Golden Open Acrylic Plein Air Spin

So I am in the early planning stages for a major trip this summer and I want to be able to do some plein air work while there.  I have previously traveled with oils and they were just barely dry enough to put in my luggage before going home.  Not that the work was really good enough to bother with but...

This trip, I do plan on getting some work done that IS worth bringing home and I don't want to risk it not being quite dry enough so I decided to experiment some.  I know from past experience that regulat acrylic is exasperating for me.  I have to religiously clean my palette and I can barely squeeze out enough paint to do anything.  I had been thinking about Golden Opens for a while so I finally decided to get a few and give them a spin.

 

I started out with:
Cobalt blue
Diarylide yellow
Transparent yellow oxide
Red oxide
Pyrrole red
Ti white
 

I will have to buy a few more tubes as these do not behave quite like a similar palette in the oils I typically use.  In particular, I had trouble getting dark enough darks.  But over all, it worked quite well.  I had plenty of time to work the paint and blend edges and the typical acrylic value shift does not seem tobe as problematic.  I still have to keep work area clean but it isn't quite as time critical.  Bottom line:  winner!

The Pensive Moon

The Pensive Moon

8X10, Oil on Panel

SOLD

This is a little plein air I did at Woolum while camping there a few months back.

A Bit Cold?

A couple of ol' boys were fishing here and as I was setting up my tripod, one of them asks, "It ain't none of business but what the hell is that?"

"A painting easel," says I.

"A bit cold to be painting, isn't it?" he asks.

"A bit cold to be standing in the middle of the river fishing isn't it?"  Pretty much ended that conversation...

20 Favorite Paintings #6, Snow Laden by Walter Launt Palmer

Snow Laden

Walter Launt Palmer

I had never heard of this painter or seen any of his work until a Facebook friend posted this and some others from him a few months ago.  As I looked at more of his work, I marveled that he was so relatively unknown.

About this painting in particular, I love the rather subtle nature of the purples here.  I think purple can be an abused color because it so bold and attracts so much attention.  Once an artist starts using it, it can be addictive and become far too overpowering or even a crutch in work.  But here, the purple is kept in check well I think.  There is a nice stillness to this design as well while retaining a dynamic due to the placement of the foreground tree.  I also really like how the sky scintillating qualities due to those flecks of higher value streaming down.  Very nice edges on the barely detectable background hill too, all made possible by hitting the value so very near to the sky at the horizon.

The Crossing Cannot Be Made

The Crossing Cannot Be Made

9X12, Oil on Panel

Available

Plein from a couple of months ago at Woolum.

Happy New Year and Goals

First off, Happy New Year to everyone!  Like many people, I establish some goals for the coming year.  2014 was a total bust for me but the month of July left a smoking crater in my life so I have a good excuse for basically missing every goal I made.  Here are mine for the coming year, not just art related:

Art
1) Get into a third gallery - I already have a possibility lined up but until my work is hanging, it doesn't count.
2) Get into 3 national shows - I don't think I got into a single national show in 2014 but again, I pretty much quit doing anything to advance my career after July.  There are several shows I plan to submit to in the coming days.
3) Have more surface area of art in my annual solo show at Cantrell Gallery than ever before - In 2014, I had fewer square inches of art than in 2013 and consequently made less despite selling very well.  I have until April and so far I am WAY behind but I am planning on larger paintings than I have ever painted so maybe I can make it.

Non-Art
1) Get back to 6:00 mile pace - Since I really cannot run long for a few years, making marathons out of the question, I will focus on getting faster and trying to get back miles in the 6 minute range.  Maybe that can lead to a sub 20 3k.
2) Top ten finish in my favorite road bike race - I probably should have gotten a top ten finish last year but had a mechanical at a critical time.  I really think a podium or a top 5 finish is possible but I don't want to set myself up for disappointment
3) Get podium finishes in at least 2 mountain bike races.
4) Run the Full Moon 25k again - No finish expectations as this distance will be difficult for me to train for but I can still finish.
5) Develop my son's cycling so that he can race this year.