8/6/12
8/4/12
Tina Czaja
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| 18x30 oil on canvas "Carroll Road, TC" |
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| 12x12 oil on hardboard "Across the Road I" |
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| 12x12 oil on hardboard "Across the Road" |
8/12/10
Debra Z - Day 5
Charcoal 18 x 6
Day 5 - Back to Carroll Rd to finish up my first painting and while I was there I worked on the charcoal above. I love charcoal! I also thought about the week and all that Nora had tried to teach us about simplifying, values, edges, etc...and decided to do a very simple painting incorporating all of those things. No rushing to finish or anticipating what the end should look like, but just really looking and slowly trying to match shape, color, etc...So the oil above is the result of that effort. This last painting looks so unfinished (it is), but it incorporates a lot of what I set out to learn.
We were a great group! I enjoyed painting and learning with all of you...Thanks.
Thank you, Nora, for a great week of wonderful instruction. I hope I get another opportunity to learn from you.
We were a great group! I enjoyed painting and learning with all of you...Thanks.
Thank you, Nora, for a great week of wonderful instruction. I hope I get another opportunity to learn from you.
Debra Z - Day 4 Chateau Chantal
Charcoal 18 x 10
Day 4 - Chateau Chantal! What a gorgeous site. I set up intending to do an oil painting, but after Nora demoed in charcoal, I decided to do a quick sketch of what I wanted to paint - in an effort to have a good understanding of the values. My quick sketch turned into an all day drawing. I was having so much fun toward the end with the mark making that it was hard to stop! It was great putting on the charcoal and using the eraser as a drawing tool, as well.
Debra Z - Day 3
Oil 11 x 15Day 3 - The Old Mission Lighthouse. I decided to continue with oil in spite of my frustration on the first day. I really enjoyed painting this lighthouse and wanted to go back and put thicker lights in as Nora suggested, but ran out of time. Steve did a great job getting the paint on thick! So I had fun and learned something, too! Loved the Day 3 critique as you could see we were all improving so much.
Debra Z - Day 2
Watercolor 12 x 16
Day 2 was rainy and I had decided to work inside, but on my way back to the school the weather made the bay, sky, and opposite shore have this beautiful misty gray color. I snapped a photo and decided to work in watercolor from the photo back at the school (since I was so disappointed with my try at oils the day before). I ended up with 3 stripes of primary color by the end of the day. Not what I had seen or envisioned! So here we have it after several more days of messing around - it is far closer to the original feeling of the misty gray day than before - no masterpiece, but still helping me to learn my lesson of the power of revisiting failed work.
Debra Z - Day 1/Last Day
Oil 15 x 11This painting was started on Carroll Rd the first day out and by the end of that day I was so disappointed because I had managed to make everything middle value. Blah! I put it aside all week and on the last day decided to revisit it. So back to Carroll Rd I went. I'm not sure what happened, but it transformed! This was such a good lesson for me - instead of thinking I had ruined a painting I needed to understand that I just wasn't finished. I see now that I could have pushed the values a little more, but I'm satisfied with it anyway. I really like the layering of color.
Steve
Clouds at Carroll Road - August 5, 2010Day 1
Worked out basics of composition and color mixing, thanks to Nora's demo. Video coming soon!
Day 2
A rainy, sombre start that eventually turned out OK. Attempted a diptych "Greek, from neuter plural of diptychos folded in two" per Websters. Sounds painful.
Day 3
A beautiful day at Mission Point beach. Started the day by playing some guitar out on the rocks. Chose lighthouse as a subject to do a value study, since previous paintings had serious value problems. This painting looks very cliche to me, but i'm happy with values and colors.
Day 4
Time to get some serious painting done. Decided to immerse myself in green paint. Literally.
Although i was happy with the result of today's color struggle and impasto technique, I had to chill out after swimming in steaming green all day and drink in some cool blues with a side of Pinot Noir (for balance) in this view of East Bay. Notice house gable (white triangle) has been removed.
Day 5
Last full day of painting. Ended up using palette knife for this view of red barn across the street from Chateau Chantal. Not very happy with this painting, but very excited to try some more palette knife techniques.
Below are a collection of drawings, watercolors and photos from the week. Enjoy, and hopefully at least some of us can get together again sometime, either to paint, celebrate, or both!
Senic View turnout at Chateau Grand Traverse
Mission Point
Chateau ChantalHere are my watercolors, drawings and the cut paper assignment.
Mission Point Sunset
Mission Point Shoreline
Kalkaska at twilight
Mission Point Lighthouse Shapes
Chateau Chantal sunset with wine as vehicle for paint.I had a few other drawings and watercolors, but gave them to my gracious host and sister-in-law, Janet.
Peace. Have a good trip Nora!
Steve/Jack/Token - thank you all
What a great week up north with so many intelligent and talented artists/teachers! I want to thank Nora and everyone else for all of their help, support and encouragement. The number one reason for taking this class again was to get inspired to paint, and after not picking up an artists brush for about three years I'm happy to say that this mission is accomplished. The only problem is that driving home I kept wanting to stop and paint all of the potential paintings that i could see and imagine along the way! Although i haven't done any more paintings yet, I feel that i have a sense of direction, both in color and paint application. I plan on doing a few series at Kensington Metropark including some small oils (5" x 7", 12" x 12") and some larger pieces using acrylics or maybe house paint on Masonite (24" x 36" and larger). I will post my pictures next, but i just wanted to make sure to take a minute to thank you all and let everyone know how much i loved this class.
8/10/10
Debra C: Day 6 - Chateau Chantel Homework
Really breaking down the shapes, per Nora's suggestion. Patterns have emerged, the top background seems to mirror each other, from far back sky, to the hazy background land mass (in lavender) to the rich blue of the water mass - each "echo" one another. Then onto the sage green land that wraps from the left down into the main middle ground, inviting the viewer to experience the central focus of orange, lemon yellow and a shapely image, not detailed, but still resembling a tree. The foreground conveys a hill, gently sloping down - it has a highlight to play off the highlight on the middle ground lemony area, and the two front bushes interplay with the central focal point, the "q-tip tree." All is held together by the deep rich purple mass to the left and to the right, stability in the simplicity of shape & color.
Debra C: Day 6 - Chateau Chantel
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| Shapely Simplification - Chalk Pastel 16"x24" |
Less Complication - More Simplification - Abstracted Landscape in Plein Aire... is this just the beginning of a new way to approach painting? Do I have my interest piqued? You Bet! I am on fire, and am ready to get on to the next landscape!
Debra C: Day 5 - Homework #1 & #2
5"x7" Collage
5"x7" Chalk
Had to go back to the clouds! They called to me in my backyard, first a torn paper shape image of an abstracted landscape in my yard, then the pastel painting - why couldn't I abstract this image when I painted? I had lost my courage to lay down shapes & just leave them - I put all my details over them, I loved playing with the clouds, yet again & off I went with a steady stream of detail. Perhaps I just
longed to create a unified image once the clouds were so lovely I just continued with the same presentation and visual connection between background, middle ground and foreground. In the end,
I so enjoy this painting - I am feeling the chalk medium flowing more easily from my fingertips. Tomorrow I am going to sing into the heavens to send the abstraction goddess into my spirit so that simplification may flow from me, just flow!
5"x7" Chalk Had to go back to the clouds! They called to me in my backyard, first a torn paper shape image of an abstracted landscape in my yard, then the pastel painting - why couldn't I abstract this image when I painted? I had lost my courage to lay down shapes & just leave them - I put all my details over them, I loved playing with the clouds, yet again & off I went with a steady stream of detail. Perhaps I just
longed to create a unified image once the clouds were so lovely I just continued with the same presentation and visual connection between background, middle ground and foreground. In the end,
I so enjoy this painting - I am feeling the chalk medium flowing more easily from my fingertips. Tomorrow I am going to sing into the heavens to send the abstraction goddess into my spirit so that simplification may flow from me, just flow!
Debra C: Day 5 - Chateau Chantal
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| Can we say "Simplification?" chalk pastel 9"x22" |
And so I did what I did not think I could do, an Abstraction of a Landscape. Shapes explode, movement leads me around, atmospheric perspective gives this a "landscape feel" and holds true to the sense of Plein Air. I am so happy I played with thumbnails & decided to study the values of various colors with a color wheel/value wheel I brought with me today. When will I stop
"mark making?" Well, today was the day!
Abstraction is a powerful tool, a perfect way to break a bad habit of over detailing subject areas.
This over-simplification could even go simpler, so Nora tells me...so, at home I will attempt to abstract even more sections, to keep a tree reading as a tree but without those many branches, lines and crevices! To show the bare essentials I have found using the side of my chalks keeps me from getting caught up in the edginess of the details with the edges of the chalk. I also try not to get too close to the painting by not bending my elbow, use a straight arm to not act like I am drawing with a pencil.
Debra C: Day 4 - Homework of Clouds
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| Clouds, oh delightful play, Clouds! Chalk Pastel 6"x18" |
Debra C: Day 4 - Old Mission Lighthouse
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| Vincent rests today, as I play another way... 10x22 Chalk Pastel |
Question of the day: "How will my cool green interact with my warm green & how will these interact with their neighboring colors?"
I felt so serene today, the smoothness of the foreground waters seems to convey this feeling. I am glad to have explored a new way to express "plein air painting," I feel as though I was more confident and decisive in achieving good visual balance and a finely composed painting. Success!
Debra C: Day 3 - Homework "Final Vincent Tree"
I struggled this afternoon at my friend Deb's house with 2 questions: - Which Chalk is what "Value?"
- When I place in my initial "Shape" should I do this in complimentary colors & let it show thru, or when I blend them will they turn to mud? Chalk 9"x12"
I question my materials, I am uncertain how layering light upon dark will work out once I "smudge" them - loosing the "chalk stroke" seems to diminish the "Van Gogh" line appearance, so I tried not allowing the lines to show in the dock & even in the foreground pathway....hmmm, only the tree has many series of lines to create depth, I smudged the foreground shadow to also enhance the detail of the trees moving crevices in it's bark.
Debra C: Day 3: Rain Out - add elements to Carroll Road
Today I took photo's out at Carroll Road of the Vincent Tree & Vineyard, went to print images
and waited way too long for printed images. From rain to waiting I arrived at NMC to hunger
and frustration. I added some ground color, some lines in trunks of vineyard, darkened background trees and grew the vineyard a bit more to the left to approach more of a balance on left side of composition.
This saying popped up this morning as I did a morning reading, and now it has come to pass: "It's astonishing in this world how things
don't turn out at all the way you expect them to."
- Agatha Christie
Do I attempt another "Vincent tree?" I will rest for awhile and then decide.
Debra C: Day 2 - Homework: Vincent in my backyard
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| Photograph I am painting |
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| My Pastel Painting 9x12 |
Another Vincent Influence, right here in my backyard!
Trying to isolate parts of a scene is proving to be difficult before I begin my painting process.
As I work with my viewfinder (here my camera) I still find that I have too much information and too much detail proves to be overwhelming. Somehow I continue to be
captivated by the "3 trees" that
Vincent expressed in his "Orchard in Arles."
Debra C: Day 2 - Carroll Road
Vincent calls to me...
Chalk Pastel 9x12
I listened as my eyes focused on the undulating lines within the bark of the textured tree. A "sense of movement" seems to take place as tree limbs envelop the deep green hues of the hilltop trees. This strong saturated color in the background, holds the viewers attention as they move down thru the diagonal arches of the vineyards of the "middle ground." The eyes move to a new treatment of line, echoing the foreground moving lines of the tree. Here we see moving leaf patterns in the grape vines and the crooked shaped trunks of the trees themselves. These trunks remind the viewer that there is a color interplay with the foreground tree.Chalk Pastel 9x12
Branches curve, movement flows, horizon placed at top keeps interest in vineyard, showing a conscious effort in composing this painting.
Andrea R.
Landscape Drawing and Painting sounds very romantic yet very intimidating at the same time. I had never painted plein air before, so I took Nora’s advice and did a practice run at a local park. It turned out so well it surprised me and I felt that I would’t fail miserably up north.
Artistically my goals were pretty simple. I wanted to create some decently successful pieces using the easel outdoors. I’m not a watercolor expect, i concentrated in ceramics, so I wanted to retain the light colors, try not to overwork the paper, and do the scenery some justice. I also had to work on my perception of myself as an artist (which I never call myself). I wanted to cut myself some slack for a change and not put a ton of unattainable expectations on my work. I also gave myself a talking to about comparing my artwork to that of others.
Day 1, August 1st
This first attempt for me is just over a hill top on Carroll Rd. Looking to the right there was a great path of lighted grass moving through what seemed like mountains of mature pine trees. Of course I wanted a good composition and some variety in greens. What a horrifying surprise to have such a “fuzzy” rendition of the scene after painting such a good practice piece at home! “Where does perspective end and detail begin?” After too long I had overworked the paper, trying to layer the greens on paper that wasn’t dry enough. When you get that irritated, sometimes you just have to cut your losses.
So I turned to the left where a rolling hill with Queen Anne’s Lace and purple flowers was flanked by rows of pine trees on one side, and cherry trees on the left. I used masking fluid over multicolored wash to create the texture of the flowers and tried to match the color of the trees. There was definitely a reflection of violet in the sky from the ground. “Now this is a little more like it”, I thought. “Hopefully things get better from here.” I was not impressed with my work the first day out.
Day 2, August 2nd. Rain.
Word of the day: PLAY
On day two I was determined to get away from the fuzzy atmospheric perspective from the previous day and build “recognizable” texture into the washes. We decided to set up at an overlook near a Chateau on the peninsula (one that does not deserve a shout out). We popped the hatch and curled our bodies into the back of my van. Fortunately the rain was light, and with the easels pulled close under the trunk we managed to pull off a painting.
Things that were successful in this piece were the composition and atmospheric perspective. I was still trying to figure out the color mixes, something I will continue to learn for a long while, and I still didn’t feel that I was gauging the correct wetness or dryness for the textures I wanted. (Note to self; Apply and Stop.) Additionally, I know that I draw slow, but by the time we were packing up to head back for critique I was struggling to finish the bottom right corner. I was beginning to get a sense of my painting speed. It can now be described as a crawl.....
Some Homework:
Day 3, Tuesday at the Lighthouse.
“O.k. Today is a new day. I don’t think green, green and more green are my fortay.”
The lighthouse is great, but the unfolding scene of sand layered with water, stones and thick blades of grass below is unbelievable. Most of the class was spread along a small area under the lighthouse. I set up in the sand at a spot where my composition was layered. The weather channel called for a hot day, but at 8:30 a.m. it was comfortably warm and the sky was heavy with clouds and a small dark splotch that threatened from the right.
The furthest layer for my painting was a strip of trees, probably pine, that were so far away they were just a ruffled line of silver gray. The middle ground would be made up of a minuscule peninsula, just large enough to sprout a few mid sized trees. The part I was most nervous about were the rocks that made up the entire space from the peninsula through the foreground. I have never painted a single rock before, so my plan was to use some pure pigment with surreal colors.
I desperately needed a viewfinder yesterday so I made one on scene. I wanted to be more realistic - more defined in my paintings and I knew that I needed an accurate drawing to do so. Of course, it took a long time for me to get comfortable with the drawing. In hindsight, I would suggest to others that they sketch the scene a day ahead of time and/or do at least three drawings of the same composition. I started with washes in the background, middle ground and foreground. I got really caught up on details in the middle and mixing the right colors.
When Nora came to check on me she suggested that I work on the whole painting- all at one time. I tried to move forward, but the probability of me messing up the painting on the objects up close kept me working away from the immediate foreground. The rocks were challenging, but once I had a few marked in with colors, I was feeling the groove. “I think I’m on to something.” It was definitely not the mucky greens from the previous days, and I applauded the objects that had made themselves available to be played with.
By 1 p.m. my already tanned skin was hot and burnt severely enough that the sun was stinging me. Sweat was literally running down my forehead and the front of my shirt.
Of course, I had left the the immediate foreground for last, out of fear and I didn’t know how to solve the definition of the grasses.
The finished product you see had about 2 inches cut off of the bottom. The composition was better off with out it. If I had been planning the this more narrow version from the beginning I would have made the grass on the left foreground lower than the right, even though that was not the reality of the scene. I think it would have created a nice flow of lines.
I felt muuuuch better about my work and being able to control the medium to a degree was strengthening for me. I was being intentional about my color choices, color mixes and the handling of the brush. I knew what my weaknesses were and I was listening to them like teachers, not bullies.
Days 4 and 5 at Chateau Chantal: Coryn’s 12th Birthday and Standing in Poop.
It took a long time to set up today. I did NOT want to paint the atmospheric scene from the top of the chateau so Tina and I drove up and down the winding main path. The most interesting thing for me was the contrast of the bright lime green tops of the rolling rows of grape vines that met up with the red soil between the rows. I set up my easel and we had taken so long that Nora was coming to check on our progress already. Thankfully she helped my set up an umbrella at an empty post, very close to my ideal composition. There were a few man hole like drain tops about 1, 3 and 5 feet behind me, but they didn’t seem to be anything to worry about.
Again the drawing took a lot of time. I knew if the rows didn’t line up to a believable vanishing point, it wouldn’t matter how well I painted, all you would see was the mistake. It took several hours to cover the large piece of paper with glazes . I knew that the next day I would need to figure out the layering for the grape vines.....
For homework Nora suggested I figure out the logistics on a separate piece of paper. When I picked up the angled brush I could hear the angels singing a chorus above my motel. I later realized that it looked much better on the small scale I had practiced.
I picked up right away the next morning, with confidence. “Alright, you’ve got this. The angle brush was a good purchase.”
I set up my umbrella and the potent oder of the sewer drain slapped me in the face. I was half way done with the painting.....”people in third world countries LIVE in smell like this all the time! I can finish this painting.” It was an uncomfortable three hours to say the least. I realized the paper was either too big or the angle brush was too small to create the shape of the grape leaves I wanted. I did the best i could and felt it wasn’t too shabby. I picked up camp and went to the top of the hill where the building and most of the other students were. I had masked out the wooden posts the grape vines were growing between and figured I could finish those with my photo MINUS the smell. Did you know masking fluid can work one minute and then turn to syrup the next? The masking fluid was incapable of rolling into removable clumps. I tried to scrape it away to no avail... with my nail, scissors, a knife, salt, dish soap. I was not going to be defeated at the very end by syrup. The solution? Just add an ant hill.
I felt some parts of the painting were successful. The colors were on, the shadows were FUN and colorful and helped to unify the piece, playing with the warmer yellows in the soil. I had some good perspective and I was pleased with the angle. On the “down” side, I was still intimidated by the foreground, although I think a smaller scale painting would have been the resolution for that. I also knew now more than ever after practicing some techniques for this painting the night before that repetition of the drawing was essential for understanding the overall painting.
Day 6, Final Critique
After we examined and described the process of our week, Nora asked each of us which pieces we preferred in our collection of work. I really liked the collage homework, the lighthouse rocks and the grape vines from the chateau. “Really?”, Nora asked. She preferred the first and second day of paintings, the ones that were atmospheric and loose. She said to the class “If you want realism, take a picture.” Say said we need to find OUR way, our marks. If we all paint the same scene with the same mastery of the materials, then what?
She said that the pieces that I took less seriously, and played more with while creating, ended up being more successful. I don’t disagree, but I definitely don’t like painting rows of green. I’ll probably paint compositions that include some objects that are closer in perspective, like the rocks or the shadows of the grape vines, to play with shape, color, and loose detail.
8/9/10
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First watercolor - 8/1/10 Location: Carroll Road |
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| Bayside Park 8/1/10 |
I went to the Bayside Park in Acme to do my homework on a quiet beach. I felt that this piece was more successful. I liked the composition and the simplicity much more than my first piece.
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| Beach off Swiney Rd 8/2/10 |
The second day was rainy. We were dismissed to find a dry spot. I drop to a beach of Swiney Road, 3/4th of the way up the peninsula. It was still drizzling, but I was able to set myself up in the passenger seat of my car with the door open so I had a clear view of the bay. I worked on two images at once so I could test or experiment on one. The first was more "picky" and the second a little more loose. I think with the exception of the birds, the second is the better painting.
Another Bayside Park beach scene was my homework.
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| Bayside Park 8/2/10 |
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| Old Mission Lighthouse 8/3/10 |
The third day we went to the Old Mission Lighthouse. When I walked out to the water it was like walking into a painting. Everything was so still. I unwisely placed myself in a sunny spot on the dunes near rustling chipmunks, and buzzing bees. I eventually moved into the shade and working on details from there. I was tired of painting with such light paintings, so I decided to exagerate the colors a bit and paint with a more saturated palette. The horizon wasn't quite straight, but I felt that I did a better job grounding the islands weeds and rocks.
Homework was a torn paper version of a previous composition. I chose to layer tissue paper for mine.
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| Torn Tissue 8/3/10 |
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| Chateau Chantal 8/4/10 |
The fourth day was spent painting at Chateau Chantal. It was breezy but hot. I sat next to Annette and she gave me some tips that helped me loosen up and play with the puddles of paint a bit more. I enjoyed that, though I don't consider this a finished pieces. I would still like to work on the vines a bit, but I will preserve the way they fade out into eachother when the move to the left of the page.
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| Complementary Colors 8/4/10 |
For homework on day 4, I did a complementary colored version of my previous torn tissue comp. I wanted continue to play with the color in a simple composition.
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| Elk River 8/5/10 |
The fifth day we chose to sit beside Elk river and paint the stumps that emerge from the water there. I did a triptych, working to create 3 compositions that could stand alone or together. I do think that my final day piece shows improvement when I look back to where I started, though there is still a long way to go before I would feel confident with the medium.
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| Torn Tissue 8/5/10 |
For my last homework I created another tissue paper collage based on a wheat field photo I took in Yuba. I also did one last watercolor that was a simplification and summary of the common elements I found in my Traverse City landscape compostions.
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| Traverse City 8/5/10 |
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