Welcome back, paint fans.
This week I’m posting the photos of my attempt at plein air painting. Seen below are several photos as well as the result of my efforts. (Allright, you can stop snickering now. ;-] ) Note my cool new hat, emblazoned with a reminder just in case I forget my user name.
As seen in the photos, Sedona is just breathtaking. We’ve actually been there before and I had planned this outing, carrying my supplies out with me.
The photos were taken by Mrs.boran2 as well as the 6 year old boran2 boy during our two week trip out west. We live in the northeast and flew to Albuquerque. Once there, we rented a car and continued to drive further west. We spent a few days in Sedona, Arizona during which I made my attempt to paint. Unfortunately, I was presented with several difficulties.
The temperature that day was in the 90’s and as a result the paint was drying as soon as it was placed upon the small 5×7 canvas board. This precluded any blending on the canvas and any subtlety of the final work. Then there was my feet. Specifically, they were burning. Unfortunately I was wearing nylon-strapped sandals and the sun was very strong. I grabbed some spray-on sunblock that Mrs.boran2 had with her. Not wanting to spend much time applying the stuff I just sprayed wildly until my feet resembled two white foam-covered mounds. It was not pretty.
Yes, the intrepid artist painted with the assistance of a rented 2005 Hyundai Accent, serving here as an easel. (Actually the Hyundai proved to be a comfortable and fuel-efficient car for those considering a new vehicle.) I painted for about an hour while my faithful comrades circled with cameras and then waited patiently in the shade. (And having a 6 year old boy wait patiently in the shade when the temperature is in the 90’s is no small feat.)
But perhaps I’m focusing too much on the difficulties. It was a unique experience, one that I’ll try again. Painting at the site produces an immediacy that painting from a photo can’t. Given the particular circumstances that day, I should view this painting as a starting point to be completed indoors from the photos taken of the site. I did make some small adjustments later on but I may just leave it as is.
The painting, as it currently stands, is an abstraction of the scenery stripped down to its basics. Looking at it again now, I think that I did reasonably well considering the problems.
Oh, the next day we drove by a professional artist doing the same thing. Well, sort of. He had an amazing folding painting station complete with umbrella, easel and racks for all necessities. So that’s how it’s done.
Well, next year I’ll try it again. See you next week.