-from September Newsletter

     I just posted this painting on my September newsletter . It is called "Love for Three Oranges" but there wasn't room for the oranges in the newsletter space - so here they are. I first heard that music when I was at Art School and the title has stayed with me. I thought it would be a good warm painting for a fall newsletter. If anyone reading this doesn't get my newsletter (very short, a picture each time) just e-mail me at lorainewellman@shaw.ca and I will add you to my list.                               The main news on my newsletter is that the Grand Prix of Art Steveston is this Saturday. There will be around 100 painters painting all around Steveston and Britannia Heritage Shipyards. The tricky thing is, until we pull a slip of paper with the location, we have no idea just where we will be painting. Then we have three hours to complete a painting which will be turned in for judging. I hope I get an interesting location that is different from where I have been before.
    Plein aire painting started just before the time of the Impressionists. Before then, paint had to be ground and mixed as it was to be used - strictly an indoor job. Then paints became available ready to use in tubes. Of course, the artist still adds a  mixer-medium. For oils, it used to be turpentine and an oil- probably linseed. This is a bit smelly and probably a bit toxic but one whiff does remind me of Art School ! Now oil painters use a different non-toxic, non-smelly medium. Some oils are now even compatible with water. Acrylic paints, mixed with polymer plastic instead of oil, became available around 1940 and have proven their durability. The actual colours - or pigments- are the same in both oils and acrylics - and, for that matter, pastels and watercolours. Acrylics have the advantage of being  a material than can be cleaned up with water.  They maintain their  flexibility so paintings don't crack. They also dry fast - and the artist keeps brushes in water because of this. Drying fast has both advantages and disadvantages. Now, mediums have been developed to slow down the drying so it is not awkwardly fast in the outdoors. I will be using a retarder gel when I am painting in the Grand Prix. It slows down drying enough to give better control for softer edges where I want them. Another advantage to acrylics is that the finished painting needs no varnishing and can even be wiped off. I recommend them for kitchen paintings especially. Needless to say, artists have great discussions about the advantages and disadvantages of oils, acrylics, watercolours and pastels. My feeling is that artists usually find the medium that appeals to them the most and with which they are most comfortable. My personal choice is acrylics - a modern paint for a modern world.

Gettin ready for DoorsOpen

Just sent out the June Newsletter with this painting on it. This is the second plein air painting of the season. I think I'll call it "Out to Pasture". The machine is an old baler, I think, but I chose it for the contrast with the field of buttercups. As I said in the newsletter, I seized a bold approach and emphasized the yellow. It was a beautiful day at Harold Steve's farm and it might have been nice to paint the cattle but they were constantly moving. They were very peaceful - a good thing as they are so big. They have big faces, lovely eyes and furry ears and are all black except for a wide white stripe around their middles. They reminded me of sumo wrestlers with their wide belts. And, my goodness, I never knew that crunching grass could be so noisy! I used a bit of retarder with my acrylic paints so they didn't dry too quickly in the warm outdoor air. There is something magical about being outdoors and seizing the moment to complete a painting. Most outdoor painting tends to be smaller in size because of time limitations and ease for carrying. I think this one is 11" by 14". This time I worked on getting the edges painted too. The Bunkhouse bothered me until I painted the edges at home afterwards. I think it gives the paintings a more sculptural look - and you don't have to frame them. The Group of Seven used to do small paintings outdoors and then work on larger versions back in the studio. That is something I might do with some paintings but I think this one is a small subject and works best as a small painting.

Plein Air

It is outdoor painting time again and the group , Men in Hats, is painting plein air every Tuesday, weather permitting. The group seems to be expanding and does include women although it just started with guys. The hats are a necessity in the sunlight. This is my first painting of the season and is the Bunkhouse at Britannia Shipyards, a heritage site.  I had a sketch of boats in my sketchbook but then I turned around and loved the shadows on the white building - so here is the result. Why plein air? There is nothing quite like the challenge of being there, having to zero in on a subject, work to get the lighting right and pretty well complete it on the spot.  Outdoor painting goes back to the impressionists who were freed from the studio because paints were available in portable tubes for the first time. This was also possibly a reaction against the industrial revolution which had changed living conditions so much. The artists wanted to get out into the outdoors and capture outdoor lighting. For quite some time now, plein air has been a bit on the back burner although there have always been some artists and groups of artists who have been active - literally  "in the field".  Now there is quite a revival with many major outdoor painting events and conferences. The theorists say it is a reaction against the technological revolution.  Whether it is or not, there is nothing quite so spirit-lifting as getting out there to paint. Here is to a summer of good weather on Tuesdays!