Faint Hints of Spring

This time of year, as the light shifts and temperatures warm, little hints of the coming season of renewal and growth become noticeable. You see faint reds on bare branches that suggest swelling flower buds, or here and there a sprig of green peeps over old, yellowed grasses. The air even looks a bit different, even if snow still clings in the darkest shadows. 

Our sketch group was out again last Saturday. I went to the bank of the Raccoon River in Waterworks Park. The river is flowing low and slow, sand bars and banks mostly shades of grey. The water is dark in the shade, where banks are dotted with ravelings of snow. It was a bit chilly to sketch outdoors, so I sat in my car and sketched a bend of the river. 

"Last Snow, Raccoon River," wc/ink on paper

 

Salmagundi Spring Auction

Juat got word that this new oil will be part of the Salmagundi Club Members Auctions this spring. The club. The works for sale will be on view at the club (47 5th Ave, NYC) March 18-April 4, with auctions in person and online March 27 and April 3. 

"Wading," oil on panel, 9x12

Before bidding you'll be able to review the whole show and place bids online at salmagundi.org. 

https://salmagundi.org/2025-scny-spring-auctions/

Changing Light

"Whiterock Morning," oil on panel, 9x12

One of the things we commonly read is that the Impressionists--mostly Monet--only worked on each painting for a few hours a day because the light changed too much. That's certainly true for me as well. Most times when I've worked outdoors I find that completion of a standard-sized 9x12 painting takes up to 4-5 hours but the light changes so much that I usually come back for a second look. 

"Whiterock Afternoon," oil on panel, 9x12

That's precisely what happened with these paintings from my time at Whiterock Conservancy, a couple of years ago. In each case I spent two sessions trying to capture the light on a favored vista. The first, a morning work, is based on having the low morning light cast on the hill beyond a small river. The light is warm and full, making the green hill look yellow-green and highlighting the wildflowers on the river bank in the foreground. 

In contrast, the afternoon painting was made with sunlight streaming left background to right foreground, giving the hill and wildflowers a completely different appearance. The foliage in the foreground is slightly darker because of the shifted light, and only certain clumps of flowers catch the changed angle and intensity. 

Retrospectively I wish I had taken time to do several more views of this or another motif to specifically see how the light intensity and angle alter physical appearance.

Snowy

"Up North," watercolor on paper.

These past days have been frigid here in Iowa, with below zero lows and deep snow. It made me think of this watercolor from a winter past. 

Done during my early years of watercolor painting, this work remains a favorite of mine.
 

Sledding, Snow and Sketching

"Sledding at Waveland," wc/ink on paper

Last week, just before the polar vortex brought a bitter cold blast, we had perhaps 7 to 9 inches of snow, our largest accumulation this year. It was enough to shut down schools and businesses for a day or so. 

The sketch group, undeterred, met and went looking for someplace outdoors. One of the oldest city golf courses opens on snow days for cross country skiers and sledding down it's prodigious slopes. We went out to see if anyone was there and discovered dozens of sledders in small groups and family units, but the cold was too much to sit outside. Instead I hiked a short distance to a better vantage point, then quickly did a rough graphite drawing, opting to retreat to my car to add watercolor. After I splashed in colors I accented certain spots with waterproof ink, then went back with a bit more color.
 

Raccoon Rocks

"Raccoon Rocks," casein on bristol, 11x14

A few years ago I experimented with casein paint both for sketching and for studio works. This casein painting is a view of the Raccoon River in Waterworks Park, about a mile from my home studio. I did this from sketches and reference photos, trying hard to understand the properties of casein. The paint is opaque, goes down smoothly, and is easily thinned with water. But once casein dries it's nearly bullet-proof. If you don't believe that, remember how hard it is to clean dried milk from a glass that's been standing for a day or two. The colors available comprise a full range of cool and warm hues, too.

 

Casein Woods

"Studio View," casein, ~12x5

This small sketch was made using mixed media in the sense that the underpainting was done using a violet acrylic wash and the scene itself rendered using casein paint. As mentioned in past postings, casein is made using milk solids The resulting paint is water-soluble, dries rapidly and makes a permanent dry layer. 

This particular small sketch was made in a mixed medium way--that is, a violet acrylic wash followed by a casein overpainting. Monet did something similar in his oil by using a violet underpainting (the complement of yellow) in his plein air works. The limited palette was an interest as well. The view is the woods outside my home studio in late spring a few years ago.
 

Regret

"Regret," oil on unprepped panel, 20x16 (approx), private collection.

This painting, "Regret," is something of a mystery. That is, I recall it well and remember making it, but details and images (with the exception of this one) are scanty in my records. It was sold the first time I displayed it, during an arts festival in Iowa. 

The painting is loosely based on an image I saw online but simplified and painted quickly with some areas of the underlying unprepped support remaining completely untouched. 

 

Windows

"Windows," wc/ink ~8x10

This watercolor sketch of a large display window enclosing several stained glass windows was an interesting subject at West End Salvage last weekend. Stained glass with light behind it is challenging but unless one's intent is a detailed realist work, approximation serves well enough.

Sentinel

"The Sentinel, Washington Square North," oil on panel

Many who visit New York remember the long row of red brick townhouses that line the north border of Washington Square Park, sometimes called The Row. Edward Hopper lived along this street as have other famous folks. Today much is owned by New York University. 

One of the buildings sports two stone lions on either side of its entry. I thought at least one of them was worthy of study.
 

Primaries

"Primaries," oil on panel, 6x8

This small oil painting is from a larger series of still life studies I did perhaps twenty years ago. The purposes of those studies were multiple. First, since these works were small they could be finished in a single sitting. Second, they offered an opportunity to compare paint brands, types of brushes, various supports (gesso panels vs bristol for example), and more. They offered an opportunity to paint alla prima and loosely, trying hard to capture the essence of the subject. They also provided daily practice and an impetus to keep going. All in all the series was great fun, useful, and productive. 

"Primaries" refers to the three traditional primary colors--red, blue and yellow. These paints were in aluminum tubes. The brand and lettering were omitted as irrelevant, though many oil painters may recognize the format.

Last Saturday

The recent Arctic blast that hit the upper Midwest has been brutal. Most morning this week and a half have been in single digits. Last Saturday the sketch group went indoors for the second time this winter. It was simply too cold and no one wanted to sketch in their car. 

"West End Salvage," wc/ink, 8x10

We went to an architectural salvage business that has a lot of interesting material indoors plus a coffee bar and tables on the ground floor. Most of us sat in the coffee bar and sketch. I did this watercolor while sipping a truly delicious latte.

Charcoal Study

"Study for portrait of LM," charcoal on newsprint

Some years ago I was accepting portrait commissions, generally for oil paintings. Like many others I often began a formal oil with a charcoal study to solve as many problems as possible before laying down any paint. Sometimes I began the portrait without any preliminaries (see The Sailor, one post back). And other times a charcoal could serve as an underdrawing for the portrait. Sometimes, though, I did the charcoal study as a stand alone work. This drawing is on newsprint and served as the basis for an eventual oil portrait. In this case I gridded up the drawing and transferred it to stretched canvas.

The Sailor

"The Sailor," oil on panel, 14x11

A casual portrait of a man at the tiller of a sailboat, from a decade or so ago. Many times portraits are made to cover the entire surface, but in casual work some of the image may be omitted.
 

Winter Watercolor

In winter, when green is no longer the dominant color of the landscape, colors that flashed brightly go mute. The trees that still cling to a few leaves are mostly rust-colored, or perhaps even dull brown. But as you look you begin to see faint color, muted to be sure, but color nonetheless. Many think winters are mostly black and white but for the serious observer there is abundant color.

"Sherman Hill, Winter," wc/ink on paper, about 3.5x5

Last Saturday all of us in the sketch group elected outdoor scenes. Like the rest, I sketched and painted in the warmth of my car. You can see that many different colors are there--even the distant, silhouetted trees have distant hues. This is the foot of the old neighborhood called Sherman Hill, where I often work outdoors.

Vista

"Vista," oil on panel 4x6

This little sketch took just thirty minutes or so one morning, as an exercise in paint handling and brush work. It is an imaginary mountain scene, based on many trips to the Rockies and other mountainous places. It was fun establishing the spatial perspective of distant pale blue mountains against a roseate sky.
 

Tropical Dome

Last Saturday was cold and grey, so half of the sketch group went indoors to the Des Moines Botanical Garden dome. Under their geodesic dome the air is warm, humid, and aromatic with plant life. While painting outdoors or in my car was an alternative, this environment was too luscious, too luxurious to pass up. I even renewed my membership.

"At the Botanical Center," wc/ink on paper 8x10

There is a balcony around maybe one third of the dome, with tables and a wonderful view of the entire terrarium-like interior. The staff has arranged potted plants of many kinds at each end of the balcony, near the stairs. I sat at one of the tables and sketched a partial view of potted palms, huge amaryllis blossoms, and other plants. To finish this I would add more of the darker blue-green tree foliage as a backdrop and complete the other palm.

Coffee Bar

Edouard Manet, "Bar at the Folies Bergere," 1882

Mirrored images is a fascinating subject for figurative works. There's a famous painting by Edouard Manet wherein a mirror is a major part of the compostion. In Manet's painting we see a barmaid front and center, with a marble-top bar between us covered with bottles and a bowl. At first the figure to the right seems to be another barmaid, but she is really the reflection of the woman facing us. And facing her is a man with a mustache, wearing a hat (presumably it is us). Behind the three figures is a vast crowd of people, lights, at least two chandeliers and much else indistinct. It's a masterful use of composition to suggest deep space. 

"Coffee Bar," oil on panel, 12x9, private collection

Years ago I adapted Manet's composition to my own work to explore how to show deep space. The result, "Coffee Bar," went to a collector years ago. But I discovered the photo above, showing a young woman in a coffee bar. behind her is a shelf with a mirror above it. The counter in front of the woman has a napkin holder, sugar container and salt. Beneath it are various coffee cups and glasses. On the shelf behind are two ketchup bottles, reflected in the mirror. We see her back, the backs of the seating, and in the far distance another counter with various items. All together, there are seven or eight layers of depth.

Grey Days

"January Snow," watercolor on paper, about 3x5

If this January is like others these past few years, there will be dim, grey days with snowy haze and not much to see, unless you look closely. Once you do, muted colors are everywhere, from shadowy snowbanks to distant trees. Details merge and the world goes cold and soft.

 

West End Salvage

"West End," wc/ink on paper

Although the sketch group mainly goes outdoors to work, sometimes the weather chases us inside. Last weekend was dreary and cold so we elected to go to a local architectural salvage place that sells all of the stuff that's reclaimed from house and building demolitions--doors, fixtures, windows, etc. It has a coffee bar and tables and is usually uncrowded.

Floating the River

"Floating the River," oil on panel, 11x14

This oil is the newest of a body of work involving images of a river we visit annually. This particular painting was done from photos and plein air studies.
 

Multicolored Orange

Long ago one of my pursuits in studying painting was still life studies, usually quite small, many 6x8 on gesso board. Still life gives the artist the luxury of an unchanging subject, especially if the lighting is controlled too. These tiny studies were ways to explore all sorts of things: color, composition, light, and more. 

"Orange Study," oil on panel, 4x6

This particular painting was the result of perhaps an hour's study and painting. I was interested in how to produce a believable orange in oil paint. It's not as easy as it might seem. If you look at the painting you'll see many colors in the surface of the fruit, most of them more yellow than red but many more red than orange. There are many colors, from very dull reds to brighter reds and a range of in between colors. At the brightest spot on the orange we see bright yellows. In the shadowed areas on the left some very dull greens appear. While it's possible to remember and imagine an orange and perhaps even paint one believably, painting one from life is considerably more useful. 

Freezing Rain

Last Saturday was one of the few days when the sketch group didn't go out. Most of the group--a varying majority--manage to go even in snow or cold. But the weather was the worst you can imagine, with freezing rain making everything slippery. So far as I know no one ventured out. 

Instead of going outside I stood in my studio window and sketched Druid Hill Creek, what you could see of it. I keep a pocket sketchbook on the windowsill and sketch the view north/downstream a time or two monthly. This little book is about 3.5x5 inches or so, a truly small book, intended for pockets. But I leave it on the windowsill and simply do a watercolor of the view from there every few days. So the book becomes a visual journal of the year and an artwork as a whole, too. 

"Druid Hill Creek, Freezing Rain," wc/ink on paper

This view is about 6 inches wide. The grey skies and freezing rain, superimposed on a recent inch or two of snow, made this one a bit bleak.

Warm Memory

"Fort Des Moines Park, August," oil on panel, 9x12

With low temperatures less than 10 degrees F and highs not much higher, with snow on the ground and Druid Hill Creek frozen solid, I needed a warm memory. This was painted outdoors as a demo at a plein air paint-out in a local park. The day was hot and sunny with weather moving into the area.
 

Saturday at the Lake

"Gray's Lake Beach," wc/ink on paper,

The weather was unseasonably warm during the last weekend. Temperatures were in the low 60s a couple of days. The sketch group went out last Saturday and I was able to sit outside to draw. This is a view of the public beach at Gray's Lake Park. The skies were brilliant with light, unlike the usual December skies and there was a soft southerly breeze.
 

Winter Study

"Tree Study, December," oil on panel

December has most often gloomy, cold and snowy. Warming weather may push that experience into January, but here's a December painting from a few years ago, a study of the woods outside on a dim snowy day.

River House

"River House," oil on panel, 12x9

As we commonly do, we visited friends in southwest Virginia last year. Their summer home is literally on the bank of a river, maybe thirty feet from the water. You can go out into the crystalline stream and cool yourself. The bottom is rocky, the surfaces worn smooth by eons of flowing water. 

This view of the house if from about the middle of the stream, so you see the house and trees and distant hills beyond as well as the boulders and stones of the bottom. This painting is literally wet and still on the easel.

Fair Weather Saturday

"Skyline," wc/ink on paper, 8x10

The weather was wonderful last weekend--bright, sunny and not very cold. I went to Waterworks Park and sketched the city skyline over a couple of lagoons. 

Summer Scene

"Raccoon Afternoon," oil on panel, 9x12

As happens quite often, I ran across a plein air work from a couple of years ago. Here in Iowa we're facing our first blast of winter weather, with morning low temperatures in the teens. Happily, this small painting is a bit of a mood booster as winter closes in. 

The scene is the Raccoon River as it passes through Waterworks Park, perhaps a mile from my home studio. I stood on the bank and painted the bike/pedestrian bridge and woods.

Ruthless

"Ruthless," oil on panel, 6x8

This small panel study is part of an idea for a story illustration. This particular oil study was completed in an hour or so, but a larger work never followed.
 

Brewpub

"Outside the Brewpub," oil on canvas, 18x24, private collection

This cityscape is a view of a local brewpub in Des Moines, framed by its outdoor tables. Through the tall windows you can see the brewing vats and lights of the brewery side as two patrons on the far right are going to the indoor bar. I did this from personal references, but invented the tableau of figures,
 

Last Saturday

In spite of the advanced autumn season, we've yet to have a frost here. Further, at least some of the trees are still bearing colorful if subdued foliage. But last Saturday the sketch group was chased indoors by rain. It's surprising it wasn't snow, but the weather has been warmer. 

We went to a local architectural salvage place. Four floors of architectural material salvaged from demolitions and the like, plus vintage furniture, signs, and so on. They have a coffee bar, it's warm, pleasant, and provide ample indoor material. 

"Saturday Interior," wc/ink on paper, 8x10

This is my sketch. It's actually the south exit door from the building. The red door is free-standing next to the modern glass door, and it's for sale. It was fun to manipulate the colors to show low-angle sun slanting into the building. The tall object on the right is a sort of settee you'd put next to an entrance, also for sale.

 

Window Plant

"Yellow Pot," oil on panel, 8x6

This is another small oil done as a morning exercise. It's a jade plant and an aloe in one small plastic pot.
 

Winter Bottles

"Winter Bottles," oil on panel, 8x10

When the weather keeps me indoors, a still life setup can provide enough subject matter to keep me busy. This particular work is from several years ago. I set up bottles on my studio work table in a pleasing arrangement one snowy January day. The bright middle bottle contained turpentine, which lit up bright in the slanting winter light.
 

Shaker

"Alone," oil on panel, 6x8. Private collection

Long ago, one of my goals was simplicity in painting. At least in small works, simplicity and confident brush work can carry the day. This painting was done alla prima during a period of daily small paintings. I did a still life almost every day for a long while. The majority were 6x8 on a gesso panel. 

This work was one of the most successful of that big body of still life. First I laid on and wiped off a thin raw umber wash. Mindful of the value provided by the wash, I laid in a minimal outline plus the very darkest darks on the cap and rim. On the glass of the shaker I laid on flake white from the tube in three places, then in darker tints to show surfaces. The painting was finished off with the white reflections below the glass of the shaker.

Golden Autumn

Here in the upper midwest, autumn color seems to arrive in a rush. We've looked fruitlessly for color for about two weeks but foliage seemed to change colors in small pockets. Here and there a tree has suddenly glowed crimson or rust but the majority of the trees around the city remained green in all of its endless variety. But then suddenly, masses of leave and entire trees burst into color, all green bled away in favor of scarlets and rusts, dark cool reds and bright oranges. 

"10-26-24," wc/ink on paper, about 10x3.5

This is a quick, very small watercolor of the morning along Druid Hill Creek. The view is from my home studio north window. The tree had been a lush emerald green until only a few days ago, completely hiding the creek. Then over a day or two it shed leaves and took on this bright yellow cascade surrounding the narrow trunk. Creekside grasses and low plants still obscure the water. 

Saturday

Our weather has been temperate--warm actually--but dry. The fall colors are near or just beyond their peak. Here and there an oak or maple flames red-orange, or bright orange while other trees show us cool and dark reds. But much of our Iowa landscape glows in shades of yellow. 

"Greenwood Park," wc/ink on paper, ~8x10

This sketch is from last weekend. The group met as usual and discussed where to work; the consensus was to stay in Greenwood Park, which provided the brightest and most varied color. I sat near the Rose Garden and worked on this red giant.

Multimedia

"Coneflowers," digital

"Coneflowers," casein on panel, 6x8

A few years ago, as an experiment in art media, I did a series of paintings of purple coneflowers outside my studio. The idea was to compare using oil, casein, watercolor and digital methods to make a painting. Here are the four paintings, each done with differing materials.

I used Sketchbook and a Wacom tablet to paint the digital coneflowers. Otherwise I used traditional media and traditional supports. Casein and watercolor are thinned with water, of course, while oils require a solvent (turpentine or oms).

The results were interesting for several reasons. First, the digital image (top) seems comparable to the other images made using traditional media. Casein and oil paint each gave results that to my eye look rich with implied depth. The watercolor, while more transparent, also gave a visually interesting background. 

Seems to me that depending on subject and the eventual use of the painting, any of these mediums is a reasonable choice.

 

"Coneflowers," oil on panel, 6x8

"Coneflowers," watercolor on paper, ~6x8

 

Dog Cart

"Pushcart," oil on panel, 12x16, private collection

Manhattan is brimming with pushcarts of all sorts. You see hot dogs, chestnuts, falafel, and much more being sold on street corners from the southern tip to way beyond Central Park. This particular hot dog vendor was set up in the Financial District, near Wall Street. This particular work was done from a photo reference, considerably modified. 
 

Sherman Hill

"Houses on Sherman Hill," wc/ink, ~8x10

This watercolor and ink sketch shows a couple of very similar houses in the district of the city known as Sherman Hill. The name derives from Hoyt Sherman, a younger brother of the famous Civil War general, William Sherman, who built himself a large house there in the 1870s. Subsequently the house was expanded and became Hoyt Sherman Place, with a large auditorium, an art gallery, and other amenities. 

Fall Foliage

"Blue Heron Lake," wc/ink on paper, ~8.5X3.5

Saturday the sketch group went to the Raccoon River Park in West Des Moines, an enormous multi-use facility that features Blue Heron Lake, fishing, boating, swimming, softball, a dog park, and a lot more. I sat on the west side of the lake and sketched the opposite bank, where grasses and trees have just begun to show fall color. The day was perfect.

Ten Years Ago

"False Dawn, Union Square," oil on panel, 16x20

This cityscape is a view of the subway station entry on the west side of Union Square in lower Manhattan. The sun hasn't risen but its light is creeping over the horizon. To my eye the roof looks a lot like our popular concept of a flying saucer.

Spanish Lighthouse

"Almeria. The Light." wc/ink on paper, 3.5x5

This little watercolor dates from a few years ago. We sailed the Spanish coast and islands for about a week,  visiting small ports and savoring the food and wines. This is a view from our ship while anchored.

A Rare Pastel

"Egon, Dead," pastel on paper

Although I have a few old pastels from two or three decades ago in my files, I've done far fewer than my other works in oil and so on. This one floated into memory today. It's a bit rough, being one of my first pastel paintings twenty-five years ago. It's after a death photo of Egon Schiele, the young artist whose work was sometimes considered scandalous (he was even briefly jailed for some of it--click the link for a bio) and who died in 1918, before he was thirty, of influenza.
 

Autumn at Whiterock

"Autumn at Whiterock," oil on panel, 9x12

This landscape was done as a plein air work just about a year ago, at the Whiterock Conservancy. The October colors out there are simply luscious.