30 Paintings in 30 Days, Part 3

Here are the last ten paintings from lasts year's 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge.

9 x 12 Oil on Masonite Panel

Continuing the overcast day themed paintings, this one was inspired by areas near Berkeley and Westover Plantations in Charles City, County. 

12 x 9 Oil on Masonite Panel

In these paintings, the humidity of Virginia Spring and Summers influences the atmospheric effects. The figures have been added not only for scale, but to create a narrative. Kudzu covers the trunk of the tree in the foreground, which is a common sight of this invasive plant throughout the south.

8 x 10 Oil on Masonite Panel

Forest creeks in Prince George County inspired this scene along with some Corot paintings. Bailey's Creek and Wall's Run were two creeks I've explored a bit growing up. When I was a kid my father told me about a large prehistoric shark's tooth that was in Bailey's creek on Fort Lee. Whenever I would explore the creeks I would search the gravel for artifacts. 

6 x 12 Oil on Masonite Panel

This sky was inspired skies I had seen in Seattle last year. I decided to take memories of those skies and put them in a Virginia landscape.

5 x 7 Oil on Masonite Panel

Getting back to twilight tonalist painting on this one, I used Rublev Colors' Orange Molybdate for the red/orange glow at the horizon.

6 x 9 Oil on Masonite Panel, Private Collection

This painting was among my favorites I had painted during the 30 day challenge. I loved the colors so much I want to do a painting in the future with similar lighting and color.

6 x 9 Oil on Masonite Panel

Springtime in Virginia during a shower. I wanted to push the atmosphere in this painting not only to create depth, but also to capture the effect of a springtime shower while keeping the focus on the tree and figure in the foreground.

6 x 9 Oil on Masonite Panel

This one was inspired by a sunrise I saw on December morning, during a run in Seattle at Maple Leaf reservoir park. It was amazing watching the sun appear through the early morning fog in pink and lavender colors. Once again I put the sky into a Virginia landscape.

6 x 9 Oil on Masonite Panel, Private Collection

George Inness inspired this painting which I set among young pines in Virginia. The figure and dog walk through tall grass as the day ends. Chrome Green, Chrome Yellow Medium, and Orange Molybdate dominate the scene along with darker tones which were created with either a burnt umber or Bone Black.

6 x 12 Oil on Masonite Panel

This was the final 30th painting in the 30 day challenge. By this point I was exhausted. Coming up with ideas from my imagination and memory was not easy. I would like to do the 30 day challenge again, but this time paint a variety of subjects such as dogs, still lifes, portraits, and of course landscapes.

30 Paintings in 30 Days, Part 2

This post covers paintings 11 through 20 of last year's 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge. I talked about it in a previous post. For these paintings I continued to explore tonalism, but I also was inspired  by Corot. Once again here are ten paintings with some commentary on each piece.

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

This one was the first of larger paintings during the 30 Day challenge. Up to this point I was painting 5 x7 and 6 x 8 paintings. In fact the day I painted this one I also painted a 5 x7 which is the last painting seen in my previous post. For this one and the 5 x7 I began to use Rublev Colours Wilson's Medium. I think I continued to use it for the rest of the paintings. I'll talk more about that medium in a future post.

5 x7, Oil on Masonite Panel

This one was inspired by George Inness. I didn't talk about my palette yet but some of the key colors I was using for many of these paintings was Rublev Colours Chrome Green, Cinnabar Green, Chrome Yellow Primrose, and Chrome Yellow Medium. The Chrome Green was used to create the green/blue skies and dark green foliage. It is a green I recognized in many George Inness paintings.

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

Most of the paintings were from my imagination, inspired by rural Virginia. This one is of City Point, Virginia based on a plein air watercolor I painted in April 2017 and memory. It shows a view on the James River looking south towards Jordan's Point. I wanted to get more atmospheric with this one. I did repaint it last summer, and I'll post that one as an update to this post in the future.

6 x 6, Oil on Masonite Panel

I had just received Rublev Colour's Orange Molybdate which I had never tried before. Two of my painter friends recommended it and I decided to give it a try. It quickly became a staple on my landscape painting palette, replacing Rublev's Minium. I'll talk more about this lovely red-orange in a future post.

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

More Orange Molybdate in this one. 

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

My first nocturne, another painting inspired by City Point, Virginia. This time it's a view looking north showing the James and Appomattox Rivers along with the factories in Bermuda Hundred. Rublev's Maya Blue and Blue Black dominated this painting.

6 x 6, Oil on Masonite Panel

With this little painting my landscapes veered off into a different direction inspired by Corot. I became interested in painting cloudy, rainy days depicting the dampness of the landscape.

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

This one was among my favorites and I would like to paint a larger version in the future. The gray of the sky is warmer because I used Rublev's Black Roman Earth.

8 x 10, Oil on Masonite Panel

Missing fall in Virginia because most falls in Seattle have been wet. I do admit fall 2017 in Seattle wasn't too bad and among the driest falls since I've lived there. The lone figure with his dog reflects the solitude we can find in nature. Though the person in my painting carries a rifle for hunting, I think of the hours I spent metal detecting during falls in Prince George.

9 x 12, Oil on Masonite Panel

I began to paint larger at this point, still inspired by Corot and cloudy days in cloudy days in Virginia.

 It wasn't until recently I had begun to appreciate the beauty of rural Virginia, even on a cloudy day. This painting expresses that sentiment.