Painting on the Severn

A snap of my painting of the Peninsula in progress on a warm Spring morning. Sherwood Forest MD. 12x24in oil on birch panel

Painting with Bear

This week I had the opportunity to paint plein air with fellow artist Ed "Bear" Miller. Bear is a painter well known for his Adirondack landscapes and was a guest in my neck of the woods, Sherwood Forest, MD, where we painted along the Severn. Bear paints with an energy and verve that seems to channel the intensity of George Bellows and Harold Weston. Painting is a solitary business but when painters get together the shared experience is enlivened with stories, challenges (like jumping into the freezing river,YES!) revelation and learning. Always learning. A link to his blog can be found on the right in the Art History links.

The Peninsula

It was a grey blustery Spring day today, under 70deg. The trees were just beginning to show some color. I sat out at the end of the pier and painted. As much as I enjoy painting in the studio, painting outside with the wind and the waves can't be beat. It is truly enjoyable to Not Paint Green.

In the spring there are subtle shades of reds, pinks and lots of warm greys. Painting is a lot like fishing.( thanks Robert Stark, although I thought of it too) Lots of gear, you're outside in a beautiful spot and sometimes you get one and sometimes you don't. I think I got one today. Some of my earliest memories are of being out on the end of Main Pier watching the ospreys flying over this piece of land. 10x10in oil

Severn Sunset

A tiny painting I dashed off last Summer that I found this morning(Thurs.) and did some more stuff to. There is a land mass on the Severn that we just call "the Peninsula." Some call it the "Green Cathedral" It is the last uninhabited piece of land on the river reaching out into the water, a thin arm of sand and pines. I have camped there as a child and and like to canoe there now to admire the cliffs. This one painting was started after a particularly dramatic Summer sunset but it was not executed very well and I put it in the closet (listed under Too Cliche) I found it while Spring cleaning the studio and just started fiddling with it from memory and I am pleased with the result, so much so that I returned to the site today (SAT.) and did a plein air that I will post later. I think I will be doing more with this unique view. 5x9in oil

Red Truck

Still working on this one in the studio. I like to sit a painting aside for a while and study over it. I have some unresolved issues with the windows. If I paint them as dark as they really are I feel they will distract from the truck which is the real subject of the painting. Happy for suggestions.WWHD (what would Hopper do?)12x12in on panel

SOLD at the High peaks Art Show 2010

Frissy's Wheelbarrow

A little quick color sketch. I enjoy seeing a shot of color in green landscapes, like my firetruck paintings. 6x6in. oil on panel

First Light

First in a series of small Chapel Pond studies that will track the light as it moves down the mountain. 6x6in oil