Bigger and brighter

This weekend I attended the opening reception for Spring Fling, an annual juried exhibit at the Gateway Arts Council in Sidney, Ohio.  This year I was privileged to have two pastels accepted into the show.  It's an excellent exhibit with many talented artists participating, making the quality of the pieces displayed quite high.

I learned a few lessons as I walked around the exhibit.  The first, which I really already knew, was that while my work has gotten much better over the last few years, I still have some catching up to do.  The second was that I need to paint bigger and brighter, especially for these types of exhibits.  Larger pieces often do a better job of commanding attention, in particular when they surrounded by many other pieces.  A little 9x12, while quite lovely in a living room or bedroom, is overwhelmed in such a space.  In addition, all the dark shadows which were supposed to be dramatic turned out to be more melodramatic in a setting with lighting that is more subdued than in my studio.

Taking all of this into consideration, I have resolved to paint bigger and brighter, at least for exhibits.  Even for other pieces I will try to make the mood brighter - occasionally walking the pieces out of the studio and setting them in a room with more typical lighting (my dining room, for example) will help with this I think.  Something like the painting below is step in the right direction I think.

Chance of Scattered Showers 16x20 oil, copyright 2013

Waiting for spring

Waiting for Spring 9x12 pastel, copyright 2013

The weather has been volatile this past week - it is March after all - wrecking havoc on sinuses but making for excellent scenery.  The beginning of the week saw heavy clouds and patches of flurries, but there were holes in clouds allowing sunlight to stream through.  I spent more than hour chasing the sunlight down backroads new to me and somehow managed not to get lost.  There were a few times when I wasn't sure exactly where I was, but I did manage to find my way back without having to consult a map, so I can say I was never completely lost.

This little gem of a spot came up unexpectedly when the road took a sudden turn to the right and meandered along a creek.  Corn and soybeans are the most crops around here, but winter wheat is my favorite to paint, as it turns the most wonderful shade of gold when ripe.  Right now it is dormant and a sort greenish yellow as opposed to the brown earth in the other, fallow fields.  Though the darkening clouds foretold six inches of snow (and a day off from school for the kids) later in the week, the bright field predicts that spring is just around the corner.  I am certainly ready for it.