gelli monoprints of leaves and ferns

8x10 monoprints on Reeves paper

Since being back from Greece I've been playing with using leaves and ferns in monoprints.  Of course the fig leaf had such a wonderful shape, but this is New England, the land of maples and oaks,  and of course a Boston fern, so I had to use what was at hand.  The printed images were intriguing as they had such texture and detail that I thought they might be nice just by themselves.  They were printed with Golden Open paint-a slow drying acrylic.  Though making more of a decorative effect,  I enjoyed their beauty and simplicity.

Meanwhile I have two pieces ready for the Concord Art Association Holiday Show in December, and am working on some small studies for larger more abstract pieces.  

Mystic River Festival

 The Farm Stand

14x17 oil and acrylic on board

photo at the Mystic River Festival

Last Saturday afternoon I painted with a group of plein air painters at the Mystic River Festival in Medford.  I had done this before and had a great time-good food, music and the young man operating the farm stand provided me with apple cider and donuts!  And the sun came out.  Jenn DesAutels, painter and illustrator (Jennifer Cheng DesAutels Illustrations: StudioJCD.com), did a great job of organizing us and also arranged for the paintings to be shown at Mystic Coffee Roaster in Medford, 30 Riverside Ave., Medford. The opening is tomorrow and the paintings will be on display for a month.

Thanks, Jenn!

Does sitting on a painting improve it?

preliminary oil sketch

17x11 RayMar canvas panel

Well that's a good question.  I'd say it did. I painted this a week ago an placed it on the front passenger seat of my car.  The next week I let my grand daughter out of her car seat and she hopped in front and sat right on the wet canvas!  We were both surprised and able to laugh about how she helped me paint.  This inspired an attempt to capture the image again by print making with a Gelli plate.  Here are three versions, none of which I love but thought I'd share them.  I'll continue to work with this image as I find it captivating and it brings back the memory of standing at the foot of the hill which overlooks the harbor in Skopelos, Greece.  There had been a wedding at the church and there were 3 inch strips of mylar littering the ground, thus adding a magical quality.  When I climbed up for a look inside there was a service going on, complete with chanting, incense, a priest and a small group of worshipers.  A solemn moment so rich with history.  And the rocks were beautiful-a sheer wall of them below the church which was built onto them.

Art making in Skopelos, Greece

I just got back from a fabulous trip to Greece!  Lucky lady am I!  My teacher, Adria Arch, taught an 8 day class on the island of Skopelos in Greece.  This was through the Island Center for the Arts http://www.islandcenter.org/  We spent two nights in Athens touring around the old section and had a fabulous tour of the Acropolis our second night.  Our tour guide was Isabel, from the Island Center and she did a wonderful job of bringing the site to life.  Of course the main focus was intuitive painting and Adria led us into interesting (and sometimes new for me) ways to approach art.  We were able to work outdoors all the time-either on site or at the veranda of an unused restaurant.  Below are some prints made with a Gelli plate, torn paper collages, paintings using Caran d'Ache, and an acrylic painting.

We also spent a fair amount of time swimming in the Aegean Sea, walking. shopping, eating, learning about Greek culture from Isabel, and making new friends.  Unforgettable!  

Painting in Jaffrey New Hampshire

Apple Trees

11x14 oil on board

I had the honor of painting out in Jaffrey with a group of wonderful artists this past week.  This is their 8th year of gathering together for a week of making art.  It couldn't have gone better--great people making wonderful art and food and good weather to boot!  Many thanks to Carolyn Letvin for inviting me, Carolyn Kimloch-Winkler for organizing the week,  and to all the other artists for being so welcoming and helpful.  I hope to be able to join you again next year!

View to the Hills

(half way up Mt. Monadnock)

12x12 

oil on board

Shadows and Rocks

11x14

oil on board

Lilypads

14x11

oil on board

Ginny's House

9x8

oil on linen

The Marsh

6x6 

oil on board

Shadows on the Hill

10x8

oil on canvas

Two new paintings

Rocks and Shore

11x15

acrylic on paperboard

On My Walk

12x12

oil on masonite

I realized I've been neglecting to post on this blog so thought I'd catch up with two new paintings.  The lower was started outdoors last summer and tucked away after I started the Spy Pond project.  It's a scene I pass almost every day and just love the lighting, which tends to be the same late morning, but the color changes with the seasons.  I painted this scene in the fall and hope to this winter also.  

It's been quite a week in Boston and I'm hoping all that were injured can heal and that we can spread a peaceful message.  Go Red Sox!  My goal is to see them this summer.  I also hope to shift to plein air painting again soon and will post more.  Also check out my other blog,  52spypond.blogspot.com., which I usually update weekly.