Uncle Bud's Art Colony

Monday, November 21, 2016

Here's the super moon again and this time I put a pine tree and snow with those long night shadows.

The fence leads back to the low trees behind the main subject hopefully to lead the eye around to the main focal point. This was one of those paintings that is truly a little experiment, or working "study" for another painting.

The lay of the land is also important in doing these style of paintings, giving the picture a look of real depth pushing back the other items in the painting.

This is like the one from yesterday its done in blues and Payne's gray with a little brown for the fence.

I understand it will be a long time before we will see a moon like this again, 30 years or so. But as far as snow I think we may see some soon around the Ohio Valley.

The Moon, and Trees in Snow

9:40 AM

Kathy

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The last few days in Northern Ohio and the Northeast United States we saw the Moon like never before.

The sun and moon have been a subject of many paintings even as far back as caveman times. The stars and other heavenly bodies have always fascinated artists as well as the average man and woman.

One of my favorite sky paintings of course is Van Gogh's "Stary Night".
This is a watercolor of the super moon we've been watching.

I could also see this as a winter scene or a Christmas card. I could add a pine tree or two and bam! I could have also made a northern light painting out of this with colors reflecting upward.

This was a fun wet on wet project I left the moon dry till the very end of the painting. I wanted it to be a Harvest type moon feeling.

Well lets keep looking up!

Super Moon

9:01 AM

Kathy

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This is from a picture of my grand daughters. This picture is perfect for a painting. there is movement, there is a cool sky, and a bridge!

The first painting I did was the one on the far right. The shadows and the colors of the girls dresses were very interesting, but as I looked even harder at the picture I noticed other things in the shapes and shadows. So I did the one on the left. I think the detail and colors hit the mark with that painting.

I like these paintings so much because the older girl is helping her little sister up the path. In life that is the way it should be, sisters helping one another thru life!

The little painting in the middle is just a slap-dash with color and form. I still tried to retain the feeling of the overall painting.

Well today's a great day to be indoors and work in the studio. Outside the wind is blowing and a little while ago we had strong snow flurries. Hello winter! ugh!

Going to the Beach

11:08 AM

Kathy

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This cloud has so much character. I like the way it curves back in the picture.

These dunes are amazing, I have painted them in several ways. With watercolor they are transparent and the dark bushes and reeds are a great accent!

When I paint sky and clouds with watercolors I try to just suggest the shapes with cobalt blue and then use ultramarine very wet as a shadow. This way you can build a cloud shape and again suggest what you are painting.

Some people tell me that clouds are hard to paint but I think it depends on the medium, oil, acrylic, or watercolor. With oil you can add it over your painted background sky, the same with acrylic. but watercolor you have to leave your paper more of a white or "Raw" state.

So today one more cloud. Keep looking up and check it out!

One more Cloud!

10:14 AM

Kathy

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This is Destin, Fla. and the Panama Beach area. If you look at these clouds you will see a different look than those I posted yesterday. There is more moisture in them from the ocean and the bottom of the clouds are flat. I wonder if it is because of the water and the air pressure pressing on the clouds.

Also if you notice the water is darker where the cloud is strongest. The fore ground water is more of a turquoise or teal color. So the shadows play an important part in the painting I did as I sat near this spot with my watercolors.

Plein Air painting is where you can learn so much about your subject. Monet said, "Why are we in this studio? The world is out there!" not long after he and his friends met in Paris. And that's true all of our subjects seem to be out there. Whether in our minds or the out of doors. Let capture them and put them on canvas.

Lets continue to study our subjects and keep our brushes wet!

More Clouds and Water

9:40 AM

Kathy

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This picture was taken in summer at the historic Civil War battle field near Sharpsburg, Md. at Antietam creek.

The day was very hot 90 degrees plus and the clouds were on the move, boiling and later that day a very mean thunderstorm came thru. I saw these clouds and wanted to catch them for a painting later.

You can take your camera and get some amazing pictures for reference. Light at the bottom and bluer at the top because as we look up we see the sky open into the outer space region. Of course that's were its truly dark.

Paint it with light colors then add your darks. Painting in oil you can add dry titanium white to build your clouds but always add a touch of Cad red or Cad yellow for a more interesting look.

In winter the clouds seem more gray cast, I suppose it is because of the lower sun level in the Northern hemisphere.

Take more pictures and then use them for your reference material.

Cloud Formations Summer and Winter!

2:09 PM

Kathy

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I was talking about George Bellows the other day and I though I could give you more information. He was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio in 1886.

He was not allowed to go out side and play on Sunday as a child so he stayed inside a drew pictures from magazines, like the "Gibson Girls".

Later he attend Ohio State University and was very athletic even playing baseball. Then one day making the hard choice to continue in Art he left for bigger horizons.

He moved to New York City and his eyes were open to more possibility in his new field. Artist Heni and the group of eight became his new mentors, that is when Bellows began to paint the people around him and the struggle of the working man!

He is considered part of the Ashcan movement in art. One of his most famous paintings is that of the two boxers! This painting is the snow removal squad in New York pulling the snow to the river.