Electric Fence

Electric Fence

$100

Oil on Linen

8x10 inches

Fall of 2006

H & G Horse Quarters, Auburn, Alabama

In this painting, the thing that interested me the most was the long diagonal line created by the electric fence and the buckets sitting along beside it. I don't know who the first person was to discover that a mild electric current is enough to keep a big animal from leaving. I used to think that something so small couldn't possibly keep a horse contained but at that time, I didn't know horses. Horses will spook if a leaf blows past them the wrong way. If you could put a line of mice around a pasture and keep the mice from moving that would be also enough to keep the horses enclosed.

Hershey

Hershey

SOLD

Oil on Linen

8x10 inches

Spring of 2006

H & G Horse Quarters, Auburn, Alabama

The nice thing about painting a horse in its stall is that they can't walk away from you. I was painting at H & G Horse Quarters, a stable where my wife and daughter ride.

The horse's name is Hershey and he is dark brown. The sheen on a groomed horse is a great reflector of light and although the horse was in silhouette by the window, he had reflections of the warm and cool light all over his body.

Painting in a barn has its limitations though. These mostly consist of not having enough light and the drawbacks that come from that. Luckily, this painting is mostly shapes with the biggest shape not moving at all!

Most of the barn activity went on as usual while I painted and I think I will venture into barns more often. Despite the lack of good light from which to paint, they have an abundance of dazzling light effects which I wish to explore further on canvas.

Low Tide Logan Martin Dam

Low Tide Logan Martin Dam

$100

Oil on Linen

8x10 inches

11/05/2006

Logan Martin Dam

I called this painting “Low Tide” even though there is no tide within hundreds of miles of this spot. Everything about the place just felt, looked, and smelled like low tide. Not however, low tide in Alabama, but more of a low tide in Maine.

This was early Sunday morning and again I was off in search of a place to paint. In a lot of ways, finding the right landscape to paint is like fishing: you have a general idea of what you want to catch, but it invariably turns out differently from what you expected.

I was staying at a time-share condominium with my in laws near the Logan Martin Dam. Everyone wanted to sleep Sunday morning except my father in law, Mike, who is always up with the sun. Mike is an avid birder so he came along to look for birds while I looked for subject material.

We drove over the dam to look at the other side of the lake but I found nothing. Upon coming back, I could see the river below the dam and we decided to take a look there. It was quite fantastic as the water was very low and all the rocks in the river were exposed. It hadn't been that way long and there were puddles and small ponds everywhere. The sudden dip of the water level must have trapped many small fish because the Blue Herons had descended on the area in mass. Following right behind the Blue Herons were the sea gulls. The sounds of the gulls as well as the sight and the smell of the freshly exposed wet rocks reminded me of a low tide in Maine.

The sun was coming up and I was painting directly into it. The glare and the reflections added to the feel of being near the ocean. While I painted away, I was oblivious to the rising of the water as the dam, which was also a hydro generating plant, released more water. When I came back two hours later to show the rest of the family the scene I’d just painted, the whole area had sunken beneath the water, the birds were gone, and it looked very ordinary. I guess timing is everything.

Approaching Storm

Approaching Storm

$100

Oil on Linen
11x14 inches
04/14/2007
Dauphin Island

All day long the radio had been warning that a large storm was approaching from Mississippi. The time was past 5:00 p.m., the wind was strong, and it had started to rain. This seemed like a great time to go to the beach and paint.

I thought that I would be able to find some shelter at the beach and be able to paint a good atmospheric beach scene. When I arrived, it didn't matter that the wind was especially strong and it was raining. This was just as I pictured it would be. If I could just find a place to put my easel where it wouldn't fly away, I'd be in luck. Unfortunately, this proved to be a bit more difficult than I anticipated.

There were beach shelters but they were too exposed and the view wasn't right. So I carried my paint kit to the fishing pier and found a spot underneath. Setting the easel up in order to stand and paint was out of the question. It would have blown over. Besides, under the pier there were piles of rocks placed to prevent erosion.

I set the easel up at a lower height level and piled rocks on it to weight it down. I sat down on a rock and took a long look at what I wanted to paint. It was after 6:00 p.m. and would be dark in less than an hour. I would have to think it out, keep it simple, and paint fast. The landscape went well, and then as I painted in the sky, the clouds broke a bit allowing a pot of orange to appear where the sun was trying to break through. Shorebirds were everywhere and I was tempted to add them to the painting but then thought about trying to pack up in the dark. Bye bye birds.

I made it out just in time, and it was already dark as I crossed the bridge. I missed a turn on the way back to Mobile and nearly ended up in Mississippi. Thankfully my van has a compass.

#946

#946

SOLD

Oil on Canvas Panel

11x14 inches

10/11/2006

Alabama State Fair, Montgomery

I went to the state fair in search of animals. There is a difference between seeing farm animals on the farm and seeing them at the fair getting ready for competition. They are not just your average cows, pigs, chickens, etc., but the best of the best the owners have to offer.

I like the whole look and feel of the buildings set up as temporary barns. The atmosphere is alive and moving with these magnificent animals who are accompanied by their proud owners sharing in the glory.

I immediately saw the painting I wanted. It was a perspective of the whole building with long lines of Brahma cows and bulls, people walking, and light streaming in from the windows. I set up and got started immediately. After about 45 minutes, I was hopelessly mired in details and struggling with the fact that cows like to stand up and sit down........frequently! Finally I took some turps and wiped the whole thing down. I really hate to give up on any painting. As I was finishing this, I noticed that the cow beside me seemed to have dozed off. Smiling to myself, I turned the easel and began a head and shoulders of my sleepy subject.

These cows are very adorable in an odd way. They have ears like a lop rabbit, wrinkles like a Sharpia puppy, and a camel's hump over their shoulder blades. It’s almost as if Dr. Seuss had a hand in their creation.

She slept just long enough for me to get the sketch and then woke, stood up, stretched, turned and took aim at my paint box. I moved it just in time.

Bridge Over Peaceful Water

Bridge Over Peaceful Water

SOLD

Oil on Gessoed Panel

5x7 inches

01/11/06

Saugahatchee Creek, Loachapoka

Alabama is a state of bridges. There is so much running water here that it seems you cannot drive more than a mile without crossing over a bridge. After a while most of us just don't notice them anymore.

Painters and bridges have had a love affair going back centuries. From the ornate bridges over the Sienne in Paris to the covered bridges of early America and on to the futuristic tangles of overpasses in major cities; they have all made it into paintings. Even the simplest bridge has beauty.

I wasn't looking for a bridge today. I went to Loachapoka first because its fun to say “I'm going to Lochapoka” and second it has all sorts of picturesque old buildings. Every fall they have a festival called “Syrup Sopping”. People come from all over to watch cane syrup being made in the old way, with mules turning a device that crushes the cane to get the juice which is boiled to make syrup. There are bands and reenactments and vendors and all sorts of possibilities for paintings.

This year, unfortunately, I was out of town for the event. My daughter Savannah had a horse show in Georgia. She got the champion ribbon both days. So I came back victoriously to the town after the “Syrup Sopping” to capture some of the spirit minus the festival.

There were dozens of possibilities for paintings! There is a great feed store called Fred's, some magnificent Victorian homes with a railway running right through it all. Still I couldn't find anything. I toured the back streets and again lots of great stuff, but nothing grabbed me. I told myself that I had 15 minutes to get inspired. I drove out of town and took the first right going north on a two-lane paved road. I knew the Saugahatchee was near and I also knew that this was a part of the creek that can be canoed, so I thought I might as well have a look.

After a few minutes I came to the bridge. Now the thing about bridges, especially newer highway bridges, is they don't look like they would be anything from the road. This bridge was no exception. It definitely couldn't be mistaken for the Pont Neuf. I pulled over and went down the embankment to have a look.

This was it. A clear stream meandered through large outcrops of bare rock, fall colors, and of course all the interesting structure that is the underside of a bridge. I went back to the Van to get my paints and I heard a truck pull up . I looked up to see Craig Gregson, my son's scoutmaster. He's a forester and was out to survey a tract of forest that was for sale. After a chat, I got to work.

I had Sully, my yellow lab with me. He's only a year and a half old, and very happy to go everywhere with me. I decided to let him off the lease while I painted. Suddenly all the tranquility vanished. He ran in and out of the creek , in and out of the woods, throwing himself back into the water all at about 60 mph. I wasn't going to get anything with that going on, so he went on the lease and assumed his role as companion and art critic.

It was just a little painting done on a panel I've had for 15 years. It is a sample of a tradition gesso and has the recipe on the back of the panel. I better copy it down because I really liked painting on it.