Yukimi Lantern

Yukimi Lantern   6 x 12

The Isamu Taniguchi Japanese Garden in Zilker Park is undoubtedly one of the true jewels of Austin, Texas. This incredible place is a masterpiece and is essentially the result of one man's labor of love. His life story is equally amazing.

On Thursday, the paintout session for Plein Air Austin met here and in truth, the group would be hard pressed to find a better place to paint than at the Zilker Botanical Garden. The Japanese Garden is especially beautiful this time of year as the lotus blooms thrive in the August heat & humidity. The sun cooperated by hiding behind the clouds for the entire morning, which allowed the colors to stand out nicely without having strong shadows or bright sunlight. The day was indeed similar to the quality of light one experiences in Japan.

This piece is the second one I worked on, the first being a watercolor study, but this work is entirely in acrylic, painted completely on site. What began as an under painting for an opaque oil painting, just evolved into a completed work on its own. I treated the acrylic like watercolor on canvas with thin washes in most areas and opaque layers in other areas where stronger hues were needed. The painting is a good marker for where I am currently as a plein air painter. I like the fact that what may be an under painting for a work in oil, may also be a finished piece at an earlier stage. Something which fellow Austin artist Qiang Huang inspired me to think about, by his striving to have a "finished" piece at each stage of painting.

Near Kingsbury

Near Kingsbury   6 x 12

After spending all morning at Zedler Mill last Saturday, I drove west on I-10 toward Seguin, Texas. Turning off onto FM 1104, I took the opportunity to photograph some of the vistas along the road. This farmland view is one I found of interest for the sunlight was hitting a patch of ground about a half-mile away and the foreground was entirely in shade from the clouds. I have been wanting to paint scenes with this kind of  light quality, so here the first attempt. This is not a plein air piece, but was painted back in the Studio, or in what my sister and her fellow artist friends call, "plain air-conditioning"! It was a fun painting to do and not too tight although, it does use the inset technique in a slightly more formal manner. I worked completely opaque with acrylic paint in complementary colors to start with and then finished it with oils. I'm not sure exactly how long this one took to paint as I was working on this and three other small pieces at the same time.

Zedler Mill

Zedler Mill   6x12

South of Austin approximately  forty miles on Hwy. 183 in Caldwell County lies Luling, Texas. Once a cattle & railroad town along the southern Chisholm Trail, it is now mostly known for the oil fields discovered in the 1920's but also for the annual "watermelon thump" held every June. The town has preserved a wonderful complex of structures along the banks of the San Marcos river where the historic Zedler Mill is located. The Mill was built not long after the original dam was constructed in 1874.

The Plein Air Austin painting group met there Saturday morning & spent the better part of the day  painting views of the historic buildings & grounds. It wasn't long after noon when it became another scorching hot summer day. But before I could take a swim in the river, I was determined to paint a view that I liked. For more than an hour I took photographs of the Cotton Gin, the Corn Crib, the Mule Barn & Scale House, until I settled on this view of the Feed Mill  & Engine Room building. 

Recently, all the old roofs were replaced by new galvanized corrugated metal that where reflecting a blazing white in areas, and  they also had an almost cobalt blue color to the shade & shadows. While I did miss not having the old rusted roofs to paint, I also liked the challenge of what the new material offered. The bright new metal & flashing gave the roofs an intense high contrast to the dark shadows & deep rust coloration of the walls. There is a crisp edge  to the quality of all the recent work done on these structures, so they have this mix of old rusted facades under the new roof materials. This is exactly the type of vernacular architecture that has inspired many architects in central Texas, of note the work of Lake/Flato in San Antonio & Mell Lawrence in Austin, to name just two. It is easy to see why. The metal buildings are sited to catch breezes and they have an understated elegance that belies the industrial  uses. These are pragmatic expressions of  construction each containing a character  all their own. It is a mini architectural  heritage tour to walk among the compound of all these buildings.

I had intentionally simplified the composition for this painting. As much as I enjoy rendering architecture, the challenge of the plein air sessions demands keeping it simple, especially  when the heat on. With this painting I  am wanting to convey the large scale of the structure without  using a  long horizontal view to show  all the complex roof lines. The sky is featured almost as much as the subject to suggest that while it is a beautiful day, it is also an intensely hot one in which shade is at a premium,  just as much as any breeze. And believe me, even under the shade of the pecan trees near the river, a gentle breeze is always welcomed.

Tree Rope

Tree Rope  6 x 12

This painting, for me, brings to mind many of the things I love about summertime in  central Texas. A beautiful natural spot to paint outdoors, a cool swimming hole created by clear spring water, and the majestic scale of the large cypress trees along the water's edge. Fortunately, there are several such places near Austin. When you are lucky enough to live nearby & find the time to go and explore such a place, once you do, you know it is something special. And what swimming hole would be complete without a tree rope to jump in on ?

When I started the 5 x 10 series, I knew it was an easy size to create on watercolor paper. For the opaque paintings on canvas though, it is another matter. My research of the mainstream art suppliers concludes that there is no such animal. However, this 6 x 12 inch canvas board is a size I like and I simply created an inset to define the 5 x 10 area. I have worked this way with sketches and watercolors. It is a way of matting the image and lends itself to an informal work by having the edges of the painting show the loose initial painting and the inside area be the finished work. I think it works well with this size for the Plein Air paintings. For an exact 5 x 10 inch painting, I may need to cut masonite boards to size. These however, may be nice options.