Cripple Cove, Sunday morning painting class

a reader of this magpie's nest inquired about the plaque attached to the buoy that is moored high and dry at the Cripple Cove Landing (which is where we meet on Sunday mornings ((6:30am!)) to paint.  There are 4 plaques!  This is the seaward side of the buoy. 

and these are the paintings we did.  left 1,2,3:  Paul Frontiero.  center on clipboard:  Liz Bish.  next:  Debbie Clarke demo of a gesture painting reflecting my response to the color and feel of the morning. on right:  Tom Amend.  Last week painter Jeff Weaver stopped by and noted everyone was painting a different view.  This past Sunday we all faced the backlit hill with sun rising behind.  3/4 of the way through the class I introduced pthalo green into each of the students' palette, showing them the cool/warm possibilities.  

Liz wanted to know what I would do next to my painting.  Nothing.  maybe I will sign it.  The gesture is a completely different 'scene' than the one I started with.  When I started to paint I did not know what was interesting about what I was observing.  I made one spot of color against another.  between conversations with students I painted and then 'wham' the dark shape pressing down on the center of the picture plane against the house caught my eye.

"Cripple Cove gesture"

 5/2/10

copyright:  debbie clarke

oil on canvas 

12x16"

PS:  Thank you Joan Mitchell for painting your landscapes.

best, deb.

Artist at Work (training painting)

while the students painted Sunday morning, I started a 'training' painting. i drew with conte crayon and gesso on a small gessoed canvas 10x10".  yesterday i took a pic of the scene at low tide and today i took one at high tide.  the sounds and 'feel' of Sunday morning reminded me of Venice.  yesterday i placed a light blue to establish the large cool and warm shapes.  it feels like Venice.  what struck me most this morning is that the photos tend to flatten and elongate the horizontal shapes.  the vertical shapes don't have the scale that i feel when placed within the 'cube' of space i stand in and use for reference.