Painting Trip to Gloucester, Massachusetts

I've just returned from a wonderful week of painting along the coast of Cape Ann, Mass. Just north of Boston, it is a beautiful area full of small fishing towns, friendly people, and scenic harbors and shorelines. The weather was a little unpredictable, however even in the fog it was beautiful.

I was able to paint on location 4 times during my stay, getting some good starts to take back to the studio. Overall, I was able to capture the light, which was my goal. I will list each of the outings here separately, with some insight into what I experienced.

I hope to completely finish these pieces soon with all available for sale in my studio.

joli

Floyd Jubilee ACK!

Today was the windiest day I've ever experienced, ever, with art involved. It was just silly at times. We started out the day, in the middle of Floyd, all poised to take the world by storm. Well, the gusts were insane !!! BUT, there were still art lovers....It was great to speak with folks, but did I mention the wind? In the end, the muslin background came down, the tent covers came down, and I just hung on for dear life! At least there was no rain (it would have been easier??) and I was not into pottery......every now and then, there was heard a CRASH!....and we were thankful for art on canvas. But my work got beat up a bit. Ack!

At least I am inside, clean, fed, watered (so to speak), and glad to be inside, clean, fed, and watered.... until next time! (of course, this means everything is still up for sale, I mean, up for grabs! If you see something you like, just let me know!

Really, until next time! May all your trees be happy, and un-windy, trees!

joli

Painting Outing 6/13/09

I had a marvelous painting outing on Saturday. I started off my day in the Town of Floyd in a little nook behind Schoolhouse Fabrics. They have a little garden area and gazebo, and a view that I have been "watching" for some time. Saturday was the day to capture it. Overall, the view is rather "unextraordinary." But I liked the slope of the hill, and the fact that Buffalo Mt was in the distance.

How could I make this unremarkable view more remarkable? It was then that I eyed a square canvas and decided to turn it on end to accentuate the horizon line and also follow the lines of the hillside. I didn't even know if my easel would allow me to paint this way, but it did! It held it in place.

I enjoyed a very quick painting session, and left an area of the canvas unfinished. Not sure of the resolution just yet. Upon finishing, I got cleaned up and thought, "I'm hungry!"

I then headed in the direction of Meadows of Dan, and ended up at an overlook on the Parkway not far from where I live. It is a view I've captured a zillion times, it seems, but today, looking out over the expanse of Rock Castle Gorge, I realized it was "all about the clouds." The building clouds were thick and puffy and just wonderful. Full of color. Now all I needed was a quiet place that I could paint, and just the right view.

I left the overlook where I was and headed one more down the Gorge. I was able to take Pe'Pe' the Wonder Mule off road for some privacy. It was a nice view, with a big cloud hovering over the horizon, just waiting to be painted. I took out another square canvas and painted quickly to capture everything.

In the end, the sky changed, but the first inspiration of this big tower of clouds stuck with me. I also was eventually caught up to by a photographer from Charlotte, who, after parking down the road and walking a distance to get to me, was polite and asked if he could take my photo. I said yes, of course.

Overall, a great day! I didn't get sunburned (well, not too terribly much), and I came home with two works I was very proud of. Not bad, not bad at all for a summer day!

Hope to see you all out in the Town of Floyd this weekend!!! Come to the Town Jubilee!!!

Until next time, keep painting those happy trees!

joli

Sidewalk Art Show 2009

Thank you to everyone who made my time at the Sidewalk Art Show so wonderful this year!! I ended up selling a couple of pieces, as well as making encouraging contacts in my new art community of Floyd, VA. It was great to receive so much encouragement from fellow artists on the improvement of my work and my committment to painting almost purely on location. The changes in my painting techiniques were noted and it felt positive.

If you were a passing patron at the show, and you are still thinking about a certain work, wishing you had it hanging on your walls now, just let me know! Reach out via phone or email. If you are interested in a studio visit, I am available to meet with you by appointment.

Once again, thanks for all the support! Look for me at The Floyd Town Jubilee on Saturday, June 20th!

joli

Art outing in the Great Smokey Mountains!

I enjoyed a lovely visit to the Gatlinburg area of Tennessee, in the Great Smokey Mountains, this past weekend. I had a productive painting time, concentrating my efforts on capturing the view of Mt. LeConte from our cabin. It was tough. The terrain is a bit different than Southwestern Va in that there are many rolling hills. It was difficult to capture the shapes and undulations of the hills. I got a good start, however, that I will be able to finish with little effort in the studio. The trees were just coming into bloom, waking up the brown landscape. I would love to return to this area. It was breathtakingly beautiful at all times of the day!

Joli

1st outing of 2009

Today was an AMAZING day! It got up into the upper 70's, and so I was able to load up PePe' the Little Mule, and off to paint I went.

I worked my way East towards the parkway, and I found a wonderful overlook to kick off the painting season. Pine Spur Overlook. A beautiful view looking down on Franklin Co, VA. I started sketching on the canvas right after I set up, and the painting came quickly. Ahhh, the smell of the oil paints in the air after a long, cold winter! The painting was fast, and went well. A good start.

I met lots of nice folks, all of whom were very inquisitive about my work. It was VERY windy, so I spent the rest of the day tracking down new places to paint. I discovered some wonderful landscapes here in Floyd County, and there is one spot that I am "obsessed" over at this point. A wonderful barn up Rt. 221. In the afternoon, it catches the light so brilliantly, and so I need to figure out where to park so I can set up next time.

I hope you enjoy the photos, as much as I enjoyed the day. Until next time, happy painting!

joli

Paintings in Progress!

The studio has been a busy place! Inspired by the expansive views, I've been concentrating on new sunset and sky paintings. Each has taken on a new direction. Some small, some large. But in each I've loosened up my painting strokes and taken my time, letting each layer cure before working again. By doing this, I've discovered changes I wanted to make, and I've been more decisive on content.

I will be releasing my painting schedule for the year within the next two weeks. Look for me at Sidewalk Art Show in Roanoke, Art on the Lawn in Giles County, VA, and in the studio! I will be joining the artisan trail, Round the Mountain, this March. Check out the trail specifics at www.roundthemountain.org. I will also hold my first open studio day in April. Look for specifics here.

Until next time, may all your trees be happy tress!

joli