The water was high then, but yesterday a week later it's even higher from all of the rain the region's been having. Makes for some interesting patterning on the surface and lot's of foam from the spill coming over the dam in St. Croix Falls, WI just up river.
I met some nice people, had a few jokesters too... But best of all I met a young artist named Steven ( about 11 or12 yrs old, a guess... sorry Steven if I'm off by a lot) and his parents. Steven is a painter in acrylics and named the colors on my palette by specific names, ie... "Alizarin Crimson, Ultramarine Blue, Viridian"... not just "red, blue and green"! Steven is going places! :)
Did I mention it was hot, but a beautiful day?
I was really attracted to the 'coffee and cream' coloration in the water of this one. The water up here is always stained due to it's originating in the northern forests of Tamarack and peat bogs. But right now it has a lot of sediment (the cream) stirred up in it from the flow, giving it a creamy, chocolate brown color. The river was approaching a 'record' ft/per/cubic inch flow.
'Record Flow' - oil- 12x16 - August 14, 2010 © Marc R. Hanson
I heard from a ranger in the park yesterday while painting that the river is now at 'record flow'. But it was the warming of the late summer color that really caught my eye and provided the contrast to the cool hillside in the distance and the reddish hues in the water and the rocks in shade. The entire scene had a 'yellow green cast' to it.
'August Colors' - oil - 11x14 - August 22, 2010 © Marc R. Hanson
11 comments:
Beautiful work! I love the delicate quality in the foliage,and the soft diffused edges against the harder rocks.
Marc these are great. Makes me want to be back in the north right now. Even if it is hot up there Im sure its not like the 100s down in Texas.
Curios you talked on Facebook a while back about repriming some cotton primed panels with an alkyd primer. What brand of primer do you use? I have some bad canvas that I need to reprime and I am wondering what works the best.
I love the way the tree dances in the light in the second painting!
Hi Amanda... Thank you. The challenge of most of our painting is to understand and try to portray the subtleties and differences that dance across the stage of the scene that we're painting. To me, that's the fun part, not the river, the rocks or the trees... But the relationships between it all.
Thanks Michael. Well I'm sure that this winter I'll be thinking the reverse of that.
The one I was using is no longer available. Try the Gamblin oil primer or the one made by Studio Products. Both are similar to what I was using.
Thank you Marian! I don't know why, but 'Dance' is a word that a painter could focus on in most of their work. Seems that color and light are in a constant dance on the subject and in the end on our paintings.
Lovely work. I really enjoy seeing the calm scenes that you portray. Wish I was closer to paint with your group. Half my family are Minnesotans and the state has a soft spot in my heart.
Beautiful work, I especially appreciate how you tackle the rocks, something I find so challenging.
These are both fantastic, Marc. The sense of light is positively tangible!
Love this painting and the light in the foreground trees as they contrast to the rest of the scene! As always you do wonderful work! I can't wait until your book comes out.....It's going on my Christmas list!
Love the water in the "Record Flow" piece--creamy root-beer float looking!
Post a Comment