Pomengranates

After several duds, I finally decided to do some still life. Promengranates are in season now, and so I bought a case of them. Such interesting fruit to paint - round yet angular. The basket is woven sweetgrass that I brought back from Charleston.

Sunlit corner

Ian showed me this sweet spot at the edge of the house, of lights and darks, horizontals and verticals. The morning sun changed so fast, that it became confusing and was difficult to finish on location. I did take a good photo and completed it at home.
This completes the South Carolina workshop pieces.

Roadway by Blue Heron Pond

The roadway was backlit by the afternoon sun, and the feathery type of bushes looked magical.

The Marsh at Kiawah

We were looking at the different hues in the marsh grasses in the autumn, and how yellow ochre unifies the big mass of the marsh. I added the puddle of water afterwards, to anchor the mass. Next day at high tide, only strips of grass were showing.

Kiawah Island

We were painting masses and shapes that were interesting, and in this case, were overlapping too. The flat golden plane is the marsh.

The Dove Field

Back to Mullet Hall, South Carolina - this is the dove hunting field - the doves sit on the wires. There was back lighting, and the little corn shoots were lit up like fairy lights. Ian muted my yellow dabs - too distracting.

November in Ontario

Painted in a workshop today with my group. We were shown the effects of priming the canvas with a strong colour. Mine was primed with burnt sienna, cad orange, alizarin crimson and some black for this fall scene. Makes the scene very warm - quite the opposite of the frigid weather here today.

Reflections

Last Friday, we went to paint at Mullet Hall, a private hunting lodge near Kiawah Island. Along the way, we did see alligators resting in the water. This composition is all about using the water and reflections as shapes.

Eagle Point

This is the afternoon painting of the same site, the tip of Kiawah Island, as yesterday's posting. The tide was receding and little crabs were scurrying around in places. I choose this view for the overlay of shapes - from layers of grasses to trees to the still foggy distance.

Foggy Morning at the Marsh

The full moon brought high tide, and so the path on the marshes was slightly flooded. It was a beautiful foggy morning that changed rapidly as we set up. I was working on seeing the many different colours in the marsh grass.

Alligator Pond

South Carolina was magnificent, the plein air workshop with Ian Roberts tremendous, and the whole reunion joyful. The suitcase with most of the paintings has not arrived yet, so I am posting what I have. This was a compositional quick study. Maybe it was quick because it did sit in the back of my mind that alligators have been seen here in the past.

Katie's Teapot

Katie brought me this teapot from South Africa and this is my first attempt at painting of it. I love its shape and vibrant colour.
Tomorrow I leave for South Carolina for a reunion and plein air painting workshop. Will have lots to post on my return.

Behind the Barn

This is actually the back corner of a riding arena, that was sunny and warm on a chilly fall day.

Sumac patch by country road

Early autumn, my sister Francesca and I were in the Kingston area on an equestrian clinic, and at breaks would walk down this delightful little county road. I made a sketch of this vivid spot in nature. It is said that a tea made from the fruit of the sumac has all the nutrients needed to sustain a person for many days, should they be lost in the forest.

Laurentian Foothills

Dec 12 - have added some shrubs to break up the big green field.

Behind us are our mini mountains, the Laurentian foothills that run along the Ottawa River. They go through the most interesting colours - from deep purples, intense cobalt blue to faded out greys. In the crisp morning air today, they are very blue. Maybe I painted them a little too dominant and the eye gets stuck there. Opinions?