Waits Hill Rd. and the centennials of Greenwich. What I learned from carpentry.

   I've been feverishly getting my studio ready for the grand opening. The building was a garage that I used as a carpentry shop, my occupation for the better part of 30 years.  In that span of time I did a lot of things, morphing from an art student, to an apprentice for a sculptor, to a series of other specialty building, architectural model making, sign fabrication, but mostly carpentry and in particular as a stand alone concern in my small town.  I learned a lot through those experiences, much of which informs my work today.   There is an inherent logic in the built environment, and the craft of carpentry determines what works and what doesn't. I learned patience and perseverance: if something didn't work, I'd have to fix it so it did. I learned that craft had to have a use, and that too much of it wasn't paid for, so don't do it!  I learned that it can take years and lots of mistakes to find what you're looking for, but that shouldn't stop you from trying.

Back to painting: last Sunday......

   I've been to this spot many times, and will often drive by to see how the light is.

   

          #891 Waits Hill Rd.                                      11-13-16                                  14x16

I also went out on Monday......

    Last week I had gone to the other side of the river where there is a path to the water, I painted the backlots, looking in the other direction, but had long wondered how I'd get to the other side, although I had a hunch and it involved a short hike in.

                    Ollie loves these spots too, but this time of the year we get attacked by ticks, so I'm waiting for really freezing temps.

   I had a fundamental problem with the values in this, and the only way to solve it is to return for a re-do, I'll wait until it gets really cold!

           #892  Battenkill at the centennials, Greenwich,  NY.            11-14-16                14x16

     This is from my hike back, I parked at the hydro plant and walked in along the river bank, there are lots more to explore. 

Another mega- blog! 7 paintings and a whole lot more!

   The first part of October has been full of stuff, yes of course painting, but also shows and some traction in getting the paintings into the world, all great, and desired, but a lot to process.  The weather has been just beautiful, with the fall colors changing in exciting and unpredictable ways.

     This is a scene looking down Carey Ave, a back street in Hoosick Falls, NY.  I honestly don't know how I ended up painting this scene, but it did have some redeeming qualities with the shadows crossing the street, the distant hill and the tree cut (where the tree is cut back for the power lines, and is a common subject for me)

                           Truly a back street in an old post industrial small town in Upstate New York, there is a scruffy quality, and a majestic quality and they co-exist in a lovely fashion.

                         #869  Carey Ave. Hoosick Falls, NY.     10-5-16            10x8



         The next day, I visited my parents in Newton, MA.  This is the city hall, not far from where I grew up, and my parents still live.

      This was a great scene, the light on the building, the shadows of the trees, and the traffic, so much traffic going by.

      #870  Newton City Hall, Newton, MA.               10-6-16                                11x12


         Friday night was the first of 4 days in the Landscapes for landsake show, a fundraiser for the Ag Stewardship Association, a cause close to heart, preserving farmland in our region, I'm friends with a lot of the other artists and many of the people that come to the show, and that's a lot of people.  It was a great success with a lot of sales, seeing old friends, meeting people and fun!

      Early (5:30) Saturday morning I took Alane and Hope to the airport for a trip to Puerto Rico, they would have a blast with Alane's sister, niece, and families.

   On Monday, Columbus Day, also the final day of the show, I went out to paint. This is what I found:

  I really liked this process shot, it shows how I'm thinking while developing the painting, notice the scraping away of the sky for the tree, and that the bright lights and darkest shadows are there early in the session.

    #871 Cross Rd.  Salem, NY.                   10-10-16                                    14x16

Later the same day I went to Greenwich and found this:

These village scenes close to the end of the day pose some interesting challenges, with the way that the light goes on one thing then another, it also give you an opportunity to create a very dynamic composition with these radical elements of different parts.

     I don't necessarily like "chasing" the light, that is to change things as the light changes, but I do sometimes.

       #872  Salem St. Greenwich, NY.                    10-10-16                        11x14

Tuesday was just too beautiful not to paint, and with the trees turning colors I went looking for trees, you'd think I could just walk out the door and find a tree to paint, but nooooo, I have to drive around past millions of them to find the ONE.

 

      #873  Black Creek Rd.  Salem, NY.                   10-11-16                     12x16


   This was Wednesday, another day with gorgeous light.

     This is the largest panel I've painted in a long time.

      #874 Lincoln Hill Rd.                             10-12-16                               16x18

Yesterday on my way back from Saratoga, I drove around way too much, but I found something pretty good. 

   In this case I had to stop because I was loosing the light, which was great, but fleeting especially toward the end.

       #875 Scotch Hill Rd. Salem, NY.               10-14-16                           9x12

Thank you for reading my blog!

Church or Laundromat you decide

28  F  sunny  (A.M.)

           #744  Center White Creek Lane    4-5-16  14x16

       

Later the same day.....34  F  sunny.

Downtown Cambridge.

#745  Pearl St.    4-5-16    11x12   

I was excited to get out this morning, with the biggest snowfall of the season, and the bright light of April it was bound to be a unique day to be out painting, in the morning I returned to Center White Creek and a view of the Baptist Church.  A lot of times I'm returning in the hopes of "getting it" but I think I'll be coming back yet again.  In the early evening the longer shadows, and the quick loss of most of the snow, illuminated the village, and I found a spot next to the Laundromat in Varick Park 

A return to winter and Eagle Bridge.

32  F  sunny, some clouds, windy.

         #743  Eagle Bridge rail yard.    4-3-16   12x16

It snowed last night and was cold and a little windy this morning, but sunny. The snow was beautiful, but as soon as I drove out of town it seemed to disappear, as it looks here.

The clouds came and went.

     Not sure how I feel about this, parts I like and parts I don't.  

2 days 3 paintings.

warm and mostly sunny.

             The last two days I got three paintings done.  All three sessions were cut short by changing light conditions, two when clouds covered the sun, another when the sun hit my panel.  This is the life of a landscape painter, I never know what my light is going to do and I've put my faith in painting the here and now, not even trying to make things up, so I take it all in stride, I'm pleased I got some paint flowing, but think my results were not fully baked.

#703  White Creek Lane

1-27-16

9x12

This is Center White Creek, and the Center White Creek Baptist Church.  I liked the bright white light off the building.

      This morning I took Hope to school, she missed the bus, and I saw the white of the Cambridge United Presbyterian Church, so dramatic, I returned as soon as I could to get this.

By the time I returned, maybe 1/2 hour, I took this photo, and some of the punch was gone, but it was still a good scene.

Light moves fast, and it moved right onto my panel.

#704 S. Park St. (rte 22)

1-28-16

11x12

     I found this in the afternoon, and like yesterday, the clouds came before I finished.

This is the scene at the end of my session, there really was light at the start.

#705  Dunbar Rd.

1-28-16

8x10