Started painting around at 9:30. I choose to paint a rolling hill on Carol Rd. covered with violet thistles, brown and green grasses with some yellow and white daisies scattered about. In the far back there is a cherry orchard and a variety of trees. I choose to let the field and foreground to take prominence, with the horizon high on the canvas. Used acrylic paints and had lots of difficulty with the paints drying out and therefore it was difficult to mix paints and use the paints. Tomorrow I will have a water sprayer and hopefully will have better luck. I have a good base and intend to paint in the same spot and add more detail.
Day 2 – 8/8/2011
I continued to paint on the same picture today. I wanted to try and bring more sunlight into the picture because the last two days were very sunny and hot. I do like to paint with rich colors but I had a lot of difficulty with my acrylics darkening when they dried. I wish I had brought more colors for my palette.
Carrol Road, Mission Pennisula, MI
Acrylic on Canvas – 18”x24”
Day 3 -8/9/2011
Today was a very dreary rainy day. I got out to Mission Point Lighthouse at 8:00 and was not inspired to paint today. I did not want to get set up and mix my paints and have to pack it up because of rain. So I choose to go a charchol drawing using different values to reflect the weather and the mood of the day. I drew the rocky shoreline, water and mountains arcoss the East bay. I had a good start but it started to rain (you can see droplets on the drawing) and did not get to finish getting the darker values into the drawing. No rain in the forcast for tomorrow just overcast skies. Hopefully a better day for painting.
Mission Point, MI
Charcoal on Bristol. 14”x17”
Day 4 – 8/10/2011
Last night for homework I read and studied some of David Hockney’s work. He is an British artist Hochney used all types tmediums to develop his art. He like to use photography as a study of light rather than aid his memory. His use if bright colors also atrached me to his work and was my inspiration for today. I painted today from one of the highest points on Mission Penninsula, with veiws of the bays and surounding vineyards. I choose to paint the vinyards over looking the East Bay. It was quite breezy and overcast. Because I like to paint bright colors it was really fun to paint in abtracct and brilliant colors. Even though my painting is not realistic I could not have painted it anywhere else but here in the outdoors. I concentrated on the shapes I saw as well as the values. I also used varied brush strokes and my pallete knife to create different effects in the paint. It was my best day painting so far.
Chateau Chantal, MI
Acrylic on Canvas, 18”x24”
Day 5 – 8/11/2011
Today I drove up to Petoskey to paint in one of the many parks in Little Traverse Bay. It was a picture perfect day for painting. I choose to paint the pier and lighthouse in the bay. I mixed my pallet of blues, greens and pinks and had a lovely day painting. What I like about the picture is the richness of colors. What I continue to need to work on iis to vary my brush stoke I always seem to come back to pointillism in my work which I feel I tend to over due.
Little Traverse Bay, MI
Acrylic on Canvas, 18”x 24”
Reflection
This was my first experience painting outdoors. I have no fear now and will attempt more “ En plein air” It not only painting what you see but what you feel as you paint and that’s what made my experience so exciting. I only brought one size of canvas and only acrylics, which made me feel limited. I will try smaller sizes as well as different mediums En plein air. Nora was a great teacher who helped me to see things and understand the process of painting outdoors.
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