The Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon

Last June I went on a white water rafting trip down the Grand Canyon on a Western River Expeditions trip.   You might wonder. looking at this picture, where are the rapids?  They are right around the corner just out of sight.   I wasn't brave enough to take any pictures while we navigated the rapids.  I was totally focused on holding on!  Travelling on the Colorado River through 188 miles of the Grand Canyon was an amazing adventure.  The rock formations were stupendous and continued to hold me in awe for the seven days on my trip.

By the way, do you see that little sand bar on the left?  We pulled our boats over to a large sandbar each evening, set up cots and tents, and slept under star-filled skies.

I hope this little 8 x 10" oil conveys something of the majesty of the Canyon. 

Kaaterskill Falls Stream

Stream, Kaaterskill Falls

A couple of years ago friends and I spend time visiting Hudson River Valley sites including Kaaterskill Falls.  This woodland scene has been something I have wanted to paint.  I have not painted since this summer and two weekends ago I decided to pull out a little 5 x 7" canvas and painted directly without the benefit of sketching the scene first.  It was very liberating and fun.

Grand Canyon Waterfall

In early June I went on a white water rafting trip down 188 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.  What an adventure!  The white water rafting was a blast and the scenery spectacular.  We hiked to some absolutely beautiful waterfalls including this one.

Something about the immense size of the canyon walls demanded that I paint much larger than I usually do.  This is a full sheet of watercolor paper, 22 x 30".  I painted it standing up at an easel using 1 1/2" brushes.  Although I am usually much more comfortable painting small, there is something amazingly liberating about painting on a larger scale; one has to let go of all the details and stop fussing.  This is a new venture for me and one I want to follow.  Stay tuned to see what comes next!

Cambodian Market Scene

This spring I decided to go out of my comfort zone and paint this portrait of a wonderful lady I saw in an open air market near Siem Reap, Cambodia.  She was so gracious in allowing me to take a photograph of her.  I loved her beautiful face framed by such a wonderfully striped and checked turban.  I couldn't resist the patterns and colors of her blouse and slacks.  There she perched carefully selecting from amongst the colorful and fresh vegetables so artfully placed in piles along the dusty road.

Although I have never painted a portrait before, this was such a fun experience.  I enjoyed every minute of it.  Of course, I had to laugh because when I finished the painting, I saw that I had used a pretty standard European model for the structure of the portrait.  Think of European portraits of nobles standing or sitting in front of a draped column with a landscape in the far distance and surrounded by objects that say something about who they were.  Here is the column, the drape, the objects.  Having trained as an art historian and working in a museum, I guess I can't get to far away from what I know!  I also had a small giggle because even though my Cambodian lady actually was picking the red apple, I hadn't really paid attention to this when I painted it.  Associations and layers of meaning?  Just a passing though.  I hope you like her as much I.  

On the Road to the White Place

I continue to return to paintings of New Mexico.  There is something of the landscape and my 2009 trip that continues to inspire me.  At the time I had hoped to be able to sketch and paint at Georgia O'Keeffe's home in Abiquiu, but I learned from the guide before the ticketed tour that this was not allowed.  The tour is beautifully managed and fascinating and since the property is so small, I could understand why it would not be possible.  The guide was very helpful and told me of other places where Georgia painted in the area.  One, not far away, was the White Place.  To get there I drove along a winding road brilliantly lit by golden cottonwoods set against an intensely blue sky.

The scene stayed with me and about a year later I tried to capture the scene in pastel during a workshop with Wolf Kahn that I was lucky enough to attend at the National Academy of Design School in New York one snowy January.   I wanted to take what I learned in the workshop and see what I could make of this memory.  This is my third attempt and I like to think I have caught the moment.

Floral Fantasy on a Snowy Day

It's snowing outside; the tree branches are outlined white on black.  It's a world of lace except where evergreen provides an accent.  In a minute I am going to take out my brushes and ink and see what I can capture of this silent world where flakes drift slowly.  Work appointments cancelled, I am taking the day off!

In contrast to today's black and white world of positive and negative, I discovered a world of color this summer when a cousin showed me an old railroad bridge in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts that had been turned into an extensive garden covering the span of the bridge across the river.  The garden was spectacular with every bloom conceivable from lace-cap hydrangea to tiger lilies, to coneflowers, to daisies, to gooseneck loosestrife, to balloon flowers, to roses, to... That so many of these bloomed at the same time in this climate zone that is cooler than my hot Maryland summer was a delight to me.

Enjoy the snow today (I understand that over two-thirds of the United States is covered in snow) and, if it is too cold, snowy, icy, or treacherous, here is a breathe of spring-summer to gladden the heart.

Have a nice day. 

New Mexico Skyscape

I promised I would post this painting; I just didn't realize it would take me several months.  In fact the painting has taken several years to complete.  I started this painting a few years ago after visiting New Mexico.  I was so taken with the amazing cloud formations across the vast expanse of sky. On the way back to Santa Fe from visiting Ghost Ranch I stopped my car on the side of the road one afternoon to record this vista.  I knew only a large painting would do justice to the immensity of land and sky.  My usual scale is small and my medium watercolor, but I hung a 36 x 48" canvas on my studio wall and pulled out the oils.  I tackled the cobalt and cerulean sky and the scudding clouds.  The landscape remained a charcoal sketch until this summer when I could open the windows wide open for good ventilation.  When I picked up my brush to finish this painting, I knew using a brush would take forever.  I bought large palette knifes and attacked the canvas with gusto, loving the resulting texture and impasto.  I picked up a rag and my arm seemed to follow the sweep of the wind.  When I look at this painting, it takes me back in time and place to that far off autumn day when my gaze took in the silhouetted mountains, the deepest blue sky, and the clouds flooded with the late afternoon sunlight.  That autumn I fell in love with the southwest.