bill hibberd fine art

Design

2012-02-10T06:53:00.000-08:00

I'm rounding the half way point in my portrait project now. My objective has been to learn about painting people in the process of working through 100 portraits in a year. I've imposed on myself parameters in order to keep the pieces consistent and the trajectory even. Like any endeavor, the more you work at it the faster you become. The temptation, for myself, is to pull out ever smaller tools and pursue detail.

For my work that will be fatal. Ultimately I want the piece to carry the strength that considered and expressive visible brushwork achieves. Too much rendering of detail denies mystery and poetry.
I'm choosing to put more energy into the design of each painting. I will be disciplined in time management and stay within my arbitrary guidelines for the sake of the series. You readers and sitters can hold me accountable.

Connie D. , below, tried on a few scarves of various colours knotted differently. I decided to keep the colour subdued and I pulled the fabric (in my mind) off to the left. I think the result is pleasing and has a comfortable but slightly unbalanced flow.

This week I am working on a commissioned floral painting. I have to work from a photo I took of a brief blooming. It is certainly a departure from my portraits and landscapes. I will share the result with you however it may turn out.

A Sense of Place

2012-02-03T20:25:00.001-08:00

There is a real joy in the painting life. You have opportunity to enter a place, rest within it and respond however it directs you. The longer you spend engaged with your senses attuned to nature the more she offers up.

This scene is about the ambiant heat of an Okanagan day. It's about the pine with their lower branches blackened from summer fires and it's about the soft needle blanketed ground. It's about dust obscured atmosphere, heavy with heat.

This is the lure of landscape painting, particularly solitary work in the wild. It's a kind of meditation with the divine. It resets your perspective on your place within nature and before your Creator.

I started this painting last summer high in the hills above our lake. It sat in my studio until this winter. I rearranged the composition for a pleasing visit to a familiar place.

Thick or thin

2012-01-27T17:12:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of portraits similar in feeling but technically quite divergent. Clair, the fellow with a ball cap on was approached with a brush fully loaded while Tim, in the lower painting was painted quite thinly. I enjoy the freedom to attack a particular piece using whatever method seems appropriate.

I prepped Tim's canvas with a blue ground for a change. It gave me the opportunity to scrape paint off in the reflected light in the shadows for a pretty convincing look. There is always colourful lights hiding in the shadows. Your camera won't record them but spend some time looking and you will be impressed by the opportunities to create exciting passages in your shadows.

I will share a large landscape I have just completed in my next post. Until then..

A season for work

2012-01-13T14:56:00.000-08:00

There can be some anguish these days amongst us painters as we try to balance our creative work with the need to pay life's relentless invoices. For myself the lack of sales activity pushes me to examine what is important in life and then to jettison the superfluous and focus on the essentials.

I like old Solomon's observation after much soul searching; "A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God."

Better to dive deep into the work rather than be blown about in a world obsessed with the clever and the trendy. Funny that for all my worry about making ends meet I haven't missed a meal since I was about nine years old.

My time is divided between portraits and landscapes so here are a few current examples.

You may remember this scene. I painted from the same spot about three weeks before this one. The first snow had fallen between sessions and a good view is a good view.

This lovely young girl/woman is Sarah, another of my portrait project sitters. I asked her to pull up her hoodie which effectively transformed the composition . She has a kind of Madonna (saint not pop star) thing going on now. I used pinks and greens to model her face rather than obvious value shifts. In deference to her parents I refrained from including a halo. I like the result and it was fun to do.

This original sod roofed house is on a local orchard; co-incidentally our family lived on this farm for a few years when the children were small and the earth was cooling. This image is a bit too yellow because of my photography but gives you a sense of it.

The building is surely over 100 years old . Simpler times. Do you suppose the inhabitants had the luxury of worrying about how to sell their art? More likely they were kept busy providing themselves with food and drink. I appreciate how blessed I am to be able to pursue my painting.

Back to it. Until next time.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-11T08:41:00.000-08:00

My best wishes to you this Christmas. I hope you will enjoy the new life that is at the heart of the season.

I thought I'd resurrect a few pictures from my archives that represent this time of year. In doing so I was impressed by the connection I have with these little landscapes. The empathy I have for these exemplifies an importance of painting from life.

Most painters that I know work from photos in the comfort and control of their studios. I do the same for some of my work, virtually all of the larger projects. So why do plein-air painters rant on about the value of working from life?

I'll use water-skiing for a comparison. You can watch others skiing on TV or play with a skiing simulator on your Playstation until you max out the levels.

It's not until you get on the water behind your crazy brother-in-law's boat, crash a few times and experience some real surface-tension at speed and then finally drink in the exhilaration of speed, spray and two-cycle fumes that you have skied.

When you get off the water to play on the simulator you surely will be even better than before but more importantly you will have experienced the sight, sound, smells and feeling of skiing.

When I look at each of these paintings I return to the exact spot where I stood before nature and grappled with the subject, trying to engage and express something true and real. I can even remember the smells and the warmth of sun and the chill of winter breezes as I leaned into a drifted hillside or sheltered beneath snow laden trees. I'm enriched by the encounters I had with deer, coyotes, fox and moose in this outdoor work.

Below is a larger studio piece that was based on a photo and executed indoors. You can see that I had time to explore with technique and being larger in scale I could also develop my ideas further than in my plein air work. I utilized some of my lessons learned from my outdoor observation. I am very happy with the result. The difference for me is that I could never find this little tree. I know exactly where all these others live. It's about spending time with them, engaged in observation.

So if you've never tried painting from life, go for it and you will see where the addiction begins.

Enough of that. Take a few minutes to watch this heart warming video. It demonstrates what this thing called "art" is about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq1xGXzr3jw&feature=email

Until next year!

George and Friends

2011-11-29T20:27:00.001-08:00

Here's a small taste of some of the paintings showing at the Leir House for a few more weeks. "George and Friends" is an annual exhibition organized by George Traicheff with work from 24 artists. It's well worth a look, plenty of variety and some quality work.

Me, I am continuing on with my portraits and starting to get into some snow painting. I will show some of that work as it develops over the winter. I hope you are all keeping warm and dry; and following your own dream.

Painting at the Lakeside

2011-11-11T17:23:00.000-08:00

This weekend I painted on location for an event at a local hotel/casino. I thought I may as well photograph the process, as people are sometimes able to get something out of these little demos.

I begin with a white-killing wash of thinner and earth red oil.

Bethany was a great subject; with her dark hair and eyes, I felt her profile had kind of an Egyptian feel to it. She wore a red flower in her hair which I've roughed in here, but I think I'll have to play it down or remove it entirely so it doesn't become a distraction.

My value plan is predominantly dark with Bethany's lighted face being the highest value and, of course, the center of interest. I am using only transparent earth red and a little blue at this stage.

We had plenty of interested viewers. This lady was visiting from the Yukon.

Not being in the habit of working while seated, I am not very pleased at this point. I really need to step back to see relationships. When I'm too close, it is easy for a painting to get away. I will get this up onto my studio easel and see if it can be saved.

Now I can get a better idea of how my painting is working by stepping back. This frees me up to pull out my #10 flat and lay down passages with more confidence, straighten my arm out and get my back into it. That's really hard to do while seated three feet from my canvas. See the finished painting below.

If you are in the Penticton area, come on down to the Leir House reception to "George and Friends" this Friday at 7-9 pm. There is a couple of dozen of George Traicheffs' artist pals showing a few paintings each. I'd love to show you one new one I'm particularly proud of, barely dry but a success, for me at least.

Whats in a name?

2011-11-09T11:44:00.000-08:00

A lady was visiting my studio this week and we had a short discussion about the naming of this painting, "The Promise".

When I produce a lot of work I can be so involved with the process of painting that the naming of a multitude of thematic pictures can seem redundant. At one time I was painting so many beach scenes (and really enjoying myself) in a series that I just started numbering them. One doesn't always have the time to consider a piece and let it speak to you . Often I am thinking about the next one before the present one is finished.

If you are the owner of Beach 3 or Beach 11 don't think I didn't care enough to come up with a specific name; I put all my energy into each one. It's just a different process than working on a singular subject.

Large paintings like "The Promise" require more time and energy during their development so the painter gets to know them intimately. They usually name themselves.
This one speaks to me about the promise of new growth in the spring vines and the promise of rain in the gathering clouds. Also not shown but implied is the promise in the coming rainbow of God's covenant , no global flood ever again.

"The Promise" can be viewed/purchased at Sleeping Giant Winery; be sure to try their great fruit wines.

Here's the finish of the painting posted last week. I will name this one "Garnet Valley"

Winter Workshop

2011-11-03T08:57:00.000-07:00

It seems that anyone over six feet tall is destined to twist their back every once in a while and stretch something beyond its default setting. That's me this week. I can still crawl anyway.

I found a great old farm building in a small valley to paint yesterday. This still needs some work but is getting close to what I'm after. I'll post the finish later.

I am starting to re-arrange my landscapes to serve my intentions rather than just replicating what is presented to me. The trap of "painting what you see" is that nature does not often offer us great compositions. It has taken me a few years of plein air painting to learn this. So many times I found myself painting some weird looking rock or branch not because it helped my painting but because it was there. Some kind of twisted integrity thing? All good for honing my observational skills but it's time to grow up a bit.

In this case there is a fence blocking the foreground that would restrict your eyes from entering this scene. I would need a much wider aspect ratio to accurately describe this pasture but just needed to move some contours about to get what I'm after.
Notice that I've tied all my dark values together. Squint down to see that. If I broke them up as they are in nature this composition wouldn't be as pleasing.

Some people have recently asked if I would be doing a workshop anytime soon. I think I should put some energy into that if there is some interest. I have been studying and experimenting with the working processes of some great long gone painters and learning some valuable lessons. A workshop may be an efficient way to pass these ideas on.

I can put forward a detailed curriculum outline later but I'd be interested in two days of exploration; how we create our paintings, regardless of medium, with an emphasis on composition and subject selection. We can look at a bit of historical and contemporary art to understand some principles of artmaking that will inform our personal work. This would be a hands-on "WORK"shop for those interested in making a breakthrough in their own artistic journey.

If I get any response I will dedicate some time into developing something worthwhile.

I will be painting on location at the Penticton Lakeside in the lobby I think on November the 13th, 10 to 2. If you are in the area drop in for a chat. It would be good to see you.

A Mystery

2011-10-23T14:25:00.000-07:00

You remember this little painting (The Reader) that I demo'd a couple of posts back. She was accepted into the FCA show that I'd entered her into which was great news. I figured she was dry enough so I applied some varnish as usual and set her away to dry.

Look what has volunteered to light up my sky. This is one of those rare gifts that can come along when you are making art. Where did all those tiny stars come from? Pixies? Well the left side of my brain says of course there was some kind of chemical reaction from the varnish.

Probably, but I have used the same varnish on hundreds of paintings and never seen this before. Also, the little milky way only appears in the sky area of the painting. Not a speck anywhere else. Curious, but I'll happily take it. Any theories?

This morning I tramped around the back country scouting out locations and subjects for the winter. I am really looking forward to painting snow and winter light effects this year.

Any of you painters out there seeing potential here? How do you select your subjects and what would you leave in and take out of these spots?

I'd be interested to get some comments from other painters and get some different input on your process when painting outdoors. I will be working in this area soon and will try and demo a few landscapes in upcoming posts.

The Scribe

2011-10-13T07:59:00.000-07:00

Since my last post featured "The Reader" I think today's is appropriate. One of the benefits of my portrait project is meeting people I likely wouldn't have had I not ventured out into this idea.

Don Gayton is an very accomplished writer (see more at www.dongayton.ca) as well as an excellent subject for painting. For a painter of people there is nothing so fun as a beard.

His portrait which I call "The Scribe" was successfully juried into the FCA 70th Anniversary show at the Granville Island Gallery in November.

Notice how engaging the eyes are and yet if I enlarge them you can see that not much detail is in there. You have completed them yourself. Sometimes less can be more. Also you can see how I've intentionally heightened the value contrast in the sunlit eye. This would not happen in reality. His pupil would contract and the value would be lighter. I liked this better as it pulls you into his eyes. Art defeats illustration in a case like this.

I am going back outdoors to paint again. The fall colours are here now and I'm looking forward to painting the winter this year.

Working Small Pt. 2

2011-10-04T11:59:00.001-07:00

OK, jumping back into this. This morning the paint seems to be pretty stable. I guess I have saturated this canvas with enough oil that I can count on this retaining its strength.

I looked at the modeling of Mekfira's face, particularly her forehead. I wanted to warm up the parts of her face that are turning from light into shadow so I put more red in there. It's not really accurate to observed colour but the value is right and its more visually exciting. I want to draw attention to the star of my painting which is this lovely young girl.
You will also notice some stars appearing in the darkening canopy of sky.

I'm putting in more cobalt into the sky which by value contrast makes the stars pop .

Blogger isn't showing it so well but the sky is deepening and I've amplified some highlights on the clothing.
Here's a closer look at where Mekfira's face is at.

This painting is called "The Reader". When I initially painted Mekfira's portrait I was inspired by her involvement with the book she was engrossed in while sitting for me. The written word is able to transport us all to unlimited worlds and experiences. That is the idea I'm trying to express here.
I need to let this piece rest for a while and I will decide tomorrow whether it needs more work or not.

I have decided to finish this off tonight. It's always good to get comfortable and sit back to consider what if anything a painting may need. In this case I can see some weaknesses.

I decided to deal with the clothing with a stronger value range . This, I think you'll agree clarifies what is in sun and what is in shade. I thought the braids on the right needed a bit stronger work so darkened them some. There was a little annoying negative shape beside the ear that was distracting so I knocked it down. I think I'm happy now.

Working Small

2011-10-02T16:57:00.000-07:00

Today I'll illustrate the process of creating a particular painting. It's pouring rain outside and I'm not interested in fighting the weather so I will try to pull this little project off.
I want to enter an upcoming juried FCA show and it stipulates that submitted works must be no larger than 165 sq. in. I don't usually work on such a small scale but it is good to try new things. I had to beg a chunk of canvas from my friend Will, knock together some stretcher bars and staple the thing together. This is some heavy mill cotton, more like leather but I was able to fight it to the ground. It is coated with some kind of smooth sealer suitable for Will's Giclee printing. I don't want to paint on that so I mounted the canvas un-primed side up. This could bite me as you will soon see.
Why the weird aspect ratio of 20" X 8" you ask? I have an idea for expressing a BIG idea on a small scale. 20X8=160 so I am within the guidlines. I used wide stretcher bars so I can wrap the canvas eliminating the need for a frame. This will be fun.
I will be basing my painting on a portrait I did last week of a little girl named Mekfira. I set up the completed portrait and am painting from it. Here you can see my initial block in starting to take shape.
I am already in trouble with this unprimed canvas. It is so thick and so THIRSTY. My oil paint is disappearing before my eyes. I won't turn back because I have to get this finished within a couple of days for the deadline( I didn't intentionally procastrinate, honest) . It would be smarter to prime this thing but I decide to persevere and just see what happens.
Establishing main values--feeding the beast more paint!
I want some springlike, youthful coloration as a base. There will be sky behind so I start laying some blue in; it keeps soaking back but eventually it starts to level up and behave like oil paint.
More modeling and fiddling with the hair. I think the three braids on the left are too similar so I'll start to push them around a bit once the paint stars to behave.
Okay, a little head refinement. I am warming up the lower horizon portion of the sky now.
Mekfira has some little coloured plastic decorative things in her hair. I'll start to pull some colours down into the clothing.
Okay, I think I better let this dry a bit overnight and see what I've got to work with tomorrow. I'll post this much tonight and carry it through in the morning. See you then.

Art and Excellence

2011-09-24T08:11:00.000-07:00

I am reading about painters from the Victorian era lately. Almost completely written off by the art establishment as overly sentimental and dismissed by the modern art movement these artists are being recognized and appreciated by serious representational painters today. (by representational art I mean paintings of recognizable things as opposed to abstraction, minimalism, colour field painting or installations.)
What impresses me about these artists beyond their obvious skill in all aspects of painting is an appreciation and execution of an element that is missing in most contemporary painting.

RESTRAINT.

We really don't see much restraint in painting today. With a few exceptions when you enter a commercial gallery these days you are bombarded with bombastic, intensely high-chroma, almost electric paintings. As a painter there seems to be an impulse to scream for attention within a choir of visual psychopaths .

This painting by William Bougoureau, "Just a Taste" is an example of what I'm on about. There are strong values, great composition and palpable emotion. This isn't about photo-realism as when it is viewed closely the paintings brushwork is readily apparent. It is about pulling the viewer into a mood or idea with sensitivity and some grace. You need to spend time with this art in order to see the nuances and beauty. The artist is not bombarding our senses with unrelenting colour and textural trickery.

Think about another artistic discipline, music. We'd be bored and dissappointed if the artist cranked his amp to the max and screamed full force for an entire concert. Even metal bands use variety and space to bridge between or build up to their climatic bits. For some reason visual artists, myself included and the public have been convinced that painting must be loud to be heard.

As an example I'll humbly present my recent painting, "Okanagan Tranquility". Even though I am trying to work with a more sophisticated and controlled palatte you can see I have a long way to go.

Colour excites the eyes but is a short-lived pleasure I think. I will try to gain a little control over my palatte in future work.

Until next time.

Portrait Process

2011-09-11T11:28:00.001-07:00

Here's a sample of the portraiture that's happening in my studio these days. I had great fun painting Lynn on saturday. This young lady is an animated conversationalist and our discussion of some lofty and compelling topics did distract me from my real job of painting. When I find myself pushing the paint around without any thoughts about values, edges or composition it is time to stop everything and reflect before proceeding. That is where we pick up on this painting.

This is my initial block-in. I've established the basic value pattern.(squint down and you'll see it ). As usual I don't worry about exact detail or even likeness. I want to get some paint down so I have something to push around with my next strokes.

A little adjusting to the left eye, the mouth and cheeks and neck.
I decided to introduce Lynn's glasses at this stage. I sometimes leave glasses off until the end to eliminate the need to paint around them. Right or wrong, I tried it differently today. That's the joy of art, you do whatever you want.

More adjustments with a little work into the hair. Lynn had arrived with slightly damp hair but as it dried it became apparent that all those blond curls could easily take over the painting. We were set up with strong, natural light washing in from the left which when it reflected off the hair gave back an amazing almost white glow.

I introduced a knocked down greenish background wash here. The intention is to use a variety of alizarian and cadmium reds in some skin tones later. The complimentry background should make the main player, the face, really pop. We'll see.

More adjustments. I leaned the eyes a bit further towards green than they really are just to please my color goal. I feel comfortable enough with how the painting is hanging together now(and it's 9:00 in the evening and if I'm going to see my wife today I better start wrapping this up) so its time to loosen up and paint that hair.

A bit of blue and orange in the shaded hair and some very blistering high key values in the sun-lit side. Some thickly applied suggestion of bright red blouse and its time to step back and leave it alone. The Blogger platform isn't very high resolution so you would have to see the actual painting or you can trust me when I say the hair frames Lynn's face without taking over.

You could pick up some smaller brushes and use a variety of colour mixes to take this to a whole different place but for this project I have arbitrarily limited myself to a size and a time frame that results in an dynamic alla prima painting.

INVITATION

2011-09-09T17:14:00.000-07:00

You are cordially invited to join me at our reception for the Tumbleweed Show this month.

I will be hand delivering invites locally but if I miss you please feel included in our event. You can see my work from this spring/summer. I hope you can join us. Just click invite above to enlarge.

Here's a little teaser, a detail of one of my recent landscapes.

I'm sending my chicken off in search of a new home. He will be at the Nk-mip Vineyards Resort along with a few others for the month of October. Our FCA group will be showing a variety of styles and subjects. If you haven't visited this winery in Osoyoos it is beautiful.

Have a great weekend and maybe I will see you on the 22nd.

Tree of Life

2011-09-04T08:52:00.000-07:00

I've been visiting this tranquil place among old and forgotten fruit trees. It amazes me that these sun-blackened survivors, who co-exist with cacti and rattlesnakes produce fruit. An orchardist friend informed me that these ghost orchards persevere in our semi-arid desert climate by producing a crop every second year. I liken them to old people, while pacing themselves for survival, are very capable of offering up excellent fruit in the hardest of conditions.
I painted one of these characters seen here , "Tree of Life". It will be available at my Tumbleweed show September 22.

A few portraits

2011-08-29T14:27:00.001-07:00

Here are a few more portraits from earlier in my project. Now that summer is stepping away and I am feeling well prepared for the upcoming Tumbleweed Gallery show I will be painting portraits a little more ferociously. If you or anyone you know want to step up and be part of this let me know and I'll get you in the queue.

Taylor

Oliver

Eira

Judy

Late one afternoon

2011-08-22T13:23:00.000-07:00

Forgotten Fruit

Its all quiet on these clay banks above the lake. Super heated summer air is heavy with sage. Evening approaches and the departing sun washes everything with warm, diffused light. I sit before an eighty year old apricot tree, abandoned and forgotten by a previous generation. Blackened and brittle boughs are laden with an abundance of startlingly orange fruit. With no farmers to reap the harvest most will fall to the earth. The only visitors I have are a tribe of deer, two large four points with their harem of does and fawns. They carefully and silently weave through the trees enjoying a sweet feeding before the sky turns from red to violet. I wait for their passing before sharing in my part of the feast.

Another great day of painting.

Time

2011-08-14T09:16:00.000-07:00

I must begin this post by apologizing for my inconsistency lately. Summer presents plenty of distractions including some travel and family events. I have been busy painting throughout the past two months but my blog posting has suffered. I will make an effort to keep you updated on my progress for the foreseeable future.

Here's a picture of Joanna with our new toy, an '86 Westfalia. We've been wanting one of these guys for a few years and finally were able to purchase this one. I'm looking forward to many painting excursions in comfort. My Samarai is wonderful for crawling into the backcountry but not the machine for road trips. I'm already planning some west coast painting as soon as possible.
It's sad to lose one of the great painters of our time. Lucien Freud died at 88 years this month.
A completely dedicated artist he exemplified commitment as he soldiered on with his work for seven decades. His process was overwhelming to consider. His paintings took months to complete as he worked and re-worked paintings until he had extracted all he could from his subjects. One nude took 16 months to complete, with 5 hour sittings per day the subject was present for all but 4 days during that period. 2400 hours were invested in that piece. Lucien shunned celebrity and so interviews are rare but given the massive amounts of time he spent with his subjects I expect there will be some illuminating biographies forthcoming. I always anticipated seeing each new painting so it very sad to witness the end of such an amazing body of work.

In my own way I am pressing on. I have completed 27 portraits to date and am enjoying this project immensely. While some are more successful than others if you are aiming for likeness, and I am, they all have an element of the subjects unique personality that sings out to me at least, and hopefully for others. Time will tell that story.

I also continue to prepare for my September show with Ken Gillespie at the Tumbleweed Gallery. Its a bit of a big deal for me to have a commercial gallery support me in this way. Many thanks to Prema and her team. The painting "Windfalls", below will be featured at this show. I will have more information in upcoming posts.
Many thanks to those who have purchased my work this month. It's been very encouraging.

Busy Days

2011-06-30T19:48:00.000-07:00

Busy painting outdoors these days although it is still rainy and overcast with only the occasional gift of sunshine. Yesterday I lost one painting to the wind. I was perched on the clay banks above the lake and a sudden squall lifted my easel off the ground and spit my canvas onto the ground. Everyone's a critic. I designed a device to anchor my easel to my truck so I'm armed for anything short of Force 10 . Sorry for the short blog today but that means I'm busy doing whats important, painting. More next time.

Painting in the Okanagan Falls area. Beautiful violet wildflowers kept me there for two days.

Standing Again

2011-06-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

This week I tried out my new platform. This is a 24" tall sturdy chair stand for my portrait subjects to sit on. Now I can stand at my easel and step a few paces back to compare my painting with my subject eye to eye. I have some space limitations so I can't launch backwards with abandon or I'll take out a partition wall. I may choose to tear that out later. I've also made my platform and work table easily movable so I can work by a large window taking advantage of some natural light. This seems much softer than the spots I've previously used.

Our FCA chapter teamed with the central and north Okanagan chapters to host the Tryptich show at the Shatford Center. Reception was last night and there must have been about 250 people attending. Renowned artist Robert Genn gave an engaging talk on the life of the artist. I found him to be very encouraging and had some sage advise. Joanna enjoyed him too, even though she is not a painter. The show is worth a look-runs for a few weeks.

I have some landscapes underway. I hope the rain leaves soon so I can do some work on site. Soon I'll hopefully be able to post a few sneak peeks of paintings I'm working on for the Tumbleweed show in September.

The portrait below turned out especially well I think. There's a real strength of character as well as a vulnerability that speaks to me through this lady. I called it "The Decision" because when I contemplated the final piece I really felt this could be a point of departure.

My '73 RS painting is off to a new home this week. I was reminded how important frame selection is again. I chose a brushed pewter fairly wide one on this and it really makes the blue and white body panels sing . If you know anyone who might enjoy a classic car painting please let them know that I'm always happy to have an excuse to paint great old cars.

Talk to you next time.

Weekly Rambling

2011-06-12T11:09:00.000-07:00

All the paintings from Penticton en Plein Air are framed and hung at the Penticton Art Gallery. They will be auctioned off on July 7th at the 34th annual Starry Starry Night to be held at the Lakeside Resort. Come out to support this great regional facility and maybe bid on some art. A few examples below.

This week I've been considering time prioritization and how the perceived urgencies of others can sidetrack us from our goal or calling. No matter what we are endeavouring to accomplish external demands can undermine our "mission" like persistent beavers gnawing on a brookside aspen. How to stay the course? Most of these distractions are good and worthy but can you cull the bitter from the sweet?
Here's an idea; find some solitude and list the important things in your life in order of importance. Next accept the reality that you cannot realize all you've compiled and jettison each item starting from the bottom until you land on a realistically achievable list. We have to be accountable to ourselves to protect these essentials so when an outside demand jeopardizes them we have a benchmark to defend.
Narcissism isn't the objective because its only by serving others that we can realize our calling but we need to recognize the value of our uniqueness and the need to refine our God given talents into something precious that blesses our fellow humans and our Creator.

"To get all there is out of living, we must employ our time wisely, never being in too much of a hurry to stop and sip life, but never loosing our sense of the enormous value of a minute. "(Bob Updegraff.)

Or my favorite quote that I'd tattoo over my heart if I was needle-friendly by that sage T-Bone Burnett, "The frightening thing isn't dying, The frightening thing isn't living."

I built a platform for my portrait sitters so will be standing to paint this week-looking forward to it. Have a great one.

PP11 Continued

2011-06-03T16:56:00.000-07:00

I've been asked to keep posting examples of my recent portrait paintings so I'll continue to keep you abreast of my Portrait Project regularly. I'm still happy to accept any volunteers so drop me a line if you are interested. I'm booked for about a month right now.

Here is another example of the process I go through when dealing with portraits. This is Bev (portrait #14) . I'll stick with this procedure for a few more and then I think I'll introduce hands and other elements into the compositions. I want to purchase some suitable lighting but need to make some $ first. I am planning to build a platform to elevate my subjects as this will allow me to paint in a standing position. That will be much more natural for me.
First off I do a very simple line drawing. I use vine charcoal and lightly dust it off before paint application.

A basic two value study using ultamarine blue, transparent red earth and white.
Add a third value and scrub over the background a bit to engage the subject a bit.
A little more refinement, solve any value problems and push things around until the features resemble my subject to my satisfaction.
Choose colours, tighten up some shapes and lay in a violet backgroud to punch up the fleshtones a little. Declare the painting finished.

Painting people

2011-05-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

My time is split between my portrait project '11 (pp11) and landscape painting these days. I'm having a great time reacting to the divergent individuals that have partnered with me on pp11. I'm learning new things with each session. If you haven't checked out Chandra's time lapse video take a look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y00ZCuEr5A

Here's a couple of portraits in sequence.

This is my painting buddy Cal.

This is my lovely daughter, Renee.

I didn't take time to optimize the photo quality so next year if I can arrange for a showing you'll have to come out and see all these great people in person.

I'll give you a preview of some of my larger landscapes in future posts. Have a great week.

Art, Love and Time -Lapse Photography

2011-05-19T10:37:00.001-07:00

Big news out of the University College of London this week. Researchers have been investigating brain activity of people standing in front of art. I presume this is art that has elements of beauty or positivity. Look what they have discovered.

“Looking at art triggers a surge of feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine into the brain and results in feelings of intense pleasure,” says Professor Semir Zeki. “We have recently found that when we look at things we consider to be beautiful, there is increased activity in the pleasure reward centers of the brain. Essentially, the feel-good centers are stimulated, similar to the stages of love and desire.”

Of course artists have always known that there is something emotional happening when people connect with art but a little scientific reassurance is always good.

Here's one of my portraits from the week. This is Chandra. She surprised me by setting up her photographic equipment and recorded a time-lapse sequence of my initial block-in of her portrait. She graciously uploaded it to You Tube so copy and paste the link below to see what she created. For the tech challenged just go to YouTube and search for Bill Hibberd

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y00ZCuEr5A

Us painters tend to squirrel away in solitary confinement while we work which can be a good thing but this is another reminder to me of the importance of other people in my journey. I never would have pulled off this little video without Chandra's effort. Many thanks.

While we're looking at videos and since you have a long weekend ahead of you let me highly recommend Robert Hughes "The Mona Lisa Curse". If you wonder whats going on in the art world where people pay millions of dollars for shark and pig cadavers, not to mention human excrement this is a great documentary. Check it out and have a great weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbQ0GqX0Its&feature=related

Painting at Marichel Winery

2011-05-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

This past saturday 25 artists infiltrated the Naramata Bench vineyards to knock off some open air (en plein air) paintings in support of the Penticton Art Gallery. I had the pleasure of painting with four others at the beautiful Marichel Vineyards. Elizabeth and Richard were very gracious hosts and rewarded us at days end with a complimentary bottle of their wonderful 2008 Syrah. I've just had a little taste so far but highly recommend it. Beautiful!

The day was overcast but the scenery was lovely and it was a healthy break from my current portrait obsession. I appreciated the comradery as the family of artists gathered at the Art Gallery for some celebration of the days achievements and a surprise party in appreciation of several peoples' long service to the areas artistic community.
Ken Gillespie, Robyn Lake and her apprentice.

Robyn Lake
Loraine Stephanson

My contribution to the day. Me.

Next week I will return to my studio to explore facial surface anatomy; if you or anyone you know would like to be included in this adventure you can contact me through the comment link below. I'm booked for the next month or so but will put any willing person on my list.
If you'd enjoy seeing more process photos like the last post let me know and I'll upload more.
Have a great week.

Portrait Demo

2011-05-10T16:59:00.000-07:00

Here is one example of how I am developing my portrait paintings. My friend Dona sat for me this morning and here are a few photos of the process from today's work.

I start off with this rather bizzaar sketch. I'm not trying to draw a portrait, just establishing a few value areas and getting some dimensions established. I don't worry about accuracy yet. If my drawing is developed too far I'll be tempted to paint between the lines and that isn't my aim. Next I'll start to block in some basic areas of different value. ("value" is the relative darkness or lightness of an area.)

Okay, let the madness begin. The lit areas of the face are transparent red earth and white, the shaded areas have some ultramarine blue to cool and darken them. I am intentionally limiting my palette to two colours and white while I work out my design.

Now I am starting to work the values back and forth building shapes that are starting to resemble my subject. I am still using a large brush in an attempt to establish an exciting, bold foundation. Some of these wide brushstokes will survive right through to the completion of the painting.

I'm starting to get comfortable with the rough design of the picture and now need to carefully consider each successive brush or knife stroke before I lay it in. I will be moving to smaller brushes and some colour variety now. I scrub some green into the background mainly because I'm sick of looking at the stark white.

This is how "Dona" turned out. I didn't have to bring in too many new colours to achieve my goal. The bright blue sweater reflects nicely up into the shaded skin areas and the pinks and greens play off each other for some visual appeal. Altogether a satisfying day.

Performance Anxiety

2011-05-06T15:02:00.000-07:00

Here's my wife, Joanna busy at work preparing another great meal. I do most of the cooking these days so this represents one of our special "ie-more creative dinners".

I'm having a great time working with different people on my Portrait Project. If you are considering getting involved you'll be glad to know that the sittings are typically only two hours , not four like I anticipated. One side effect I'm experiencing is performance anxiety or more plainly, pre-portrait nausea. Even though I couldn't ask for more empathetic sitters I still experience feelings of insecurity. I expect this will pass after I've been through it for awhile. I sure hope so.

Anyway, each portrait is getting more interesting than the last so I think this will be a time of some real experimentation and growth. Please give me a call if you are interested, I'm looking to do plenty of these.

If you live in my area and you are looking for a fun art related activity next Saturday check out this years Penticton En Plein Air; 24 artists painting at several Naramata Bench Vineyards. I'll be at Marichel Vineyards from 11 to 4. You can pick up a guide at the Penticton Art Gallery on your way through. Maybe I'll see you.

Have a great week!

Portrait Project 2011

2011-04-29T10:56:00.000-07:00

I will be inviting people from my area to share in a project that begins now and will run for a limited time. As my blog follower you are getting the first opportunity to take part. If you volunteer your responsibilities are: agree to sit for four hours at my Summerland studio at agreed upon time. The logistics are 8:00 to12:00 with a few short breaks. You forfeit any rights to the original painting and the copyright will remain in my possession. At the end of my project each participant will receive a complimentary giclee reproduction of their portrait.
I'm interested in any age but as the sitting time is tough for children to deal with I'll limit age to ten and up.
This venture will provide me an opportunity to grow as a figurative painter and will give many people the chance to experience having their portrait painted as well as receiving a print of their portrait. I hope to create a body of work suitable to show at a future date.
The portrait of my mother posted above gives an idea of what I plan to achieve with each painting. If you are in the area or plan to be and want to schedule a sitting e-mail me or phone me at 250-494-7892.

Wet Paint

2011-04-23T11:49:00.000-07:00

This past week I've been working at using different colours of the same value but different temperatures to describe form. Instead of painting the shaded portion of my face all one dark flesh colour you can see I used red, ochre, blue, green and violet. Likewise in the lit areas I combine different colours in the same value to create some visual excitement and emotion.
Sadly this photo does not reproduce well so you'd have to see the painting first hand to appreciate the proper effect. Double click on the image to full enlargement and you can get a better feel for the brushwork.
I'm starting to treat my paintings a little like a sculptor will when he/she pares away at a three dimensional piece.There is a back and forth process as I work different hues beside and over each other. The challenge is to create a visual feast , pushing the work up to the point before it all turns to mud. I think I'm making some headway.
If you wonder why I painted myself the reason is that I'm available and all I need is a mirror. I plan to do more figurative work from life but will spend more time getting comfortable with my process before paying out sitting fees.

A Sense of Place

2011-04-16T08:49:00.000-07:00

The joy of painting in open air is that establishing a sense of place occurs naturally over the duration of your project. While you observe your scene you become immersed in the sounds, smells and subtle variations of light as it reflects off the water onto the waving leaves in this case.
Looking at this little painting that I did last summer takes me right back to the moment. I can hear the breeze whispering through the leaves and smell the summer lake waters. My mind takes in the jumble of greens above the far claybanks and composes them into recognizable vineyards.
Spring is returning to us rather reluctantly this year but I'm looking forward to many more open air adventures.

You Know More Than You Realize

2011-04-10T09:08:00.000-07:00

Often when people approach me while I'm painting outdoors they preface any comments with something like "I don't know anything about art but........". Its funny how the general population has been brainwashed into thinking that without an art education or having the benefit of some enlightened criticism they are unable to recognize good art.
Its really not true if you think about it. Consider music. We may have no musical training or even a rhythmic bone in our bodies but we intuitively recognize great music.
I know absolutely nothing about ballet but even I can recognize great dance when I see it. I may be ignorant of the the technical nuances, historical references or even the basic plot. Yet I can see what is good (or bad).
If you are interested in art appreciation and wonder why you are uninspired with virtually all of the contemporary art being presented to you by our public galleries and museums check out this link.Click here
Scott Burdick is a wonderful painter and he's uploaded this biased but clearly intelligent opinion about the present state of art in the west. I think you will enjoy it.
The good news is that there is a revival of interest and appreciation for quality representational work underway today in the commercial gallery system.

This past week I've been rained on, sleeted on and snowed on. Much of my time was spent refreshing my plein-air process and most of my paintings were reduced to mud through overwork but I'm excited to be out there with the deer and coyotes again.

Have A Great Week! I'm praying for some SUNLIGHT! PLEASE!

Re-imagining my Process

2011-04-03T11:44:00.000-07:00

Here are two studio efforts underway to be completed this week.

Living in a northern country as a valley-bottom dweller has its liabilities. Months of little or no direct light, short cold days that drive me into my studio to huddle beside a small heater while I try to paint under artificial florescent lighting. Might be bearable if the dreaded SAD wasn't pushing my spirit into the dark places.
Okay, it's not that disturbing but yesterday I did step back and I observed myself huddled over a mediocre black and white printout of a tiny photograph attempting to connect to my subject and understandably I asked myself "what are you doing???". Responding to your subject through photo reference is not unlike building a relationship with your partners passport. It may take you places but there's little joy.
This is an insidious trap set for artists by ourselves and remarkably many of us are pulled in like invertebrates caught in a rip tide.
Well, enough of this. I rolled around all night grilling myself with questions like "what am i creating art for, whats important, where am i going and what do i as a human bring to the rest of my tribe when i create art?"
I don't have all the answers but this I strive for; I must paint from life regardless of discomfort. Its only when interacting directly with nature and people that I have any hope of communicating and contributing to good in the world.
These concerns may seem to be escoteric pretension to you but they are fundamental to whatever it is I'm stumbling towards. All of you in your own chosen disciplines are making choices not unlike mine I'm sure. We need to hold up our end in this journey we call a lifetime.
Next time I trust I'll come to you with some snow on my boots and blood on my brushes. Have a great week.

Cars as art

2011-03-23T15:32:00.000-07:00

Its time for a new season of Formula One racing to begin; this weekend in Australia! Exciting!
I painted "Fire in the Pits" from a time when seven time world champion Michael Schumacher dominated the field for Ferrari. The drama in the pits is always entertaining and all the red cars and uniforms remind me of ants. Michaels back driving for Mercedes but he's an old man now and its unlikely he'll overtake those twenty year olds. Or ????

I have been painting a series of old Porsche favorites lately. The classic cars seem as much an art form as anything humans set their hands and minds to. I guess, being mass produced, they cant claim absolute originality but these old guys were largely hand built and when I'm through with painting one they are pretty unique.

Carving a turn under the claybanks in a 356 Speedster

A venerable RS from '73

a little light reading

2011-03-20T10:01:00.000-07:00

The primary inspiration for my art is the "good" I see in the world. The Fathers' touch is everywhere in the cosmos, my neighbour's face and in the dirt under the microscope. My paintings are influenced by my world view and probably a reaction against much of the past century of art history. While concurring with Stuart McAllister's statement that "much of the energy and effort of our artists and cultural architects has gone into debunking, dismantling, or deconstructing all that is good, beautiful, and respected, to be replaced with the shallow, the ugly, the ephemeral" how then should I work out my art? Creating romantic, disneyesque propoganda is not an option and is an intellectual and spiritual dead end. Thomas Kinkaid's portrayal of "a world without the Fall" is visual cotton candy that, regardless of his excellent workmanship, takes the viewer into a blind alley.
Too critical? coming from a marginal painter- perhaps but that is the nature of blogging.

In the attached detail of my painting "Joy Ride" we see a young woman reveling in the glory of the moment, rolling through vineyards, spring air breezing through her hair, couched in a lovely roadster. Contrary to the absurd cliche "it's all good", we see a deteriorating roadway, vines that require constant physical labour to maintain and a painting technique that suggests imperfections and possibly decay in the Porsche's bodywork. Even the passenger's identity is a bit questionable.

I see a world full of wonder with many opportunities for joy rides, but it is also a bit bent. Something is not quite right here, and how do we get back to it?

Next time, more pictures, less words. I promise.

In from the cold

2011-03-13T09:10:00.000-07:00

Last October a friend offered me a seasonal position in her environmental consulting business and since the taxman was flogging me unmercifully and my stomach was growling I gratefully accepted. The experience was very appreciated but my painting regime has been decimated. Now the contract has ended and I'm up for air, back into doing what I'm compelled to and it feels great!
I will be blogging regularly again and also overhauling my website (I apologize for the mess that's been ) so hopefully it will be worth a viewing very soon.
This year's Penticton visitor's guide features my painting, "Beach Boys" on the front cover. This is entirely due to the efforts of Prema, owner of The Tumbleweed Gallery in Penticton. I really appreciate her support. Her gallery is bringing in new work all the time so if you are in the area take the time to check it out.
Back to the studio for me and I'll keep you updated on my work. Peace.
While I'm showing off covers, if you haven't seen my cover on Art Avenue here's what that looked like. Back to the studio for me and I'll keep you updated on my work. Peace.

SHOWTIME

2010-11-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

I'd like to invite you to the opening of my 2010 Red Rooster Show this Sunday. Forty of my paintings will be hung and there will be food, wine and live music performed by Joanna. Two other artists, Irene Gray and Grace Shaw, are showing as well so there is great variety in the artwork.
Its always a big effort to prepare for an exhibition and that's why I've been a bit negligent with my blog postings. I hope to see you there and please forward this link to any of your friends who may be interested.
Red Rooster Winery is at 891 Naramata Road a bit north of Penticton. Opening time is Sunday, Nov 7, 1 to 4.

Intuitive or Calculated Art

2010-10-14T18:54:00.000-07:00

The Wedding
Surfacing

Here's a couple of paintings that have been executed with two very different processes. To begin a piece I need to find a "point of departure". In order to start the journey I have to get off the dock and onto the boat somehow. There are many ways to begin. Here's two.
In the painting of the old car with the bridesmaids reflected in the bodywork I had a definite story I wanted to tell. I began with several sketches and had the whole composition sorted before picking up a brush. I photographed my nephews bridal party and a neighbor's Model A Ford. I was in the middle of a series of car paintings and this one fit right in.
The other painting "Surfacing" began with an general image in my mind that had a very strong, personal meaning. I just started without knowing where I was going and the thing painted itself. Because of how this idea came about I think it can be interpreted subjectively and may mean different things to various viewers. If it speaks to you let me know; I'd be very interested.

Wooden Boats and Artistic Research

2010-10-01T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hudsons Hope to Sea adventurer

For the sake of my art and for a healthy balance to my world view occasionally I need to strap a kayak on the car and head out of man's constructs into God's organisms. Always more enjoyable in the company of friends and especially with at least one kayak virgin. Four of us spent a few days on the north end of Kootenay Lake this week where we experienced pounding rain, lovely warm sunshine, adventurous river crossings (one of us discovered the excitement of recrossing a river after a rainstorm raised its levels 8"in thirty minutes), and the comradery born in shared adventure.
We climbed the Fry Creek Trail beside spectacular cascading waterfalls and strolled across acres of soft moss covered forest. With no time to paint in the midst of living the adventure I consciously absorbed as much as possible and I trust my future work will be enhanced by this time in nature.
There is something about wooden boats (or any hand made device) that seems to attract people and break through their resistance to connecting with strangers. Whenever I have my kayaks in populated spaces I meet interesting people with great stories. This trip was not an exception.
A fellow approached us in Nelson when we stopped for lunch on Baker Street. He had just returned from a wilderness kayak trip on his own for 54 days paddling from Hudson Hope to the ocean. Check your map to get a sense of the scale of that journey. There are plenty of adventures for us twenty first century humans if we step out of our tethers with eyes wide open.
Okay, I better get back to work now and hopefully my next entry will display fruit from my effort.

file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Hibberd/Desktop/Shortcut%20to%202010,%2009,%2027%20Kayak%20Kaslo%20064.lnk

Works in Progress

2010-09-22T18:29:00.000-07:00

After spending a good part of a day chasing the sun around Willow River I had to be content with some photos I was able to shoot while the clouds co-operated. The leaves are starting to show fall colouring now and the area around Prince George is pretty stunning this time of year. I'll include a few below that may provide a foundation for some work.
The Creators design in nature is mind blowing. The green chloroplast plant cell takes energy from sunlight and turns carbon dioxide into oxygen in photosynthesis; the energy transfer makes sugars and carbohydrates that provide food for our bodies and, over time, fossil fuel for our Hondas. Then when the chloroplast cells die, the leaves turn from green into the blazing colours of autumn. A bit humbling when all I can do is occasionally arrange a few bits of paint to resemble a scene.
This week I'm working on finishing off a few local landscapes. My photography is pathetic (sorry) but the images will give you a bit of an idea. Check a few blog posts back and you'll notice how one of these paintings is evolving. My buddy Mike shoots the final images when the paintings are done and his skill makes them shine. You'll be able to see any of these at next months show at the Red Rooster Winery.

Willow River Work in Progress
Willow River
Willow River
Peachland Overview
Penticton
Balsam Flowers

New Work at Tumbleweed Gallery

2010-09-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

I will be up north next week so thought I'd post a bit early before leaving. New work is framed and being displayed at the Tumbleweed Gallery in Penticton. I do show works in progress on this blog but the paintings really need to be seen to be appreciated. There are nine pieces of mine as well as a great variety of work by other artists. Drop in Tues. to Sat. and Prema and her staff will be happy to show you whats new.

Tumbleweed Gallery is located in the 200 block of Main St. Penticton, across from Starbucks. You can barely make out my painting, "Beach Boys" in the center of the window.
Here are five of my recent oils alongside Kate Kimberly's watercolours.

I hope to do at least one days painting up north so I'll be sure to post whatever comes out of that next time.

I have a big show coming up in November. I will give you more info as the time draws near.

Talking about the self portrait.

2010-09-06T18:13:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege to lead a session at the FCA-SOS chapter this weekend. The topic was "The Self Portrait". I demonstrated one process to begin such a painting and we had a fairly lively dialogue concerning motivation and things to consider before embarking on the project.
We looked at some examples from history (I'll share a few below) which is very helpful to any artist as she considers the many decisions that need to be made in the creation of a self-portrait. We are not trying to paint a representation of surface anatomy but rather, digging deeper, taking advantage of line, value, colour, edges, symbolism and distortion to portray something important and unique in the artist.
The self portrait, like any work of art we make, should speak visually to the viewer nullifying written or spoken text. We should understand the artist a little bit more when we take in such a personal work.

Norman Rockwell

Henri Matisse

Lucien Freud

Carl Larsson

Frida Kahlo

Chuck Close

Chuck Close (now)

Painting a Memory

2010-08-31T09:54:00.000-07:00

Our dear friends Doug and Nora are following their dream and moving away from us after fifteen years. A group commissioned me to create a memento for them. Since they had invested so much of themselves into their cherry and apple farm and would have many fond memories of raising their seven children there I thought that the house and the surrounding orchard would be a great subject.
The first trick was to paint the scene from life without being discovered. I was granted permission by the neighbours to squirrel away in their orchard. My cover was nearly blown at one point but although my white umbrella caught their attention, Doug and Nora couldn't make out who or what I was.
Startng early in the morning I tried to catch the warm rising sun which cast a rich yellow hue over the scene and was beautifully intensified by the wild fire smoke. The up-reaching cherry branches at left indicate a fulfilled harvest and the apple trees on right are starting to show a promising crop ahead. Good neighbour Stan was able to photograph Doug in his beekeepers regalia and e-mail the image to me so I could include another personal element into the painting. I also included the airforce flag which is an important symbol from Doug's previous career.
Everyone seemed pleased with the resulting painting. (whew!)

Last week found me on a ridge high above Okanagan Lake. Spectacular setting. Bone rattling drive to get there though. Suzuki engineers have managed to design the perfect wheelbase/spring rate ratio that achieves maximum spasticity on washboard roads. Stay tuned for a suspension upgrade. Just click on the image a couple on times to get a bigger view.

A Sister's Song

2010-08-15T13:40:00.000-07:00

Well, as promised, here is the result of my three day burn to create this piece for a submission to an upcoming show. My two little friends, Sara and Amy were chatting and eating raspberries. I tried to catch a moment as Sara sang a little song while Amy looked on with an older sister's affectionate amusement.
This is a fairly large painting, 36X30", and is a good example how a piece can lead you along taking you somewhere unexpected. I approached this several ways and seemed to founder, scraping down and starting again. At one point the direction of the painting started to lean towards blue with the sky reflecting off the shaded skin tones. Through it all I wanted to stay high key to represent the joy and hope of the moment. Did I succeed? You tell me.

Winery Art Auction

2010-08-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

On saturday, Aug. 28th the Red Rooster Winery will present the 8th annual Bohemian Festival of the Arts. A number of artworks will be auctioned off with proceeds going to several fitness/arts programs serving financially challenged youth. My painting, "Early Porsche" is being offered. Its an oil on canvas, about 48X52" and is a compilation of a few different cars. I always loved the organic lines of the 356 models. The background was intuitive; I wanted a counterpoint to the metallic smooth lines of the old car. You'd have to see this in person to enjoy the scale of it. So if you think it might enhance your home or garage go bid on it. info at www.redroosterwinery.com under special events.

This is a large painting of my friends Harley Davidson. Here's my old 32 Ford street rod I called this "Two Little Birds", My nephews lovely little daughter and a neighbour's'56 T-Bird I have other automotive art I'll post some other time. Till next week.

Allendale Road

2010-08-10T15:15:00.000-07:00

Here's my trusty Samarai on location south of Penticton at a popular painting site. It's an irresistable scene overlooking the vineyards and Vaseaux Lake.

My little truck gets me into any location I want; I don't often plant myself on pavement like here but this is an exceptional view. I think the finished piece turned out okay. You can enlarge the work station picture to see the painting at it's half way stage.

Any paintings I show here are available for purchase.

I'm presently consumed with a large studio piece that I need to complete in a three day stretch-getting it ready to enter into a juried show thursday. I'll post a picture of it next week

Letters of Vincent

2010-08-04T08:59:00.000-07:00

I'm reading "The Letters of Vincent Van Gogh", written to the painter's brother Theo which spanned his entire adult life. Generally considered to be a mad genius his personal letters reveal an empathetic, thoughtful and articulate man, who was gracious right up until his tragic suicide.

Vincent's early years spent serving the poor miners in the Borinage as an evangelist (this word has been corrupted by all contemporary 'non-believers and men-stealers talking in the name of religion' - Dylan.) describe a humble man who truly lived a life of christian charity. He gave his money and clothes to his poor neighbors and shared their life as an equal.

Living in continual poverty Vincent never wavered from his search for truth and beauty through his art. His letters express his dream to bring joy to common people with his work and will inspire any reader. A recommended read.

Vincent made his first sale with "The Red Vineyard" for 400 francs in the year of his death, 1890.

His "Portrait of Dr Gachet" recently sold for $139,000,000.

I've included a third painting by an unknown and possibly mad painter.

Evolution of a Painting

2010-07-28T14:41:00.000-07:00

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Painting outdoors is exhilarating and challenging. To work from life develops into a relationship between the artist and his/her subject. Empathy increases in proportion to the duration of the project. Colours shift as the sun arcs across the sky, various animals impose themselves into the piece and breezes (or should I say gales) create modulating reflections on grasses, leaves and water.

I'm posting a series of stages that one painting has taken throughout four sessions outdoors on four different days.
Day 1 Initial block-in with thin paint, lots of observation
Day 2 Starting with far hills developed trees, grasses and sky.
Day 3 Building on with thicker paint, making stronger decisions, what stays and what goes. Wild winds came close to picking up my umbrella and dragging my whole painting station over the cliff. For now I'm learning to paint one handed using the other to secure my gear. Shall come up with a better plan later.
Day 4 Worked in the studio to escape the hot, dry conditions in the bush. Need to get the painting back out once more but I think it would be irresponsible to drive my truck out in the present high hazard conditions.

After investing so much concentration on this place I know that if ever I see this painting in the future I will clearly recall the heat, wind, bugs, scents and visual impressions of this particular time. Painting from photos in my studio never treats me to these re-collective bonus' .

Natures Tapestry

2010-07-20T16:39:00.000-07:00

Worked in the Okanagan back country today. What an amazing world we live in. All these various flowers are growing just steps from each other and in abundance across the hillsides. The challenge of painting a landscape in this environment is deciding how to simplify this beautiful chaos of color into a pleasing composition that captures the spirit of the time and place without overloading our senses.
Hills that appear generally green when viewed casually transform into an explosion of color as your eyes adjust to the different values. You will observe artists squinting frequently as they try to reduce the visual noise down into a melody or ballad.
Squinting is a good way to simplify values too. Try it sometime, close down your eyes until your lashes create a veil that reduces a very busy scene into several simple shapes. This little excercise helps you to establish the framework or bones of your painting.
My buddy Cal worked on several small watercolours of trees that he's going to base an oil painting on. I started a 24X24 oil that I was able to block in today and will return to continue working on asap. I've posted this initial layin and will share this painting when its completed.

Enthusiasm and Despair

2010-07-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

Creating art, like any other discipline, alternates between periods of happy labour and times of total discouragement. Sometimes my paintings mock me and with no little drama I am compelled to rip them off their stretcher bars and turf them in the garbage. I've leaned that it's during these psychological "root canals" that opportunity will usually present itself. It may be that when all I can paint is crap I am more willing to take risks or perhaps just persisting through the despair allows me to benefit from the creative cycle's natural rhythm.
I am currently reading "Faith &Doubt " by John Ortberg. He makes a great point when he says to allow doubt to sharpen your faith. Whatever your calling or passion is, when failure and despair rear their heads and threaten you with lies of futility keep pressing on and your vision will eventually clear.
I've posted one image of where my failures go and a couple of happier ones that were conceived in doubtful but tenacious persistence.

NOTE: I will be leading ten people through a two day plein air workshop September 18-19 . If you are interested in participating drop me an e-mail and I'll fill you in on particulars.

HandWorks Show

2010-07-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

Friday the sun broke through, allowing Mike Jorden to demonstrate some live oil painting to the delight of many people passing by on the streets of Oliver. His painting of the Oliver Hotel did not seem to be jeopardized just because the subject burned to the ground a couple of weeks ago. He had started the piece prior to the disaster, and when I saw it, he was morphing it into a contrast between the old days and today. He is an accomodating man is Mike.
Inside the Handworks Gallery, Thea Haubrich introduced encaustic artmaking (melted beeswax and paint) to some very enthusiastic people. You can see Theas' work at www.encaustic.ca .
My painting "Orchard Rhythm" was selected for second place by the FCA jury, which was a treat. If you are in Oliver anytime over the next month, drop into Handworks Gallery to see the show. The Leir House show in Penticton runs for a month as well, and I think it has some excellent work in it well worth the visit.

Two Openings This Week

2010-06-29T17:35:00.000-07:00

For those of you living or visiting the Okanagan I'd like to invite you to a couple of FCA openings this week. First up is at Leir House in Penticton, "Harmony" highlights the work of many local artists in various media. Opening is 4-7 on July 1. Next at Handworks Gallery, 35648 97th St., Oliver, "For the Love of Art" is a juried show of new work by various FCA artists. Opening is 2-4 on July 2.
Join us for food, wine and art. Posted are my paintings that will be displayed at these venues. Hope to see you there.

Good Company

2010-06-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

People sometimes ask me if I become attached to my paintings to the degree that I resist letting them go. Generally that's not an issue. On the contrary I usually have forgotten the most recent work about fifteen minutes before its completion. My mind is surging ahead to the next challenge. I think that's pretty typical of most artists. Its the process of growing and seeing/learning new things that keeps us dreaming at night, certainly not revisiting past paintings.
I find that I can better appreciate my work after its aged awhile (preferably hanging on someone else s wall).
I will say I do enjoy sharing my studio with my little friends like these two shown. Its time to pull them down to make room for some current work and I'll miss their company.

Outside it studio

2010-06-18T16:07:00.000-07:00

Since it is raining today I spent some time in the studio finishing off some pieces and preparing panels for my next outing.
On a previous post I showed you a plein air painting that needed more work. I was interested in the rich yellow flowers that dominated the landscape with special emphasis on the sunlight that washed over the pastures in the middle ground.
As you can see when we move indoors we pick up smaller brushes and get a bit more anal. I consciously try to avoid this but am not always successful. I think this worked out okay; the photo doesn't do justice to the interplay between strong
yellows and soft violets in the hills but you get the idea.
Blogger wants to post these pics backwards and I haven't taken time to learn how to remedy that but hopefully its obvious which is the finished painting.

Painting in the rain

2010-06-15T19:47:00.000-07:00

Today's painting was all the more enjoyable as I was able to share the experience with my friend Cal. We perched on the edge of the Similkameen River near Bromlee Rock. Water is now running at its seasonal highs and sitting beside this natural force while observing the subtle nuances of color in the overhanging rocks and trees was pretty special.
The rains filtered through the trees and we were blessed with the occasional wash of sunlight. I must return on a brighter day to capture the amazing value shifts in full sun.
My umbella is much appreciated; if you paint outdoors without one of these I recommend you order one asap. You wont regret it.
I managed to pull one oil out of this while Cal created a flock of pen and watercolor studies.
As a wise man once said "even a bad day of painting is a good day".

Stress benefit

2010-06-10T07:37:00.000-07:00

May 7 found twenty of us artists scattered among various vineyards on the benches above Okanagan Lake. Our mission was to complete at least one plein-air painting to donate in support of a public art facility in a nearby major center. Typically I would paint outdoors in a small managable format - 8"X10". This day I decided to feed off the need to complete a reasonable painting in a short time and amped up the stress a bit by painting a 24"X24" canvas.
I find its usually a positive thing to impose a little stress on my work occasionally - certainly clarifies the mind and sometimes results in a painting with some character; you be the judge.
At mid afternoon I visited with another painter who was squirreled away at the top of the vineyard far away from the visiting wine-tasters and fellow painters. He is a well- established watercolorist who has painted professionaly for over thirty years. I looked at his two pieces.
The first was a 4-5 hour fully rendered overview of the rolling land , vines, buildings and lake. It was very believable and rang true but felt stiff to me, more illustration of facts than a feeling of the place.
The second painting he had just begun and he ripped it off confidently and very skillfully in front of my eyes in maybe 10 minutes. As great watercolors can this one absolutely captured the feeling of that panorama, that day.
Looking at the two paintings , framed and displayed in the gallery a few weeks later, the second painting took me right back to the sensations of the day in the vineyard.
Considering painting it seems to me that solid and emotive art needs to be put down quickly and without too much analyisis - but only achieves success when standing on a large foundation of disciplined work.
So, back to work for me.

Intention

2010-06-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

Since the dumbing down of the web has reached my level of incompetence I think its time for me to take advantage of this tool. For those friends and collectors interested in following my art development sign on to my blog and I will attempt to regularly upload latest work and observations that seem relevant to my efforts.

I've been painting plein-air (on location) the past two days enjoying the sun and clouds, hanging out at the foot of Green mountain in a horse pasture. The fences are in disrepair so the fifteen horses I've been sharing my days with are essentially free-range. Been interesting painting with these beasts- they are basically reserved but curiousity gets the better of them and after a few hours they are surrounding me and obstructing my views of the landscape.

I'll include a couple of studies from these sessions. I will paint into the larger one in the studio and the time spent on location will greatly inform this peice. I'll post it when finished.

Thats all for my first entry-please sign on if you're interested and I'll try to make your visits interesting.

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2010-06-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

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