The Blue Dome

"The Blue Dome (Arnie's), Tulsa," oil on panel 

A decade or so ago, after a visit to Tulsa, Oklahoma, my old home town, I painted a cityscape of the emerging arts district that was at the time reclaiming an old and decrepit area northeast of downtown. Anchored by a circular building with a blue done (and named The Blue Dome District) the area now has fine dining, clubs, art galleries, and shopping of course. 

The blue domed building was once a service station in the Art Moderne style, with numerous gas pumps, service bays, and a big office. Over the years it faded, closed, and went to ruin. Now it's been repurposed as a bar and grill named Arnie's Bar, that traces its own lineage to another part of town. Arnie's was once owned and hosted by it's namesake, a former big-band musician. The original Arnie's was a long, narrow room with a door to the sidewalk and one to the back alley. Any day, if you walked in, big band or jazz music would be playing on his reel to reel recorder. 

Age

"Age," graphite and chalk on paper, 8x10

This study of an elderly woman's face was a personal drawing exercise. It is graphite and chalk on toned paper, lighted and shaded using a method known as chiaroscuro (literally clear and dark). Many of my earlier charcoal and graphite works have not been digitized. This one is relatively recent. 

Nocturne

"Washington Square Nocturne," oil on panel, ca. 2003

One of the more interesting and difficult subjects for art is the night. When done effectively, nocturnes evoke the dark hours whether colors are true to life or not. 

Certain painters like Frederic Remington are known for their paintings of darkness and shadow. Although his work was as an illustrator of Western life, Remington's nocturnes transcend. Using his personal experiences in the West he evoked the dim lights of night, from pale green moonlight to the cold flicker of steel in darkness. 

Long ago Remington's example gave me reason to attempt similar ideas. In the end, only a few of those studies has survived, the others having gone into hiding somewhere. 

 

The Glass Palette

Sometimes, when no important project is pending but I want to paint, I simply look at what is in front of me and start. This painting was done years ago in response to just such a situation. I was standing in my studio, looking for subject and spotted these three bottles, each with a different color of water. They made an interesting subject, but I needed to see how they transmitted light, so I sat them close to the window, on the edge of my steel table, next to my round glass palette. Using an old failed painting as my surface I quickly did this work (about 11x14 I think). If you look at the lower right corner you can see vestiges of the older painting, which I think look like reflected light. 

The bottles have three simple shapes and three colors and make for great drawing practice. 

Emulating Paint

Although it isn't my maintstream medium, digital drawing and painting has undeniable allure for me. First, there is little prep and zero cleanup Second, today's computers and other digital equipment like display tablets and portable sketchbooks (think iPads) make images that are superior to those of a few years ago. 

"Portuguese Coast," digital painting

This digital painting was done using a photographic reference, with considerable modifications. The program was Sketchbook and I used a Wacom display tablet. If you thought it was actual paint from a tube, I wouldn't be surprised. This project shows how well a computer can emulate a real-world oil painting. The result could be transferred to canvas--printed--and sold, I suppose.  

In the Biergarten

The big park near my home studio hosts an outdoor beer garden during the warm months of the year. There are chairs and picnic tables scattered in deep shade under ancient trees. The selection of brews is adequate and tasty and the setting pleasant and cool. A bike trail nearby brings cyclists needing a rest as well as plenty of folks who come to the park for the garden itself. 

I spent an hour or two under the trees, savoring a cool breeze and a cooler beer. 

Test Garden

"Shady Corner," wc/ink on paper, 3.5x9

In downtown Des Moines we have a hidden gem in the Better Homes and Gardens Test Garden, a private area of garden beauty owned by Meredith Corporation, the long-time publisher of Better Homes. Now absorbed by a digital media company named People, Inc, it opens on Friday afternoons, noon to 2 pm, May through September. Over the years I've spent some wonderful lunch times there with friends or alone, sketching. 

Last week I visited the Test Garden for the first time in a few weeks. As always it is a spectacular place, full of beauty and grace. I sat in a shady corner and sketched the southwestern and shady corner of the garden, which is dominated by big, mature trees.

The sketchbook I've been using is 3.5x5.5, just right to fit in a pocket. I carry a metal watercolor box that holds a pencil, kneaded eraser, and waterbrush, and I put a couple of folded paper towel in my other pocket. Makes for light travel.