JUNE
June 1, in the garden. The peas are growing, but the weeds are growing too.
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| Hand Weeding, 8 x 6" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 1, 2018 |
June 5: The field road cutting its way through the long grass, the dark brown of a newly planted field, the uppermost row of apple trees in the orchard and the edge of the woods. The evening shadows beginning to stretch across the fields as the day neared its end.
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| 8 x 16" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 5, 2018 |
I wanted a little higher perspective for this painting, so I set up my easel on the top of a woodpile.
June 10: Hanging out with a painting friend, and warming up for the Red Wing plein air event. The view looking across the valley. So much green!
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| 7 x 10" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 10, 2018 |
June 23: In the hayfield - timothy hay. Beautiful soft purples amongst the greens of the field. Red-wing Blackbirds and Bobolinks.
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| 10 x 8" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 23, 2018 |
And clouds.
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| 6 x 8" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 23, 2018 |
June 27th, evening. I wanted to paint the moonrise. I spent so much time wandering around, up and down hill and through the fields, that I missed the very beginning. But I set up my easel at the farm across the road and painted the moon rising over fields and fence-line trees.
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| 6 x 8" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 27, 2018 sold |
As the light faded and the fireflies came out I painted another quick study. I love the colors at this time of night! The dogs, who know they're not allowed there, snuck across the road and greeted me with tails wagging - time to quit and take them home again.
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| 7 x 5" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 27, 2018 sold |
But it was so lovely out, and the moon was so bright! I got a clip on light from the house and went out again, around 11pm, and began to paint while a few clouds passed over.
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| 6 x 8" plein air oil on linen/birch. June 27, 2018 sold |
JULY
July 6: A storm passed through and spoiled some of the hay. It was baled and waiting to be picked up off the field. Windrows of cut hay lay out to dry in the summer sun.
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| 8 x 16" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 6, 2018 |
July 9: An evening in the pasture. Gooseberry bushes around a great old oak tree. Shadows lengthen on the hillside, and the cattle, after a rest in the long grass, again slowly made their way across the pasture, continuing their grazing.
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| 9 x 12" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 9, 2018 |
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| 10 x 12" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 10, 2018 |
July 15th, evening. After a long day of indoor work, I escaped outside to paint the sky. Two little cloud studies, one facing south, and the other north.
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| 5 x 7" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 15, 2018 |
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| 5 x 7" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 15, 2018 |
Also in July, I finished up a commission, and did lots and lots of framing in preparation for the Stockholm Art Fair in Stockholm, Wisconsin.
It was a beautiful day for the art fair, on the shores of Lake Pepin, and I had a great time. Huge thank-you to everyone who stopped by, and especially those who took home paintings! I'm so grateful.
July 25. One night I had picked some wild yarrow out of the pastures along the edge of the woods. I had them in a pint canning jar, an old one with very thick glass. The yarrow stems dyed the water yellow.
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| Yarrow - 12 x 12" alla prima oil on linen/birch. July 25, 2018 |
July 27: Another night watching the sky.
Clouds to the northwest:
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| 7 x 5" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 27, 2018 |
And a quick little moonrise study:
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| 5 x 7" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 27, 2018 |
July 30. My two-year-old niece has been spending the week at the farm. She's so sweet, and so wild, and she never seems to stop moving! Even in her sleep she is not still. But I tried a quick little study of her in oil paint during her nap one day.
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| Naptime - 8 x 8" alla prima oil on linen/hardboard. July 30, 2018 |
July 31. We've had a few days with such beautiful cloud formations and I finally got out to paint some over the garden. I really enjoyed studying them and trying to figure out how to show their form and brightness. The garden was its own challenge with all those greens - from leeks, cucumbers, raspberries, corn - under the hot afternoon sun.
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| 12 x 9" plein air oil on linen/birch. July 31, 2018 |
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