Aaron Holland Fine Art

Remember plein air painters and nature lovers...

Hunting season is just around the corner. Leave the Antler-hats and Leather coats at home!

For the dedicated landscape painter- one must be able to draw trees.

There are very few scenes in the landscapes that do not have trees in them... For that reason I did this small study of a Conifer.

The goal was to render the tree carefully and paint it swiftly ("painterly"). and also to convey a light-source, which is moving from right to left across the tree.

The foreground was unimportant to me in this sketch, so the golden-colored canvas was simply left unworked.

PS- The saying about "Moving Mountains" is especially applicable to the artist. This painting was painted on a busy street with many buildings all around, but I felt very satisfied at being able to mightily move them out of my picture! HA!

Nature's impressions are fleeting, so it is a good idea to know what the end result of the painting is going to look like before starting!

A great feature of plein air painting is that these quick, little studies can be brought back into the studio to be used as a reference for larger paintings. Photography can be an art form in and of itself, and can be a useful tool to the artist, but the "Impressionist" is often better served by relying on a study like this and memories about the place; The painting will reflect more clearly what is important, and will help strengthen skills of observation.

Below is a demonstration on a Plein Air technique that I use for painting in one session:

Step 1: The Drawing

Begin by drawing an outline of the major elements in the scene. I used a thinned mixture of Ivory Black and Permanent Alizarin. Begin to make notes of any and all shadows; in this picture the sun was high so there were only a few prominent shadow shapes.

Step 2: The Wash

With thinned, and somewhat transparent, paint I cover the canvas. I want the painting to look like the finished picture as soon as possible! I work in simple, flat masses of color. Often-times I will work with the flat side of a china brush in a scubbing motion (against the bristles) to apply paint. When the canvas is covered I begin to paint opaquely.

Step 3: Thick Paint.

I now begin to add opaque paint ( once the canvas is covered), and at the same time I continue to develop more specific shapes and colors.

Step 4: Finish

Develop details, refine shapes, build up thicker paint in the lights. More blended color in the background, more broken color in the forground.

"Gill"s Rock" oil on linen 8 x 10" HOLLAND

"More than any other subject, water must be painted in terms of rhythm. It is impossible to capture each rivulet and splash of foam. Rather than drawing the anatomy of the water, you should squint your eyes and look for the areas of contrasting value. Squinting eliminates the unnecessary details."

Paul Strisik was born in New York, but lived in Rockport, Ma. since 1952 where he painted full time and frequently traveled in this country and abroad to enjoy the challenge of new subjects. He was a dedicated plein air painter, finding that even the briefest outdoor studies serve better than photographs to carry him back to the subject to remind him of the feeling, the light and the mood of the place. An occasional interior or still life offers him a change of pace from his outdoor activities. He worked in both oil and watercolor.

Paul studied at the Art Students League in New York with Frank Vincent Dumond. It was from Dumond that he learned about cause and effect, to learn what causes appearances in order to paint the effect with understanding.

There are only a few rivers where I live.

One of them (though it is really only a stream) runs through a large open field of tall grass .

The day was hazy, and I followed the stream as it meandered through the grass, looking for a place to paint...

It was an enjoyable walk. I was heading back to the car to get my gear when there was a disturbance in the grass- a large movement. I was hoping to see a deer, which always makes the day better, but was happily surprised to see a large Turkey (about three feet, round) pop up not ten feet away.

Ahhhh, nature.

Turkeys are common, and I have seen a number of them, but none so close as this one. Just last week someone had mentioned that Benjamin Franklin had wanted to make it the National bird. This person laughed and expressed his relief that it was not chosen, because "it's rather a dumb bird", he said.

I didn't know about that, but those were my thoughts as I looked on this large bird.

He didn't fly away as I expected him to, instead he began cackling very loudly and flapping his wings and running around. I gave it a wide berth, but instead of running away he started running towards me. I moved back, he moved forward. I moved left, he moved right. It was not your typical square dance. All the time it was cackling loudly at the air.

I was pretty sure I could take it if I had to, but I didn't want to find out how I was going to do it.

I stopped to see if it would just keep going, but it kept circling and cackling and flapping its wings wildly.

I made loud noises and kicked at the air. Now I was looking as dumb as the Turkey. (A grown man yelling and kicking and waving his hands at a turkey smacks of the ridiculous, but I assure you it happened just as I am describing it).

Well, the Turkey finally ran off when the Vultures arrived.

I looked into one of their eyes (so cold as death). I could hear their wings flap just above me. Needless to say, I didn't stick around to talk Turkey with them.

I walked rather briskly from the scene scratching my head and decided I could surely find a more peaceful place to paint than this...