Brattleboro Common

(C) 2019 Dale DiMauro

The Brattleboro Common is such an important park in the downtown area as there is minimal open space for the public to access. In the Winter, I find the experience of walking through the Common with the deciduous leaves down, in the sun, more appealing than in the Summer.

This watercolor started out as a study of the two trees in the foreground. It wasn't necessarily going to be a completed painting but I liked the direction it was going. Initially, the feel of fresh snow and the crisp shadows on the snow were a source of inspiration..

Clearly, elements were deleted from the site to simplify the composition. The gazebo looks a bit like a folly but I like it nonetheless. I seldom use phthalo blue, but that is the only pigment used for the sky.

Stickney Brook watercolor

(C) 2018 Dale DiMauro

On the third of July I painted a plein air watercolor during an outdoor concert and fireworks show in Grafton, Vermont. However, I was frustrated as the paper would not dry due to the humidity and developing dew in the air. Last year at the same location, the watercolor I did was quite successful and additionally drew many onlookers.

As a result of this most recent experience I have sought to change my approach to plein air painting. My approach in this painting was to wet limited areas at a time so that I could move around the paper as needed. This way I did not have to wait for the paper to dry and could concentrate pigment in certain areas.

I am excited to develop this approach and see where it takes me. I found going back into a wash very easy as a method to darken the value or introduce additional pigments in various washes. Even after the paper dried I could go back in and paint for example, some texture for the bark on the tree.

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.

Ashuelot Park: Keene, NH

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

This little watercolor was painted plein air in the Ashuelot Park in Keene, NH. Once I started, it drew quite a crowd of onlookers. The vibrant colors and freedom of expression appealed to passers by. I find the paint dries relatively fast, preventing me from waiting around before the next application. 

The sky truly had a bit of color in it when I started but as it dried it ended up much weaker. I do like the brush strokes in the foreground depicting the light on the lawn with the hard edges in various colors.

I made a simple pencil sketch of this scene when I began from a picnic table in the park. I have to say I am beginning to like this plein air business even though the bugs and changing light are challenging. 

It can be hard to determine when the picture is complete but I generally spend no more than one hour on these.

Late Summer in the Field

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

This little watercolor study was inspired by a walk along a local field last summer. Unfortunately, this field has become a solar array field and is in the process of being fenced in. The scale of the field was quite pleasant to walk through with lovely native trees gathered along the perimeter. There often is much bird activity as last year an eagle soared over me, in early spring, before the foliage emerged.

I have been experimenting with different color combinations to depict the shadows of trees. In this picture I mixed ultramarine blue with various degrees of raw umber and an olive green that was on my palette. At times I dropped in payne's gray too. 

Recently, I have favored the mixture of aureolin with prussian blue as an earthy green. However, I have learned that aureolin, a cool yellow, has questionable longstanding archival quality.

Happy Holidays !

(C) 2015 Dale DiMauro

Often less says more. Sometimes a simple sketch or line drawing is just right. With spring-like temperatures here in Vermont, on some of the shortest days of the year, it feels like paddling weather. In front of our house a huge puddle has formed from tonight's rains. Our home faces south, and this week new growth has emerged, primroses and poppies. Unbelievable. 

Merry Christmas and happy traveling to all you people out there. Thank you for following, reading, sharing and offering your critiques. This all enriches the blog. Everyday I am amazed at people who are accessing the blog, from far flung countries across the globe to neighboring towns.

Self-Portrait (Study)

(C) 2015 Dale DiMauro

Recently, I started this watercolor study of myself. My wife and I had been in a local corn field this fall on one of the most beautiful days of the season, when we took some photographs. 

This is a study for a larger painting I intend to do with a horizontal format. I have even considered doing a vignette, which is a picture with soft edges or an incomplete background. A vignette draws the eye to a focal point, such as a face with detail or an object worked on to a more complete state. 

I do not know how you can paint a self-portrait without referring to a photograph. It is interesting how we see ourselves in two dimensions yet exist in three dimensions. The self-portrait is a staple for artists, yet I find it a strange experience to be so focused on my own physical form.

What appeals to me are the colors of my skin in contrast with the blue of my shirt and the sky. I also like the shadows that cross my face, arms, and upper torso. 

One of the dilemma's in doing a portrait is what to include as well as what not to include. Should I include the hands or should it be a shoulder and head shot? How many cornstalks and where should they be located? 

Positioning the face on the paper is exciting, but how big shall I make it? I find it necessary to make the head no bigger than life size. I don't wish to exaggerate my flaws, but neither do I want to seem arrogant by making myself larger than life.  

Retreat land just before spring growth

(C) 2015 Dale DiMauro

This is a little watercolor I did at the end of winter before spring came on. In the winter I often walk through the woods as the Brattleboro Retreat land is only a block from our house. When I come out of the woods and into the upper field, there is this sweeping view of the distant hills and sky, which I find captivating. Through the seasons I have seen deer, red-tailed hawks, ruffled grouse, turkey vultures, and other creatures exploring this area with me.

However, the image is not cropped right. After nearly sixty posts this is one of the frustrations of using the software provided by iPhoto and Blogger. Sometimes the camera image transfers from my memory card to the blog sideways! I use the edit mode to rotate the image and on occasion it still transfers sideways. My other frustration with Blogger is that once an image is transferred, I am not able to crop it! So very frustrating! 

I am making progress but this is an example where to keep a blog going requires skills far beyond painting. Other skills you need to have or develop along the way include: drawing, photography, graphic design, writing, editing, social media and technical skills. Most of the time I have an image I am ready to upload and the post develops rapidly. However, if I do not have an image taken and taken in natural light then I have to scramble to come up with something.