Backroad sun and snow 13.5 x 19.5 pastel on paper




This picture is quite different from the others. I used a new surface--pastelmat--which is smooth but really holds the pastel. I found that I really liked it. I also returned to a more traditional technique of working from hard to soft pastel with no under painting. The paper was toned a warm sienna which added to the overall warmth of the picture.

In this painting there is more warm green in the sky and the light areas of the snow have been painted with peach and yellows. Combined with the reds in the bushes, the overall feel is one of bright sunshine and warmth, despite the large amount of snow!

I look forward to experimenting further with this surface.

Yellow house in winter 18 x 24 pastel on board

For this third picture, I chose an image of one of the most interesting houses in Mattapoisett. It seems to go on forever, with wonderful roof lines, widow's walk, and a great view of the harbor. I enhanced the view, however!

This picture is about the house and the drama of the snow-covered road with shadows. I used a cool ultramarine in the sky with green over it. Chose to keep the light areas of the snow pretty cool so as not to compete with the house. I used a combination of green, blue, and pink tints, as well as a cool yellow.

The roughness of the prepared board worked well for the snow-covered, rutted road.

Snow light 11.5 x 19 pastel on paper




Here is my second snow painting. On this day the sun was out and brilliant. It was so bright that it cast a glare over the scene. I found this old barn in Rochester, Mass. and took a number of shots of it, liking this view best.

The painting consists of complementary colors of cool reds and greens. The sky is green and pink! The snow in the shadows has a lot of light red and blue violet and is pink in the sunny areas. I like the harmony of this. A blue sky would not work as well.

The composition is unusual and I was worried that it would be too heavy on the left. So I tried to render the tree rather loosely and keep it from getting too dark. I feel that the length of the buildings stretching to the right gives balance.

The painting was done on "super tooth" paper by Art Spectrum with only Girault pastels. These are a medium soft, somewhat grainy pastel that really work on this paper.

Quiet watch 20 x 16 pastel on board

Snow!

It's February 1st and I haven't posted since October! But I have been painting and have completed 4 paintings, all of snow. (And this despite a broken left arm!!!) There is no pure white in any of my paintings. So I thought I'd share them on the blog and discuss my choice of colors for the snow.

This first picture was inspired by a scene in Mattapoisett on an overcast day. I saw the arc of grasses arising above the snow and knew that I had the makings for a painting. The village is my invention. You won't see this scene in Mattapoisett.

Since the sky is overcast, the light on the snow is cooler, not as bright as it would be on a sunny day, with the yellows of the sun. The color of the more distant snow is actually a very light tint of green; the snow in the foreground is violet and pink. There are no cast shadows, so the snow forms a solid shape. I find this to be very restful, very quiet without the energy of a scene filled with shadows.

I added a red tailed hawk in the tree on the right to balance the rust colors of the oak leaves on the left. But I didn't want him to be too obvious. He should blend into his surroundings, as a hawk on the prowl would want to do!