Harvested

I liked the way the trees outlined the grain field still showing the tracks of the harvester in the stubble.  Once again I used the placement and the horizon to demonstrate the “Golden Proportion” in paintings for my class.  The dimensions are  12 X 16 inches, oil on masonite panel signed on lower right.

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By the Roadside 16 X 12

I discovered this farmhouse and sheds tucked under some trees at the end of a private lane while out painting with a class.  I did this demonstration on a gessoed masonite panel  16 X 12 inches.  I used the placement of the house and the horizon to show how to use the “Golden Mean” in composing a painting.

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Sonoma Sunrise 15 3/4” X 4” Oil on Masonite Panel

The September sun chased away the morning fog and brought the vineyards into resounding brilliance! I tried to capture the cool remains of the storm the night before. Reflections on the dark wet ground contrasted with the iridescent green glow of the morning light through the leaves. I did the plein air preliminary of this scene a while ago, then recently returned to it to accent the colors.

Juice Anyone 12″w X 9″ h Oil on Canvas

I found this old juicer on a shelf in the pantry, and thought the story it held would be interesting.   Still life is the ultimate venue for dealing with space, shapes, textures, colors, and design.  I was pleased with some of the elements, but I think I’d like to try this one again sometime.

Aspens in the Backyard 9″ w X 12″ h Oil on Canvas

The leaves had piled up pretty deep when I decided to paint the ones in the back yard. It was a warm day with scattered clouds, and the fall sunlight cast colored shadows across the grass.  I was excited to paint the light filtering into the yard.  What a day!

Old Copper Tea Pot With Red Onions 12” X 12”

I had lots of fun painting the textures and reflections in this composition, from the old copper tea pot with its ceramic handles, to the moist feeling of the peeled onion on the left, to the dusty, dry feeling of the outer skin of the larger onion on the right. I kept the composition simple, using just three elements for a more pleasing effect. I didn’t center the tea pot on the Golden Mean, but placed the largest reflection on the pot, the far part of the handle, and the stem of the smaller onion near it. Enjoy!

After the Storm 30" X 40"

In the night lightning had flashed clear across the valley with crashes of thunder that shook the house then died to distant echoes. Then the rain hit hard, with a roar, against the roof and windows carried by powerful shaking gusts of wind.  The storm passed.  In morning light the air smells clean and clear, clear that is, with puddles.

Bucking Hay 24" X 30"

Bucking eighty pound bales of hay to the top of a loaded trailer was fun when I was eighteen.  I could show myself how strong I was.  Waiting with a bale in hand for the trailer to come abreast gave you time to take a breath and see the morning.

From a Distance 24" X 24"

I loved listening to distant sounds while doing chores. The air was usually cooler by the time you got to them, and it carried the sound better.   The cows are eyeing the half opened gate unsure if they could go through, and it seemed that just for a minute everything held its breath.

Help at the Fruit Stand 20" X 16"

Our neighbor raised vegetables, and set up a fruit stand beside the road near his house.  He hired local teenagers to help gather and sell the vegetables and fruit he sold there.  Sometimes they would decide between themselves to wear the same clothes on a particular day to make it look like they had uniforms.

Feeding the Sheep 30" X 40"

Chores were something you did every night and every morning so you might just as well enjoy doing them.  Hearing the snow crunch beneath my feet on bitter cold mornings was something I never did seem to get to liking very much.  I did like the animals.  They were like friends that trusted you even when all you were doing was throwing some hay over the fence to feed the sheep.

Loading Hay 20" X 16"

Before we had access to a machine to bale the hay and straw for us we used pitchforks to load the loose piles onto a wagon.  Little sister drove the tractor pulling the wagon down the field between the piles so we could load from both sides.

Milking 30" X 40"

. Milking and feeding the cows were chores done before breakfast.   Mostly the cows were trained to stand still so you could milk them out in the corral.  I had a few that didn’t stand so well, but that’s a story for another time.  We had one cow to milk and sometimes Grandpa had three.  I sometimes counted how many squirts it took to milk one cow.  To get three gallons of milk took around 4000. No wonder our forearms looked like bricks.

Grain Harvest 30" X 40"

I can almost feel the strain in my shoulders, arms and back again as I shuffled through the grain.  I had to level the load so nothing fell over the sides of the truck.  It’s much more beautiful in memory; in reality swirling dust obscured your vision, dust and sweat trickled into your eyes and nose, and made you itch all over.  Still, I can remember the impressions of swirling golden grain flowing around my legs in eddies that threatened to swallow your legs unless you moved them.  I guess life is like that: you have to look for the beauty while you’re sweating through the dust.

Break of Dawn 24" X 30" Sold

The door on the old pickup creaked to a raspy “clump” as it closed to the rustle of hip boots walking through the grass.  Small birds chirped in the distance, water gurgled quietly through the gaps in the side of the ditch.  Dawn spread. Silently gray at first, colors slowly grew to muted blues and pinks.  The smell of water finally reaching thirsty plants asserted itself through the cool morning air almost as softly as did the dawn upon the valley.

Red Barn 24" X 24"

This is a studio painting done from a pencil sketch of some local farm land.  Shortly after I sketched it the area was lost its charm to modern apartment buildings.  I'm glad I got to see it before it disappeared.