Spring's Early Morning Light

"First Light: Spring Dogwoods"
Oil on Canvas Panel
8" x 10"
$100 plus $8 S/H
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Here's the first of a series of I'm working on about that mysterious early morning light in the early spring here in north Georgia. I thought I was going out to capture dogwoods in bloom, then I realized I was chasing the sun. I began at about 6:45 a.m. when there was barely enough light to shoot with, but nothing like enough to create shadows, and I continued to chase the sun until around 8:30. What I discovered was amazing: during a short period between 7:30 and 8:15, there is a glow to the light that dissipates into a different kind of light afterwards. I think of that glow as simply "early morning light," and I tell you, there's nothing quite so beautiful

Here in this little painting, the theme is not dogwoods, but my early morning light. Dogwoods just happened to be the subject that best translates the atmosphere as I was feeling it.

That Early Morning Light

Where have I been for the past week? Struggling with computer problems when I'm not trying to capture that early morning sunlight so amazing this time of year. Yesterday, I threw together this little study in less than 30 minutes because that's all the time the sun would give me. It's at its loveliest between about 7:30 and 8:15 a.m. After that, it all levels out and it becomes a different sort of light.

I'm working on a little dogwoods painting trying again to capture that delightful light, but in addition to plein air studies, I went out and shot some digitals which I'm referring to on my laptop. Perhaps tomorrow it will be finished, meanwhile I thought I'd share this little study.

I broke my own rule by placing that tree trunk right in the center, but it is after all a study, so I forgive myself for that.
P.S, It is a bit of of focus, isn't it. I'll replace it soon with a better focused shot.

Back to the Chestatee

"A Drink at Chestatee's Edge "
Oil on Canvas
8" x 10"
$200 plus $20 S/H
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Whenever spring foliage begins to show those luscious yellow-greens, I like to head for the river. Tallulah River is a favorite because of the huge boulders and cascade of waterfalls, but Chestatee River is quieter, though noisy and active at intervals. Funny thing is I've spent so much time on these rivers that when I look at a set of digital photos, I can hear the waters and smell the air.

This little painting came from those sounds and smells right after some rainy weather which caused there to be a thick mist hovering over the Chestatee. I don't know what there is about the early morning sunlight breaking through a mist, but it's an adrenaline rush for me. Just like standing at the ocean's edge or hiking to the top of Tray Mountain and looking out over the hush of the valleys. You can almost hear the earth breathing.

Notan: Think Yin and Yang

Think Yin and Yang. Think notan

Yin and Yang are "two opposing and,
at the same time, complementary (completing) aspects of any one phenomenon. Notan is a sort of yin yang with a western slant.

Each time I begin to paint, the first thing I do is find the notan of the subject. That means that I squint my eyes and find how all the darks can group themselves together into a pattern where all the parts connect either literally or visually. Once I find the pattern, I do a quick little sketch, no larger than 1" x 2" where I use a black marker to map out all the darks. The white that remains, of course, will be my light pattern.

Above to the left is my subject, a digital photo of my front yard early one morning after it had rained all night. To the right is my notan. Here is my finished painting:

"A Sip of Water" Oil on Archival Canvas Board

11" x 14" Sold

Notan is a surefire way of guaranteeing a successful composition, but it does not control what happens during the painting process. See that deer? She invited herself along with the puddles of water. They found themselves necessary to complete the meaning of the painting. Ah ha.

To see the step-by-step process for this painting, go here.

"Hidden Cove, York Falls"
Oil on Canvas
8" x 10"
$100 plus $8 S/H
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I love secret places. York Falls, nested in a gated community at Sautee, GA, has a bunch of places where you feel like you're the only person there and nobody else will find it. Of course, that's an illusion, but that's how you can feel. And the sounds of the falls just accentuate that sense of grand solitude.

Painting itself is very much a secret place. While in the process of creating a painting, there's a silencing of the outside world, a hush of all but what engages you. It's a grand place to be and the wonder of it all is that you can enter that place each time you pick up a brush and paint.

And oftentimes that world will continue within you throughout the day of doing chores or taking care of other things. Maybe that's why artists will often get labeled "strange" or "preoccupied" or "a bit off in the head". Sometimes it's an effort to allow the world of reality back in after an especially fascinating time spent in a secret place.

"Sautee, Summer Farm"
Oil on Canvas
8" x 10"
Sold

This little scene is from the Sautee Hereford Ranch, one of my favorite places to romp and take pictures. I've not done any plein air painting there because I'm too busy trying to capture cows doing their cow things.

Of all the varieties of cows, herefords are my favorite to paint. Their sienna colored fur can range from yellow ochres in direct light to deep purples in the shadows. So instead of just reaching for burnt sienna, lightening it with white and darkening it with black (which would be flat and dull), I use the full range that extends from yellow, going through orange and red to yellow's complement, purple. Hansa yellow, yellow ochre, cadmium orange, burnt sienna, alizarin crimson and dioxazine purple. All that to make the orange of a cow! The white gets a bit of yellow orchre, cadmium orange into white for directly lit areas and white with ultramarine blue and a bit of burnt sienna for the shadowed areas. Okay, that's enough color theory for one day.

"At Chestatee's Edge"

Oil on Canvas
8" x 10"
$200 plus $20 S/H
Click here to buy

It's a natural thing for me when painting in oils to yearn for the Chestatee River (near Dahlonega, Georgia) which has become my favorite plein air haunt. This little painting is taken from a quick sketch I did last time I was there. I had taken some digital shots, too, which I used for reference.

Since I rediscovered the notan a few years ago, using it has transformed my approach to painting. It demands of me that my first step is to discover the light and dark patterns as two value areas: one white, one black. In my modus operandi, my next step is to tone my canvas in a turps-thinned transparent color neutralized within the local color of the scene. Then I lift out with a rag and brush the light side of the notan. I can start painting immediately once this is done; oddly, if I set up the dark colors rapidly first, the painting will most often paint itself.