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| Eldorado Springs Trail study, oil, 8x10, $200 |
Have you noticed that summer is a season of rapid growth? Have you awakened to discover your lush green grass, flower beds, and shrubs have become a jungle overnight? Do you find the summer clothes and shoes you just bought for your children suddenly too tight and short for back-to-school? Summer is a perfect time for personal or career growth as well. Last summer my project was a return to water aerobics to get fit for my winter travels in Italy. Results included better muscle tone, balance, endurance and stamina as well as warm, supportive new friends. This summer I am going outside (literally) my comfort zone to try plein aire painting.
Boy, did I have plenty of excuses why this would never work! Weather, wind, rain, sunburn, bugs, snakes, mountain lions, coyotes, inquisitive bystanders … It all boiled down to fear—of failure or appearing foolish. My summer reading helped me overcome fear and excuses. Starving to Successful by J. Jason Horejs showed me that if I want to be in more galleries, I must increase my productivity and confidence in painting. Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity by Bill O’Reilly helped me focus on one dream I had yet to pursue and find courage to just do it. Even a video Encounters with John Wesley strengthened my resolve to begin painting in the field. Wesley spoke of the prayer meeting where he “felt his heart strangely warmed” and knew that Jesus Christ was his Savior and that Wesley was called to go outside the church and begin preaching in the field. Wesley ultimately traveled 200,000 miles on horseback to spread the Gospel of Christ to the masses.
Growing up Irish Catholic in Brooklyn, Bill O’Reilly learned values of self-reliance, getting educated, developing a skill, and forcing yourself to work hard. He built a support system of lifelong friends who are honest with him. O’Reilly encourages us to: Design your own life. Never give up trying to make it on your own. O’Reilly states that “true courage is not about being fearless; it’s about overcoming fear, going ahead with something worthwhile even though you’re terrified. Overcoming fear is an essential key to living a useful and honorable life.”
Planning ahead, I simplified my set-up to a bare minimum necessary to paint outdoors. In my small wooden paint box I carried a wooden palette covered in aluminum foil, a palette knife for mixing colors, small roll of paper towels, small bottle of odorless mineral spirits for cleaning brushes, hog-bristle filbert brushes #2, #4, liner or rigger brush for details, small plastic bag for trash, 8x10 canvasboard attached with poster putty to 9x12 canvasboard (because this is the size of my box/easel.) Paints included Permalba White, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow Light, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Red Light, Alizaron Crimson, Transparent Red Oxide, Dioxazine Purple, Pthalo Blue, Sap Green. A limited palette of white, yellow, red, and blue would be sufficient to achieve all color mixtures needed. I put on sunscreen and wore a hat and brought drinking water and my digital camera for reference photos. A useful addition would be a small sketchbook and pencil for thumbnails or value sketches. I added a shoulder strap for hands-free carrying of my paint box; or you could carry all in a backpack. Notice I did not invest in a French easel, by was able to sit on a flat rock or bench, holding my paint box/easel in my lap to paint. After the painting session I gently rolled up the aluminum foil covering my palette to save remaining paint.
I found a 2-hour outdoor session long enough to cover my canvas with wet paint. I chose to bring these works home to finish after the initial coat of paint was dry. This allowed me to view my work in studio light and to realize that the colors I had mixed in the field were somewhat dull compared to my usual intensified colors. Above you may see Eldorado Springs Trail Study after some adjustments and highlights. If you have ever avoided outdoor painting as I had, I hope these suggestions will give you confidence to give it a try. Happy Painting!
