Stan Chraminski

Green Lake Sunset

2012-02-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

This is an image I've had for a long time and finally reworked it, but in wax. Also cut it down from 16x20 to 12x20 by removing part of the top and bottom, to emphasize the sunset on the houses across the street from Green Lake. This was done with a hot stylus that is dipped into various colors of wax, then the technique becomes like drawing as you must put down a line quickly and then it dries on the surface in seconds.

EAFA Abstract Art Show

2012-01-25T10:19:00.000-08:00

Had this painting, Red Infinity, 36x48, done on two stretched canvas panels, accepted for the East Side Fine Arts Association 2nd annual juried abstract art show. It will be hanging at the Seattle Design Center through February.

New landscapes

2012-01-25T10:14:00.000-08:00

Had our annual snowstorm in Seattle so made me think of summer. Went to my image file and found a couple of photos to work from. First is a 6x8 scene from Charleston, SC tidelands. This was taken by my sister on a trip there. Second is Duck Island at Seattle's Green Lake, a favorite spot of mine, two blocks from my house. This one is 8x10.

Small figure

2012-01-09T10:06:00.001-08:00

This is a small figure done with palette knife in oils I hoped to enter in a show but the show was postponed as the gallery is now for sale. Gallery business is difficult in the still stagnant economy as art is a discretionary purchase for most. Hoping 2012 brings better times for everyone.

New small works

2011-12-26T13:02:00.000-08:00

Here are three new smaller works. The first two are done in a thick palette knife style, and the last in a looser plein air style. I'm trying some scenes in both styles to see the contrast. The topmost is a sketch of Green Lake with a strong sun. The next is the mountain that backdrops the town of Snoqualmie.

The last is a dry creek bed in California.

Craft fair successful

2011-12-14T20:22:00.000-08:00

Been away from the blog for a little while as made items and participated in a craft fair plus created stock for the Shoreline Gallery in Lake Forrest Park. Had good sales at the fair plus a couple of follow up orders. Here are a few of the mirrors created.

New craft mirrors

2011-09-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

I'm getting ready for a fall crafts fair by painting mirrors in an impressionist style, mainly Monet and Van Gogh. Here are a few samples.

Seattle Summer

2011-07-27T21:09:00.000-07:00

Here is a 6x8 from Seattle's Arboretum, a land of trees, lilies, and ducks.

Green Lake Dock

2011-07-16T14:52:00.000-07:00

This is an 8x10 redo of a larger painting. It's a man sitting on a dock at Green Lake, in silent contemplation. I've always liked this image and keep working on it to get it right.

Green Lake Shadows

2011-06-26T21:07:00.001-07:00

A 9x12 painting of one of my favorite places - Seattle's Green Lake. It's finally summer and we've had a few decent weather days. Can't wait to get outside and paint now.

New Green Lake paintings

2011-06-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

Just completed two works from my favorite place, Green Lake in Seattle, two blocks from my home. I had a done a large version of this scene, since sold, and wanted to revisit it in smaller versions, loosening up the style. These are 9x12, and 6x8 and are titled Green Lake Summer. Of course we haven't had much of that weather yet but still hoping as we finally get to summer on the calendar. The smaller work, below, is the looser style I've been working toward lately.

Oregon Landscape

2011-06-13T20:00:00.000-07:00

This is an 8x10 landscape from a trip to Oregon. It's on the road to Lincoln City from Salem. Still looking at a way to vary the colors more but maybe this scene isn't a good candidate as it's mainly green trees in summer shade.

More Maui

2011-06-03T16:58:00.000-07:00

Here are two more Maui scenes. Top, smaller one, is Iao Valley, 6x8. Larger, 8x10, is another view of Kamaole Beach looking south. Getting a little more color variety which has been my goal in latest work.

Maui Painting

2011-05-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

Spent a week in Maui and brought back many photos to work from. Painted from my deck a couple of times too. Amazes me that there no painters out at the beaches there. Maybe it's too hot? Next trip will definitely set up my paint box and umbrella and work on the beach. This is an 8x10 of Kamaole Beach III in Kihei, looking north. Also working on another one working in the opposite direction. Still trying to learn how to get enough variety when painting a patch of sand.

Tree Study

2011-05-15T19:53:00.000-07:00

Continuing my stylistic adjustments so did a small study of trees in my neighborhood. Many to choose from in green Seattle. This one is an odd size, 4.5x7.5 and somewhere I must have an odd sized frame to fit it.

Two more mountain views

2011-05-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

Working on smaller, looser paintings so redid the previous mountain view work in 6x9 inch versions. Found that a 6x9 frame is hard to come by so had to cut one myself so I could view the works framed off from the world better. Moving in the direction I want and will keep at it. Just a slight difference in the lighting on these two.

Received a great book today, Kevin MacPherson's "Reflections on a Pond". There are over 300 images of the same location, painted small over the course of several years. They record the light and color in the changing seasons. Very inspirational and in tune with what I am trying to do.

Mountain View Landscape

2011-05-08T21:05:00.001-07:00

This is a view in the Cascade mountains taken by a friend of mine. I'm getting the brushstrokes I want but the mountains have a lot of green and no matter how many colors I mix, I can't get quite the variety into the scene I want. Progress was made however and I will choose a more colorful scene next. This work is 9x12 made with water soluble oils, which I use almost exclusively now. A little varnish once it's dry will bring out the colors.

Redo on Hawaii scene

2011-05-07T17:41:00.000-07:00

Have been taking a break from original work to sharpen up my style, that is, texture, brush strokes, and color, in my landscapes, by copying some work o others I liked. Now back to my own work and redid a Hawaii scene from earlier. Still not completely satisfied but moving in the right directon. Also redid a flower scene in the newer style. Still only halfway there on both and plan on continuing this direction until I have it down. Looking for a more impressionistic look, with more color and better control of thicker brush strokes. It's the biggest room in the world - the room for improvement. This Hawaii scene from Kauai is 12x16.

Yellow Field

2011-04-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

Here is the last of my small abstracts for now. Got to show two of them at a recent Eastside Assoc. of Fine Arts show at the Seattle Design Center. This one is titled Yellow Field and also 8x10.

Been doing some spring cleaning in my studio and house so new work has been on the back burner for a few weeks but now am ready to plunge in again. I find art ebbs and flows and at times I just read and think versus jumping in with the brushes or wax. Have way more ideas than I can ever get to so inspiration is never a problem, just conflicting priorities at times.

Small abstract

2011-02-20T16:00:00.000-08:00

This is the 6th in a series of small, 8x10, abstract paintings I've been working on. Most of my time lately has been spent preparing for the next two shows where my work will be shown. Also attended a meeting of the Eastside Association of Fine Arts which is a large, well run organization it looks like. There was a painting demonstration by Darrell Anderson who calls himself a Russian Impressionist in style. Very colorful with loose brush strokes.

This small painting is titled Fire Streaks.

New abstract

2011-02-10T21:24:00.000-08:00

Continuing my new small abstracts. This one is 'Purple Magic" and also 8x10. Getting more color variety than my previous lower key abstract paintings. New directions always are fun.

More new abstracts

2011-02-08T21:41:00.000-08:00

Here are two more 8x10's done recently. Will have another opportunity to show my abstract work at an Eastside Assoc. of Fine Arts show in March at the Seattle Design Center. Good to have various sizes of work as then have several price points.

Two new small abstracts

2011-02-05T15:40:00.000-08:00

Been busy so far this year entering shows and preparing for them. Finally a few new works to preview here. These are both 8x10 oils where I'm trying to get a nice mix of colors and textures. These works help me loosen up my landscape paintings as I bring new ideas back and forth between my various styles. Keeps life and art interesting. Top one is titled Red Fire and other one is Orange Kingdom.

Entries accepted in Unclad Show

2011-02-05T15:36:00.000-08:00

Had my two entries for the figure show, Unclad, at the Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA accepted by the juror. One is the Reflections shown on the Dec. 26th blog entry and the other is the included 16x20 oil called Solitude. Show runs March 12-27. Also participated in this show last year even though figures are not my specialty.

EAFA Abstract Show

2011-01-31T20:03:00.000-08:00

I had two works selected to be shown in the 1st Annual Eastside Assoc. of Fine Arts abstract art show at the Seattle Design Center. 68 were selected from 250 entries and both my entries made it in. The show goes on until Feb. 25. Here is one of the works. It's a 24 x 24 oil titled Red Bird.

New figures in wax

2010-12-26T21:34:00.000-08:00

I've combined three works into one here, each one successively smaller, by attaching them, one on top of the other. It gives the feeling of reflections in a series of mirrors although the figures are not the same, but they are split images of the same figure at the edges, in the two larger figures. The small figure is very faded and indistinct. This continues my split figure work from last year. The work is 15x22 overall with 9x12, and then 5x7, contained in the larger work.

Two new wax paintings

2010-11-28T19:58:00.000-08:00

Here are two scenes of a California Creek I visited a few years ago. Larger, top one, is 9x12 and painted with a combination of oils and wax or encaustic. Other is 5x7 done solely with the wax medium. The wax lets me get a texture and polished gloss that I can't do as well in oils. I need to experiment with more mediums in oils to get some gloss as I go along to balance the colors better versus waiting for a final varnish coat.

Journey painting

2010-11-23T10:44:00.001-08:00

Here's another view of the new work. You can see I'm smiling because it's done.....

Journey work completed

2010-11-21T19:31:00.000-08:00

I've finally completed my work based on Spencer Wells' book, Journey of Man. The work is done in encaustic, or wax, and is 28x40, and comprised of 2,210 small figures to represent the 50-60,000 years, or about 2,000 plus generations since all men had the same ancestor. It's a fascinating story, traced through our DNA by Wells. He also shows the migrations out of Africa for mankind. The attribute we call race is really a modern construct, based on exposure to sun depending on where we migrated to, and genetic isolation and mutation. We are all brothers at the beginning of this journey, yet find race a reason to hate each other. On top of that we've added religion and nationalism to our original tribal conflicts. It seems as we move forward, we find more reasons for hate. I tried to express our relationships and love in this work.

New small landscapes

2010-11-07T17:28:00.001-08:00

Have been busy with a new long term art project, involving 2,200 small images so only a few landscapes lately as also travelled visiting relatives. Only did carry on so found I could fit the 5 tubes of paint I needed, red, yellow, blue, white, and gel, into the little baggies allowed for liquids on airplanes. It's a good exercise to limit yourself to just the three primaries.

The larger project has taken me from mid-September to now at about an hour a night whenever I've been home. Work is in encaustic and tedious so an hour is about all I can do at a sitting. Will post it when I'm done, about Thankgiving week I hope.

The landscapes are all 5x7 done in oils and are various scenes from Hawaii, Seattle, and Oregon. The images are:

Green Lake Snow

Magnuson Park Road

Kauai Beach

Oregon Haystack Rocks

Wikstrom Gallery Seattle Scenes show

2010-09-12T17:09:00.000-07:00

Had two small works as part of the Wikstrom Brothers Gallery "Seattle Scenes" show in Seattle. Here I am standing next to the works. The opening was well attended Saturday evening.

Also here is an 8 x 10 palette knife painting of the Haystack Rocks on the Oregon coast.

Two new outdoor works

2010-09-04T17:11:00.000-07:00

The two paintings here are both 8x10 inches and painted outdoors, one at Seattle's Queen Anne hill looking toward Magnolia hill. The other is from Golden Gardens Beach along Puget Sound. Lots of great places to paint in Seattle, when the weather cooperates. Van Gogh had this issue in France with the wind but the resulting swirling paintings were worth it. Even nice days in Seattle bring wind in many places. Maybe a sandbag to hold down the easel will help.

Color studies

2010-08-23T21:38:00.000-07:00

Here are two small paintings on the same 8x10 panel. Top is a limited three color palette in complementary colors, Alizarin Crimson (red), Ultramarine Blue, and Naples Yellow, plus white. The bottom is the same scene with analagous colors, same red and yellow plus Cadmium Red Light, so again 3 colors plus white. The bottom image reminds me of the color transformations you can do with software but here it was painted outdoors, from the scene. These are views at Seattle's Magnuson Park near the Lake Washington beach.

Seattle View

2010-08-21T20:24:00.000-07:00

This is a sketch of the building I work in for my part time job. It's a view from the bus stop looking south into downtown Seattle on Eastlake Ave. I don't paint many city views but want to do more. I tried to stay fast and loose on this one but had to go back and correct the perspective after looking at it for a while. It's a little uphill first, then flattens out and the vanishing point is about center vertically on the far left. Still a little off in spots but it's done on a canvas pad, 8 1/2 x 11unstretched, and I won't bother until I do a larger one under more rigoruous standards, with a better drawing.

Outdoors at Seattle's Magnuson Park

2010-08-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

Another nice sunny day last week in Seattle, although today it's in the 90's and without air conditioning, a little warm in the house, especially sitting in front of a laptop pumping out hot air.

In this 8x10 the goal was to concentrate on shapes and sculptural structure of the trees and landscape. This really brings me back to my old style of painting where I get the lonely feel of classic nature, without people to interfere, although the road in the front is a man made element, as maybe even is the kite hill that dominates the front of this image.

Outdoor painting

2010-08-08T21:19:00.000-07:00

Began my outdoor painting this week in Seattle's Discovery Park. We did value studies but I took some photo references and finished the work indoors this weekend. Next week we move to color at Magnuson Park, closer to my home. It is a nice group and all the work was fantastic. Mitch Albala is a great teacher. His mantra is "simplification". Get the shapes and values right and that's a big part of success. Here are my results, all 8x10 inches. May need a few touchups but pretty close to done. Want to paint next session a little "looser" with more dynamic brushstrokes. Might do 5x7 to get more of that look. The bottom image documents a few of the group painting out in the "plein air."
PS. Also finally finished my database and documentation project except for a few stragglers where I need to take new higher resolution photos. Finally can match up my work, my images of the work, and my database. Now maintenance is simple as only need to docuemnt new work.

2010-08-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for outdoor painting group that begins this week.Once all prep is done I should be ready to paint outdoors the rest of my days. Been meaning to do more of it, despite Seattle weather, and now have no excuses.

Also been taking a lot of hours working on better documentation of many years of work. I've had a database, and image files, but no coordination between the two. Am getting close to finishing and then only will need to add new work with the new system. It's tedious work so can only take an hour or two at a time, and does take away time from painting but it is necessary going forward.

Here is a small work, 9x12, that I did from a cropped photo of trees lying in a pond.

Outdoors at Green Lake

2010-07-24T21:37:00.000-07:00

Had a picnic and then an outdoor painting session in the evening. Nice time except for the bugs. All my equipment worked well in preparation for a painting group I will be joining in August to paint outside in Seattle's parks. August is the best bet for some decent weather here.

The painting is 8x10 and is complete with a few touchups indoors. One issue is outside, even in the shade, the brightness level is high which tends to make you paint a little too low key. Have to adjust but that is why I want to get a few sessions in before I join the group.

New Spokane River painting

2010-07-11T19:26:00.000-07:00

I've had out of town visitors so doing more photography than painting. Finally finished this image of downtown Spokane, Washington. Did an earlier version and didn't like it and still had a lot of trouble with it but finally brought it to a reasonably satisfactory solution. It's 16x20. Th scene is the falls which run through town as the river comes into a power plant.

Have enrolled in an outdoor painting group for August, the best bet for good weather here in Seattle, so hoping to produce some good studies on-site and then turn these into some nice larger works in the studio.

New Kauai Painting

2010-06-23T20:54:00.000-07:00

Here is a 12x16 new oil painting of a valley in Kauai. I did a somewhat similar scene with the palette knife and now this one is brushed in with a lot of detail. Almost done but might do a few touchups again to get the light and dark contrasts a little stronger.

Had jury duty for a day and a half and ended up only waiting around so finished a Chuck Close art biography. These stories of successful artists really motivate me to get to work.

Nihau Island Painting

2010-06-12T20:12:00.000-07:00

Did a trip on Kauai to Waimea Park and from the top you can see Hihau Island in the distance. There is red dirt and gray dirt on the hillside as the topography is mixed. The market the red dirt T-shirts but I guess no one wants grey dirt.

This is a 12x16 oil where I'm using brushes again after a period of palette knife painting. This one is more toward the realistic side versus the more impressionist works I often do. Each subject speaks to me differently and I go with the flow.

New Hawaii Painting

2010-06-08T21:38:00.000-07:00

This is a 16x20 painting from our trip to Wailua falls. Part was by kayak, then we walked along the river to the falls. This image caught the light shining through the trees along the river. I have several more images from this trip to work on that I like so stay tuned.

Kauai Valley

2010-05-31T21:04:00.000-07:00

Another painting from my Kauai trip. This was a valley seen from a viewpoint between Poipu and Eleele, where we went to the gym. It's an 8x10 done in the thick style I like for such scenes.

Kauai Paintings

2010-05-28T17:00:00.000-07:00

Back from a short vacation and painted a few images from the trip. First is an 8x10 oil sketch of the beach where we went swimming. Next two are further down the beach where it was rocky. These are both 12x16, one using brushes and the other mainly palette knife. Wanted to try both techniques on the same image. Both are almost done I think except for some final touchups once drier.

New Tulip Study

2010-05-10T20:11:00.000-07:00

A small, 8x10, tulip study trying out some canvas pads that I will use when I travel to save weight. These are a new product with primed canvas in a pad of 10 sheets. If the result is good, I can then glue down the canvas to a good backing board to save it. It's a cheap way to do quick studies and experiment too without worrying about wasting materials.

These are rows of white tulips, then yellow, and another row of white in the distance against some nice white barns. Not sure if I will do a larger version. The front 2/3's is done with the palette knife while the sky is painted in with brushes. I'm going to an art critique class that doesn't like my palette knife work as much so am alternating with brushes although the first result was poor in that my canvas was too porous and rough so I destroyed the result although it was good practice getting back to the brush work again. Amazing how different the two techniques, brush and knife, are. Almost have to relearn the brush work again. It's all good though as long as I keep working.

Hubbard Glacier

2010-04-18T11:41:00.000-07:00

Another painting from my Alaska trip photos. This is Hubbard Glacier, which is still advancing and huge. Wish I could have gotten a photo of the ship in front of the glacier to show the scale. The glacial wall is several hundred feet high. The valley clouds and fog break above the glacier to show the mountains where the glacier is formed.This is an 8x10 study in preparation for a larger work..

Ketchikan Creek in Alaska

2010-04-11T21:16:00.001-07:00

I went on an Alaska cruise last year but haven't done any paintings from my photos yet so decided to try one. This was the creek running through downtown Ketchikan. Tons of salmon running in the creek and I took some videos of them jumping on the ocean side. This is a 10x6 small painting of the creek.

Goose painting

2010-04-07T21:22:00.000-07:00

This is a 20x26 painting of water lilies, trees, and a goose. It's an old painting I redid recently in a thicker style.

New Green Lake image

2010-04-03T21:12:00.000-07:00

This is a 5x7 oil of the view east toward the Green Lake Community Center. It's another image I never painted before but wanted to try a study of to see if it merits a larger work. Have done several 8x10's this weekend too and will post the best of those later once finishing touches are completed.

Devil's Punch Bowl

2010-03-27T21:55:00.001-07:00

More work from my Oregon trips. The coast just has scenes that inspire me. You look down from a cliff into the punch bowl that fills with water through an arch in the cliffside. It's the light space near the center of the work where the water bubbles in with the tide. This is another 5x7 study I didn't do a larger work of but the study makes me think it has potential. You can really see the texture on this one.

Small Green Lake Study

2010-03-26T22:13:00.000-07:00

This is a 5 x7 inch thickly painted study from an old photo of Green Lake I took. Never thought it was good enough for a larger work but am doing some small studies as recommended in a nice new landscape painting book I just finished reading. I want to prepare for painting outdoors now that spring is here so need to simulate the process inside so I have the quick pace needed for painting outdoors in the changing light and also have my palette knife technique down pat. The smaller the work though, the more I need to touch it up with a small brush at the end for details. Whatever works is the goal versus locking oneself into a single technique.

New Oregon Coast Painting

2010-03-22T19:57:00.001-07:00

This is a new work from my trip to Oregon Coast a few weeks ago. I have several good evening photos to work from and am trying the palette knife technique on different images. This one I did quite a bit of brush work after the palette knife to finish it up.

Seattle Golden Gardens

2010-03-09T21:14:00.001-08:00

A small painting, 8x10, started on site at Seattle's Golden Gardens park in summer. I redid it in the studio from the original design.

Finished attending the 5 week lecture series at Gage Academy on the subject of Color for Painters although the topics went beyond color to space and structure issues. These are what artists are always dealing with - the picture plane and today we also get to decide subject. Makes for a lot of decisions about what is art, what's worth painting, what style, what technique?

New small night scene

2010-03-03T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've been attending a lecture series on Color for Artists at the Gage Art Academy in Seattle. The building is right next door to Saint Mark's cathedral and when I leave the evening lecture the night lighting in the area always inspires me. I took some pictures again with a slow exposure to capture the light and this is my try at painting the scene. It's a little 5x7 oil and I like it and the abstraction of the night scene.

Also, just notified today that one of my 8x10 new works was accepted for the 41st Annual Associated Artists of Ocean Shores, WA, show. That's two for two this year so my new work is being validated.

Nowthwest Beach Scene

2010-02-27T16:08:00.001-08:00

A 9x12 landscape from a photo taken by my daughter. I have a nice variety of textures and did the fence and details with a few small brushes and the rest with the palette knife. It's a nice sunny beach foot path to brighten up the day.

La Connor Rocks

2010-02-25T09:08:00.001-08:00

This is a 9x12 oil from a scene in the town of La Connor, north of Seattle. There is a rock wall as the town is built into the base of a hill and I took several photos of this beautiful formation to work from. I cropped the scene to show only a hint of sky but the pink flowers against the sky at the top left really highlighted the scene for me.

New Night Scene

2010-02-12T19:54:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to continue a hot pace of work despite being busy at my "other job" lately. This is a scene from my memory of a beautiful night at near by Green Lake in Seattle. The dark storm clouds as the sun passed sunset made the lake silver with reflections of the lights in the distance. I had done an 8x10 of this but disliked the result so tossed it. This is much larger at 20x24 inches but I feel I pulled it off in my palette knife style.

Also found out today two of my somewhat abstract figures were accepted into an art show titled "Unclad" taking place in a town north of Seattle. I hadn't entered shows in a while but plan on trying to exhibit more as my new style develops. Also used the palette knife style on the figures so I must be on to something.

Tulip Fields in Yellow

2010-02-09T21:37:00.001-08:00

There are many colors of tulips in the fields north of Seattle. This is an 8x10 with bright yellow tulips from a trip last summer.

New Northwest Landscape

2010-02-07T20:56:00.000-08:00

This is another 8x10 small landscape. The scene was the view from my hotel window on a trip to Spokane.

Continuing my 2010 cleanup by sorting and getting rid of old work in my basement storage area. Time to let some things go and keep the better work and

figure out what to take off the stretchers to reuse them for new work. Always feels good to feel organized and free of clutter.

Seattle's Golden Garden's Beach

2010-02-05T19:13:00.000-08:00

Have been busy this week updating my art photo database. Have created thumbnail size images so I can pop them into my Access database and see each image in my data. It's a long project but finally will have the image in the same place as my data to better manage my work. Realize need to photo some I don't have images of and need to delete and toss the work not worth saving. Yes, we all create junk at times when experimenting. I'm a little bit of a pack rat and save too much.

The image here is from Seattle's Golden Garden's beach park. I sat on the rocks and painted this, with a large rock in front of me. I don't work outside that often as it's either too cold, wet, or hot. That's why I usually take photos to work from in the studio. I do plan on a few more outdoor sessions this summer and am preparing by getting my equipment gathered during the winter. This painting my favorite size for outdoors, 8x10. I have a 9x12 pochade box too but it's a little too large to travel around with.

New night scene

2010-01-30T21:26:00.000-08:00

Here is a 16x20 night scene with the dead end signs for the alleyway to my home. The artificial light above the telephone pole sends a harsh light onto the fall leaves on the ground. There is a thick wall of shrubbery with a few lights flickering through.

Night scene

2010-01-28T09:24:00.000-08:00

I have several night scenes I like that I've been thinking of redoing in my new style but didn't know if it would work so did this small, 8x10, as an experiment and think it worked out well. Will try several larger ones. Getting to a pointillist type technique with the palette knife when needed and this lets me get the transitions from one color to another or one value to another.

Small Tulip Landscape

2010-01-23T20:39:00.000-08:00

This is an 8x10 landscape from my visits to the tulip fields north of Seattle.

Oregon Hilltop

2010-01-22T15:43:00.000-08:00

Here is a 12x16 thick oil from a scene taken from a high hilltop along the Oregon coast. It's very abstract and perhaps could use a little more work on the shapes but I'm revising my old work and liked the scene.

Two more new landscapes

2010-01-22T13:53:00.000-08:00

Going over some old ideas again with more paint. One is a very abstract "Red House", a view from Phinney Ridge in Seattle toward the Western Olympic mountains with Ballard neighborhood in between. The other work is an Oregon Coast scene with some of the haystack rocks in the water. This one is not as successful but still better than the prior version.
These are 16x20.

Another Oregon Coast Scene

2010-01-17T17:57:00.001-08:00

I'm continuing to renew my Oregon coast scenes with palette knife versions. Here's a fairly abstract evening at the beach.

Golden Gardens Sunset

2010-01-10T20:53:00.001-08:00

Here's an 18x24 oil of Golden Gardens beach in Seattle on a bright evening. Seattle has the greatest sunsets because of our clouds and long summer nights.

Astoria Road Landscape

2010-01-03T21:04:00.000-08:00

Here's a colorful landscape from a photo taken on the highway toward Astoria, Oregon. It's fairly large at 22 x 28". Getting into a good work routine of several hours of art activity daily. Also almost through sorting and saving my art magazine articles. Only about 25 to go and I'm caught up.

Oregon Coast Landscape

2009-12-30T21:27:00.000-08:00

Continuing to work on landscapes in palette knife technique. This one needs a few final touchups but too wet to work on it any more tonight.

New landscape

2009-12-27T21:25:00.000-08:00

Have spent the past month on some other projects, including going through 16 years of art magazines to save only the articles I want. Have them in folders to use finally. Also did a custom mirror project, a left over from my art fair.

Now back to my palette knife painting from some of my old references. This is a 16x20 oil from a photo I took from a ferry boat in the San Juan Islands. It's a facade of trees and a little of the water.

Also set my 2010 goals which include much more art reading to keep me motivated. Spent 2009 not pushing as hard on the art as was waiting for my part-time job to end but now it's permanent so need to use my evenings and 4 day weekends to crank up the work again. Always have way more ideas than time so no problem keeping busy.

Next weekend go through my old issues of Art Calendar to pull out articles I want to save. Part of my year end clean up to enter the new decade lean and mean in my studio.

New figure painting

2009-11-17T19:52:00.000-08:00

Finally finished my mirrors project and sold eight at my work crafts fair so was worth the effort. All the ones sold were my newer ones painted in oils so verified my change from acrylic as the colors are richer.

Now moving on to new projects including creating entries for an exhibit titled Unclad, the nude figure. I have had some prior experiments that I now want to enlarge and see how they look. Some were posted earlier on the blog. Here is a very abstracted "split figure" I just completed in a small version. There is something about the repetition and mirror image separation of the parts of the figure that resonates with me. Stay tuned.

Last of mirrors

2009-10-12T22:00:00.001-07:00

I'm finished with my mirror project. Here are the last two. Now need to insert the mirrors and glue on backs and hangers. The fair these are for is November 6th so I'm right on schedule. Then, back to my regular painting projects.

The mirror on the bottom is another from my Magnuson Park photos that I have done small paintings from. The other is a classic Monet landscape.

Near the end of mirror project

2009-10-05T20:59:00.000-07:00

Here is another mirror. Only a couple of "blanks" left but realized I need to save a few for possible custom orders. I will have about 20 plus new ones so should fill my need for the crafts fair. Still need to varnish and put backs on the completed ones so that will keep me busy. This brownish design is a Monet I liked so did another version of it.

After mirrors are done, will have to decide on next art projects. Have a few things in mind, especially entering my "split figure" works in a local art show calling for nudes called "Unclad 2010". May do a few more of these too as have some time before the entry deadline. Always felt these were fairly original and was looking for a place to show them.

New mirrors

2009-09-29T21:31:00.000-07:00

Here are another three mirrors as my production continues. Here I have one Monet design, the orange one. The landscapes are originals, the flower scene from Magnuson Park in Seattle, and the sunset is on Lake Norman, outside Charlotte, N.C.

More new mirrors

2009-09-26T16:50:00.001-07:00

Continuing my mirror production and my hand is healing nicely after some surgery to fix a defect. Stitches come out Monday so back to full production. Trying to vary the colors so my mirrors can match more decors. Will have all the photos also for custom orders later on.

New Mirrors

2009-09-16T20:26:00.000-07:00

Have continued painting mirrors in oils, all Monet designs. Had a day off from my part time job today after a hand surgery but was able to paint so worked on these three. The crafts fair is back on after a possible cancellation so need to stay busy.

More mirrors

2009-08-22T17:08:00.001-07:00

Have done several more mirrors. I just enjoy the oils more than the acrylics because the color you put down is the color you get after it dries. Plus, I can be bold or subtle more easily. You can see the range here from bright Monet gardens to Van Gogh's Starry Night. Two others are subtle waterlilies based on Monet.

New Mirrors

2009-08-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

Still in a crafts mode with the fast drying water soluble oils. Here are two more mirrors, one a Van Gogh and the other a Monet.

My part time job keeps being extended so haven't begun any new large projects and the crafts work keeps me painting in the meantime.

New craft mirrors

2009-08-03T20:32:00.001-07:00

I'm slowly getting ready for some possible craft fairs by working on a few new "Monet" mirrors. I do mainly water lily designs in acrylic however wanted to try a few in other media. These two are in wax (the brighter one, and oils. Both have advantages and disadvantages. Wax is harder to blend and do subtle colors due to the limited palette I have without investing in more colors. Oils dry more slowly but give the richness I like. Both are though good alternatives to the acrylic which tends to dry too fast and much darker so colors are more difficult to control.

Travel over

2009-07-30T21:37:00.000-07:00

Been travelling and then Seattle had a record heat wave. Hit 103 yesterday, including 100 in my bedroom and studio. Due to limited heat waves like this, most homes here are not air-conditioned so you use fans for a few days and suffer. Difficult to paint when you are roasting....

Here is a 12x16 older work I went over with thicker paint although don't know if I improved it much. Texture is better but image is not as strong as some others I like more.

New small work

2009-07-01T20:49:00.000-07:00

I have been in North Carolina for a week so took my small paintbox and did a few 8x10's from earlier references. These are two new tulip field paintings plus a Hawaiian sunset from Lahaina on Maui.

Bought some new medium size canvasses on sale today and will move up the size scale slightly to 12x16 and 16x20 for my palette knife paintings and see if can get the same effects I want.

Oregon Scene

2009-06-10T21:28:00.000-07:00

Finally finished with one of the works from recent trip to Oregon. Have several more scenes I want to work on. This one is 14x26 inches.

New small work

2009-05-23T20:46:00.000-07:00

Here are two 8x10 oils. First is a river scene from Arizona, in Cottonwood. Other is one of the new photos from my trip to the tulip fields.

Tulip Fields continued

2009-05-12T21:24:00.000-07:00

Another redo on a tulip painting. This one is 16x20. I'm getting there. I did three sessions going over the thinly painted first version. Might do another touch up but am pretty happy with this version. The small photos don't do justice to the texture.

Tulip Painting

2009-05-09T20:54:00.000-07:00

This is a tulip painting I overpainted using my palette knife technique. I'm preparing for some new tulip works so reviving some old ones as practice. They were painted thinly enough and are dry enough that there should be no problem with adhesion and I like the new version much better. I'm glad I didn't destroy some of the prior work I wasn't satisfied with. You never know....

This work is 12x16 and has been hanging in my stairwell for several years now.

New Southwest painting

2009-04-30T16:31:00.001-07:00

I am keeping up my series Southwest works before turning to my local scenes. I have taken some new photos of our Northwest tulips and will try the knife painting technique on those scenes soon. This is also an 8 x 10 in oils.

Two new landscapes

2009-04-19T12:49:00.000-07:00

These are two recent landscapes, one of the Southwest, the other of a Western Washington scene. Both are 8x10 inches. I'm also working on a larger interior scene but can't quite get it to where I'm satisfied with it. Still working part-time at my old job so not getting as much painting in as I'd like. Also it's finally getting to be decent weather in Seattle so am working out harder at my racewalking as racing season is starting. When the choice comes down to more fitness or more painting, the fitness is still first priority for the health benefits.

Skagit Mountain View

2009-03-28T16:42:00.000-07:00

Here is a small, 8x10, thickly painted oil of a scene I shot from my car while travelling through the Skagit Valley. Those are the Cascade mountains in the distance. I'm still developing the style I want and experimenting with the right amount of palette knife painting versus brush painting. Used both in this scene.

New canyon landscape

2009-03-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

Ending up doing about one painting a week lately which is OK production now that I'm working part-time outside of art. Reading more art now too as my job winds down soon and I can get back to full time art by summer. My son-in-law said today it is a good time to reinvent myself which is what I'm doing through the new painting styles, including encaustic which I will go back to soon as spring brings warmer weather and I can use my ventilation system again.

This is an 8 x 10 oil from a photograph taken by my daughter who is really getting to be an excellent photographer. You can see her work on fickr.com under the name jennhx.

New Southwest Scene

2009-03-16T21:25:00.000-07:00

Here is a colorful southwest sunset scene done entirely with palette knife. The more I paint the rocky scenes the more I like the texture I get that mimics the scene. This is 9x12 inches. The water soluble oils let me paint every day with the paint "set up" a little although at this thickness it's still pretty wet. I can mix the paint on the painting as I add refinements yet overpaint as needed too.

Lake Washington View

2009-03-09T20:26:00.000-07:00

This is an 8x10 thickly painted scene of Lake Washington in Seattle. I'm next working on a challenging interior scene and will see how it works out.

Still working part time so less time to paint but have a bigger series of new landscapes in mind and will start working on these soon. Was going to take a related class to get me going on these new works but figure can invest the price of the class in materials instead. Also have some schedule conflicts and at the high hourly price, wouldn't want to miss a session. Mainly take classes to motivate myself but in this economic environment I'd do better to motivate myself and spend the money more efficiently. Most classes I end up being the most advanced learner and don't get that much out of them other than the several hours of class time to discuss art.

Portrait

2009-03-01T21:44:00.001-08:00

Here is an 8x8 inch portrait from a photo by a traveler to China. It's for an informal contest among the Puget Sound Group of Northwest Painters. Portraits take a lot of time and effort. I had trouble making the young lady look young enough until I finally rounded the features and blended the shadows. Portraits are not my strength even though I do a lot of drawing and can get a pretty good likeness. That last few percent is the difficult part. This was also painted on an absorbent gesso on board so the texture is not what I wanted but I am fairly satisfied with the result. I have a nice red antique frame for it.

Also been busy updating my art database to get ready for when the economy picks up and sales perk up again.

Chinese Village

2009-02-15T21:38:00.001-08:00

This 11x14 oil is part of an informal contest for the Puget Sound Group of Northwest Painters. Several photos from a member's China trip were selected and each member can paint from them to do their own interpretation. I did my thick palette knife style as usual. There is also a portrait option and I'll work on that next although not sure which style. I may redo the landscape scene in wax as another option. I enjoy having a goal like this and like competition.

Worked on my taxes all afternoon so painting was a nice break. The business tax portion takes as long as the rest put together.

Another Grand Canyon

2009-02-14T21:25:00.000-08:00

This is an 11x14 oil done completely in palette knife technique. After a few layers the surface looks like the aging eroded rocks.

Malibu Landscape

2009-02-06T13:59:00.000-08:00

Here is a 9x12 landscape from my trip to LA in the winter. This is a view from the park high above Malibu beach. It's the thick palette knife style I like although sometimes it's not the best for some scenes, like a smooth ocean in the distance.

New Arizona Scene

2009-01-26T20:30:00.000-08:00

Here is a 9x12 oil using mainly palette knife. Still working part time so haven't gotten organized to paint as much plus had a family trip for a week where was too busy to do much. I know, excuses, excuses. Also went a little nuts converting my music collection to mp3 for a new tiny player my wife bought for me for my birthday. Use it at work while creating curriculum at my desk. Have converted and loaded 416 of my favorite songs now. Bought a few online to supplement the collection plus bought speakers to play them off my computer as my little stereo in my studio doesn't play the mp3 format. I have mainly mellow songs that are great background music for when I paint so I guess I can call this preparatory work?

The palette knife technique works well for rocky scenes like this because it matches the texture of the landscape. Have to remember to adjust my technique to the scene but liking more and more the thick textures of the knife painting.

Haven't done much with wax lately as it requires ventilation and it's too cold to be blowing all the warm air from the house outside. Hoping it warms by March so can do some of the same scenes in wax for comparison. Wax also provides the texture I love and works well for scenes such as this one, titled "Canyon".

More snow scenes

2009-01-09T20:14:00.000-08:00

I have completed a few more snow scenes from our recent storm. Now there is flooding throughout our corner of the world as it warmed with rain to melt the snow. And it's only early January. Hope the rest of the winter calms down.

Winter Scene

2009-01-03T20:59:00.000-08:00

I have been working again part time in curriculum design so put my painting on the back burner for a few weeks. It also snowed heavily in Seattle so I have some snow scenes to paint from. Here is the first for now. It's Green Lake as usual, but very different from the greens I usually paint. This is 9x12.

Birds

2008-12-01T21:48:00.000-08:00

I've taken on a part-time job in my pre-art world for a few months so will have to get more focused in my free time.

I had a dream of flying birds and wanted to try painting some in a slashing palette knife style. Here are the early results in very small 3x4 inch sizes. The size is not amenable to too much detail in this style but larger these may work. Always fun to experiment.

New Split Figure

2008-11-16T13:41:00.000-08:00

I keep experimenting with figures in my rough palette knife split figure style. There is something I love about the mystery of the figure when separated by the field of the canvas. Will keep pushing this to its limits, including more in wax too. Haven't tried larger sizes yet but that is a direction to try too. This one is 13x13 on hard board.