Tangled Sunflowers

Tangled Sunflowers

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 15, 2009

Sunflowers have been a favorite of impressionist painters ever since Van Gogh squeezed out an entire tube of yellow and painted them. It is hard to say why they are so captivating, perhaps it is just the size or the bright yellow.

These sunflowers are part of Auburn University plot. They are part of a study as is everything else grown out there.

Goldfish

Goldfish

$100

Oil on Canvas

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 14, 2009

The university has some wonderful little places hidden hear and there. One of my favorites is the goldfish pond behind Samford Hall. The pond has nice lilies and other aquatic plants but mostly it is the bright orange goldfish that make it special.

The light shifted fast over the corner of the pond and I had to keep reassessing what could move with the light and what couldn’t. At first I didn’t even think about putting fish in I was just going for the reflections but as soon as I saw them swim into the picture I know I had to try and paint them.

Auburn Water Tower

Auburn Water Tower

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 14, 2009

Auburn had great clouds today. I had painted in the morning but after being in the studio and seeing the clouds on the way to the bank I went and got my paints. There is a field on the university campus that is used mostly for people to park their RV’s during football games. It gives a nice open view of the sky. In the far distance you can see the top of a large white water tower.

I used my motorcycle to get to the painting site. It is a great way to get around unless there is a cloud burst. Which is exactly what happed on the way back to the studio.

Yellow Lilies

Yellow Lilies

$100

Oil on Canvas

16 x 20 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

This painting was done as a demonstration for my Tuesday painting class. The lilies are from my front yard.

Mid Morning Sanford Hall

Mid Morning Sanford Hall
$100

Oil on Canvas
5 x7 inches
2009
Auburn, Alabama

There is nothing in auburn that has been painted, photographed and drawn as much as Samford Hall. For that reason I have avoided painting it for the years I have lived here. But you can’t help being drawn to it. It is simply a beautiful building and it is instantly recognizable as the unchangeable heart of Auburn.

I decided looking up at it was my best bet. I like looking at things in a way we are not used to. The sky framed the towers and it the building suddenly could have been on the Grand Canal.

It was a difficult piece with all the angles for a small 5”x 7” but the most difficult thing was that I brought nothing to wipe my brushes with. I was all set up and I didn’t want to go back to the studio. I glanced down at my feet and figured that a painting is worth sacrificing a pair of socks for. It was all done by 10:30. You never lost track of time while painting a tower with a clock and chimes in it.

Pond Reflections

Pond Reflections

Oil on Canvas

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

One of my students Sheri has started a Plein Air painting group in Auburn. She has asked me several times to come to“paint out” and something has always come up. Finally I had time this Wednesday.

The site was Town Creek Park in Auburn. The park has a man made pond that has a robust turtle and algae population. I was attracted to the little white flowers growing along the edge of the pond and wished there were lily pads to fill out the composition. Fortunately there were clumps of algae and duck weed. I figured if I kept it loose enough they would have the same effect. There is a lot to paint in this little park and I will be back there soon.

Farm Pond

Farm Pond

$100

Oil on Linen
8x10 inches
Fall of 2006
H & H Horse Quarters, Auburn, Alabama

At the farm where we keep our horse, Remington, and where my wife and daughter ride, is a small fishing pond. It is hidden behind the back pastures and you only see it when you come upon it by accident.

Like many ponds in Alabama, this area is the result of an earthen dam. The remnants of drowned trees still litter the water, becoming perches for a variety of birds.

This landscape was painted late in the day. It was very overcast and still. Light was hitting the trees and the effect wouldn’t last. I worked quickly but had to stop often to throw a stick in the water for my Labrador Retriever, Sully. He still doesn’t understand the whole art thing.