I'm in my Thirties now

8" x10"
Blazing Hot #30

I hit painting number 30 yesterday! Things are getting better and better, but I still have a long way to go.  Take for example this painting.  Going into it, I thought it was going to be a masterpiece, but then towards the end, I was just trying to salvage the whole darn thing.  I realized that the composition was way too complex and it just wasn't working, so I started to edit - big time.  Then finally, I came to my senses, and it was time to call it quits and move on.

6" x 8"
Marsh #31

I wanted to end on a positive note, so I did a quick little painting of the marsh.  The tide was coming in and creating little sparkles of light blue.  It was so pretty.  I want to go back and do an entire series of sparkly marsh pools and forget cast tree shadows for a while.  They give me headache.

8" x 10"
copy cat painting #32

I fell in love with this painting by Joseph Paquet.  I want to paint like he does.  He uses a prismatic palette (no earth tones) like Tim Horn (and I) do.  His brush work is so loose - I love it.  So, I decided to skip the heat today, stay inside, and copy this painting, hoping to loosen up some.

The Original by Paquet

My photo is overexposed on the left - in real life my shadows are darker, I promise.  I love how loose his little house is and how it sits so firmly in the ground.  I still drew it too big! Apparently it is common for beginner plein air painters to draw the focal point too big - this is true, I know for a fact. He uses a lot of grays, but the colors are still clear and the painting is very colorful.  It was a great exercise and I hope I can apply my new loose ways tomorrow out in the field.