Tom Hill Copy

 

John Singer Sargent(1856-1925) was certainly one of the great American artists. While known for his great oil panels, he painted over 2,000 watercolors. Along the way he would copy an artists painting on occasion, to see what he could learn from their approach.

Last night I made a copy of a little Tom Hill(1925 -? ) watercolor titled Angler's Retreat 7" x 10.5". Recently, I purchased his used book Travels With My Paintbox: The Paintings of Tom Hill at a local bookstore. Hill wrote many books which depicted his lovely watercolors, painted on his various travels

In this watercolor I love the light he captures with the warm colors and the pleasing outdoor scene.

Travels With My Paintbox: The Paintings of Tom Hill(book)

 

There are a lot of great watercolor books out there not in circulation. Occasionally, I find a treasure in the used book section of a local bookstore or art shop. However, in Keene, NH, at the end of summer, the Toadstool bookstore seemed to have a large quantity of quality used books all at once. I took notice and bought many - all hard copies with a maximum price of ten dollars each.

This book: Travels With My Paintbox: The Paintings of Tom Hill, is an instant classic for me. This author wrote several books on watercolor painting but this may be his most inspiring.

Mr. Hill traveled often and painted on these travels. None of his paintings seem overworked. This book has a wide range of subject matter which I refer to often.

Butcher Trays

                                                                                                  (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

Butcher trays have been around for years. Many experienced watercolor artists I know prefer to use butcher trays as a palette which they clean prior to starting a new painting.

Over time many different sizes of butcher trays have become available for purchase. The one seen here is 8.5" x 12.5".

I like this sized butcher tray to rest my paint brushes once they are cleaned and ready for their next use. A while back I cut a homosote board to fit in the bottom which I lay a section of paper towel on. This set-up keeps the brushes from rolling all over my table surface and falling on the floor. Also, this arrangement keeps the tips of my brushes in good lasting shape

 

NEW PIGMENT COMBINATION(Burnt Umber/Alizarin Crimson/Pthalo Blue)

                                    New (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

It is always a delight to discover a new combination of pigments when painting with watercolors. What to do with this new information is another development unto itself. I find preserving the white of the paper, in watercolor, in some areas, to be rather important.

This entire painting was done with three pigments: burnt umber/alizarin crimson/pthalo blue. I think of the values here to be a warm dark as compared to a cool dark.

The colors here remind me of the colors of fall when the days start to wind down. This watercolor was actually painted in less than ten minutes once the pigments were combined. Sometimes the best paintings take the least amount of time. It is best to take the mind out of painting and have fun with the pigments and experiment. I think this allows you to have a growth spurt even if you have a busy day with little time available to paint.

Flying Mountain(Bar Harbor, ME)

                                                                                                (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

One of my more favorite hikes of recent memory has been of Flying Mountain in Bar Harbor, ME. It has lovely views of Somes Sound and ends along this lovely protected cove. In nice weather people gather and explore the sandy but rocky beach. Often, many boats anchor off this beach and come to shore on their dinghy's. 

When my wife and I hiked this trail in July the colors of the water, beach and forested ridge were alive and vivid.

I look forward to painting the shoreline of any body of water but this one is particularly is descriptive with it's large boulders, dense tree growth and alluring water. In addition, I like the feel of the shadow in the foreground, it's not too heavy yet refreshing, on a hot day.

Plein Air

                                                                                 (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Yesterday I walked through the woods knowing I would not be able to get much exercise later in the day. During the hike I realized I had not walked through any local woods and fields in quite some time. 

Once out in the sun I had to acknowledge it was a glorious morning and promptly opened my plein air set and painted this watercolor along the edge of a meadow. 

I even lifted pigment to capture some of the lighter colored branching in the distance trees. The burnt sienna color among the grass I have been seeing more and more of as fall advances upon us.

The sparkle amongst the vibrant grass adds much to this scene. It was all there on my hike that morning.

Ft. Dummer State Park(Quarry pond)

                                                                                (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Fort Dummer is the closest state park to where I live in Vermont. Years ago stone was removed and as a result this natural looking pond remains at the foot of these stone plinths. It is a hidden pond which makes it a little eerie but has a spectacular landscape, nonetheless.

This summer with the drought I have never seen so much shoreline. However, I find it an intriguing subject matter for a plein air picture.

Still, I painted this picture at home because it was so dry and dusty by the water. This picture was painted on The Masters' Choice paper which has a lovely bead to it's surface. At least the rough surface has this shimmer to it when the paper is wet. 

I believe the colors are fairly accurate to what I saw outside.

West Brattleboro Park

                                                                                              (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

We have had some glorious weather lately and this was one of those days. After a recent dental appointment I was able to paint a quick watercolor in West Brattleboro, VT. 

There is a lovely park for painting outside with several picnic tables and dappled shade. It is adjacent to the fire station.

In this picture I like the rich foliage again the blue sky. It felt good to quickly put pigment to paper and run with it.

 

Fall Landscape

                                                                                      (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

This fall landscape was painted last autumn. It was very dry as we headed into last winter. Now we are in a similar period.

This makes me wonder what kind of foliage season we will have in the coming months. Some people tell me it's going to be a mild winter with the impact of an El Nino, while other people say we are going to receive more snow than usual. 

Who knows. One thing I have observed in my travels is that under large specimen trees where there is lawn there are large dry patches. The roots of these large trees are simply absorbing as much moisture as they can while the grass has turned into straw. Birds seem to like this straw to peck on as they search for food.

I think the muted and limited palette in this watercolor make the composition of this picture stronger and more unified. Without a strong contrast in light and color the washes seem to travel across the page and merge with other pigments.

 

Paintings Done on the Go

                                                                                                (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Often, I squeeze in some painting during the day when I can,. This is one of those situations. 

I painted the watercolor on the right. Then by accident, the watercolor book closed upon itself. When this happened wet pigment ended up on the sheet on the left. So I did what I could - and turned that page into a landscape, too.

I learn something about painting or the way the pigments move around the page every time I play with them. As a result, I find the painting process very stimulating. 

May your painting process take your practice to uncharted territories. 

Art-in-the-Park(Keene, NH)

                                            (C) 2025 Photograph Dale DiMauro

Yesterday my wife and I went to Art in Park, in Keene NH. The weather on both Saturday and Sunday was glorious if you were viewing the art or exhibiting it. Usually, it seems like one of the weekend days has great weather while the other is more questionable  - but not this year.

Earlier in the year I really considered entering the event this year - however, with all the tariff chaos of the spring I held off.

When I went on Saturday it was the most social time I have ever had at Art in the Park. The afternoon flew by talking to various artists I knew or people who I ran into.  Even my mom's name came up as she is a watercolor artist too. 

In the Spring I had gone to one of Jeanne Maguire Thieme's art critiques and got overwhelming positive feedback from that day. I had brought a full sheet watercolor painting that day and really only received positive criticism.

Out to Sea

                                                                                   (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

It is amazing what you can do with two or three pigments. In this watercolor I used three pigments: cerulean/ultramarine blue and raw sienna. Leaving the white of the paper white was another benefit.

There is less clean-up when you use a limited palette and their seems to be more harmony in the overall picture.

Often a small study leads to a stronger composition and sometimes outdoes a finished painting. It is easy to paint the 'life' out of a picture with too much technical information and lifeless brush work.

Sketchbook & Watercolor-bound Book

                                                                                  (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Utilizing a sketchbook is a valuable tool to not just record and observe life around you. It is useful in expanding your artistic skills as well as for developing compositional studies.

I learned a long time ago it best to travel with a sketchbook - as events happen that you can not anticipate. Case in point - I spent most of Friday corresponding with a cell phone technician which was highly unproductive. 

However, this was one of the little watercolors I put down while waiting for a response. Also, it reduced my anxiety - a lot, as the connection was often interrupted. 

In addition, I painted many figure studies at different scales. As I look back on Friday because of these little studies - it was somewhat productive.

Flying Mountain

                                                                                             (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Last month my wife and I hiked Flying Mountain on Bar Harbor, in the state of Maine. This hike has views of Somes Sound and this lovely cove where many boaters set anchor and people ride their dinghy in to land.

I was inspired by the rich colors of the water, the varied shoreline and the collection of people who walk the beach. This is a lovely location away from the other crowded spots on the island.

This watercolor was started two days ago as I was starting my preparation for a Tuesday colonoscopy. I needed a distraction as I would not be able to eat a genuine meal for some time. 

View from Above the Clark Art Museum

                                                                                            (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

About ten days ago my wife and I visited the Clark Art Museum in Williamstown, MA. To get some exercise, we often walk the lovely trails above the museum, at the end of the day. This time there were numerous sculptures dotting the landscape whether in the fields or in the woods.

For me it is rare to see such an agricultural landscape which isn't overly maintained from high up on a hill. It provides me a truly fresh perspective which I look forward to experiencing.

I just painted this watercolor this evening. The heat we have had lately has simply sucked the energy out of me. However, I like the composition to this picture with the tree consuming nearly half the painting.

Scott Farm

                                                                                   (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Earlier this week, Scott Farm, in Dummerston, VT, was the plein air site for the Saxton's River Art Group to gather at. It is always a lovely spot to meet and paint. I immediately feel the history of the landscape once I park my car and head up past the barn and stone walls.

Whenever I paint on the property I try a different vantage point. Since it was a hot day I made sure to find a spot in the shade looking across the landscape. 

This watercolor was painted on Kilimanjaro paper, which I have been using when I work outside this summer. My only real criticism is that the pond in the foreground appears more like a lawn than a pond. If I deepen the value this may read more like water. 

I do like the geometric shapes of the buildings and the stark white of the paper which is what I think of when recalling the color of the structures.

Great to get back to Painting

                                                                                            (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

The last two months have been busy and hot. This followed the most stressful and turbulent spring I have had to endure. Much of this had to do with the unsettling of America and uncertainty coming out of Washington, D.C. This included, on more than one occasion, not getting paid in a timely manner for work done. In addition, wet weather delayed some projects which enabled me to squeeze in some time for pickle ball.

Also, during the height of spring I was requested to do Jury Duty, which fortunately is postponed to a later timeframe. For a client, I did construct a custom-made raised garden bed which has had only positive reviews. In essence, it looks like a piece of fine furniture. 

In the end my wife and I were able to continue our annual vacation to Maine. On our trip I got to visit what I consider to be the best art store I have ever been in(Artist & Craftsman Supply in Portland, ME). So now I am ready to get back to painting. Hopefully, we will have some comfortable weather before long. I even have some new pigments to try out - Transparent Orange and King's Royal Blue to name a few.

Anna Alma-Tadema

This morning my wife and I went to the Clark Art Museum in Williamsville, MA. Unlike most high quality museums, The Clark is located in a rural setting. Thus, visiting this museum is an annual ritual, during the summer months, which we eagerly look forward to.

The current major exhibition is titled: A Room of Her Own: Women Artist-Activists in Britain, 1875-1945. The work on display whether it is drawings, paintings or embroidery is impressive.

The above watercolor: "Girl in a Bonnet with her Head on a Blue Pillow(Maisie)", was painted in 1902 by British artist Anna Alma-Tadema(1867-1943) and is simply stunning to see in person. 

Anna was the daughter of Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema(1836-1912) a well known Dutch painter who later settled in the United Kingdom. Both were known for paintings characterized with detail.

Anna's watercolors sold for high prices and she could select her buyer. However, after her father passed away, she struggled as her housing situation became unstable.

Back Home

                                                                                (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

It is great to be back home after a couple weeks away. Maine is always a lovely escape from the heat of summer. To see and sniff the coastal waters while catching a dip or two is quite refreshing.

While in Portland, Maine, my wife and I toured one of the oldest cemeteries in New England. It felt ancient just to walk through the space as many of those buried were segregated on the grounds as well as ship laborers who died at sea at a very young age. We could sense the layers of conflict and fires Portland experienced through the centuries which we could not comprehend before our tour.

During our vacation I picked up a few souvenirs along the way. In particular, I like this vertical pencil holder which was made out of hardwood, by prison inmates, in Maine 

Fabriano Sketch Paper

                                      (C) 2025 Photograph Dale DiMauro

Every artist has there own preferences but I like this sketchbook paper. I happened upon it by accident as my local sources for paper do not stock this paper. This sketchbook was purchased in Maine while traveling.

This paper is Fabriano 1264 which is made in Italy. Fabriano started making paper in 1264 and thus is the oldest European paper mill.

I prefer sketchbook paper that doesn't tear so easily yet will hold up particularly when using the larger sizes. Recently, I began using the 18" x 24" books to encourage me to draw the human figure and landscapes at a larger scale.