Hanging Onions Painting

Here are some photos of what's on my easel at the moment. I was inspired, in part, to do this painting by an email I received a little while ago from someone in Mexico who teaches at an agriculture university. She had put together a not-for-profit book about the "Pitahayas" or Dragon Fruit. I was surprised to find she had used my painting "Flying Dragon Fruit" both in the book and as the back cover without asking me.... It was nice that she emailed me to find out where she could send me a copy of the book but still somewhat funny that she wouldn't check before using my painting in her book.

I painted "Flying Dragon Fruit" in 2003. It was in a gallery in Vancouver for a while. The gallery was one of the best in Vancouver and had been in business for 20+ years. Unfortunately things started to go bad for the owner and he ran off with a number of artists’ work or did not pay them for work sold. Twenty plus artists sued him but as far as I know, not one managed to collect any money from him. I lost my dragon fruit painting and another small still life. So now my dragon fruit painting has been stolen both in real life as well as in digital form for a book.

You're probably wondering how this relates to my hanging onion painting? After seeing my dragon fruit painting in the book it made me want to do another painting with a similar setup and so I painted this onion painting!

Here is an image of the dragon fruit painting. If you know where this painting is, please let me know! 

Flying Dragon Fruit Oil on Linen 11x14. Stolen 2005

Here are some progress pic of my Hanging Onions painting.

I always find it interesting to look at a painting I'm working on in a frame if I have one of the right size around!

Finished painting  "Hanging Onions" Oil on Linen 11"x16"

New drawing

Here is a recent study. I did this study in a 2 hour live sitting, then  I worked on the drawing for a few hours afterward, refining some of the shading and other things.  

When I'm thinking about trying to use someone in a painting, I often do a few drawings of them to start to get an idea of how they look.  When I'm drawing someone it gives me a chance to really look and examine their face and get to know it in a different way then when I'm just talking and seeing them in normal life.  One of the things I love about drawing and all art is a quest for a simple truth.  The truth of the shape of someone's nose, how all a person's features relate to each other in a very beautiful way, a pattern all their own.   

After doing some study drawings of someone I may come up with a composition in which I can paint them or I may just let the knowledge of their face sit at the back of my mind and I may come up with a composition in a year or more.

Graphite on white paper 16x15

Painting class demo

Here are a few photos of the finished demo painting I did in my recent oil portrait painting class.

Study of Matthew Oil on linen 16x14

Progression of the painting

Portrait painting demo

Here are a few photos of the portrait painting I'm doing as a demo for my current oil portrait painting class.  I start each class demoing for around 30 minutes, talking about different things and showing things as I paint.  I think it's so important to demonstrate things when teaching art.  I think it's good for my students to see me work my way through a painting, see how I deal with different things that come up, small changes in the drawing,modeling form, etc. Then the students start to work on their paintings.  I come and help them as needed and work on my painting in between.  I try my best to give each student directions and ideas to help them get better with their drawing/painting.

Session One.  We started painting with no drawing, getting the big shapes, values down in paint.

Session Two.  Started to work with a full palette of colors.  I try to go over things with the general or local colors in this layer of paint but I do not try to finish anything here.

Session Three.  Now I start to finish things as I go over them.  I start by once again going over the area that I'm working on with a general color working dark to light.  Then I start to model the light as it plays across the form.  Working over wet paint makes it easier to model subtle transitions. 

I managed to paint the third paint layer over the part that is inside the blue line.  In the next class I'll work on his forehead, neck and shadow of his face.

Landscape studies!

Here are a few plein air landscape studies.  I'm finding myself doing more landscape painting these days.  I'm also very grateful for the time that I was a part of the Hudson River Fellowship.  I'm finding the things I learned there are still working their way into my thoughts and process in my landscape painting.  I hope to start to do some larger landscape paintings from my studies in the future. 

Trial Island, 8x10, Oil on panel

Sunset, Mt Doug, 9x12, Oil on panel

De Courcy Island, 8x10 Oil on panel

Tree at De Courcy, Pencil and white pastel on gray paper
 

 Light Coming Through the Leaves, 9x12 Oil on panel

Mt Doug Looking North, 8x10 Oil on panel

Evening over Victoria, 8x10 Oil on panel

Garry Oaks 8x10 Oil on panel 2010

Pine Study, 12x9 Oil on panel 2009

Portrait painting demo

Here are a few photos from my recent 1 1/2 hour oil portrait painting demo I did to promote my art classes at the art store, Opus.

It's always fun to challenge myself to go out and paint a decent demo in a situation where the lighting and setup are somewhat uncontrolled.  Trying to set a pose that reads clearly with the uncontrolled light and I explain everything that I'm doing while I'm painting is fun and challenging.  Keeps me on my toes ;)

Photos courtesy of Simon DesRochers  

A little talk about light and form

Free oil portrait painting demo

I'm doing a free oil portrait painting demo at the art store Opus this Saturday 1-2:30pm. 512 Herald St.
If you are in the area come by and watch!

New Painting

Here are a couple images of a recent painting. 

"Braids"  Oil on linen 16" x 11"

Detail

Fall Art Classes

I've got my fall teaching schedule organized!

I'm teaching two portrait drawing classes one starting Sept. 22nd and another starting Nov. 10th.  Both of these class are 5 week sessions.  For more info please visit my classes website.  These are interesting and fun class looking at how to break down what you are seeing into a drawing.  I start each class doing a demo to show my technique and approach to drawing in a traditional realist way.

I greatly enjoy teaching these class to a wide spectrum of students from beginners to university fine art students.

I'm teaching an oil portrait painting class, October 11th  - November  15th 
Please register by October 4th.  Tuesday Evenings 6:30 - 9:30 pm 

This is a 6 week class.  We will be working on one painting for the size weeks.  More info on my classes website.

Hope to see you in one of these classes! ;)

Art Renewal Center 2010-2011 Salon

I'm honored to have my painting "Onions" selected for a "Finalist" award for still life's in the
Art Renewal Center's 2010-2011 Salon. 

More landscape paintings!

Here are two recent landscape paintings.  The first is from Mt. Doug, a local park around a small mountain.  It's around 5 minutes by car from my studio, so it's a good place to go painting!  I also enjoy running the trails at Mt. Doug lots of good hills to run ;).

Mt. Doug Tree Study, Oil on panel 9x12

It's so much fun to be out painting the landscape live.  It's both an exercise in slowing down and working slowly to develop your painting at the same time trying to paint as fast as you can before the light changes!  Or the bugs get you...:).  For this study, when I started the painting it was an overcast afternoon and I was in the trees enough that I thought that if the sun came out it would not change things too much.  I was wrong.  About midway through the painting (1 1/2 hours in) the sun came out and was penetrating through the tree coverage enough to change the lighting a little for me.  I had to then decide what to do.  I decided that when the sun was very bright I would wait a few minutes until the clouds would dull it down a little and then I would paint and wait and paint and wait.  I'm happy with the way it turned out.


The second painting was painted later that evening at Swan Lake.  I love painting the sunset, the colours and lighting are very beautiful to me.

Swan Lake Sunset, Oil on canvas panel 8x10

 
When I'm painting the sunset, I try to setup around an hour or so before sunset and tone my panel with some umber and ultramarine blue or some of the muddy colour that was left on my palette from earlier in the day.  I use some mineral spirits and rub the colour on with a paper towel.  The point of this is to dull the white of the canvas so it's easier to judge values and hue as you start to paint.  After toning my canvas, I do a line drawing of the major shapes with oil and then wait for the sun to go down.

In this case, when there were no clouds to block the sun and shield it from my eyes, I had to wait until the sun was almost at the horizon before really starting to paint!  I was able to put some of the sky colour down before this but not too much.  So as the sun set, I madly started to paint!  I try to burn the image in my mind as the sun disappears over the horizon.  I try to balance the big picture of value and colour on my painting in a mad dash to the finish.  I will at times make a few adjustment when I bring the painting back to my studio after the sun has set.  The colours and image are still in my head enough to use it to unify the painting as a readable work of art!


For those of you interested, I'm teaching a week long landscape painting workshop on Quadra Island, BC, Canada. Sept 12-16th more info here.

Studies

Here are a of couple studies.  I was teaching a workshop up-island and on my way back to Victoria I stopped off in Maple Bay to visiting my friends and fellow Hudson River Fellows, Kate Stone and David Gluck (check out their blog in my blogs list).  We headed out to do some landscape studies.  The Maple Bay and Duncan areas are beautiful, lots of great things to paint!

Maple Bay Study, Oil on canvas panel 8"x10"

Here is a small hand study I did the other day.  I enjoy working on a bluish paper for these kind of drawings.  This one is on Canson Sky Blue.  I used to love using Fabriano Ingres papers but unfortunately they are no longer being made.  This seems to be the way things work the good stuff gets discontinued :(

Hand Study, Graphite and white conte.

Finished painting

Here is a photo of a recent painting.  You can view some progress pics in an earlier blog post here

Sight and Sounds 

Oil on linen 18" x 24"

Still Life Oil Painting Workshop

I'm excited to be offering a still life painting workshop in Victoria July 30th & 31st.

Here is more info.
Two Day Still Life Painting Workshop with Artist Noah Layne
July 30th and 31st.
Please register by July 23rd

Cost $200 Materials not included
Some drawing or painting experience recommended
This workshop will take place in James Bay Victoria.
     
In this workshop Noah will show how he goes about starting and finishing a lemon still life painting.  The focus will be on technique and not a finished painting.  Both days Noah will demo from 11-1.  There will be a break for lunch and then the students will work from 1:45-5:30pm with breaks as needed.

Lots of demos and individual instruction!
  
To register for this workshop visit my classes website.

Some plein air paintings

Here are two recent plein air paintings and a small still life study.  The weather here in Victoria is finally starting to get warm making painting outdoors much more appealing. :)  The only problem with the warmer weather is that the lovely cold weather evening skies are now gone.

 Sunset study Swan Lake, Oil on canvas panel 8x10

  

Dallas Beach Study, Oil on canvas panel 10x8

The sun started to get lower and lower as I was painting making the reflections on the water brighter and brighter... I probably fried my retinas a bit, not good for ones career!

Oil on canvas panel 10x8

I was testing how much cobalt drier to use for a workshop I'm teaching later this summer.  Trying to find the right amount so the paint is dry the next day but not dry in two hours ;)