Summer Plein Air Tuesdays: 3/6

The vrtucar ready to be loaded with art supplies

Our location was the shady park on the Rideau River opposite Billings Bridge Shopping Plaza.

Google map of painting location

The park had ample parking, plenty of shade and there was a pathway along the Rideau River where everyone in the group set up their easels.

We all faced Clifford Allen Island from various vantage points and we were entertained by the many birds, ducks, geese and gulls while we painted.

First painting 

I decided to do a small painting to start and I focussed on a beautiful tree that sloped out over the river. The rocks on the shore had interesting shapes and colours.

For my second painting I wanted to have water in the foreground. The water was shallow and an interesting shade of blue-green-burnt umber. My composition featured horizontal tree trunks in the middle ground that sat on a small sandbar that jutted out from Clifford Allen Island.

My second painting (incomplete)

Both paintings need some sprucing up at home. 

Painting number one (below) was a small piece ( 5x 7) and only took one hour. I love the colours (blue-orange-burnt umber) but the quick and loose style that I was using meant that the upper left section could use some more attention.

Painting number one needing a litttle more attention

Painting number two (below) was a larger piece ( 8x12 ) and took three hours. This painting also needs more attention. It was slightly damaged in transport (wet paint) which needs fixing. 

In addition to the repair, the background and foreground need some adjusting .

I was happy with the middle ground though - the horizontal trees, the shoreline along the sandbar.

Middle ground detail

I would like to add some of the geese and gulls that came and went as I painted.

Geese and ducks visited and left over the three hours

Would like to add some geese and ducks here

A gull on the large rock.

My reference photo

I took a reference photo at the end of the session so that I would be able to touch up my painting.

The plein air group reviewing potential locations for our next session.

Looking forward to the next session. 

Through consensus we agreed to paint at the Experimental Farm next.

Summer Plein Air Tuesdays: 2/6

The group had a wonderful day plein air painting at a farm called "Rideau Pines Farm" situated on Fourth Line Road, very close to the 416 highway and Brophy Road.

Rideau Pines Farm offers more than 9 varieties of strawberries and raspberries, including fall bearing plants. Today, the raspberries were being pruned by the farm workers and folks were showing up to pick the red currants which were plentiful.

The owners, the Vandenbergs, grow everything from pickling cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, corn, and broccoli to potatoes, cauliflower, onions, garlic, honey... and much more!

This field that I painted had beautiful purple cabbage ready for the picking.

Plein Air #3

First location

I started the day by doing a bunch of quick sketches of things that caught my attention: the forked dirt road, the workers pruning the raspberry bushes and a bright red shed surrounded by pines.

Quick sketch of "Tree"

Quick sketches in my art journal

Quick sketch of David

David W. Jones gave us a great lesson on colour mixing - there were so many variations of green on the farm!

Colour mixing lesson with David Jones

Quick sketch of red shack

I thoroughly enjoyed painting at this location and, before leaving. I made sure to stop and purchase some of the great jam that they sell.

Ashton Naturals jams

"Rideau Pines Farm"

Plein air painters

Plein air painter

Summer Plein Air Tuesdays: 1/6

Day 1 of 6 of plein air painting sessions and the weather was wet and damp again. The rain started early and later there were 50 km winds that had developed by lunch. Easels and canvases were falling all over but the group of nine persevered.

Rockliffe Pavillion (close-up)
(Acrylic)

The rain location again was the Rockliffe Park (which I have written about previously). I decided to locate myself in a corner of the pavillion and paint a view with a gentle, red  sloping hill, stately  pines and an interesting curved path.

I did a thumbnail sketch and decided to include the pavillion's concrete column and wooden roof as a frame for my composition.

The thumbnail sketch

The winds, rain and changing light created a challenge that I struggled to overcome and I grew more unhappy as the painting developed. The transparent palette that I chose was a mistake.

My easel (after two hours)

So I made a decision to rework it at home. I abandoned the transparent palette (except burnt umber) and used Ultramarine Blue PB29, Cadmium Yellow PY35, Cadmium Red Med PR108 and Titanium White.

I made a decision to only spend two hours on the remake which I ended up liking so much more than my original effort.

My two hour rework of the original plein air painting
 (with a different palette)

During our lunch break, David offered a demonstration and within one hour had created a brilliant painting of the iconic Rockcliffe pine tree.

Our plein air instructor David W. Jones
giving a lunch time demo

I am hoping that our next outing will be less challenging and that the weather will be more pleasant than the past two Tuesdays!

Update: July 8, 2015

David Jones generously shared the names of the oil colours on his palette:

• Cerulean blue 
• Cobalt blue 
• Ultramarine blue 
• Cadmium Yellow Middle/Medium 
• Cadmium Orange 
• Cadmium Red Middle 
• Alizarin Crimson 
• Sap or Chrome Green 
• Viridian or Phthalo Green 
• Yellow Ochre 
• Titanium White

He purchases his oil paints from Stevenson's Paint, a Toronto company that produces "Artists Quality" paint at "Student Quality" prices. David has used them exclusively since 1978.

Here is their website: http://hwww.dlstevenson.ca/

Stevenson Paint

Summer Plein Air Tuesdays

I was all set to write my first of six blog posts about my summer "Plein Air Tuesdays" in Ottawa, however, I am sad to report that our first date was cancelled.

Initially, it was the weather that dampened our enthusiasm.

Ottawa weather forecast June 16-29, 2015

But we planned to have our inaugural session at one of our rain locations - the beautiful Rockcliffe Pavillion in Ottawa! It's a beautiful open-air gazebo sitting high on a bluff overlooking the Ottawa River just east of he prime minister's residence. It was constructed in 1917 and is a "recognized" Federal Heritage Building because of its historical, architectural and environmental values.

Source: Wikimapia

As it turned out, the rain actually held off but the class was cancelled nonetheless for reasons beyond anyone's control.

Because I was fully packed and ready to go, I thought I would devote this blog post to writing about my plein air supplies.

My General Supplies

My french easel and backpack loaded and ready to go!

• a collapsible stool for full days of painting. 
• an umbrella for protection from the sun, or rain. 
• a backpack that has water in sealed containers (if not near water), hand wipes, insect repellant, sunblock, my Tilley hat, sketch supplies, spray bottles, paper towels, garbage bags, lots of bungee cords (to strap umbrellas, hold papertowels etc)  

My Palettes

My two palettes

Palette #1: Liquitex Heavy Body

• Hansa Yellow Medium PY73 WARM 
• Napthol Red Light PR9 WARM 
• Quinacridone Magenta PR122 COOL 
• Indanthrene Blue PB60 WARM 
• Phthalo Blue green shade PB15 COOL 
• Burnt Umber PBr7 WARM Phthalo 
• Green yellow shade PG36 COOL 

Palette #2: Winsor & Newton*

• Ultramarine Blue PB29
• Dioxazine Violet PV23 (*Golden)
• Cadmium Yellow PY35
• Cadmium Orange PO20
• Perm Alizarin Crimson PR177, PV23
• Cadmium Red Med PR108
• Ivory Black  PBk9

For the planned grey rainy day, I had chosen palette #1 so that I could experiment with these three grey formulas:

Three "Rainy Day" Grey Formulas 

Titanium white added to:

Burnt Umber PBr7 + Indanthrene Blue PB60 

Quinacridone Magenta PR122 + Phthalo Green yellow shade PG36 

Napthol Red Light PR9 +  Phthalo Green yellow shade PG36 

Sketchbox tools

Portable Painting Easel

I have two french easels and this is my smaller, newer version that was a gift from my family. It is not as worn as my older, larger french easel. I thought about purchasing the newer lightweight tripod easels,but I actually love old french easels and doubt I will ever change.

My french easel and collapsible stool
(attached by a bungee cord)

Backpack

My backpack is quite heavy to carry with every pocket bulging. But it makes walking and climbing and descending so much better with free hands. I witnessed a scary tumble at the Kilbear plein air outing last fall because someone was descending a rocky path and had no free hands!

My bulging backpack!

Between now and next Tuesday, I hope to venture out with my ready-to-go supplies.

Weather permitting?