Abstract Tree #7

Oil on canvas, 48" sq.,  c. Catherine Vines

It's done.  Over the next couple of weeks (or more!) I will make adjustments, but . . . it's done. Yea! and Boo! The "boo" is also because it's done.

Paint Relationships

Oil on canvas, detail, 48" sq.,  c. Catherine Vines

I started this current group of photographs based on the idea of light, capturing those clear luminous patches of light within the landscape. The series "Trees as Sculpture" was created with the intent of trying to portray that light.  But then, as always, I fell in love with color and my focus switched to using color schemes to paint from. With this latest tree - nearly finished, yea! - I have concentrated on developing relationships between colors, working my way up and down the value scale. As Ken Kewley says, "The life of a painter is a life of exploring."

Painting from Photographs

Photograph, 2011,  c. Catherine Vines

My tree series is called, "The Tree as Sculpture." In the beginning as I walked my dog, I would photograph trees just because I liked them.  After I better identified what it was that drew me to the trees, I began to be more selective. Since I am primarily a value-driven painter, I started out by trying to reproduce the values - if not the colors - I had captured.  And I worked primarily from photographs.  But at some point, I have to put the photographs away and paint in response to the painting. Like many others, I believe the photograph is only an aid, and only useful to a certain point. Then the painter must take charge.

What Makes a Series

Oil on canvas,  8x10,"  c. Catherine Vines

My neighbor got me started painting trees. Joan is on the Tree Board of our town and she asked me to donate a painting for their silent auction.  Since the subject was trees I thought I should try one, even though I am not a landscape painter. This is one of my early paintings for the festival (our "Treebute"). It took several attempts for me to identify what it was that attracted me to the trees. Even back when I was just visiting the town, I had always loved the sculptural quality of its trees.  Once I honed in on that quality, I was able to branch out (so to speak!) into my current series. What interests me the most is learning that I don't have to start out loving something for it to grow into a meaningful and rich series.

A Complimentary Color Scheme

Oil on canvas, 36" sq.,  c. Catherine Vines

I love this complimentary color scheme of red and green, and have used it innumerable times.  Even more that the color scheme, I love the range of greys.  Using greys has become a new goal for me. For the darks, I mixed complements of the main colors in a variety of values. Now I'm thinking I should have written down the different color combinations I used.  Since then I have started keeping Color Notes.  My oils dry out so fast here that I am constantly remixing so it's a necessity when working on a big painting like this one.  In general I love to mix, and tweak colors; but I can't trust my memory when the combination is a complex one.

Painting the Background

Oil on canvas, 36" sq.,  c. Catherine Vines

I find backgrounds challenging.  Somewhere I've read to just paint a lot of backgrounds - in other words, practice, practice, practice. In that practicing, I've tried using the complement of the subject matter.  Mimicking the outside shape of the subject in neutral, darker colors. Painting a deeper version of the subject. Sometimes I've used smooth backgrounds (like today) to contrast the rougher interior strokes. Or the opposite: rough against smooth. But to be well done, I believe the painting has to look as if no other background good possibly work as well. So I keep practicing.

Painting a Sunset

Oil on canvas, 36" sq.,  c. Catherine Vines

The most beautiful sunset I've ever seen was off the coast of Edmonds, WA (just to the north of Seattle), looking out over the Puget Sound.  Like most such experiences, it was fleeting and for me, impossible to specifically recall. Still, it stays with me, like a melody I can't quite grasp, yet warming me with its glow. More recently I have been reading Loriann Signori as she writes about painting from memory rather than direct observation or a photo. As proof of her point, she is painting the most beautiful pastels.
This, the second tree in my series, is an even more indirect capture in oil of my experience.

Working in a Series

This is the painting that started my current series on trees. All of these paintings are based on trees within a few blocks of my house. I found when looking for a tree to paint, I was most interested in their sculptural quality, the same characteristic I'm working to convey.
I love working in a series. It's so interesting to build on a previous painting, to take that idea and change it up. Format. Size. Medium. Even tools. Today's was created using a palette knife.
But my major requirement for a series is that something catches my imagination, something that I can see possibilities in, something that I want to explore further. With this series I started thinking of painting  portraits of the trees and wanting to capture their individual expressiveness.

Studio Space

This view shows the end of my living room, one of those long l-shaped rooms. Although I lose something in privacy, I gain from the ability to get distance on my paintings without having to go outside and look through the window. The cabinet is actually an old housekeeper's cupboard where I store my books and photos, along with watercolor supplies. I'm using a tv tray to hold my palette and the table at the right holds my paints. My easel is on wheels for ease of movement.

Choosing Color

This is #5 from my series on trees.  I followed a suggestion from Ken Kewley in his "Notes on Color" by picking out my favorite color as a starting point.  You don't have to be long in my house to see that aqua rules.  His article offers much food for thought and you can read it at "Painting Perceptions," a wonderful blog in itself.
Only my third time blogging and I have already deleted my first posted photo about my studio.  Since I am such a slow painter, I'm sure I'll be returning to that subject when I'm out of paintings.  Even with this photo of the aqua trees, I see things I could tweek.  See why I have so much trouble being really finished! And why my friends are always fussing about my not signing my work - it's not done yet!!!

Completing a Painting

This is the latest tree in my current series (I'm working on #7 now).  Posting is helping me realize how long I take to complete a painting. I tell myself, "It's finished!" and hang it on the wall. But over time something starts to bug me; then off it comes and back to the easel.  Thus the process starts all over again.  I'm learning to pay attention to those nagging bothers rather than talk myself out of them. But I seem to need time to digest the painting before I can really see it.  Weird, huh?
These color choices are intuitive and very different from my usual.  In this case I had prepainted the background, also an atypical choice, and worked from there. The dark is Gamblin's Torrit Grey from last year, made from their recycled pigments.
The further I get in the series, the looser my brushstrokes become.  Think where I'll be by #15!

Thank you to everyone for your comments on my last post.  It's so nice to have you looking at my work. I hope you'll come back.