A Local Landscape

(C) 2020 Dale DiMauro

Even though it gets dark early at this time of year there is something special about this period prior to snow and ice arriving. This is the time of year when all the colors fade away. The structure of the landscape reveals itself. Much of the bird activity is long gone.

However, the light at mid-day can be quite appealing. The siennas and ochres dominate the landscape.

Recently, I have been using mop or quill brushes more and more in my watercolor painting. They offer a variety of strokes from a wide wash to fine lines while maintaining a fine point. For some of these watercolors I use just two brushes.

Late Fall Landscape

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Often I hike through various fields near to where I live. I observe the cloud patterns, seasonal changes and changing light. These fields become challenging to navigate as the snow, ice and mud develop during the winter months.

However, I don't recall walking this late in the season in these areas with such good footing. The other day the length and character of the shadows was so present.

I worked on this watercolor the other day, stepped back and was struck by the dramatic light. The low horizon with the tall sky really got me thinking. This strong composition I believe, is what landscape painting is all about. 

The Hudson River Painters certainly were masters at depicting the drama of light in the landscape. The large canvases immediately draw the viewer into that experience.

Sketchbook Drawing

                                                                    (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Sometimes a drawing is all you need. Color is great but not every image requires it. A sepia painting can fit the bill. 

In this drawing I was interested in resolving how I wanted the landscape to be, compositionally. I like the inlet created over the paddler's head offering more depth and clarity to the shoreline. In addition, the kayaker is no longer lost in the foliage.

While watercolor is a wet medium when painting, drawing is a dry medium which makes it valuable when you have limited time or are traveling.

Landscape Painting

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Heading out on open water is always rewarding. That is a reference to paddling on one of the many ponds, lakes and rivers we have at our disposal. During the summer, the color of the water, abundant growth and greenery make me want to be out in the landscape.

Before Thanksgiving I started this painting on the backside of a watercolor I didn't care for. It has a fresh and light feel as the colors are inviting. 

Most of this painting has been done with a rigger brush which provides this expressive line work and edge treatment. The canopy of growth above the view is unusual in landscape painting. It is usually cropped out or excluded. However, I feel it adds much to the scene.

Happy Thanksgiving!

                                                                    (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Hopefully this strange year will yield a much better 2021 in more ways than one. This is a collage of smaller watercolors done in the past year. With workshops, classes, schools, demonstrations and the like canceled, all I can write about is my own watercolor journey. It is better to include other events and shows on occasion, but this year most of those events have vanished.

For me I can look back at watercolors I have done this year and find new directions not to mention inspiration. Hopefully, you the reader can take on a new perspective as this year concludes. Regardless of the political climate and public health we have a bounty of beauty around us to appreciate and lead us into a new renaissance.

Gone Fishing

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Painting a figure in your watercolor dominates the landscape. All eyes go to that person. What is he doing and who is that, are questions that come to mind. However, capturing an activity or posture can be quite rewarding. Including a person in your painting can also draw your eye into the picture, adding more depth.

This was painted on Arches hot-pressed watercolor paper. I have experimented with other hot-pressed papers but this was the first painting I would say I have ever done on this surface. The paint behaves markedly differently on this surface. It is smooth paper and the pigment sits on the surface. From my experience, you have to learn when to stop painting on this surface, or you can make your picture worse. However, paint on this surface makes interesting marks once you get a feel for how to move the paint around.

When painting on this surface I find there is an enhanced clarity of forms and more vivid colors. Some artists use this paper to develop compositional studies or quickly record the figure.

Vermont Countryside

                                                                        (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Watercolor is such a versatile medium. You can go in so many different directions when painting with these pigments. In addition, the marks you make and the colors you combine, on the multitude of papers and textures, seems unlimited.

Originally, I was drawn to these two old apple trees full of character and that dip in the contour in the background. However, I carried this painting to a further state than I initially thought I would. I discovered trees and techniques that lent themselves to inclusion in this painting. 

In my travels locally, raw umber seems to be an important aspect of capturing the late fall landscape. Once the deciduous trees have shed their leaves, the tawny colors are prevalent in the changing light. 

Watercolor Sketch

                                                                    (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Any scrap of paper can be a good source to capture a watercolor. This watercolor sketch was done on the end sheet of one of my watercolor blocks. This has become a valuable space to work out compositions and test color studies. Sketchbooks are another area I have painted watercolors over pencil and pen.

When visiting museums that display watercolors, I am always curious what the artist painted on. I have seen many Andrew Wyeth paintings in galleries and am convinced some of his images were either drawn or painted on tracing paper amongst other surfaces.

Recently, I have included raw umber in my landscape compositions. Some artists complain it is overused in landscape painting. However, raw umber has a greenish cast which I interpret out in nature. Thus, it has found its way onto these endpapers in combination with ochers and other umbers. I have learned this experimentation or record keeping is important in an artist's development.

Brattleboro Common

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

The weather Tuesday in southern Vermont was simply beautiful. The temperature topped out in the upper sixties if not seventy degrees. This is not what you expect in Vermont during the second week of November. 

I have to say this warm spell is quite disorienting. All this work such as raking the yard as we get our homes ready for winter and then we have Spring-like temperatures.

However, these higher temperatures got me out painting yesterday and I enjoyed every minute of it. The light and shadows on the landscape gave me more than enough inspiration. I really noticed how tawny the landscape looks at this time of year.

Plein Air Painting (watercolor study)

                                                                 (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro

With this glorious spring-like weather, it feels important to paint outside, whenever I can, before the winter sets in. I have to admit it is hard adjusting to this time change as it gets dark earlier and earlier in the late afternoon. However, it is hard to beat seventy degree temperatures in November here in Vermont.

I did not allow enough time to finish this watercolor. It is hard to know how much time I actually need at this time of year. Perhaps I will go back on site to finish it. There is something compelling about the reflections of colors and shapes across water.

For me it is important to mix colors observed out in nature. There is such a range of colors to draw upon on our palettes, but the colors of nature convey a mood specific to a setting. Also, mixing pigments outside expands our horizons in ways we cannot anticipate.

Majestic Maple

                                                                  (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

This fall during peak season in southern Vermont I worked so much I didn't have time to get out and see the fall colors as I usually would. The threat of COVID-19 played a role, too, particularly with so many events canceled this season. Yet, we had lovely weather in September and October, the best I can remember in years.

This watercolor was painted this evening. It was inspired from attending the local Dummerston Pie Festival in years past. One year, on my way to purchase one of their yummy apple pies, I parked across from this glorious maple during its peak color season. 

This seemed as good a time as any to pay tribute to this maple. Hopefully, next season, at least culturally, life can head towards some sort of normalcy.

Late October in Vermont

                                                                 (C)2020 Dale DiMauro
 

This fall in Vermont is ending abruptly as frequent rains and snow have entered the picture. Not to mention low temperatures. October had lovely fall colors and great weather but this weekend the changing of the calendar is sending us to the edge of winter.

Painting the landscape outside has suddenly become rather challenging. The diminished light levels and time change are forcing me to paint inside or at different times of the day.

The other day I got this watercolor in, with a view towards the west of Brattleboro, across a local field. Capturing some of the local colors can be challenging, yet satisfying. I feel like burnt sienna and raw umber are an integral part of the natural landscape at this time of the year.

Quick Sketch

                                                                 (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Now that the weather is getting colder and the days are shorter it is exciting to get back to work in the studio. I have been thinning out stuff in my studio for several days gearing up to paint larger watercolors.

This quick watercolor sketch has me inspired to see what I can do with what I have learned from painting outside over the summer. It was painted on the jacket cover of an Arches watercolor block I have. This space has become valuable for expressing ideas and developing various compositions. As it has been said it gets the juices flowing.

Since late September I have really taken to drawing in my sketchbooks. In part as a way to deal with the political and public health we our navigating through. I do notice progress in capturing the figure and portraiture with more fluid marks than in the past.

Whetstone River

                                                                 (C)2020 Dale DiMauro
 

This watercolor was started late in the summer. I had arranged what I consider to be a nice drawing and then the sky darkened over and the rain came down hard and furious. However, the watercolor was still on my watercolor block so I figured it was best to carry it forward even though the subject matter looks different these days.

Recently, I have been learning the value of browns in watercolor painting. They can add a lot to your painting. They have an earthy or naturalistic quality which you find out in nature. Plus there is such a range of browns to work with and thus as a means of expression.

This painting in some ways looks like it could be of a subject matter in a drier region of the country. However, with the all the autumnal color passing and falling to the ground I think the colorations are fairly true.

Blackwing Palomino Sketch Pencil

                                                                (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

This summer I discovered the Blackwing Palomino sketch pencil. However, I am not sure where I first learned of them. I did read that noted watercolorist Thomas W. Schaller, in an article, in Plein Air Magazine uses them.

When I was traveling, in Montpelier, Vt, during the summer, the local art store had them and I was eager to sample some. They provide a smooth stroke which I noticed when I first drew with them.

If you love to draw, experimenting with new materials is alway something I look forward to. I believe trying out new approaches and media pushes an artists development.

Since the summer I learned that these pencils were popular in the past with artists working on two dimensional animation.

Late Day Light is Stunning

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

The fall foliage has been great this year. In addition we have had such beautiful weather of late. Some of the foliage even seems to radiate color in certain light.

When possible I have fit in walks in the late afternoon before the sun starts to go down. It is during this time when the temperature for the day is near it's highest. This is when the light and shadows seem to be the most dramatic. If you are a landscape painter this has to fire you up with inspiration.

This is a topic I had to post about. It is truly a glorious time of year. On the downside there are all those leaves to rake.

Color Swatches

                                                                  (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Color is everything to painters. It is sort of a vocabulary to draw upon. And the better your vocabulary, the greater the resource you have to reference.

I have a notebook of color swatches which I add to periodically. Once I hear of a new or different color combination I record the swatch down for future use.

This is my latest addition. The one on the top is a light, warm gray created by mixing cobalt blue and burnt sienna. The one on the bottom resembles a light skin tone. This one was created by combining aureolin yellow and rose madder genuine.

Over time with practice I have noticed my washes have improved with a cleaner application and less fussing about.

                                                                   (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Today I did some plein air painting in one of the fields owned by the Brattleboro Retreat. With the increased traffic in town viewing the foliage it seemed wise to paint local. Also, it kept me away from any chances of getting exposed to COVID-19.

It was a beautiful fall day and I still was able to catch some glorious colors before it all goes away.

Most days out painting I modify my equipment a bit. I brought my small shoulder bag with a watercolor block, palette and paints. This way all I had to carry in my hands was a small, foldable chair which I used to rest my palette, brushes and bag on. This ended up working out well even though the shade moved in and I felt a stiff breeze at times.

Fall on the Ice Pond

                                                                 (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Fall colors come and go so fast. The heavy rains seem to knock the deciduous trees barren. This combined with the rapidly shortened length of day and it definitely feels like we are between seasons.

This watercolor was done in under an hour. I should say it is probably not finished. However, the next time I get outside to paint the landscape is likely to look totally different. 

Many artists say it is difficult to capture the colors of fall in a painting without looking too gaudy. Often, I try to capture what I see out in nature. Each time painting I try to have an open mind as it is a new experience.

Along the West River

                                                                    (C) 2020 Dale DiMauro
 

Recently, I was reading a used book, titled, Painting More Than the Eye Can See, by Robert Wade, a noted watercolor painter. He encourages artists to paint postcard-sized sketches on a daily basis, as one can progress significantly, even in as short a time as a month. 

This is one such sized watercolor. This took longer than the eight minutes he allows but I think this composition is more thought-out and complicated than some of the ones in his book.

You can see the new I-91 bridge in the distance. This watercolor has many of the colors we associate with the landscape of Vermont during the summer months.