Summer Season Is Finally Here!

Thank goodness the summer season is finally here. My kids are done with school and that means no more athletic schedules to work around. It means more free time to continue with my artwork. My life class will be starting back soon and I can return to figure drawing and all the associated problems that that entails. I can't wait. I was really making some nice drawings when classes were suspended and will be thrilled to resume. I still continue working on my "conductor" series, but felt the need to halt any work on the latest piece. It was not working out and did not have the sense of movement that I was looking for. Still the subject matter is attractive and remains interesting to me.

I think I shall try to get out and do some landscape painting before the really hot weather begins. I think possibly Great Falls and the surrounding area will be full of great subject matter and the lighting will be fantastic on the water or through the trees. I hope to complete some nice studies and then perhaps work up the ideas in the studio. If time permits and the painting is good, there is no telling............a nice piece may come from my plein aire sessions! I will keep you posted.

Back In Action

Well it's been quite some time since I last wrote. Seems the recent rains have rendered me incommunicado as of late. I have finally received my hard drive back from the repair shop and can now continue blogging. I have tried to dry things out around here and get back to work. I am continuing on my series of "conductors". Not the kind that operate trains, rather the kind that stand in front of musicians! However, I have considered combining the two. Pencil drawings and chalk drawings are the medium of choice and things have been going well. There is so much emotion and gesture in their actions it just seems compelling to draw them. I am also interested in the individual musicians as well. I don't know what draws me to these figures at the moment but it is enjoyable to work out the individual pieces. I will post some in the future if the results are suitable.

The life class I was enrolled in has stopped for a few weeks until some time in June. I was really seeing improvement in my drawing and was not ready for the break. I've been trying different mediums such as compressed charcoal, pencil, conte and chalks. I've had some really nice results and I am constantly amazed by the complexity of the human form. Extended charcoal drawings are extremely difficult but the results are phenomenal! In addition, drawing from casts in optimum light can offer some amazing subject matter, especially if the casts are of the human form. No need to worry about the model taking breaks and you can work whenever you feel the urge.

Wet Week and Gallery Trips

It has been a rather difficult week for me with absolutely no work being completed. Due to the unrelenting rains from last week, my basement was flooded and that required alot of home improvement work from me and no art work. Seems my time has been taken up with carpet removal, de-humidifying, furniture removal and trim painting. I did manage to take time off to visit the National Gallery to see the Fountainbleu exhibit. What a show! I also caught the Homer, Eakins and Bellows exhibit as well. It was a great experience for me and made me want to paint even more! Some of the paintings like the "Lone Tenement" were great to see up close. The landscape paintings from France were fantastic. It seems as though everyone was "vacationing" in the forests and creating incredible works of art. What a crowd to hang with and talk painting.

McLean Presbyterian Church Wall Mural

I thought I would post a view of my latest piece. This mural was commissioned by the McLean Presbyterian Church to enhance the entry into the children's ministeries. It is a more modern illustration of the Chronicles of Narnia story "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". It is approximately 8 feet high by 13 feet long and is done in acrylics. The main characters in the story have been replaced by a more ethnically diverse group to more acurately reflect the current congregants of the church. The lion Aslan appears in the picture as well as other characters in the story like the half man, half goat, Mr. Tumnus and a unicorn. Some local children were used as the basis for the figures in the mural.