It's been a while since my last post. I had difficulties with new income tax software (did not import and transfer depreciation correctly from the software I used last year) and then I left for 12 days of painting on Italy's Amalfi Coast. Since this blog is primarily for the 1000 Islands Region in the St Lawrence River with some diversions to the Adirondacks and Catskill's, I intend to initiate another blog to talk about the Amalfi Coast and and also my other paintings created with other subject matter. That will be under RobertPHeddenArt-coming soon, right after our 4th Annual US 1000 Islands Artist Studio Tour May 23rd and 24th, 2014.
My favorite sunrises occur in the winter as they come up directly across the St Lawrence River from Wellesley Island and illuminate Brown Bay and Swan Bay on the other side of the Narrows. Sometimes I can catch a reference photo(s) with a ship passing before closure of the Seaway late in December. Of course the sunrises are great all year but in the spring and summer months I would have to take a boat out to the shipping channel, as the direction from my second floor deck is partially obstructed by trees.
The photo on the left is a January Sunrise and dates back to 2005. The photo above is a from February 2005. I don't think that a painting that tries to realistically portray a sunrise or sunset ever really achieves that objective but can come close with a series of glazes, with drying time of days in between, may do a reasonable job for the artist with a lot more patience than me.
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| Winters Last Light TI Bridge (sold) |
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| November Sunset TI Bridge (sold) |
The photo inspiration for Winters Last Light TI Bridge was actually taken from the mainland along Route 12
The photo inspiration for November Sunset TI Bridge was taken from the second floor deck of our home. I was in a Van Gogh mood and used a painting knife, applying the paint in a thick impasto manner.
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| Sunrise Progression I (sold) |
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| Sunrise Progression II |
The following three impressionistic sunrises depict the progression of a very dramatic sunrise (because of the cloud formations) over several minutes. These are all the scene in front of the house. They are a winter sunrise with some snow covered ice and some open water creating different surfaces for reflection.
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| Sunrise Progression III |
Straying from The St Lawrence River, below is a plein air of a sunset progressions at Sackets harbor battlefield. For more sunsets and sunrises see my website where there is a Galley named Sunrises.
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| Sackets Harbor Battlefield Sunset |
My favorite sunrises occur in the winter as they come up directly across the St Lawrence River from Wellesley Island and illuminate Brown Bay and Swan Bay on the other side of the Narrows. Sometimes I can catch a reference photo(s) with a ship passing before closure of the Seaway late in December. Of course the sunrises are great all year but in the spring and summer months I would have to take a boat out to the shipping channel, as the direction from my second floor deck is partially obstructed by trees.
I can see why Winter's Last Light and November Sunset TI Bridge both sold, Bob. Beautiful. The sunrises and sunsets here are so beautiful and I don't take advantage not living on the water. I tend to see my garden as that is my view. You have inspired me to catch a sunset as I used to do by walking down to the village dock with my portable chair and well, of course, some wine. Good luck on the tour! I will miss it this year but hope to be back next year. It's quite a grand wedding we will be attending. I even had to buy a dress.
ReplyDeleteBe sure to check the anti-sunset,i.e., turn your back to the sunset and look at the sky (if cloudy).The sun reflecting on summer cumulus clouds as it sets can be more dramatic than the sunset. Have to do a post on that after I do a few paintings.
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