To be in plein air painting show

Above is a painting I did of the train depot (no longer in use) in Middle Amana, IA.  This will be one of the pieces that will be on display and for sale during the November show in Keokuk, IA.  

Show will hang in the round room, on the main floor of the Keokuk Public library.  Feel free to contact me if you have questions about the show.   ginlammert@yahoo.com

One Person show month of November!

Keokuk Art Center , Keokuk, IA is sponsoring a one person show of my artwork created this year.  Most will be of paintings still in my possession from participation in plein air competitions plus a few still life compositions to break things up.

ARTIST RECEPTION NOV. 2nd

5pm to 7pm

at the Round Room - Keokuk Public Library.  

210 N 5th St

Keokuk, IA  52632

"Late Summer Color"

11"x14"   Soft Pastel on U Art paper

I had started this work on location during the "Fresh Paint" plein air competition in Amana, IA last year.  When I dug it out from a pile of pastel papers a few days ago, I thought....hmmm....love the sky but HATE the foreground. 

What I love about the pastel medium is how easy it can be to "change" something if you don't like a certain look.  I had painted in a wooden fence that dominated the front lower right of this work.  It was competing with the large tree in the middle plane, which made the entire painting seem busy, busy, busy........no place for the mind to understand what drew me to this spot in the first place.

Taking a piece of pipe insulation I had cut to be around an inch & a half long, I rubbed out as much pastel as possible from the area.  Because this work is on slightly sanded (rough textured) surface, there was enough "tooth" ,as pastelists call it, left that i was able to emphasize  the prairie grass growing in the foreground by adding stroke after stroke of fresh color.

If you look close enough, you'll notice the "RED" underpainting too.  I love using a rust color as a first layer of color in a landscape.  The warm undertone always makes cool greens & blues look rich in hue.

Painting at Sundown Mountain Resort

11x14 Oil on board

View of what I was painting

Candid shot of artist Carlene Dingman Atwater painting on the ski resort's lodge deck.

October 8th thru the 14th was the "Bluff Strokes" Plein air competition in Dubuque, IA.  I, along with 59 artists, had the opportunity to paint where ever we wanted in Dubuque County.  Of course, there were suggestions from the sponsors where certain locations would award us with cash winnings.   When Carlene and I happened to stop at this ski resort.....yes, Iowa has a place to snow ski ......our view was too rich in farmland  color on a dreary, rain laced day to pass up.  I'll be posting more from this event soon.

Ottumwa's "Battle of the Brushes" event

20"x16" Acrylic on stretched canvas

Saturday evening, July 29th, the Wapello Co. Arts Council sponsored a fundraiser called "Battle of the Brushes".  10 artists were chosen to participate.....given a theme to focus on in a 90 minute period.

Paint, brushes (our own were optional), table easels, canvas and disposable aprons were provided.  Our theme was "Riverfront".  Because the event was held in Ottumwa, I chose this view of Bridgeview Center and Wapello Bridge that spans over the Des Moines River.

I tried a new technique for me.......used a plastic grocery sack (wadded up tight in hand) dipped in paint and applied it in an abstract manner to create the sky and water in this work.  I loved the affect.  I'm definitely using this technique again and with oils.  If I had more time on this piece, I would've included palette knife strokes of color in the rest of the subject.

The finished artwork was auctioned off immediately after brushes were set down.  This was a first time event for the arts council.  I hope it will become an annual affair. It was a nice way to spend a Saturday evening!

Plein Air painting in Lee Co.

11x14 soft pastel in Wallis paper

Sunday was the Fort Madison Iowa Garden Tour.  I was invited to paint the beautiful Vista from the Rump's home.  In the distance you can see the Bluffs in Illinois.  I can only imagine the gorgeous sunrises viewed from where I stood.

This year's tour focused on homes just North of Fort Madison itself.   Most were near Wever Iowa along the 4 lane highway 61.

I so enjoy anytime I can share with others what soft pastels are & the beauty of this medium.  I had some wonderful conversations throughout the day with people that had know idea what I was painting with.  Most people that aren't art conisours think the medium is chalk that is used on chalkboards. 

I love the expressions when I share I'm working with pure color pigment & how the vibrancy will never change with time if the artwork is properly cared for.

Both Plein air & Studio

This first image shows the first wash of pastels with Mineral spirits  to capture shadows.  My substrate is a primed mat board.  I used Art Spectrum  Colourfix fine tooth multimedia  clear primer.

2nd wash filling in basic colors.

Here's the final painting.  The underpainting wash technique was done on location.  I ran out of time ( had to be somewhere else) to finish the work outdoors.  I snapped a photo  and used it to finish the work in my studio.

8x10 on board

"Walking in South Dakota"

18"x 24" Oil on stretched canvas

The inspiration for this painting is from a visit I made a couple of years ago to my brother's place in South Dakota.  Him and my sister-in-law were walking in front of me, heading back home from a hike we made to see an abandoned Mica mining spot.  Their home (33 acres) sits in South Dakota where 2 sides of the property touch a National park. 

Along Hwy 2

9"x 12" Pastel on UART #800 grit paper

I drive by this property at least 4 times a week on my way to & from  Bentonsport.   I left home early enough this morning so I could do some Plein air painting before opening the Iron & Lace store.

In a short amount of time, I was able to block in my light &  dark values.  It's  been awhile since I've worked outdoors with my pastels.  I'm definitely changing that habit, starting now.

The work you see here was created using UART paper.  I dry mounted it on foamboard so I could do an underpainting wash technique, using mineral spirits with the soft pastels.

I finished the work while at the store today.  Photos are a GREAT tool for me to use since I don’t have a photographic memory.    Still, there truly is no substitute for working on location .....from life.

I also want to thank my artist friend, Jessica Kirby,  for giving me the paper I used today.  I've been hooked on Wallis sanded paper ( no longer available ) and have primed my own boards for painting.  Now I plan to order UART paper....enough so my students in the next VFS workshop can try it out. 

"Open" sign

(click image to enlarge)

Oil - 14"x 11"

This is the sign that lets everyone know the Iron & Lace store in Bentonsport, IA is open for business.  Betty Printy (the Potter and owner) has a variety of plants growing along the side of the porch and building.

I'm using colors Raw Umber, Prussian Blue, and Turquoise light on my palette these days.  They weren't "standards" for me in the past but I've grown to like the mixes I'm coming up with more and more.  Here's my current oil palette:

Cools:     Naples yellow (optional since white and yellow ochre does the job)

                Yellow Ochre             Ultramarine Blue (optional)      Turquoise light

                Alizarin Crimson        Prussian Blue

Warms:  Cadmium Yellow Light        Cadmium Red Light       Venetian Red

                Raw Umber

Titanium White and Ivory Black

I use Naples Yellow a lot to mix in colors to get a lighter value.  White mixed with Naples Yellow and sometimes Cad Yellow light make my "whites" .

I also check a painting's values by removing all the color.  The image here shows this process before I adjusted the "shadow" area to match closer to what the actual painting looks like. 

 I always have to double check the images I take with my camera.  They either come out really washed out or on the "blue" side when I photo artwork outside.  

           

View of the Iron Bridge

Oil on panel 8"x10"   SOLD

This is the second oil I've created with having the old iron bridge in Bentonsport, IA as the focal point.  It's a view from the front porch of the Iron & Lace store.

Here you can see how I like to create works sized 8x10 and smaller on a support made out of foamboard.  I glue and tape layers of board together to give it strength.  It's much lighter to carry then something made out of wood.  Lately, I've been using cardboard instead of the black foamboard shown here.

Using black or the "brown" cardboard creates a neutral middle value tone that surrounds  a work.  Working on a surface like this helps me keep my easel clean from paint.  A support panel like this also provides a means for me to transport a finished painting without worrying about smearing the wet paint.

Field of Lace

~click on image to enlarge~

14"x 11" - Soft Pastel on Board

I had the opportunity to take several pictures of one of my friend's place where they turned 80 acres back to prairie grasses and other plants.  A beautiful place in the NE corner of Van Buren Co. Iowa.

This was a foggy morning that she invited local artists to come paint.  I wasn't able to set up on location that day, but loved all the Queen Anne's Lace in bloom so thank goodness....camera was in hand.

I started this work with a watercolor underpainting over AS Colourfix Multi Media Primer on a masonite board.  There's a few places where you can still see the watercolor wash.

In Van Buren Co.

My plein air painting buddy, Jessica Kirby, gave me permission to use some of the photos she had taken on a painting trip I missed.   Here's the set up...looking on my computer screen at one of the photos she took while in Lacey Keosauqua State Park, Van Buren Co., Iowa.

Quick sketch in to lay out my composition

Starting to block in some color (and I have to say, I rather like the abstract look going on here too. Hmmmmm......this may be a direction I go in the future.)

and the finished work below.

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9"x 12"  Soft Pastel on Wallis paper.

I believe the time of year in the photo was Fall.  I need to visit this spot now (early Spring) and check it out.    

Different Landscapes....

I'm sharing info on two pastel paintings I did this week.

 ~ click on image to enlarge~

"7:00am" 12"x 16" Soft Pastel

The above work was created by adding layers of pastel with no "blending" with my fingers.  Just letting the layers of pastel do all the work of creating form and atmosphere.

I also didn't attempt to fill in all the surface of the paper, allowing the texture of it to be part of the finished work.

~click on image to enlarge~

"Morning Glow" 12"x 16"  Soft Pastel

This work  is created on the same primed board as the painting above.  The only difference is I used my fingers to blend (smooth out) the pastels over the surface.

Now, I'm asking for a vote of which style you, the viewer, prefers.

It would've made this easier had I used the same composition for both paintings. Yes, I had a "duh" moment here :D

"Morning Glow" is a view from an East window of our home in Pulaski....just as the Sun is rising. 

"7:00am" (first image here) was created from a picture I took while driving toward Bloomfield one morning last week.    

I love how the sunlight casts bright light at a certain time of the morning.  How it is cut off,

 so to speak, by the horizon line, and makes the top of things "glow" in contrast.

So, I'm anxious to hear which style you like best....Blended? or Not Blended?

Summer 2014

Just finished this oil Christmas present.  It was shown to the owner, but I needed to do some adjusting to the figure and brought out more of the sand area in for foreground.

24"x 48" Oil on stretched canvas

Here's the finished piece. The model?.....my Grandson Nevan!  He spent several weeks in Florida with his Grandpa Tom this past Summer.  A real treat to experience the ocean.

View of Iron Bridge

~click on image to enlarge~

Here's a view of the easel area at Iron & Lace in Bentonsport, IA.  I've had this 10x8 canvas on the easel for a week.  Most the time I can finish this size of work during one day.  I've been in total procrastination mode.

Here's the view (cropped and brought up close from what can actually be seen ) looking out the picture window to my left when standing at the easel.

Here's the work in progress.  I forgot to take a picture when it was just the value sketch.  There is still a bit you can see on the right side of the painting.  Yes...a LOT of red.  I like using Cad. Red Light for the undertone in a landscape work.  Time of day is mid afternoon......say around 2:30pm Central time.  

"Iron Bridge across the Des Moines River"  10"x8" Oil on Canvas board

Watching the shadow cast from the bridge onto the water is almost like a Sun Dial. The lights and darks create interesting abstract patterns that dance across the area around the rock monument.  

This scene is part of the Riverside Park in Bentonsport.  To the left is a Gazebo where performers come to sing and dance. To the right....the fabulous Rose Garden area where many come to exchange vows of marriage or family photo shoots.

Can you tell.....this is generally a very peaceful place. The river can be ugly with water over the top of the bank or serene and so shallow, one can walk the length across it without getting your knees wet.  

...the beginning

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18"x24" oil on stretched canvas

Mmmmmmmmmmmm.......I haven't had my oils out for awhile and absolutely Love the smell of fresh paint.



This is the beginning of a commission I'm doing for a man that loves the outdoors.  He gave me a photo he took of geese flying over a patch of water and grass plain.  The ground area is almost black and is darker here then I've painted it. 

First step was to lay in a red wash over the entire canvas. After drying...I've mixed blues, white,  naples yellow, and violet in the sky.  Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, and black in the ground. 

Now it's time to let the paint set up a bit, then add the geese that are flying and blades of grass that are in the foreground.  I don't know....I may not wait :D  I love painting wet on wet and Alla Prima.  

Sigh.....I just looked at the clock and realize, there's a reason I'm s-l-o-w-i-n-g down.  Creativity really has no timeline.  My body is telling me something else.  It's used to a regular schedule of going to bed by 10pm. 



Finished commission

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Here is the final work "Mason House Inn" Bentonsport, IA.  24"x36"  Oil

I left the image here on the easel instead of cropping.....otherwise the sides would've looked off.  I shot the picture at a bit of an angle to cut down the glare of the oil paint.  The center of the painting  is lighter then the sides as well.  It's just not my best at taking a picture of a picture.  That's something for me to work on.

#5 - Mason House Inn

~ Click  image to enlarge ~

Here I've darkened the road and started working on the shadow side of the main building. The toned canvas really pops out here.   Yes, there's quite a bit to do yet on the front of the brick ....shutters to add and fine tune the windows.    I have some tweaking to do in the road as well.  I think the foreground is done.  I added strokes here and there that look like blades of grass.

The next image will be the final work.  I'm anxious to see it all pulled together.

#4 Mason House Inn

~Click image to enlarge ~

I've established the road out front of the Inn and created a grassy area on the other side.  Also added more in the treeline and Caboose area.  Deeper grays and light brown will be added to the road.  It is currently a gravel road, but I imagine back in the day, it was all packed dirt.

I'm saving what I consider the hard part for last....the brick and windows.  I'm not using a ruler to create straight lines...this is all freehand.  To me, it makes for a more interesting piece, not a duplicate of a photograph.