Field Work

  Once again we find ourselves in the beautiful Umbrian countryside. Everything a landscape artist would want, for his whole life.

The work begins in earnest.

  Once again…the challenge. I need to create a living, working design, full of color, and yet..respecting the two dimensional aspect of the picture plane. This means no arial perspective. The design, it needs to be flat. This is my modern take.

  Whether I succeed or not…well, the viewer decides.

  The trick is to just paint the picture. My experience should guide me. My philosophy is ingrained. I need to trust my instincts. This is what I tell any student I have.

Every artist should embrace the colors on his/her own palette

Work quickly.

  Luckily Janelle & I are able to enjoy some sunny, relaxing time in a friends garden here in Umbria.  

It's a relaxed work day in the garden.

 A different day, a beautiful small church I've painted before.

I can't resist the poetry of this place.

  Here is a small sample of completed works from this years trip, so far. 

  I've been painting both 6x6 inch panels, as well as 8x8 inch panels this year. I'm not working with gouache on paper this time around. 

  There are a few larger canvases, too. There should be about 35-40 pieces in total. 

  

  

 "Chapel, Missiano"  8X8 inch

"The Egg Barn" 6X6 inch

"Farmhouse Near Missiano" 6X6 inch

"Panicale"  6X6

   It's such a privilege to be here painting in these ancient fields, at these ancient walls, with my modern style. One foot in the past, and one foot in the future. I am doing right for my painters self. 

  Certainly I'm not the first painter to feel these feelings, particularly here in Umbria, the green heart of Italy.

  Inspiration, challenge, and hard work. 

  It's not easy, but it is a joy.

 


  This field work will never end.

Painting Around Umbria

  We had a taste of warm/hot weather some days ago. I had to set up in the shade of the olive trees.

  

  Wanting to paint more buildings this year, still the focus is on color.

  

Traveling paint studio.

  Below-

  Same day, same spot. Just looking in a different direction.

  There is such a wealth of beauty and motifs, an artist could paint here for the rest of their life.

  I hope I'll be able to do that. I'm working on it.

  

  On another outing, a few days later, weather is still nice, but not so hot.

  We drove over to an area that is a favorite, near an old Etruscan city. There are several Etruscan tombs around here, too.

  We are talking 200 years BC. Very ancient landscape. But I don't think it's changed much.

  This winter there has been too much rain, but the upside is the lakes in the area are more beautiful and full. 

Picture Perfect

Just a painter's paradise.

One more to put in the box.

Old Tradition, New Style

  Recently saw an art exhibition in Bologna. There were some paintings by Rembrandt there, and I couldn't get over the fact that pushing around paint on a panel is such an old tradition. 

  Here, below, is the same old story of an artist, taking his equipment out into the field, painting the landscape genre.

  Same old story, different artist.

  For me the tradition is important, and now it's up to me to put my own personal stamp on this age old story.

Pushing paint.

Sans the car and wires, it would be like the 1400's

New Tradition.

  This year I had an idea to do diptychs (below), so I built myself a jig here in Italy, with the bottom of a vegetable box I found behind the village market.

  I hope to do several paintings in this horizontal format.

Soft colors of Umbria.

A favorite spot to paint from.

  Another short video from Janelle.

  Back at the studio, paintings are lining up. 

  Can't wait to exhibit them, as group.

There are still a lot more panels to paint.