LANDSCAPES, SEASCAPES and RIVERSCAPES

July 18, 2012

LANDSCAPES, SEASCAPES and RIVERSCAPES

Landscapes, Seascapes, and Riverscapes

Studio Work

'View of the Charles River from Weeks Bridge' Oil on wood panel 2012

The following three 'Great Wall of China' views are all details from one large piece. Size 36" x 42" is approximate.

'Great Wall of China' detail Oil on canvas 2005

En Pleine Aire

Ramler Park in Boston's Back Bay, Boston Public Garden, The Charles River, The Arnold Arboretum and the saltmarshes on the north shore are just a handful of the superb places in eastern Massachusetts to paint en plein aire.

What is it that makes me want to paint outdoors where I can't control the light, weather, atmosphere? All of these are a challenge to any artist's abilities. All of the abstract painting and some of the landscape painting I do is done indoors. Looking with extreme care at leaves, trees, water, hills, marshes, sky, clouds and changes in the light conditions of a day fills me with wonder. Being immersed in that I am filled with respect for nature which is very nourishing to the human soul.

It is a very different experience working in the elements, having to pay attention to changing weather conditions, the angle of sunlight, the atmosphere, wind as well as the view I'm actually trying to capture. Once I'm on location and decide on what to focus on, my attention begins to sharpen, a sense of my own being dissolving as I get down to the business of dealing with shifts of light and changes of atmosphere.

'Weeping Tree: Boston Public Garden' Oil on Canvas 2010

The 'Ramler Park' piece was done during a summer rainstorm that interrupted my work during which I had to take cover beneath a small tree and drag my tools and easel under with me. When the rain stopped I re-emerged and completed the piece.