Art = Life at R.L. Delight Fine Art

Monday, April 28, 2014

Spring Storms and Vegan Art Supplies

One of my favorite ways to celebrate a birthday is spending time with my mate playing out in nature. We drove about 5 minutes up Hwy 101, parked and bushwacked on an old elk trail through neck-high Salmon Berry bushes and over-the-head Salal to reach this viewpoint. The picture isn't the best quality as I took it with my phone. One has to be very careful around this area as there are no fences and the cliffs are high. There would be a long time to scream on the way down before plunging into the sea.

There was a high surf warning out and for good reason, the waves were at least 20 feet high on this day and rather violent. I stayed off the beach during this time. To be honest, it wasn't because I was worried about staying safe. I have a lifetime of experience around the ocean, as well as a deep respect, and am very careful. I knew that there would be people not paying attention on the beaches that weekend and I just couldn't watch. Sure enough, I am still hearing stories, some frightening, and sadly, a few tragic.

We have had several stormy spring days and I was not able to get out to paint. The winds were fierce at times, with hail and torrential rain. Not a good time to be out painting. I know from personal experience how much that hail hurts and there is nowhere to hide! I spent the time doing some much needed cleaning and organizing so I can be ready for the next stretch of good weather. I have also been studying the book I mentioned in my last post. This week should be a good week to get out and paint. I can't wait!

I do get out and walk on the beach in all weather. There has been a lot of debris washed ashore from the recent storms. This is a plastic pallet, heavy and home to much sea life. The next day it was resting in one of the runoff creeks. I found a bit of rope and was able to pull it higher up the beach so that hopefully it can be picked up and disposed of rather than washing back out to sea.


© 2014 R.L. Delight, plastic debris after the storms.

There has been a lot of plastic and glass bottles, foam and plastic fishing floats, shoe soles, light bulbs from ships, and many other man-made items washed ashore. The birds have been enjoying eating the sea life that is often attached to these objects.

I have all my supplies in hand for an upcoming workshop I will be taking with Kathleen Dunphy. I am very excited about the workshop! I will be posting about it so keep an eye on this blog. The workshop is in the middle of May, which will be here soon.

I have mentioned before how much I enjoy and learn from the wonderful podcasts at Artists Helping Artists. I recently listened to an interview with the artist Iain Stewart. He mentioned a certain brand of sketchbook he likes to use. I am always looking for good sketchbooks that don't use animal products. A lot of papers for artists use gelatin to size the paper. He mentioned these sketchbooks by Stillman and Birn:

Stillman and Birn Sketchbooks, Alpha Series

Iain gave such and enthusiastic endorsement I decided to check them out. I contacted the company by email asking if they used animal products in their papers. I received an e-mail within minutes of sending my inquiry even though it was evening! Viktor from Stillman and Birns told me that I was the third request for such information and fortunately he had an immediate answer for me. He had contacted the mill and they replied that they do not use animal products in their process.

Needless to say, I ordered two new sketchbooks from Daniel Smith and they came today. It hasn't even been a whole week since I listened to that interview! The sketchbooks are well made. I got the lightest weight paper as I usually use graphite with a light wash with a Niji pen when I sketch. I will be trying them out this week if the sunny weather forecast holds true.
It is always a pleasure to be able to add a new resource to my list of vegan art supplies. I have free samples of the various weights of papers coming too.
Keeping my fingers crossed that the weather cooperates as promised. Check back soon for updates on the sketchbook and painting!

-Renee

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Rogue Wave!

I am very careful choosing a spot when setting up to paint next to the ocean. I never paint with my back to the sea and I am pretty good, that is experienced, at judging the tide line and allowing for sneaker waves. I always check the tide tables, in fact, one of the saving graces of a smart phone is that I have tide charts and surf reports at my fingertips on the spot.
All that said, sometimes the unpredictable happens, even when allowed for! The tide was way out when I arrived at Short Sands Beach yesterday morning. The day was beautiful, and there were only three other people on the vast beach, no surfers in sight. I decided to take the opportunity to paint the waterfall from a closer vantage point. A slightly divergent note here, the beach is never the same from day to day. The sand shifts and new rocks are exposed. I hardly recognized the area on this morning. Here is what it looked like when I set up:


© 2014 R.L. Delight, Painting at Short Sands

I circled my easel in red to make it easier to see. Scale is always challenging to show in these pictures. The cliffs and rocks are huge. The waterfall is also quite large. I have to stay back a ways to be able to take the whole thing in at one glance. I was set up on the ocean side of the long rock in front of the easel. I usually find a nearby place up high to put my gear but there wasn't one close enough. The rocks were covered with sea life so I didn't want to put my gear on them and squish them. I rested my pack, easel umbrella, shoes, and panel carrier on the sand next to the rock. I carry my good Bogs boots in on the hike in and change into them once I am on the beach. There are creeks to cross on the hike up the beach.
I figured I had about two hours to paint before I had to move due to the incoming tide. I actually figured right but was not able to take into account the erratic waves on this day. I have been watching when seemingly regular small waves suddenly build and become large, violent, and erratic. It can happen from one moment to the next. Incoming storms can affect the waves a couple of days before making landfall.
So there I was, an hour into painting my study. There were two families with small children exploring the waterfall and caves around me when suddenly I sensed a sneaker wave approaching. I was about to grab my gear when I saw a little boy who was closer to the breakers get swept off his feet and pushed against the rocks. I started to run to him but his father also saw him and leaped to his rescue. I just had time to turn back to grab my pack and easel umbrella and toss them up on the rock. My shoes started to float. I grabbed one but the other went around one side of the rock, while my wet panel carrier floated around the other side. The carrier is made of corrugated plastic and I hadn't painted on the panels stored in it yet so no damage was done other than being damp and a bit sandy.
People around me were squealing and shrieking but no one was hurt and my easel held in the 8" or so deep water. I didn't even get wet but my shoes were soaked. Here is part of what makes it tricky to predict:

The rock on the upper left of the picture is where I was painting a few moments before I took this picture. This area of the beach is particularly tricky for surfers due to the rocks and the way the waves bounce off the cliffs and funnels onto the beach. The channels increase the speed and force of the water.
Needless to say, I broke off my painting, grabbed my gear, and moved up to higher ground to dry off and pack up. Unfortunately I had to go. I wished I had packed a lunch and rearranged my afternoon plans as it would have been the perfect day to stay all day and paint!
Here is the study, an hour into it. I was just about to put in the foreground rocks then start adjusting the values of the surrounding rock and greenery.

I will be painting several more studies of this area of the beach. As I have said before, I could spend a lifetime painting here. I haven't even scratched the surface of areas to paint on this one beach. I would need several posts to show in pictures the whole beach too.
On a final note, April is my birthday month and I bought myself a present which arrived yesterday. More adventures in painting to come!

Alla Prima II by Richard Schmid. Can't wait to get my teeth into this one!

Hope everyone stays safe and warm!

-Renee

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Two Studies

I have been so busy lately with music and family that I have not had a chance to post my latest studies. Above is Wave Study #74 painted at my usual spot at the foot of Neahkahnie Mountain. The sun has been visiting off and on here on the Oregon Coast. I have been playing with mixing different colors and trying a few different ways to handle the brush.
The next study is a coastal landscape study done at Short Sands Beach today. You could not ask for a more perfect day. It was a balmy-for-here 72 degrees, light winds, sunshine, and warm, warm, warm. It felt delicious! Being a Sunday and all, Shorty was pretty crowded with surfers and visitors. I rather like the surfing crowd at Short Sands. They seem to be a cheerful lot, probably because they are doing something they love. There are always a lot of dogs running around and it gives the spot a friendly festival feeling. The beauty of the area is superb as well.
Here is my study from today.

This one did not exactly go smoothly. I was again trying different approaches and color mixing so it was a bit of a struggle getting this one to where I was somewhat satisfied. This is very much a study so I will leave it at that. I have decided to do many studies of this waterfall at the north end of the beach. I would like to eventually do a larger studio painting of this area based on my studies.
Here are a few pictures that do poor justice to the beauty of this beach. I think you all might understand why I can't resist painting here. It is a short 5 minute drive from my house. I could spend a lifetime painting within a ten mile radius of where I live. Lucky me!


Short Sands Beach. You can see my painting easel toward the left at the base of the diagonal rocks.

My office. Truly a perfect day in paradise.

There were many surfers today. View looking south toward my town.

A final view of my office.

I am working hard and will be posting more soon!
-Renee

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Crafting a CD Album Cover

Recording with me and my 5-string electric Cherry cello

Life is funny. I am on a journey that I would have never even imagined or purposefully created if I had even thought to try. I am going to tell the full story here so pull up a chair and a good cup of tea, or beverage of choice, and read on.
When I was almost nine years old, I wanted to play the banjo. I was entranced by Roy Clark's mastery of the instrument. He was a fantastic musician, in spite of the goofing around on TV. My wonderful, supportive parents did their best to locate a banjo and lessons for me. The local guitar making shop told them I should learn the guitar first (ha!) and sold them a small classical guitar. I got that guitar and lessons for my birthday. I accepted that I had to learn to play the guitar first. As an adult, I suspect the shop wanted to sell my folks a guitar. So I learned to play the classical guitar. I will admit, my heart was never in it. I never did learn to play the banjo and I played a final performance with my guitar in a community musical at the age of 24 and then hung it up for good.

My wonderful mate, Bob, plays the trumpet and cornet (which looks a lot like a trumpet) and has played since he was nine years old. He is quite good now since he has never stopped playing. In my late thirties, I got the itch to play music again. Maybe it was all the concerts I attended to watch my mate play. This time, I got to pick my own instrument to learn. I fell in love with the cello and with the support of my husband, got a rental and lessons.
The cello is not the easiest instrument to learn to play, let alone play, specially as an adult. My love of the instrument kept me going even though I wasn't sure exactly how and where I wanted to go with it.
Life shifted, as it has a way of doing, and I had to put the cello down for a few years. We made a major life change, sold our house, moved to Oregon, went to art school, and ended up here in this wonderful coastal community entirely unexpectedly.
The winters here are long, dark, and stormy. After the tourist season, this artistic community gets busy. There are always concerts, music, readings, writings, and volunteer opportunities to be had and there is plenty of time to practice an instrument. I decided to pull my cello out again and we started going to a local jam session. There we met Sedona and Michael in their musical capacity, then working as Sedona Fire. They are both very accomplished musicians and songwriters. They liked Bob's playing and asked him to join up with them as they were expanding their band. Now, I am going to be honest here, I had just picked up the cello again and was more or less back to beginning level. In spite of that, out of politeness or kindness, they included me in the invitation. I know they had no idea how I was going to fit in and neither did I but I was willing to work hard to find out!

Gradually, and ever so painfully, my cello skills have improved ( I still have along way to go). I have Bob to thank for that as I am doing this all on my own and lessons are a luxury that I can't afford at this time. It isn't always easy working with a spouse who doesn't play the same instrument or even one in the same family. My mate knows his music though and is a published composer himself. He and his skills have been a tremendous help and inspiration.

To wrap this all up, and get to the art stuff, two years later I suddenly find myself participating in the recording of a new CD for our band AND painting the CD cover as well as designing the whole package! Like I said, I would have never even envisioned this let alone expect this to happen. Life can be good that way. I should also mention that I will soon be 52. I have to say life after 50 is grand and one should never believe they are too old to start something new!

So, here is the brief evolution of creating the CD cover. As I have mentioned many times, I paint from life, plein air studies, and visual memory. This project required some imagination too. First I sketched out a few designs and did a bit of research on album covers. My first design was way too complex so I changed and simplified it. Once the design was decided I set up what amounts to a still life for part of it. The final painting incorporates symbols that represent several of the songs. Here is what the set-up looks like:

Pages of the Mind album set up.

Although I thought I documented the steps of the painting, apparently I didn't do it as well as I would have liked. I was under a deadline on top of spending many late nights recording or rehearsing. So here is the almost final painting:

I got to this point and now need to let it dry before putting a few subtle finishing touches. The CD artwork could not wait though and it finished enough for the cover. Here is what the final cover art looks like:

It has been an incredible learning experience and I am excited, and tired! We had a final listen to the finished mock up of the cd. The music sounds fantastic. We are all excited and pleased. The music is original with the exception of the final song which is an old traditional one. No worries, I will be announcing when it comes out and where it could be sampled and purchased it one is so inclined. The release is due out in April, knock on wood. It has been a long and tiring process for us all.
Phew! That is all for now. If you have read this whole thing, thank you! I hope everyone realizes that it is almost never too late in life to start a new journey. I will never reach the level of Yo Yo Ma in my cello playing but I will get good enough to have a lot of fun playing music with my band mates. That is worth it.
So, get out those hidden dreams and go for it!
-Renee

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Painting on a Beautiful Spring Day

Today was a stunningly beautiful spring day. I have been spending a lot of time painting in the studio recently for a project that will soon be revealed. The warm sunshine beckoned and I grabbed my gear and went out to Short Sands Beach to paint. This is a larger canvas than I usually use when painting out en plein air, 11"x14". I wanted to try painting a bit larger. I started this painting several weeks ago and decided to wait to go back out to try to finish it rather than finish it in the studio from memory. I am glad I did. This was the first time I tried this approach. There still needs a bit of work done. There are a few spots I am not happy with and the waves are still just blocked in. I worked on painting more of the rocks and trees today.
I am considering this a study as I am trying a few new things here. It is very much a learning piece. I am having a lot of fun painting it though!
Here is a parting picture from this afternoon. I am off to practice my cello now!

Short Sands painting on a beautiful spring day.

-Renee

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Petunia

@2014 R.L. Delight, Petunia, 6"x8", oil on canvas panel

As a rule, I don't use photo references to paint from. However, sometimes a painting needs to be created and the rules must be ignored.
When my dog Twill crossed over the bridge, I wanted something physical to remember her by. I searched around until one day, on Facebook, one of the animal rescue groups I follow posted a beautiful piece of dichroic jewelry that contained a tiny bit of the ashes of one of their beloved dogs. It was lovingly made by the creative and talented Carolyn whose company is called Sacred Embers.
I knew I found my keepsake. I contacted her and saved up the cost of my own keepsake for Twill. When the time came to order, I found out that Carolyn had lost her beautiful and beloved cat of many years, that very day. To make a long story short in the process of her making my keepsake, I offered to paint a portrait of her kitty. Her name is Petunia.

I have never painted a pet portrait before so this was new territory for me. The following pictures are of the work in progress. I did not use any single photo but combined a couple to achieve the end result. The background in the painting was inspired by a beautiful wall hanging in one of the photos I was sent. Here is the process:


Petunia, sketch


Petunia, block-in


Petunia, adding detail

Petunia was a bittersweet joy to paint. I swear I could hear her purring as she came to life in the painting.
In other areas of my life, I had an unexpected milestone. I found myself, for the first time ever, recording music for a new CD with the band I am in. Here is a parting picture of me and a band mate laying down a cello track. It also serves as a hint for what is hitting the canvas next!


Recording a cello track for The Sedona Fire Band

And yes, the plein air painting has been going on too. More on that later!

-Renee

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Climbing Up a Learning Curve

Indian Beach, Ecola State Park, 4:30 pm

I am working on a few specific things in my painting technique and process at once. I might need to narrow it a bit as I occasionally slip down that learning curve! The sun is back so I went up to Ecola State Park to paint today at Indian Beach. The tide was just coming in to high tide so there wasn't much beach to paint on. I was perched high on a bank of cobbles.
I am trying to refine a process approach to painting. I have been studying and trying to take more care in the composition I choose, create a thumbnail, do a quick drawing and block in, etc.
Well, it was a struggle today. I also added painting a larger size to the mix. I wanted to give up several times and, after looking at the time, kept on painting until the light was just too challenging.
The light was indeed challenging. When I started the sun was well hidden behind clouds but was shining brightly through thin cracks in the cloud. I figured it would come out eventually, and it did.
Unfortunately for me, I didn't realize that the low hanging winter sun this far north would burst out and shine directly in my eyes from behind my painting. The sun is still pretty low on the horizon this time of year and the colors, while beautiful, make it hard too see anything. I just couldn't see the colors accurately. It looked like my painting was in silhouette.
I painted nearly two and a half hours before deciding to stop. I also decided to wipe the painting off. I rarely do this, preferring to keep the studies to learn from. I thought this time I would take a picture and wipe and reuse the panel.
So here is what I painted today on 11"x14" gessobord panel. A bit larger than my usual 6"x8" size.


Ecola State park plein air, Indian Beach. 11"x14", oil on gessobord.

In spite of wiping the painting away, there are a few things I was happy with. I liked the composition. I put some thought and care into selecting what and where to paint. Believe me, there is a life-time of painting on this beach to be done and it was challenging to choose! I simplified some of what I saw and included the smoke from a campfire. There were a lot of surfers in this spot today, being a weekend and having calm weather. I felt the smoke (blocked in on the far left of the painting) added a timeless element.
The painting was at the block in stage with a few details started. I am still struggling a bit with getting it all blocked in properly before adding details. Some I had to add as they were changing second by second but then I would forget to pull back to the block in. This picture was taken at an angle due to the sun.
The first photo is a parting shot from the upper parking lot and picnic area. The clouds are all but gone and the sky really was that amazing blue!
Tomorrow I plan to head back to Short Sands to paint. I bet there will be plenty of surfers in spite of the Super Bowl. High tide is at 1:30 pm. A bit of an awkward time for painting but I am just going to roll with it!
I will try the 11"x14" panel again and keep hammering away at those skills.
-Renee