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.

                                                                                 (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

After several interruptions it is always great to get back to watercolor painting. Simply dragging paint across the paper releases emotions and begins to establish new associations within the color spectrum.

For some time I have been trying to transition to a larger format - that is a full sheet. I have painted many full sheets but to be able to paint at that scale as readily as at a much smaller sheet will be a turning point for me.

However, to paint at that larger scale requires more pools of paint, drawing at a more accurate scale and a portability which is quite different from working on a small watercolor block. Regardless, I think I am transitioning to that scale as time goes on.

Recently, I saw some Andrew Wyeth full sheet watercolors in person and could gain a sense of what direction I might carry a painting at this larger scale. One thing is you don't have to fill the whole paper with paint. Another salient point is that over time and practice the compositions one develops are transferable regardless of scale which enables an artist to become more intuitive.

In conclusion, I am not trying to bore the viewer but put down some thoughts at this moment to carry the painting process forward......

Last Night's Plein Air

                                                                                    (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

Last night my wife & I caught a production of Shakespeare's As You Like It, in a local park. It was a lovely evening to paint outside with great light, rich colors and an impressive audience.

I tried a different approach to this watercolor. Pigment was lifted as I was painting the sky in with a brush. Then I put down a wash of green as a backdrop for the trees. Then I painted the trees and trunks over that wash. This made the trees simpler to paint yet provided more depth.

Capturing the undulating ground with a shadow was a nice feature in this watercolor. Overall I like how this picture turned out particularly as most of this painting was created while sitting on the ground.

In conclusion, there were people watching me paint the whole duration of making this picture. However, I expect that in public places. When painting outside the public usually feels entitled to see what you are doing and offer comments and reactions or even try to push you out of the way.

 

Great Setting Light

                                                                                  (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Last night I caught a small concert on the Brattleboro(VT) Common. It included a trio of seasoned musicians playing a whole range of the American songbook. One of the musicians was Kevin Parry who has hosted numerous open mic's in the region. 

While attending this concert I noticed the amazing setting light in the background which lit up the landscape in ways I have never experienced before.

The warm glow lit up the tree trunks with a lavender hue while the foreground in the light had a pastel-quality to it. Even the distant hills had a misty blue, yet surreal characteristic to them. The above photograph does not pay justice to the experience which ultimately, in my eyes, overshadowed the concert.

July 4th Inspiration

                                                                                 (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

Oh - the fourth of July - what a holiday of traditions. Independence day and all that. For some the beginning of summer. Parades, marches, picnics and fireworks. In this time we are living in - we take our freedoms for granted!

I love this little watercolor painted fast with zero hesitation and no fussing about. After all it was the fourth of July and you could hear fireworks in the distance and see them up close temporarily decorating the sky.

For me watercolor is the only medium where you can capture the smoke and other atmospheric qualities of the lit torch at the end of this guy's hand.

This was painted from memory but still lives on with great clarity in my mind.

Imaginary Landscape

                                                                                (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

On Thursday, July 4 I was irritated with the national news and painted this scene in a decidedly fast manner. I wanted to express some of that aggression in a powerful, yet expressive way.

When painting this watercolor I tried a few different techniques. I painted a very wet sky and dropped in pigment right up until the paper dried. The spray bottle was utilized right into the end.

Ultramarine blue is a transparent color which means I can lift the pigment pretty readily. So I lifted this blue from the body of water and got these whitish streaks which gives the surface a reflective-quality.

Last, I painted the dark evergreens in the immediate foreground to thrust the viewer right into the picture. Sort of implying that the future is now.

It always feels good to mix up your painting approach and try something new. I learn the most when I challenge myself. Most days I learn something about watercolor that I didn't know before. On other days I learn a whole lot about the medium or at least challenge my perception of things going on around me.

Living Memorial Park

                                                                                              (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

Last week my wife and I went to Shakespeare in the Park, at Living Memorial Park in Brattleboro, VT. It felt great to do a summer activity after months of work. It has been a stressful spring like no other, including being selected for jury duty at my busiest time of the year.

This was painted while watching A Midsummer Night's Dream being performed before us. I kept looking at the distant hills as the night wore on and thought I ought to try to capture that scene over there.

It may look like something you may find along the coast or at a mountain top but nevertheless, I like the finished product. The sky was painted very freely and has an expressive- quality to it. I used an atomizer to encourage the colors to run into each other. As the sky dried I added more pigment and lifted out streaks in the sky which may not be visible in this photograph.

The middle and foreground was painted very wet, too. Perhaps, too much as the gray colors bled into each other. I think the darker patches are great as they add a bold stroke to the picture and give a sense of the contours to the distant hill. I lost the distant trees as they dissolved upon drying into the massive rock.

Local Park

                                                                                 (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

If I have learned anything about spring it is that greens and browns are the colors of the season. The green is the re-emergence of all the growth around us and above our heads while brown is the earth and river bottoms all churned up.

Getting outside is a wonderful thing. This was painted not long ago - as in the early evening - tonight. After dinner I walked to a local park and painted this watercolor, taking advantage of the longest days of the year. There is an old concrete wall and staircase which faces the woods where I set-up my studio for the moment.

It's funny how lively the paper is when it is wet with pigment and water and then as it dries it becomes much flatter in appearance. I painted this picture with just two brushes thus, it made for a quick clean-up.

I feel like the colors are pretty true to what I was seeing - even though the light is always changing all around me. However, the mosquitos gathered around me the whole time I was painting.

Shelter from the Sun

                                                                                    (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

It will be great once this heat wave passes. I can not recall a time in Brattleboro, VT where we had three straight days of one hundred degree days or close to it. Yesterday, the exterior temperature at my house reached 101 degrees. And that sensor is in the back of the house where it is in the shade!

This watercolor conveys the importance of trees in our lives. They provide shade, dappled light and habitat for birds, to name a few. However, in my neighborhood they always seem to be cutting down trees. Ironically, they don't seem to replace the trees or if they do it is with a weak replacement or something that is not allowed to grow to it's full height. This all seems silly and irresponsible to me.

As far as painting trees I find them fun and rewarding. They don't have to be the perfectly symmetrical trees either. Misshapen trees have a lot of character and add much value to your painting. For summer foliage I keep experimenting with the pigment combination of winsor green and burnt sienna.

Madame Sherri Forest

                                                                                               (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

The Madame Sherri Forest in West Chesterfield, NH is a lovely 513 acres of undeveloped land to submerge you into the sights and sounds of one of our great local ecosystems. I prefer the wetland and pond in the lowland, yet at a higher elevation is the lovely Indian Pond.

It seemed like I had a great start in painting this watercolor, on site, until I started to run out of time. By the time I began to paint the water in the foreground, I knew I had to head out to my scheduled medical appointment in the late afternoon, putting a stop to my painting practice.

I was particularly excited about painting the beaver lodge in the foreground with it's distinctive architecture. In addition, I like the blending of pigments for the base of the tall reeds towards the back.

This landscape scene always has dramatic light, which seems to magnify the features of the landscape. In particular, the shadows of the tree masses and the ripples across the water capture my imagination every time I am at the water's edge.

Pond adjacent to Chestnut Reservoir

                                                                                      (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

The Green Mountain State has been very green this spring. I mean deep greens as well as many shades of green. Someone told me today Vermont has had only two weekends with no rain since the first of January. That statement is hard to accept but it might well be the case. I have observed a lot of gray days.

Regardless, of rain or not I have been painting outside a lot. I have been been painting outside what is before me in a fast and direct way. Plus, I have been painting on different surfaces and at different sizes.  This watercolor is an unusual size: a square format(12" x 12"), not the usual horizontal(landscape) format. With this size you have to think twice about how you want to develop your composition. In this case, I simply started painting on this sheet with no hesitation as I had time constrains.

This watercolor was painted walking distance from my house. There is a small pond next to the Chestnut Reservoir which often hosts a great heron amongst the wetland growth. The perspective is unique as I was looking down towards the center of the pond which has a bowl-like quality to it. Yes-it has deep, still, dark reflections which makes the experience have a meditative-like quality to it.

Regardless, of the quality of this watercolor I am excited about some new techniques I have been experimenting with. One is lifting out pigment with both a brush and paper towel. Other techniques included dry brush work and negative painting along the shore where the grasses overlap the water. I have even been blending pigments at the base of the grasses to suggest a more rooted plant then a simple wash can convey.

Ft. Dummer State Park(Brattleboro, VT)

 

                                                                                    (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro

This weekend the state of Vermont offered free access to their state parks. So I took advantage of this offer with a trip to the closest state park to me - in Brattleboro, Ft. Dummer. 

It is a bit of a sleepy park but nevertheless a lovely one. Ft. Dummer doesn't offer any jaw dropping views or attractive beaches but it has some nice jogging or hiking trails in addition to it's camping options. It has a still pond in a stone quarry and a lovely field as it's assets.

This watercolor was painted in the late afternoon in the field from a picnic table. Other than the mosquitoes it was a lovely situation to be operating from.

As my mother has commented I have been painting a lot of greens lately. Tis the season as everything seems to be lush green - which beats the parched yellows and browns of a drought.

I have been experimenting with this Kilimanjaro watercolor block I have been painting on lately. This paper is bright white and good for lifting pigment especially when the paper is still wet. In fact, you can notice some lifting of pigment on the right side where the green foliage is with a palette knife. 

Whenever I lift paint I think of John Singer Sargent and Winslow Homer who were prolific at this technique. My understanding is that they lifted significant amount of paint when necessary in some of their watercolors. They scraped away paint when depicting tree trunks, white caps on the water or to suggest a stucco wall, etc.

Goose Pond

                                                                                           (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Goose Pond in Keene, NH is a lovely place to take a hike and a dip at the same location. The trail around the pond has countless vistas of beautiful natural scenes and wildlife if your timing is right.

This watercolor is of a view from near the spillway where the transparency of the water is best, highlighting the stony underwater. The cool deep shade of the shoreline is evident with the uninterrupted foliage and strong shadows on the water.

This was painted fast in under an hour with a limited palette and a lot of distractions. For some reason it reminds me of some of John Singer Sargent's watercolors he painted out in the field. He was so direct with his approach to watercolors that I still find it mind-boggling.

Landscape Painting

                                                                                                 (C) 2025 Dale DiMauro
 

Often when time is limited I simply start painting on any single sheet of watercolor paper or scrap I can find. At times this may be on a rough, cold press, hot press or soft press surface. Sometimes I even paint on illustration board.

This landscape was painted on an Arches cold press sheet of 140 lb watercolor paper. It has some texture to it but it is not particularly rough if you draw your hand across it. Recently, I have embraced rougher surfaces as I seem to be able to express a more drybrush affect with the brush and appreciate the advantage of leaving the white of the paper when I can.

The last month or so I have been observing, recording and experiencing as many in our area, here in southern Vermont, much rain and the mist and moisture in the air. I ran out and into the heaviest precipitation with my camera in and amongst the lush green growth and wetland environment.

This landscape painting is derived from memory as rain occupied the West River Valley last weekend with it's all encompassing mist dominating the valley at the foot of the Mt. Wantasiquet basin in the distance.

I wanted to match the dark-grays of the evergreens I saw outside. I was reasonably satisfied with the combination of phthalocyaine blue and burnt umber. In some areas of the dense foliage I even flicked paint with my fingernails.