Winter in Vermont

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This is a watercolor I worked on last week. At this time of year I often go on a walk through the neighboring streets or into the woods with my cleats on as a safe measure when confronted with ice. This is one of those old homes we have around here that is seemingly, impervious to change. It will outlive it's occupants by generations as it has done in the past. 

Since the New Year, in southern Vermont, we have not had any significant snowfall unlike last winter when we had weekly snow accumulations. Thus far, I find this winter uninspiring. There has been bare earth exposed and a lack of fresh snow to brighten everything up. In addition, if you play outdoor sports at this time of year, the conditions are questionable from day to day. 

I like the abstract quality of this picture from the shapes of the elements in the landscape contrasted with the sun and shadow patterns. There is little color in this picture which I think reflects on a cold day in January, when the sun is low. In general, this picture was painted directly without much fuss as I did not go back over areas with more washes. I introduced a small quantity of red into my blue for the sky which I normally do not do, creating that gray horizon.

Some paintings I never really know if they are done or not. Others I am certain. What I am implying is that you can continue to poke around with paint but it will not make as great an impact as in the beginning. However, some small details can give it a finishing touch. For example, I considered painting the front door, a barn red which I think would give it a fine touch.

A portrait like no other

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

Recently, I was thinning out some stuff in my studio as I often do prior to winter. By chance, I came upon a watercolor book of portraits I did a few years back. Some of the portraits were even done in a hotel room when traveling. They are far from perfect as far as the proportions of the facial features(i.e. eyes, ears, nose etc.) but I really like the quirky traits of the individuals portrayed. My art mentor Gerard Doucette thinks they have an Alice Neel-like quality to them. There is a fluidness to the pigments as applied to the paper which gives a pleasing quality to the simple compositions. These were painted on Arches watercolor paper which is one of my favorite surfaces to use.

In this portrait, the nose is clearly a bit over-sized but I love the skin color and gradations of light and pigment particularly, out by the tip of his nose. I will mention that the nose is a difficult subject to depict as it really has no exterior lines to it's construction yet is so centrally located.

Most days I try to at least sketch a face in pencil if nothing else while the television is on or waiting at a medical appointment. It is very rewarding to look back at a depiction of an individual whether in pencil or watercolor. I look back to see if I caught some characteristic of that particular individual and what I would do differently, if anything.

Summer paddle

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

Paddling in the summer season in Vermont is a special experience. We have many small bodies of water, perhaps more than most states, particularly those in the dry western regions. It seems that you can get closer to wildlife in these more intimate waters if you respect your surroundings. I have paddled up close to deer, painted turtles, beavers, bald eagles, cormorants, and blue herons on a pretty regular basis in the summer. The herons do not allow for a close approach, but I can reach out and touch the sunning turtles.

This is a watercolor I have recently started working on. I like the vivid colors in the foreground. Of particular note are the dramatic reflections on the water with the red stripe and the yellow of the boat. I have decided to paint the paddler's shirt off-white because this way it will not compete with the blue in the foreground and the yellow below him. 

However, I am struggling a little bit with how to treat the middle ground behind the boat. Should it convey the branching even though only the foliage is visible in the photograph I snapped of the original scene? Or should I show the details of some leaves and then put a wash over the distant shoreline? I am a little unresolved at this point.

Periodically, I am somewhat stalled on a painting, and that is why I prefer to work on several pictures at various stages of completion and on different scales at the same time.

Sqeal heard from the woodland edge

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This picture is inspired from the warm, late fall we had here in Brattleboro, Vermont. On walks through the woods and fields in December, there was a moist, soft earth and often the clustering of birds flitting about. The mild weather made it feel surreal as these were some of the shortest days of the year.

In this watercolor I tried a different approach towards painting the sky. Instead of painting wet brush on wet paper, I painted wet brush on dry paper so as to achieve a greater contrast from the pigment to the white of the paper. Also, there are areas where the edge of the brush leaves interesting, dry marks, suggesting an irregular cloud perimeter.

This watercolor was completed in less than three hours. There were areas in this picture such as the background, where I knew exactly how I wanted to approach the painting. On the other hand, in the foreground, I was not settled on a specific approach and thus spent more time reworking some details and shadowing to give the boy more of a presence. 

I do like how the boy's posture leads the viewer right to the action.

Stickney brook watercolor study

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This is a watercolor I did plein air this past summer. Plein air is challenging to do in watercolor. However, we had a hot and humid stretch, and I wanted to hang out by the water. I took a dip in the brook and stood there painting this rapidly; however, with the humidity as it was, the paper took forever to dry. In addition to slow dry times, the light is rapidly changing, as shadows expand and colors are constantly evolving. To me this painting is not very good in addition to being unfinished. Watercolor dries much lighter than when it is wet, enough so that your excitement of the scene diminishes when you look at your art piece later at home.

One of the pluses in painting in plein air is that you must simplify your subject matter and your painting process. As I recall, I enjoyed laying out the drawing that is the basis for this picture. I also like the color of the rocks and ledges, which convey warmth and light through the water. 

Vermont, where I live, is a great place to paint plein air, at least in the summer and fall when there are lots of places that can provide inspiration, such as rivers, fields, foliage and covered bridges.

Hill & dale

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This is a watercolor I started earlier this week. In my mind it is not complete as the figure and foreground needs more work. I have been eager to add figures into my landscapes, beginning with the smaller pictures. I always see people walking through the fields and trails on the Brattleboro Retreat property, which is many, many acres, with cellphone in hand and a dog nearby. I find by adding a figure it gives the landscape a sense of scale and entirely changes the focus of the picture. You have to get the figure right as the viewer tends to zooms in on the person. I have always been taken by scenes where individuals are out in the landscape hiking, canoeing, fishing, etc. To my mind there is no better place than Vermont to portray this. 

I am rethinking how to paint my skies, or at least some of them. I usually start with a wet wash on wet paper and slowly build up the sky with several washes until there is some sort of gradation from the horizon up. As a result I have tried all kinds of blues and grays to create a wide variety of skies. Lately, I have been considering preserving the white of the paper where the sky will be and painting with a loaded brush on a dry surface so as to apply the scratchy drybrush effect on the edges and achieve greater color contrasts.

Paint Tube Storage

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This may not be the most inspiring post but I think the timing is relevant. Most of the watercolor tubes I acquire are either Winsor & Newton or Daniel Smith paint. I find paints sold in tubes superior to the gel pans that are sold in packets. Paint in tubes generally provide vivid and fresh color while gels pans or half pans are more subdued and harder to achieve with diverse mixes.

In the winter months when the heat is on in our house, while the humidity is low, as we live in Vermont, my watercolor paints in tubes are prone to drying out. For several years now, I store my paints in a plastic, transparent container with a snap-on lid which I purchased at our local hardware store. With this storage system, I find my paints do not dry out as often. There are little compartments within the container whereby I can sort paints by color. I even store a pair of pliers, for occasionally a cap on a tube is hard to loosen. This system works for me as I can see through the container, it is portable and limits any spillage.

A splash of color

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This watercolor reminds me of an Eric Sloane painting. Eric Sloane painted rural New England scenes along with skies and Americana. There is a great mural of his, which we saw last spring, at the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. He illustrated his thirty-some books with pen and ink, depicting tools and methods of farming and building that now are largely lost. His images convey a strong connections to the land, weather, and all four seasons. Oh and by the way, his pen drawings are unbelievable.

No, this was not directly inspired by Eric Sloane. However, I wanted to paint a Vermont scene with vibrant warm colors in the foreground and a rich blue sky. I sought to convey a sense of depth in perspective with a range of values in those colors. The photograph does not really capture the coloring accurately.  At this time of year it can be difficult to find the natural light that is so crucial to photographing paintings. I put birds in because it is the beginning of migration season and because they add interest and movement.

Well needed rest....

(C) 2015 Dale DiMauro

This is a drawing I started last winter when my wife was taking a nap on our couch. She often works late into the night grading papers as an English teacher. She often dozes off the following day on our couch, to catch up on sleep following dinner. I prefer to capture my subjects in their natural state, and this is often hers. The original image includes her lower legs but was cropped out to better fit on the screen.

I started a new watercolor this weekend of a rural scene with a barn and fall foliage but do not want to post it until it is a little further along. However, prior to Christmas I had an eye exam, sensing I needed an adjustment to my eye prescription. Sure enough, I needed a new prescription and am anticipating the arrival of new glasses. I have had the current glasses for over ten years. This clearer picture, hopefully, will help me create more inspired paintings.