) what is interesting to me is the original photograph only measures 8 inches by 10 inches, while my painting is 24 x 30, on panel, mixed media. One other thing I did not know… because I did not see the movie… Seabiscuit’s mask color is supposed to be red. Sold this one. Seabiscuit