Plein Air setup

I mentioned in my last post that I made my way back to Whitnall Park in Milwaukee to paint. There are so many spots to choose from, but this old red barn with a small outbuilding was my first choice. The day was perfect, even though completely sunny which causes problems with changing light situations. But here is my plein air set up and I just sketched the elements in with charcoal.

Painting Time

I've found time to paint a lot lately.

I'm still in the never-ending process of the church mural, which is almost ready to start putting paint on...after another review by church members.

I'm still on my Richard Schmid kick since I've purchased his Alla Prima and Landscapes books. What an unbelievable collection. To study how he paints and then look at some of his masterpieces is just amazing. For me, a landscape guy, it's very inspiring. Here is a piece I completed over the summer (late post) influenced by his techniques.

Made it over to a local city park, Whitnall Park, one of the award winning parks located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. While I've been there before...I've never observed "as an artist". What I found was a plethora of nature, trees, rivers, bridges, paths, people and trails I didn't know existed. I took dozens of photos and did go back the next day to paint a great red barn scene. While I loved the scene, I just had a problem with composition. A big red object dominating the painting just didn't work. Hey, it's just a piece of canvas and 3 hours of my time. I'll try it again soon...with a better composition.

Ugh, digital vs analog overload

How hard can it be to keep up with a blog? Hard, when you're trying to run your life, find a job, learn about social media, research employers, take video of painting sequences, go fishing, stay up on digital printing (job opp), work my normal analog job, teach a intro to oil painting class....and stay sane!

Okay, I'm done bitchin'. I'm posting something I've done recently in the art world. Which is quite a bit, I'm just having a hard time using this blog as a communication method. Does anybody hear me?