There is Wind at Port Orford too!

C1561

“Early Morning Shadows at Orford Rocks”

(Port Orford, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

[Note that after posting this I inserted three seagulls squabbling over something or other … sometimes this happens; you look at a painting and decide it needs something else, as happened here. The image has thus been updated on September 5^th 2014, and will be available for 3 days only from Daily Paint Works.]

The day after painting the view from Paradise Point to Cape Blanco I went up to Orford Heads expecting to find a view or two from which to paint; there were but the wind was strong and there were few places to set up without actually blocking the footpath.  I settled for a day of photo-recon, with some sketchbook drawing.  There were also Grey Whales working close inshore near the Orford Rocks; were they feeding or scraping their barnacles off, as was suggested to me by a local lady I spoke to on the beach?  There were at least two of them, perhaps more. 

The day following I was on Orford Beach early and found a spot near the Orford Rocks, with a couple of the distant Redfish Rocks in view, with some of the Orford Rocks close to, and with early morning shadows from the forested cliffs behind me slanting across the foreground.  I thought I was protected from the wind, and so I was from the full force of it, but gusts managed to whip over me with regularity, and even kindly sprinkled a little dusting of fine sand on the painting, like black sugar sprinkles on Christmas cookies!  So again I’ll have to wait a couple of days before I can brush them off of the sky, when the painting is touch dry.  There were not as many as those on the one at Bandon Beach, and those successfully were removed. 

When I began the painting the sea was blue-green and green, but not quite as strong as the painting of Cape Blanco of two days previous, and so I decided to proceed directly onto the white lead ground of the linen panel.  I blocked in the composition with Ultramarine, locking in the shadow patterns to retain the early morning feel of the view.  Starting with the sky I worked my way from the distance to the foreground, but leaving the closer Orford Rocks until I had covered the foreground beach with its shadows.  Then I went back into the Sea and worked on the waves and reflections in the wet sand.  I reworked the shadowed foreground to better its transition into the sea. 

Surprisingly, even though the wind got up strong not long after I began working, the whitecaps didn’t appear until later, and then far out near the distant Redfish Rocks; I did not attempt to put any in since they were not there when I began.  I saw the Grey Whales spouting as I began to paint, but they must have been moving on after having been around for several days, for they were not seen again later.  All day I watched the fog-bank on the horizon streaming down from Cape Blanco, much as it has done all the while I’ve been here.  In fact the previous day while on the Orford Heads, the fog bank was coming over and obscuring the tip of Cape Blanco and the lighthouse, unlike the day I painted the view towards it from Paradise Point; then the fog bank was just out to sea beyond the Cape.  There is definitely a change in character of the Oregon Coast when you pass Cape Blanco.

The palette I used was Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Cerulean, Cobalt and Ultramarine Blues, a minimum of Viridian, and Cremnitz White, with a touch or two of Titanium White for the brightest foam of the waves.

Pressing on to Port Orford

C1560

“Cape Blanco from Paradise Point”

(Port Orford, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

4” x 6”

Click here to make this your Own

Moving south from Bandon thirty miles brought me to Port Orford, and a wayside park called Paradise Point at the end of a road just a bit north of the town.  Here there is a view several miles up to Cape Blanco, the western most point on the Oregon Coast, with its lighthouse just sticking up a bit from this angle.  The wind was up (what’s new), but it being a warm day (low 70s F), it was not bad for a stroll down along the beach.  In the stretch of the dune grass on the way back up to the carpark on the bluff, I stopped to do to drawings in my pocket sketchbook; one of Orford Reef, and the other of Cape Blanco in the distance with the dune grass in the foreground, and an almost tropical green sea riddled with whitecaps in between.  North of Cape Blanco it seems the sea is much more of blue grey, or greenish grey, but I’ve not seen it this jade green as here seen; not even this morning as I drove along the scenic views route as I left Bandon.

I chose a 4” x 6” linen panel, again as it is marginally longer in shape than the 5” x 7” panels I’ve been using.  I began with a number 6 bristle brush (½-inch wide), and started in on the white lead primed linen panel, painting the sky with Cerulean and Cobalt Blues; no imprimatura.  The other pigments used were the usual suspects of Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red and Cremnitz White with one additional colour … Viridian since I needed its purity for the wondrous green of the sea.  I also mixed Velasquez Medium from Rublev with the Cobalt Blue, Viridian and the touch of Yellow Ochre used only for the Sea, with no white pigment.  Velasquez Medium is an oil and calcite mixture which lightens the pigments it s mixed with without losing the brightness of the pigment, as would happen when mixed with a white pigment.  I’ve not used this medium much before and I was quite surprised when I didn’t need to use any white; I had thought that I might have to use a little, but no; I did not.  This calls for further experimentation.  I used Titanium White for the whitecaps only, as well as for the miniscule stroke for the lighthouse.  The same bristle brush was used throughout the painting, except for the detail on the Cape itself, the whitecaps and the lighthouse; for these the same tiny round sable that I sign my paintings was used. 

I’m up on a mountain top with a view of the sea; the stars have come out and only a few lights 25 miles or so down the coast near Gold Beach are visible.  I plan to return the 6 miles down to Port Orford again tomorrow, as I spotted a couple more places to paint, and at least one of them should be out of the worst of the wind.

The Wind Continues

C1559

“Lost in the Mist”

(South from Face Rock,

Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

4” x 6”

Click here to make this your Own

The next day the wind was not as bad, but was still off putting, so I had in mind to return to the wayside, and work up another oil sketch from one of the drawings done yesterday.  This is done looking north towards where Face Rock might be seen on a clearer day, to the left and beyond the farther sea-stacks just visible in the enshrouding mist.  When I was working on the sketchbook drawings, there was not a hint that Face Rock might be lurking in the fog. 

I chose a 4” x 6” panel because its heighth to width ratio is slightly longer than the other small panels, and I could use that extra length; it is the same ratio as many of my standard sized Watercolours.  I worked on the white ground with no imprimatura, so as to work in a bit of a higher key; I also wanted to see how the mist and fog would work out in this higher key.  I rarely if ever do a pencil drawing on the panel before beginning to paint, since oil paint grows more translucent as it ages, over time the graphite will show through, unlike charcoal or black chalk.  But this was too small a panel for charcoal or chalk, and I wanted the shapes to be perfect, so I lightly drew them in with pencil, and then dabbed the lines with a plastic eraser, until they were just visible enough.  Normally I draw in the composition with a brush in oil paint.

I used the same palette of Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Cobalt Blue and Cremnitz White,  as on the last painting, so that I might compare between similar misty scenes the affects of one having an imprimatura and one not. I applied the pigments thinly and with a bit of W&N Liquin added; later additions to this layer caught a bit better as the Liquin became tacky.  Without the warm imprimatura the work results in brighter paint layers, but one has to work a bit so that the finished piece does not end up too cold.  Both methods are inherently harmonious due to the limited palette, but the warmth imparted by using an earth red imprimatura is very seductive, and seems to reach a satisfactory state, with less work; perhaps this is not really so, but I will keep this question in mind while painting. 

The Wind Returns … with a Vengeance

C1558

“From out of the Mist”

(South from Face Rock,

Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Williamsburg Lead Primer

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

The wind has returned with a vengeance, but it hasn’t cleared away the fog of morning.  I decided to hike down onto the beach and check out if there was anywhere that might be sheltered enough to set up to paint and without blowing sand grains onto the wet paint.  Luckily I had the foresight to stick my smallest sketchbook and several pencils into my pocket, for the wind was vicious.  There were one or two spots that I might have been able to work from, but the subject matter was not really good enough.  I decided to jot down a couple of compositional sketches.  It is worthwhile doing these quick drawings, as one can work for 10 or 15 minutes from positions that would be too windy to set up for an oil sketch, or in a position threatened by sneaker waves or the incoming tide.  I completed three of these small studies, and intended to do a few more, but the wind was so fierce and blowing stinging sand when I attempted to move between a small promontory and an island, that I thought better of it and retreated to the cliff-top and my truck.  I also feared that the fine blowing sand might penetrate into my camera bag to the detriment of my equipment.  I then drove a couple miles down to a small wayside park surrounded by forest enough that would allow me to work sheltered from the worst of the wind.  Here I would do an oil sketch from one of the drawings I had just completed.  I remember doing a Watercolour from a pencil sketch of waves rolling in out of the mist on a fog-bound Croyde Bay in North Devon, back in the nineties; I would now do something similar.

I had already prepared several panels with Venetian Red imprimaturas before going down below the cliffs and drawing, so I took one of these, and proceeded with the block-in using Cobalt Blue mixed with W&N Liquin so it would set up tacky fairly quickly.  My palette was Cobalt Blue, Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red and Cremnitz White.  This restricted earth palette and blue, that you have observed me using for many of these paintings, gives a low key but harmonious work since all the colours one sees in the finished piece come through the mixing of these four pigments; thus two or more pigments are in every mixture of every colour you see here, and this produces a natural harmony.  By using an imprimatura of the Venetian Red, its warmth glows through the entire work and increases the harmony as well. 

Still on the Beach

C1556

“High Tide and Fog Banks”

(South from Face Rock,

Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

The breezes still remained clement, and so I went back down to the beach south of the Face Rock Viewpoint, ensconced myself on a rock just above the morning’s high tide mark, and began to paint the view to the south towards the islands in the near the Devil’s Kitchen.  They faded in and out as the fog banks thickened and thinned, never quite overwhelming them nor slackening either.  Above was high cloud and the Sun was present for a good portion of the painting session.  Close to, were several stacks which were surrounded by water at the high tide and this state of the tide is here depicted.  Beyond the Devil’s Kitchen, were hills of the coast range but they were obscured shortly after beginning to work and never reappeared, until towards the end of the session; I decided it was too late to put them in.  Painting on site is always a series of decisions, often on the fly and throughout the session.  These sorts of decisions in one of my studio Watercolours would be worked out in the design and drawing stage, and rarely deviated from, but then this is what sketching is all about; note taking in its purest form. 

I went with the usual Venetian Red imprimatura, although I took awhile to decide to go with it rather than go straight in on the white ground only.  I could have gone either way.  Cerulean Blue was mainly used in the sky and the lighter sea-greens, with Cobalt Blue mixed with Venetian Red formed the basis of the browns and greys; Cobalt Blue and Yellow Ochre was mixed for the deeper sea-greens; Cremnitz White rounded out the palette. 

Once again … onto the Beach

C1555

“Elephant Island enshrouded in a Bank of Fog”

(Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

Today was a quieter day and surprise, surprise, the breeze is from the South or a change … and lighter, but funnily enough still a bit chill.  I was tempted by several spots to set up until I found this view.  It appeared that the morning’s high tide had reached about here, but this afternoon’s high tide would be a bit lower, and as I suspected did not reach as far as my set up.  It seems that at this time of the year, when the wind isn’t blowing cold and hard from the North then banks of fog play hide and seek with the coastal stacks and islands, as is here depicted in the distance with Elephant Island.  This Island or rock definitely does live up to its name, as their seems to be a herd of the pachyderms embedded in the rock; I see a frieze that continues around two sides of the island, and for all I know continues on around the seaward side that I haven’t been able to see.  Of course the herd was not to be seen during this painting session.  Although there was wan sunlight at the beginning, it soon was lost in the overcast, much as the offshore stacks and islands. 

Venetian Red was the imprimatura, and Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Cobalt Blue and Cremnitz White were the pigments used, all by W & N.

Finally … onto the Beaches

C1554

“Offshore Seamist Rising”

(Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

Although there was still a wind from the North, it was not as strong as it has been for the past weeks, more of a stiff breeze, but I was determined to start painting the sea-stacks on Bandon Beach.  I decided to work below the south facing cliff of a promontory, where I painted once before last November.  There is a little ledge keeping one off the sand, and with a little overhang to keep the Sun off for part of the time.  The wind was gusty enough that fine sand sifted down from the cliff top throughout my painting session, and by the time I had finished it seemed as though I had been painting with sand.  I was not unduly worried since I have had this happen before, admittedly to a lesser extent.  Two days later when the work was touch dry I was able to brush off most of the sand from the sky and sea, and left a bit on the cliff and beach in the foreground to add texture.  The more stubborn flecks I disposed of with the judicious use of the tip of a scalpel blade … a very useful tool.  Perhaps I should have left more on as souvenirs.  It was a generally sunny day with cloud coming and going, and for the first part of the session there was an off shore bank of sea-mist moving from north to south with the breeze, which I was able to capture.  It never came onto shore, which I half expected, but remained out on the water just beyond the sea-stacks I was painting. 

Again I chose to lay down an imprimatura of Venetian Red, which was perfect in adding a warmth glowing through the cooler pigments brushed over it when depicting the rising bank of fog.  I used a bristle brush throughout, capitalizing upon its ability to add interesting texture to the painted surface.  In my Watercolour work I sometimes add interest to areas of a painting by building up thin layers with dry-brushed strokes and crosshatching using older brushes and splaying their hairs sort of like a leaf rake in shape; I’m getting a similar effect with the bristle brush lightly applying he paint at a shallow angle to the surface. 

The rest of the pigments used were Cerulean & Cobalt Blues, a little bit of Ultramarine Blue, Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, and Cremnitz & Titanium Whites.  Cerulean is used mainly in the sky & sea, with perhaps a little Cobalt Blue added, however Cobalt Blue is mainly used to make the lovely greys when combined with Venetian Red.  When a deeper toned grey is required, then Ultramarine replaces the Cobalt Blue in the mixture.  To be honest Ultramarine could replace Cobalt Blue throughout, but I like the softer greys produced with the Cobalt, as well as the quieter greens it produces.   A couple of minute touches of Cadmium Yellow Pale, hinted at the yellow flowers in the grasses on the top of the right hand island.

Fisherman in the Mist

C1553

“Fisherman in the Mist”

(Muddy Lake, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

With additional coat of Rublev Lead Primer

5" x 7"

SOLD

After several days at the Lost Lake section of the New River ACEC, I returned to Muddy Lake to work on a “misty dawn” painting that I had been thinking about.  My intent was to capture the feel of pre-dawn mist rising across the lake from the observation hide, and include the Great Egret almost hidden in the mist, fishing where he is often to be seen.  I began by making a small drawing of the proposed composition in my smallest sketchbook, and then took the bull by the horns and dove into the Oil Sketch.

Because I wanted to use some brighter colours than I have been using on most of the posts thus far, I went to work straight onto the white ground of the linen panel, without laying down the usual imprimatura of earth red.  I painted in the sky and the lake with Cobalt Blue, Cadmium Yellow Pale, and Rose Madder (Genuine), mixed with Titanium White (all W&N).  I chose this white as it is the brightest white, although it has to be used with care, since it is such a cold white, opaque and can ill you colours.  The dark tree and its reflection to the left, was painted with the quieter earth colours of Yellow Ochre & Venetian Red, and Ultramarine for the Blue.  Here, when I needed white in the mix, I used Cremnitz, since it isn’t a “colour- killer.”  In mixing the colours for the lily pads I used a mixture of Cremnitz & Titanium for the white.  Thus the palette for this painting was composed of two colour triads: the more traditional with the earth colours, and the other using the more modern and brighter pigments, plus the whites.  I would also point out that the sky colours in the original sketch are a bit more subtle than what I'm seeing on my screen; monitors being what they are, what you are probably seeing on yours will be different from what I am seeing anyway, but I thought I'd mention it.

The Great Egret is hidden in the mist a can be seen in the detail of the painting seen below.

Sand Dunes & Shore Pines

C1552

“Sand Dunes & Shore Pines”

(Lost Lake ACEC, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

with an additional Priming Coat of Rublev Lead White in Oil

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

After spending two afternoons on the previous painting, “Evening Light on Lost Lake,” I went back to the Lost Lake ACEC, and went on past the lake and came out onto the sand dunes and found myself still out of sight of the sea.  I was taken by this vista and found a vantage point tucked in under the edge of a wood of Shore Pines, out of the main force of the wind, but not as sheltered as at Lost Lake itself; I ended the day of painting a bit shivery with the chill north wind.  Shore Pines are, evidently, a type of Lodgepole Pine, found throughout the West; the latter being used for tepees of course. 

Again I used the bristle brush, and you can see the character of its use by studying the brushwork in the sky; more evident than in the previous two paintings.  Here you can really see the affect of the Venetian Red imprimatura on the blue sky towards the horizon, how it warms that part.  If you look close you can see the texture of the strokes, and gives an excitement to the sky other than would be achieved by a smooth gradation; at a sufficient viewing distance, the eye will blend these strokes and smooth out this texture … this is called optical blending.  But that is not really the point, since as a small work you will be looking at it more closely, and the stokes and texture will be more interesting than that if you back away at some point it will be a smoother gradation.  I used the same bristle brush again throughout … I had thought to use a smaller brush later, but it was not necessary. 

Pigments used Cerulean, Cobalt Blues, Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, and Cremnitz White.

Evening Light on Lost Lake

C1551

“Evening Light on Lost Lake”

(Lost Lake ACEC, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

with an additional Priming Coat of Rublev Lead White in Oil

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

At the end of both days that I worked on the previous painting of Lost Lake, I was impressed by the evening light, and determined to capture the mood in my next painting.  So I went back for a third day and set to work.  This view is about 70º to the right of that one.  I began with an imprimatura of Venetian Red, and into this I blocked in the light and shade with Ultramarine Blue, partially from memory, but also deciding on compositional grounds where to organize these. 

In John Carlson’s book on landscape painting (which I have read is referred to by some as the Bible for the landscape painter), he mentions painting with bristle brushes for his larger works, and with sables for his smaller.  I had not remembered that when I began these small works in Oil, but I have been painting most of them with soft brushes such as sables, or synthetic soft haired brushes, partly by choice, but also because I wanted to brushes with short handles to fit into compact painting gear.  On this one, and also the previous painting of Lost Lake, I used a #3 hog bristle brush throughout (made by Rowney and purchased 30 or more years ago), except of course, for my signature.  It is a first-class brush, and I was surprised how I was able to get such narrow applications of pigment in the line-work of the dead tree trunks, for example, just using the chisel shape of the tip of the brush.  Regular painters in Oil will not be surprised, but remember I’ve been mainly a Watercolour painter throughout my career.  I had started with the bristle in order to start with a larger brush than my soft short handled ones and to see how far I could get before I would have to switch to the synthetic or sable soft hairs, but in the end I stuck with the bristle all the way to the end; it was also about 5/16” in width.  I liked the character of the brush stroke as well, and you can see this in the sky of both paintings, where a little bit of the warmth of the imprimatura shows through; the strokes are also more evident. 

While painting here I’ve been mulling over the dead tree trunks sticking up from the water throughout the lake.  Usually this is because man has built a dam and formed new lake behind, but these trees look to be old possibly centuries old.  I reckon that what happened was that some hundreds of years ago, the sand dunes, which are to the left beyond the trees in the last painting, blocked off the outflow stream and formed a natural dam thus forming this small lake.

Pigments used Cerulean, Cobalt & Ultramarine Blues, Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, and Cremnitz White, with a very little Cadmium Yellow & Cadmium Yellow Pale for the brighter greens.

Lost Lake Idyll

C1550

“Afternoon on Lost Lake”

(Lost Lake ACEC, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

with an additional Priming Coat of Rublev Lead White in Oil

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

Last post I was telling you about discovering the New River ACEC (Area of Critical Environmental Concern), and Muddy Lake in particular.  I thought Muddy Lake could not be improved upon, but I was wrong; Lost Lake ACEC is idyllic in a wilderness, not a pastoral, sort of way.  Being from Minnesota, Lost Lake is really more of a long narrow pond to me, but that gives it a more secluded personal feel.  There are three points along its length where the water’s edge may be accessed, and the third of these is the best.  I spent four days painting here. 

I viewed the different directions from the small area of shore and decided on this view to the north; the Ocean would be to the left several hundred yards away, out of the trees and over some sand dunes.  I set up my painting gear and proceeded to lay down a Venetian Red imprimatura, and then a block-in of the major shapes of the composition with Ultramarine Blue mixed with a touch of Venetian Red.  Over this I applied a colour layer on the simple shapes of the block-in, so that there was now a simply modeled colour composition, with little detail.  The next afternoon I refined and corrected these shapes, and added details, bringing the painting to a satisfactory conclusion.  I use the term detail advisedly since there is no detail compared to many of my Watercolours, and being ware that for many Plein Aire painters, it will be too detailed; it is the direction I am striving for, as you will be aware having read “The Journey” tab.  The rest of the colours used were Cerulean, Cobalt & Ultramarine Blues, Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, and Cremnitz White, with a very little Cadmium Yellow & Cadmium Yellow Pale for the brighter greens.

The whole time I was working there were about a half a dozen Cedar Waxwings flitting from tree trunk to tree trunk, catching insects, sometimes almost hovering like hummingbirds in their attempts to capture them; I was unaware of this habit since those that I had seen in Oklahoma over the Winter before last, mainly fed on berries, it seemed.  A pair of Kingfishers also did their Kingfisher things, and a noisy Wren scolded me on occasion; the odd Turkey Vulture rode the wind overhead, reminding me that the coastal “breezes” were still there, and why I was here.  Other wildlife including Dragonflies and Damselflies went about their business.  I am always amazed at what appears when you are quietly painting away in the woods; it felt like Eden.

Discovering some Forest Lakes

C1549

“Afternoon on Muddy Lake”

(New River ACEC, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Ampersand Gesso Panel

with an additional Priming Coat of Rublev Lead White in Oil

5” x 7”

SOLD

After months of preparing to launch this blog, and finally doing so, and sending out an old fashioned mail-shot, by snail-mail, and then testing and tweaking it and Daily Paintworks for a couple more weeks, last week I was able to finally return to painting full time; of course I have to prepare these posts and spend time at the library posting them via their free Wi-Fi, but I’m back to the plan.  Summer weather here on this stretch of Oregon coast is usually in the 60s Fº (65º F is about 18.5º C for you in the rest of the World), but with a chill north wind prevailing and making it feel much colder; and I thought Cornwall was windy! 

Biding my time for and waiting for those days when the wind might lessen, I discovered the New River ACEC (Area of Critical Environmental Concern), series of four parcels of BLM land (Bureau of Land Management), along the New River a few miles south of Bandon.  The wind here, just a few hundred yard from the open beaches, is much reduced and so more manageable.  The New River parallels the coast separated from the Pacific Ocean by a few hundred yards of sand dunes before it empties into the sea.  On the landward side of the New River, lie several forest lakes situated in the various New River ACECs; two of these are Storm Ranch and Lost Lake, and what a discovery!  I’ve spent several days painting at both.  Muddy Lake at the Storm Ranch ACEC is depicted above from the observation blind.  With the Summer weather the lake level is dropping and so the lily pads are sticking up out of the water; perhaps this annual occurrence is why it is called Muddy Lake.  There is a certain amount of birdlife here including a resident Heron and a Great White Egret, both of which tend to work the opposite side of the lake, as they seem to be aware of the occasional viewer at the blind.  There are several other trails through other types of terrain at the Storm Ranch ACEC, but so far I’ve been side-tracked by the Muddy Lake; if the wind on the beaches continues to be a problem I may get to sample them, provided the lake doesn’t intervene.

Over the years as I’ve met other artists and the various patrons who have acquired my work, questions arise such as inspiration, materials used and such.  Generally this journal is written with them/you in mind, and is why I end each posting with a mention of the materials used, and sometimes a bit more of how I proceeded on a particular work; it also provides a bit of a record of what pigments were used in any particular work.  I am painting these sketches, studies and small paintings in Oil, on commercial panels, usually made of an archival hardboard, some of which are covered in a linen canvas, and then coated with layer of a white priming; this primer may be of an acrylic gesso or an oil based primer of titanium pigment.  I have also been adding a final layer of a traditional lead in oil primer, as was used by the Old Masters, when I have time o do so; this must be done in advance by several weeks for it to set up properly.  The priming layer is also known as the ground.  Over this white ground at the beginning of the day’s work, I many times will lay down a thin transparent layer of pigment, and this is called the imprimatura; as a landscape artist I tend to use an earth red pigment, such as Burnt Sienna or Venetian Red.  These colours add a warmth to the following paint layers, and if there are spots that are missed by the ensuing brush strokes the warm earth tones showing through just add to the interest of the painting, and being a complementary of the prevailing green of a landscape allow those greens to sing instead of being too overpowering.

And so, Techies, the imprimatura was Burnt Sienna (alkyd), with the pigments used were Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Cobalt and Cerulean Blues, & Cremnitz White, and just a little Cadmium Yellow Pale was used for some of the brighter greens.  I worked o this over two successive afternoons.  The first day the colours seemed a bit too slippery beneath the brush, and I’m thinking it was the Alkyd Burnt Sienna imprimatura that I had applied several days earlier and was thoroughly dry.  Alkyd is a synthetic resin that was developed in the 1930s, I believe, and is compatible with Oil Paint, and dries quite rapidly, compared to Oil; I will have to keep this in mind in future to see if this is true.  The second day the first layer, which was really just a block-in at this stage, was just a little tacky and so took the paint quite nicely and I rapidly finished it off.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did painting it … well the second afternoon’s work.

On the Coquille River at Bandon Marsh

C1508

“The Turn of the Tide”

(Coquille River at Bandon Marsh, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Centurion Oil Primed Linen Panel

4” x 6”

Click here to make this your Own

This is the Coquille River about a mile and a half or so from where it enters the Sea at Bandon, Oregon, and we are looking across at Bandon Marsh, a protected  Nature Reserve, and at the turn of the tide.  As I painted from the driver’s seat of my SUV, it being too drizzly off and on to do otherwise, I watched those big tree trunks out in the river slowly drift upstream to the left, as the tide rose.  Eventually they slowed, became stationary for a time, and gradually began to move back to the right towards the sea, as the river’s current began to take over again; perhaps they might make it to the open sea this time before the next rising tide. 

And yes, there was birdlife to be seen and enjoyed.  Besides the odd seagull, there were various ducks and waterfowl, but I was too busy painting to try and identify them unless I already was familiar with them, such as the heron keeping vigil in front of where I painted.  Although I am not a wildlife artist per se, I am interested in and do enjoy observing them, and so they do get included from time to time, as staffage in my work, much as others include people in their cityscapes.  I am sure there were more to be seen across the river in the marsh. 

I had tried to find a spot further up the river, where the marsh is more extensive, but there were no lay-bys from which to paint from the truck, but here was good enough, as the drifting logs, the birdlife, the bit of mist drifting in and out over the marsh, and the light effects, made for an entertaining painting session.  The real subject of the sketch is the light breaking through and reflecting on the water, with the promise of a better afternoon; it was just a promise.  In Oregon, that patch of blue sky that comes to nothing is called “a sucker hole.”

The imprimatura was a mixture of Burnt Sienna & Venetian Red, and the pigments used were Yellow Ochre, Naples Yellow (hue), Burnt Sienna, Venetian Red, Cobalt Blue, a bit of Ultramarine Blue and Ivory Black, and a touch of Gold Ochre; all by W&N, save for the black which was by Bloccx.  I know, I know; you’re wondering why so many colours, for a grey painting?  I had some of the colours still on my palette from the last painting session, and I was also testing various mixtures for the greys; the Gold Ochre was to see if it would brighten up the strip of marsh in the brightening light breaking through the clouds; perhaps it did a bit.

The Coast at Christmas

C1537

“Looking North from Face Rock Overlook”

(Bandon, Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Telati Pintura Oil Primed Linen Panel

6” x 8”

Click here to make this your Own

As I said in a previous post (here), I returned to the Oregon Coast on Christmas Eve, and made my way down to Bandon by the 27^th.  Just before the end of the year I managed to finish this sketch of part of Bandon Beach from the cliffs at the Face Rock overlook (I will deal with Face Rock in a future post).  This gives you a bit of an idea of the coast here at Bandon; islands and sea stacks, reminiscent of Bedruthan Steps, North Cornwall near where I lived for many years.  Bedruthan was wilder in feel since it was miles from any town, and it was more personal in a way since most of the sea stacks were closer in to the shore, but there are corners of Bandon Beach where this is true also.  An aside here … Bedruthan Steps was named for a giant who in fleeing from the Devil ran across the sea stacks to his escape; the Devil seems to have certain real estate connected with him in Cornwall as well as numerous acreages here in Oregon, although Oregon seems to have the edge for some reason (see here). 

The island just to the left of center, against which the wave is crashing, is called Elephant Rock (or maybe it’s Island).  There is just a hint of why this is so called in my sketch, and there seems to be a frieze of elephants within the island seen from various vantage points; once seen … not forgotten.  Table Rock (here) is the one on the far right in the distance; at the time of this writing it is covered in nesting Cormorants, along with many of the others, which I just noticed the other day.

For you sharp-eyed observers … yes, that is gorse on the sloping cliff in the foreground.  It was brought over in the 19^th c. from Ireland by a homesick Bandon resident; it has also been responsible for the burning down of Bandon on at least one occasion in the town’s history.  Having lived in Cornwall, and visited Scotland several times, I have a soft spot for the gorse, although it is not highly regarded by many hereabouts; but in the Springtime when it is in full bloom it is magnificent, and with no sheep and goats keeping it in down this Gorse is some of the finest I’ve ever seen.  Tell me, for those of whom it is familiar … does it smell like peaches or coconut to you?

And not forgetting the tech-heads, the imprimatura is Venetian Red, and the pigments used were the triad of Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red and Cobalt Blue plus Titanium White (all W&N); a restricted palette, but a useful one I’m finding. 

Still Painting at Seal Rock(s)

C1534

“Receding Tide at Seal Rock”

(Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Telati Pintura Linen Panel

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

A week later I was still painting at Seal Rock, weathering a storm on the 1^st of December, when I got another two small sketches completed from the driver’s seat of my SUV.  On this last sketch I again chose a view similar to the previous post, but it’s earlier in the day and the tide is receding, allowing for reflections on the expanse of wet sand; always interesting to paint.  There was an obliging flock of gulls pottering about on the wet sand doing gull things, and just generally reflecting … philosophical reflections, no doubt (sorry) … so I just dabbed them in with my brush.  I enjoyed the previous 5 weeks painting on the coast, especially since I only was going to spend a few days painting down there, after the exhibition opening in Bandon. 

There was no imprimatura this time, and I went straight into drawing with a brush on the white linen panel with the usual suspects: Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Cobalt Blue, and Titanium White, all from W&N.

Meanwhile back on the Coast

C1529

“November Afternoon at Seal Rock”

(Oregon Coast)

Oil Sketch on Ampersand Gesso Panel

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

Meanwhile back on the coast, the weather was good and there were seascapes waiting to be painted, so after my couple of days up in the mountains, I worked my way down to Seal Rock a few miles south of Newport.  At Seal Rock, of all the rocks here at the State Park, there is no one rock that is called Seal Rock.  One might think that this large one might be it, but no … none are.  Being bemused by this I sometimes call them in the plural and some of the captions of my several paintings of this area are entitled thus, depending on how I’m feeling at the time; contrary or otherwise.  I managed two paintings on his day, the morning one being in one of my Galleries at present.  This was Thanksgiving Day, and then still managed a dinner of smoked salmon & vegetables on a bed of cous cous cooking it after dark; a bit different from my Thanksgiving Day ham sandwich of the year before up at Blizzard Gap on Hwy 140 at 6200’, on my way to Winnemucca, Nevada, and points east.  I found a forest clearing six miles up in the mountains from Seal Rock and made it my campsite for 8 nights, coming down to paint every day.  I managed seven Oil sketches during the days spent here including two during the 1^st of December storm which swept in; most are in galleries, but there will be another on my next post.  

The morning haze cleared and as the tide receded, and the shadows began to lengthen I worked up this 2^nd sketch.  Over an imprimatura of Venetian Red, the pigments used were the triad of Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red and Cobalt Blue plus Titanium White (all W&N).  I’m quite pleasantly surprised to get the sea-greens as well as the green of the grass on the top of the big rock from just the mixture of Cobalt Blue & Yellow Ochre; I shouldn’t be since I got a range of mixed greens when mixing in Watercolour, but I’ve not done as much with Oil as I have with Watercolour over the years.

Morning Clouds

C1527

“Sky Study … Moon Setting just before the Sun Rises”

(Oregon Coast Range)

Oil Sketch on Ampersand Gesso Panel

5” x 7”

Click here to make this your Own

Last November after leaving Bandon, Oregon where I’d been painting for a couple of weeks I drifted north and found a clearing in the National Forest up in the Coast Range, and a few miles inland from Cape Perpetua; here I spent a couple of days.  One morning I saw this wonderful pink cloudscape and put it down while it was fresh in my mind.  It’s always worth turning to the sky opposite from where the Sun I rising or setting; you may just see the Moon doing the opposite of the Sun, as well as catching some colour schemes not seen in any other way.  I have seen similar morning clouds before, both before and shortly after the sun rises, and these wonderful soft clouds fill the sky and seem to promise, and usually does, a fine day; this day was no exception.  This work is a Study and as such I could have left the forested mountains out, but I added them so that there would be an anchor to show where the clouds were in relation to the ground and to remind me that this was in the Oregon Coast Range and a few miles from the Sea; I didn’t actually have a view, but only glimpses of the mountains and the Sea through the grove of Red Alders. 

After I completed the study I explored the area, driving a few miles further inland down into the valleys searching for a couple of covered bridges; I found one, but there was nowhere to set up to paint it, nor to really take good photos, although I did take some average, informational ones.  The valleys were frosty and cold with frost building up thickly on the north facing slopes, while up at 2000 feet where I camped remained much warmer, even at night; camp at altitude, boys, and stay warm! 

I’ve always been good at painting my skies in Watercolour, but since I never liked working outdoors in that medium I never did a series of cloud studies, as Constable did throughout his life; with these small Oils I expect there to be more to come.  I reckon Constable would have taken photos for reference material as well as his small sky studies … yes, he would have … don’t argue!

Over the imprimatura of Venetian Red I used the following pigments, Cobalt Blue, Cadmium Red, Yellow Ochre & Titanium White (all by Winsor & Newton), as well as Caput Mortuum (by Schmincke), a lovely purply Earth Red.