The final three, together at last

Here are the final three 12"x12" landscapes.

I gave you a sneak peek of the center painting on in the previous post.

I didn't have to do too much to enhance the dried, pressed leaf.  The colors were already perfect.  Before I collage these leaves to the paintings, I seal them on both sides with matte medium to protect them.

I also collaged some dried grasses to the center painting.  Love that texture!

Everybody who does landscapes seems to be painting birch trees lately, so I had to paint at least one.

Years ago we had quite a few in our neighborhood, but they have all died and been cut down.  I actually like how dead trees look and have been taking pictures of them lately.

I added a fainter, paler purple line along the horizon of the birch painting.  It reminds me of how the fog sometimes hovers over Lake Michigan, while the shore area is sunny and bright.

acrylic (faux) encaustic, acrylic, mixed-media, collage, pressed leaves

The light was perfect this afternoon, so I took advantage of it to take these photos outside.  You can probably see how the first painting, on the left, looks a bit mellower.  That's because of the acrylic (faux) encaustic finish I experimented with.  I'll be doing the same to the other two paintings the next time the natural light is bright enough for a longer period of time.  Then they'll have a more muted, organic look, too.  The leaves will also have additional protection after I do this.

I want to do something completely different next.  There are so many things I want to try, I'll need to see which idea pushes its way to the top.

"It is the spectator,

and not life,

that art really mirrors."

~ Oscar Wilde

A sneak peek

Here's a slightly blurry sneak peek at the landscape I'm currently working on.  It's been very overcast here, so my camera wasn't letting me get crisp photos.  This leaf/tree has only been pressed, the colors have not been enhanced yet.  Isn't it gorgeous?!  It's a leaf from the forsythia bush after it was touched by frost.   

This painting has more texture than the previous landscapes I've done recently.  I do love that texture!  But my challenge to myself is to keep it simple, and that's not as easy as it sounds.

Today I'm working on adjusting the colors quite a bit, so it can be a companion to this painting,

which I described in a previous post  here.

So, when this one is done, there will be one more 12" x 12" landscape to finish before I begin to work on something more portable.  When I paint these acrylic pieces, I need to move everything to the kitchen table, and then put it all away again.  Something easier to work on in short bursts would be a nice change.

Before and after

(detail)

I think this landscape is finished now.  I didn't do too much more to it.  Just highlighted parts of the leaves with a little oil pastel, adjusted some of the colors, and added some texture to the bottom portion.  It has an acrylic encaustic finish, to protect the leaves and to give the whole piece a warm, more organic feeling.

(detail)

The broken purple line along the horizon reminds me of Lake Michigan, of how it looks when you're driving toward it and suddenly catch that first amazing glimpse of the water along the horizon.  It never looks the same twice, ranging from the palest gray to the most intense Mediterranean blue.  And it's gorgeous every time.

This landscape is my interpretation of Wisconsin's golden corn fields, the Lake, and the short but glorious fall foliage.

So here it was before:

and here it is after:

Wisconsin Landscape

acrylic encaustic mixed media collage with leaves

on 12 x 12 wrapped canvas

Two more 12 x 12 landscapes to go, and then - who knows?

:0)

Learning as I go

Here's a sneak peek at one of the canvases I've been working on.  As I've mentioned here before, I've been especially intrigued by the details on the backs of the falling leaves this Fall.  I keep noticing how much some leaves look like trees themselves.  So, here is a canvas where I used three dried leaves as the trees. It's still very much a work in progress.  I'm not sure where I'll go next with this painting, but I'm really enjoying learning as I go, and not rushing the process. 

And, because I am so madly in love with the Horicon Marsh this year, here are a few photos I took of the marsh recently.

It was very windy the day I took these photos, so there were lots of ripples in the water.  Usually the water is very, very still.

I left this photo larger, so you can see it better when you click on it.  It's a huge group of pelicans!  Until a few years ago, pelicans were very rare in Wisconsin, but we are seeing more and more here every year.  Climate change is changing their migratory patterns.

Did you know that a group of pelicans is called a "pod"?  A group of geese is called a "gaggle".  And a group of crows is a "murder of crows" - really!

Loosey Goosey, part two

I meant to be back sooner, but life has a way of getting in the way, doesn't it?  Since my last post, I did have the chance to finish this second painting of Horicon Marsh, though.  And today I took the four landscapes described in these last few posts, along with a few paintings of flowers which I did a year or two ago, up to the Horicon Marsh area.  They are going to be on display, and for sale(!), at the Celtic Crossroads Cafe in Mayville, Wisconsin, just in time for Mayville's 25th annual Audubon Days celebration.
:0) (Yay!)
Three more canvases are waiting for me to start painting on them next week.  But I'll also be getting back to regular blogging and tumblr-ing, as well as visiting blogs and answering e-mails, in a day or so.

Thanks to everyone for all your support!
xo

Loosey goosey

During this time of year, one of the most beautiful places in Wisconsin is the Horicon Marsh area, where thousands of Canada geese and other birds stop during their migration.   Inspired by all those geese (honk!honk!), it was pretty easy to be a little bit looser while painting this marsh scene.

I scratched into the paint to get some texture in the grasses and cattails, and I loved how it felt to just do it and not over-think the process.  It also has me thinking I should look at the two paintings in the previous post, to see what I can do to loosen them up a bit more.

There are a few important things I'm learning from doing these landscapes.  First, I can't rush the process.  No matter how much I want to finish multiple paintings in a day or two, I've realized that I need to step away for a while.  It really helps me to come back to a painting later to look at it with fresh eyes before I can finish it.

Second, doing these landscapes is forcing me to focus on details in a different way than doing portraits has done.  Because of all the portraits I've done recently, I notice people's eyes more now, for example.  Have you ever noticed that most people have one eye that is smaller and slightly less round than the other eye?  I've also noticed that it is more often the left eye that is smaller.  Really.  Try it for yourself.  I find this fascinating, and I'd never have noticed if I hadn't started painting portraits.  I love that!

With these landscapes, I need to focus on distance and perspective.  It has made me think how these are important in life, too.  How sometimes distancing yourself from a situation can give you a different perspective.  Yes, I do a lot of thinking about such things while I'm happily painting away.

So, next I have another marsh painting that I've started.  I want to go back and see how I can improved the first two landscapes, and then I already have some ideas for a few more landscapes.  And then, and only then, will I do some more faces - or flowers - or maybe some abstracts - or something involving textile or sculpture.

Sometimes it feels like I'll never have enough time to do everything I want to do, see everything I want to see, and read everything I want to read.  Like thanking everyone for their sweet comments on my last post, for example.  Big, big thanks to all who commented and e-mailed me recently.  I'll be getting back to you as soon as I can.

"Time brings all things to pass."

~ Aeschylus

The only thing constant is change

. . . so I decided to paint a few landscapes instead of portraits.

I think I'll do a few more.  I'm going to work on loosening up my style a bit more, too.

Today our sky here in southwestern Wisconsin is hazy and smelly from the smoke of a huge fire in the gorgeous Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of Northern Minnesota.  It amazes me that we can smell the smoke over 500 miles away.  (You can read about it here and here, if you're interested.)

My heart goes out to all the people and creatures who are impacted by the many wildfires around the country and the world.

"It is your concern

when your neighbor's wall is on fire."

~ Horace