Yesterday on The Hoosick River

Hot & sunny with big puffy clouds, 90 F

I got an early start (for me) and was set up at about 9:30,  I had painted here in the winter, and like the Skellie Rd. painting, I would have had a hard time finding this spot if I hadn't been there before. Ah, but there was shade and it was cool off the water, at least when I started.

This is about 40 minutes or so into it, and as you can see I have the surface covered. The reflection was the hardest part of this painting, there was a welcomed slight breeze, but it kept changing the water surface I never got a handle on exactly what the water was doing. All the rivers are full to capacity with all the recent rain and the water looks very muddy, I like this (kinda).

This is about 1/2 way through the painting session, I kept on telling myself to focus on the next glaringly wrong item to fix, I can find myself putting in detail where it has no meaning, and it has no meaning when I'm not looking at the whole painting and seeing the whole subject and responding to that.

Here it is when I wrapped it up, It was close to 12:30, the sun had changed a lot, which darkened my subject's shadows, but put me in the sun.  I put some dark notes in the water's reflection, because they were there and the painting needed it. I also want to point out that I tilted the shore line, the reality was that the line was very strait and horizontal, and I didn't want it like that.  I had the dead strait horizontal line on the green field, and that was enough.  I also spent some time on the light holes in the trees, I'm thinking that's important now.

This is the spot,  looks like a teenage hang out, complete with fire pit and empty beer cans,  I picked up a bunch of trash and recyclables: my contribution for the days use!  I'm glad to know there are places like this for the youth to enjoy, a place that adults don't organize the life out of. Paint On!

Lee's Crossing Rd.Old lesson, returned.

Sunny with big clouds, humid, 85 F

I read an interview with Robert Douglas Hunter, http://www.sightsize.com/hunter.html  in it he discusses sight-size, and about the principles that he helped me learn, at least marginally, so many years ago.  It clarified a few things and influenced today's work.

I had just a bit of time so I thought I'd find a spot on my way to pick up Hope, I didn't have enough time, but I found this spot, and it was in the shade! The clouds kept moving, and changing the light,  at times the light was on the mid-range trees giving them brightness in front of the dark of the far hill.

This is into it maybe 20 or so minutes. Hunter said to start with the element most different from the canvas, then go to the next element that's the most different. So simple, so basic, but I could see in an instant how focusing on this really worked,  I've known about this basic principle for 33 years, but how easy it is to stray for the basics.

 This is where I wrapped it up for the day, I had about 1hr, 15 minutes or so, and I wish I could have just had another 1/2 hr. I'ts just a bit of a treck, so I just might not get back there in the next few days....

Holy Grail, In prosess

Indoors it's raining......

Here it is after working on it here in the shop. My pallet is drying up, and I'm not sure if I'm not ruining it.  If it would stop raining I could take it back...I know it's hard to see in digital form, but what do you think?

Holy Grail, day 2

Mid day, before the rain, 80 +  F

This was the painting on duel Hollow Rd. after about 2 more hours on-site yesterday.  I brought it back and worked on it a bit last night, but I think it needs more, it's just not where I want it to be, but it's moving along.

I'm having a hard time trying to "unify"  it just might be in my own head.  I'm also not sure of the overall tone of the painting, I think it should be a but darker...

The Holy Grail, so near, so far.

80 +  F  partly cloudy, before the rain.

Here it is the Holy Grail of scenery.  The recent rains have filled all the small streams at a time of the year that they'd be much dryer.  Earlier in the season they'd be just as full, but the foliage would be way younger, and that would be different. So yeah, you can't get any lusher than this!(no jokes about aunt flora, please).  11:00 A.M.

This is just a few minutes into it.  I've been wanting to do another 16 x 20, but I've been waiting for the right scene. I thought I was going to go to Brownell Corners Rd. where I had a place for a repeat, but the sun wasn't right ( I needed afternoon at that spot) so I kept driving and found this spot. Anyway,  I wasn't really thinking about this composition, and well I just mixed up my dark purple, and went ahead.  I thought keeping the bank on the middle left away from the edge was important, as well as the general trajectory of the winding stream....

I had visitors but they didn't want to sit still for me.

This was a few more minutes into it.  A lot of my readers have been responding to the progress shots, so I thought I'd shoot. Here is a lot of green and I didn't get it as close as I would have liked, but until you establish enough of the colors you really can't see them, it's a bit of a catch 22, without an a-bomb.

This is probably close to 2 hours into it, and I've got most of the ground covered, and I can start to see where the color will go, (not exactly where I tell it, but like children, they respond to positive suggestion better than any alternative).

You can see how much the sky changed, maybe the green isn't as far off as I originally thought.

This is where it ended up at about 1:00 after about 3 hours,  I knew I needed to look and think about it, and what it needs to get it the way I want it, but I think it has potential. I will go back to this site, and I hope I can do it soon. The clouds changed a lot, but I think they just need a bit of softening, the water needs some decent darks, and maybe a few of the brightest highlights, the greens need some systemic alteration,

Finally Cobble Hill finished! (maybe)

Hot and humid, amid thundershowers, 85+ F

I was determined to get this painting finished, yesterday I went to the site, and it rained the whole time, so when I went back today and it was raining, yet the third time, I sat and waited another 15 minutes, and yes the rain stopped and the sun came out, and there you have it.

The sky and the atmosphere kept changing, well over 9 calendar days... but surprisingly or not the foliage  stayed pretty much the same.  I found that enough of a consolation to push on. I had to add the tree on the right, the sky from the 2nd day was dry and I never got around to "flattening" the texture out as I have preached in the past. I also re-worked just about everything else and damned be the dry/wet differences.  Now I think the tree on the right is a bit flat.  I loved the dark/light pattern the leaves made, but I think they need a but of modeling.  I'm also going to ponder the foreground, I really let it fuzz up over the shadows, and I think that edge is too consistant to be convincing....

Here's the place.

out back today

Hot, moist,  90+ F

O.K. so I stole some time and just set up out back hoping no one would notice that I'm there and not anywhere else.  so whatever.

My back yard is kinda square, so when I started to hunt for a spot I saw these pure diagonals, and the lights and darks in the grass and trees and Yeah, I'd work.  The "cabana" is just to thee left, and is a very utilitarian construct, so I left it out.

Here it is just a few minutes in.

Here is where I got it to, I'll need to go back out there, but it's a good start.