Mattawoman Paint Out

Clearing Sky Over Mattawoman Creek, oils on canvas panel, 9" x 12"

The day was overcast but looked promising: it wasn't raining and a sunny afternoon had been predicted. The drive down to Indian Head was pleasant in the morning cool. I met the other six or eight artists at the Mattawoman Creek Art Center, and one of them, Barbara, suggested painting from the deck of a maintenance building a short walk from the MCAC--it was perfect, elevated enough to offer a panoramic view of the creek.

We shared this perch but painted entirely different subjects. She focused on the dock and boats in front of us while I chose a far view with the creek flowing around a point of land with a tiny island. The sky above was clearing with quite a bit of blue showing above the clouds, so this seemed a point of departure. In the critique afterwards someone pointed out my val-hue of the far bank of the Potomac is not right--its blue makes it appear like distant mountains rather than the opposite shore of the river, and I have to agree. I would also have liked to get a better color for the water, specially the shadows on the water should have been more greenish-brown. Still, in doing this I gained some useful practice for dealing with water using vertical and horizontal brushstrokes for a shimmery effect.

Mattawoman Creek Marsh, oils on canvas panel, 14" x 11"

After lunch and crits the majority of the artists left. Two others stayed to continue working on their paintings in the afternoon. I decided to set up near them and start on another painting of the marsh. The light changed gradually from overcast to sunny, so I tried to maintain an in-between color key.

It was almost five o'clock by the time I got my painting this far--all the others had left by then. In the afternoon heat after spending most of the day on my feet, I was exhausted and ready to call it a day. As I was packing up a fisherman with a most amusing umbrella hat walked by, and I asked him if he would consent to having his picture taken. He was kind enough to agree. I think this photo may make a wonderful painting.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

The Clark Farm, oils on archival canvas panel, 9" x 12," $100.

Let's get back to painting. Someone pointed out recently it's funny how I'll travel halfway around the world to paint, but I never paint my own neighborhood. To remedy this, yesterday being a gorgeous day here in Maryland, Susan, a younger artist I'm mentoring, and I went out to paint plein air in my Howard County neighborhood. I'm breaking in a new outdoor painting rig--a Guerrilla paint box and tripod just purchased, that way Susan could use my old Julian easel.

In the morning we painted at Centennial Park by the lake. Susan did a wonderful small painting there but I wasn't happy with mine. In the afternoon, we went across the road to a dead-end street where the Clark Farm spreads out over many acres. This is my favorite place to walk for exercise and inspiration. I love the rolling hills scattered with farm buildings, particularly this barn and silo--they make such a nice focal point for the composition. The fleecy clouds made for a lovely sky.

Next weekend, I'm painting plein air in Annapolis, as part of the Secret Garden Tour. If you are in the vicinity, please come & take the tour so you can visit with me, or stop by Gallery 1683. More details about it in the next post.