Thumbnail sketch

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

When my wife and I vacationed recently, in the state of Maine, we took daily hikes for exercise but also to get out in the landscape. When we were on Mt. Desert Island, we were rewarded with breath-taking views nearly every hike. 

Since we got back home, I have had pictures printed that either I or my wife took. Last night while listening to a podcast on plein air painting, I doodled this little thumbnail sketch from a photograph taken while climbing Acadia Mountain. 

Sometimes these little doodles are the best as I am not attached to any set composition. In my mind I was rapidly changing the landscape to strengthen the composition. I moved trees around and inverted the landform to make the figure (me) have a stronger presence. I am not looking to dominate the picture but tweak it in a way that reveals some quality inherent in the landscape, whether it is an atmospheric effect or the quality of the light.

Plein air bag

(C) 2017 Photograph Dale DiMauro

After two weeks vacationing in the state of Maine, my wife and I returned home. The weather was great, and we socialized with friends and relatives more than we had anticipated when we left.

This afternoon as we unpacked, I emptied out my bag for plein air painting, which was originally intended for fishing.  When we visited an outlet store of L.L. Bean's in Ellsworth, Maine I picked up a plein air bag that is better than the one I have been using. The new one, like the one I have been using, is waterproof with useful water and spray bottle holders. However, the new one also has an assortment of small pockets to hold pencils and paper towels with greater dividers.

Before leaving Portland this morning, I got to visit one of the best art stores I have ever been to. Most art stores these days do not carry much product, and the quality of their offerings are not what they used to be. However, The Artist & Craftsman Supply store is similar to a warehouse with aisles of goodies. Additionally, it is an employee-owned company. 

Acadia National Park

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

My wife and I spent this week in Bar Harbor, Maine, and exploring Acadia National Park by car, foot and through swimming. We met up with relatives and friends along the way. We even ran into good friends from Vermont who happened to be walking along the sidewalk in the downtown area.

One of the hikes we took was around Jordan Pond, which was well traveled. This little plein air was done not far from the trail. It was a challenge finding a spot to get situated that was not in the sun. The Bubbles are in the background, which are two small rocky mountains. There was quite a bit of wildlife coming and going around me. There were many people, gulls, and ducks, as well as small schools of fish in the shallow water near my feet.

When plein air painting I seem to arrive at colors that approximate the natural scene. This is not easy to do as the light is constantly changing, so I am proud of that. However, I feel the foreground needs a little more work to solidify the picture. I could have worked a little longer, but my stomach was calling for lunch.

Andrew Wyeth @ the Farnsworth Museum

Photograph by Dale DiMauro

Earlier this week, my wife and I visited the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland, Maine, which includes the Wyeth Center. It is quite an achievement to have a museum for your family's paintings but that in essence, is what the Wyeth Center is. Don't get the wrong impression because the three generations of Wyeth's from N.C., to Andrew, and to Jamie have created a lot of worthy paintings.

Since this is the year Andrew Wyeth would have turned one hundred, there is a gallery dedicated to his watercolors. One of the display panels mentions that he painted 100-150 watercolors a year, which through the years would total thousands of paintings. I do not know of any American artist with that level of productivity.

This watercolor study by Andrew Wyeth, called Drumlins was done in 1974. It is part of another exhibition in the museum featuring some of his drawings, which alone, are quite remarkable in the range of subject matter and scale of the work.

After we left the museum I came away thinking this was the best exhibition of the artist's work I have ever seen.

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

2017 Photograph Dale DiMauro

Earlier this week my wife and I visited Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. We learned they had a great exhibit of works on paper and they indeed do. They have many drawings and watercolors on exhibit dating back hundreds of years. Most of these pieces I had never seen before. However, there are watercolors by the likes of John Singer Sargent and Winslow Homer among others.

This red chalk drawing by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) is titled Head of a Young Man. This was completed circa 1752-53. With the aid and collaboration of his two sons, they created more than 1,500 chalk studies. In addition, they created hundreds of pen and ink drawings.

What I noticed most about this drawing is his ability to capture the feelings of the individual through a minimal amount of drawing. This is in addition to depicting the characteristics of the face in part, through the conveyance of light. 

Jules Adolphe Aime' Louis Breton

2017 Photograph Dale DiMauro

Last weekend my wife and I visited the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA. This day trip in early summer has become an annual ritual, followed up by attending a play in the evening at the Williamstown Theatre Festival.

Even though there was a special exhibition on Picasso, we are usually drawn to the permanent collection, and this time was no different. Since the museum completed its expansion, the exterior setting outside in junction with the orientation of the grounds truly parallel the quality of the works hanging on the inside walls. Through all the improvements to the museum, it remains in its familiar location and many of the art works feel like old friends. 

I have always admired this painting by Jules Breton (1827-1906), a French 19th century realist painter. The painting, titled Peasant girl with turkeys, is oil on canvas, completed in 1864. Breton's paintings reveal the importance of the French landscape to his art.

A View from the Brattleboro Common

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

This is a plein air painting I did this afternoon. I walked down to the Brattleboro Common, which is a short walk from our house. It was important that I could paint in the shade while looking into the sun. The building was minimized because I wanted to convey the light coming through the gaps and had selected a small sheet of paper.

Recently, I have been staking out places to plein air paint with picnic tables or benches where it is easy to set up my equipment. Not only am I trying to refine my painting approach outside, but also simplify what I need to bring with me.

I worked on this picture for about an hour and a half. I couldn't resist putting in the parking meter, yet wish the shadow was added, as it helps define the curb and time of day. It is fun to wet small areas of the paper, which enables me to experiment with a variety of brush techniques or drop in other pigment and increase the value in areas.

July 3 in Grafton with the Vermont Symphony Orchestra

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

My wife, mom, and I spent the evening of July 3 attending the Vermont Symphony Orchestra's pops concert in Grafton, VT. The day had been hot, but the weather ended up being quite pleasant as we stayed out of the sun the entire time. After eating the dinner we brought (and my wife consuming our neighbors' surplus), I did some plein air painting. 

As far as subject matter, I wasn't sure what I should focus on. The light was changing fast, and all the people gathered in the field were constantly on the move. The bugs could have been a real challenge, but they were not a nuisance, or even really noticeable.

I settled on the distant fields and woodland edge where the sun was still present. This can be seen in the above photograph. After I started, and particularly during the intermission, a trickle of onlookers developed around me. Some were artists themselves and others just wanted to see what I was up to. One person asked if I was going to sell the picture. My wife even handed out business cards. 

However, I must admit, I was eager to finish the picture before engaging in any peripheral conversations. The light was fading fast. The paint was not drying as quickly as I would like as there was some moisture in the air accumulating into dew. I learn something every time I work with watercolor. 

A View from the Northampton, MA Rail Trail

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

Several weeks ago, my work week was cut short so I put my bike in the car and headed down to Northampton, MA. We had, had a streak of overcast days so it was important to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. This image, inspired from a photograph, I took from my bicycle, has lingered with me ever since. I was struck by how verdant the Pioneer Valley was. I thought Vermont being the Green Mountain state and all, could not be outdone.

Lately, I have been reading about all kinds of color combinations worthy of trying in my paintings. On this very trip I purchased, The Artist's Color Guide, Watercolor: Understanding the Palette, Pigments and Properties, by Hazel Soan. For some time, I have been searching for greater knowledge in the use of color and pigments as a means to expand my color palette in watercolor and this purchase as they say, was spot on.

I have learned the fewer color combinations required, the better. For example, it is easier to combine two pigments instead of three and the less you utilize the more vibrant the wash.

This green field is a pairing of aureolin and prussian blue which I have come to use for some time. However, I tried a new dark from the combination of cadmium red and prussian blue for the tree trunk. For a couple months now, I have introduced more burnt sienna into my landscapes which seems to add a greater dimension and variety into the foreground.