100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #95/#96

#95 - "View from the Leighton"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/16 (5pm)
Wow - I just got such a pang in my heart typing in #95. Really hit me that this is almost over. It has been such a great experience, and wouldn't have been nearly as special if not for all of you following, so thank you SO much for your interest, support and enthusiasm, it has meant the world to me.

Here was my BIG learning on this one: use the opportunity of working on a small canvas to create depth, movement and interest with brushwork. The foreground triangles of this piece were painted fairly flatly, and then somewhere near the end it occurred to me to throw in some expressive brushwork. I couldn't believe how much energy and space were created with those 5 or 6 simple marks.

#96 -"Evening Warmth"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/16 (8pm)
I LOVE this painting. It's the same day and location as "Summer Greens" (#93). As you can see, it turned out to be a beautiful evening.  What I find most interesting about plein air painting is that often I can look at a piece months or years later and remember the moment it was painted so vividly. The air temperature, the sounds and smells, who I was with, exactly how I was feeling. They're like little canvas time machines, magical doors into moments lived. This is why I am compelled to hold a few of these back for my own collection, they are a record of such valuable moments in my life, and worth so much more than any money I could exchange them for.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #93/#94

 #93 - "Summer Greens"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/16 (12:45pm)
Painting with the girls again today. This was a really beautiful marsh, and I was just getting a feel for the subject when a small hailstorm blew in and chased us to the shelter of the car.

#94 - "Peony Study"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/16 (3:30pm)
I got  30 minutes into this one and lost the sun. Packed up thinking I would finish it in the studio. And every time I glanced it's way for the next couple of weeks, I would think, I love it just as it is. Why would I do more? So in the end I didn't.


On another note, I just stumbled across this wonderful video clip of Virginia Vaughan's moving year long daily painting adventure. Both she and her paintings are lovely, well worth a look. If you're interested you can check it out here.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #91/#92

#91 - "Green on Green"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/15 (5pm)
The background and the water gave me so much grief on this one, I changed them and changed them and changed them. And then I remembered.

Simplify.

#92 - "Late Day Light"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/15 (7:30 pm)

Painting outdoors is incredibly challenging, but it is also infinitely rewarding. There are moments when I have just spent an hour or two completeing a painting and am cleaning my palette when I stop to look around and I realize I am in an altered state, connected with the  landscape on a deep level, rooted in it. Integrated. It is this sense that I have become more and more aware of throughout the course of this project.

In the end it doesn't much matter if my painting turns out, I have been changed by the experience, and that's what I hope will show up my future work.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #89/#90

#89 - "Shoreline Patterns"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/14 (4pm)
The light changed at least a million times while I was painting this, often completely reversing itself to background hills in dark shadow and foreground trees in full light. This was a case of being commited to stick to plan A and not get seduced by B,C,D,E and F.

#90 - "The Dike"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/14 (7:30pm)
Are you guys figuring out I'm an afternoon/evening painter? This actually worked to my advantage in this project as it's light in our neck of the woods until 11pm for most of June and July, so I would often start around 4 or 5 pm and paint into better and better light as the evening unfolded.

I have been reading a really interesting book called "The Talent Code" by Daniel Coyle. The basic premise is that talent doesn't have to be born, it can be grown, that anyone can greatly improve their skill at anything by practicing in a very specific way.  To paraphrase from the book: "If you use your muscles a certain way - by trying hard to lift things you can barely lift - those muscles will respond by getting stronger. If you fire your skill circuits the right way - by trying hard to do things you can barely do, in deep practice - then your skill circuits will respond by getting faster and more fluent."

If you looking for motivation to keep working at your art on the "I forgot how to paint" days, and you want ideas on how to excel more quickly, it's worth checking out this book.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #87/#88

#87 - "Summer Evening"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/11 (7:45pm)
Okay, right off the bat I can say this is my second favourite painting of the project. (My favourite is coming up at #97 - but technically this one is better).

The most striking thing I recall is the perfume of some unknown flower filling the air as I was painting, in hindsight it was probably a bush I was trampling on my trips back and forth to the easel, but it was powerful stuff, overwhelming and gorgeous...

I had this light for about 15 minutes, and I knew clouds were going to block the sun, so before I started I spent 5 minutes standing in front of the scene, burning every vital detail into my brain (primarily high key backlit greens and highlights on trunks) and then painted those even though they left with the sun.

#88 - "Cloud Dance"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/12 (6:20pm)
There was little light to work with on this one, but I saw a great pattern of shapes and rhythm in the sky, so that's what I decided to follow...

I had a dream last night that someone said, "You know, you never really pushed yourself on this project, you could've grown a lot more". Whoever belonged to that pesky voice, they were right.

There is great accountability value when you announce a project like this out loud, certainly all you wonderful folks who have been following have been my inspiration countless times to keep getting out there. But I think if one really wants to raise the bar, it would actually make more sense to announce it after the fact, because on several occasions when my intention was to make fast, loose colour and value studies, I painted them into perfect little finished pieces. Knowing I would be showing them to the world was a big factor at play here, I was in performance mode far more often than exercise mode, and probably would have progressed further if that was reversed.

Just putting that out there for anyone considering taking on something like this....

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #84/#85/#86

#84 - "The Rundle Range"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/09 (5:15pm)
These 3 paintings were done on the same day (4 actually, but the first was a wiper).

Carol Carmichael commented recently to say, "I have NEVER painted plein air and know it would help me progress.  Definitely got me thinking - that's a start. "

Carol, in my experience (and that of all of my artist friends), you can pretty much guarantee your first few plein air sessions will not produce a stellar painting. There are a lot of things to sort out and it takes a few tries to get the hang of it. It's pretty tough to be a once or twice a year plein air painter, I would say if you're going to do it, it's helpful to dive in fully and commit to a fixed time (say 20 plein air paintings of the course of a summer) so that you can push through the start of the learning curve. Fellow artist Bobbi Heath has been doing this and I applaud her tenacity!

I do hope this project has inspired some of you to get out there. I needed a motivator, and would never have been this dedicated if I hadn't made it into a project. Knowing there was a deadline (and a finish line) helped me dig deep and get out when I didn't feel like it, and once I was out there I always (ok, almost always) loved it.

#85 - "Blowing Through"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/09 (7:45pm)
I was painting with Bobbi and Sharon today, and at this point they decided they were done for the day and would rather watch than paint. Based on this I decided to try a 1/2 hour painting, as if I was doing a demo. They were so quiet and respectful while I painted this, and afterward encouraged me to do another. That's when everything changed...

#86 - "Artistic License"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/09 (8:25pm)
3 artists painted this one, even though I was the only one holding a brush. By the time I was halfway in Bobbi and Sharon were both firing out suggestions, one on each side of me:  "Put an orange highlight on the water", "no make it purple", "trees darker", "no - trees lighter". Together: "More paint on the sky, lighter! ooh, ooh - leave those brushstrokes alone!" It was so funny, they were vocalizing the inner dilemmas that are always going on in my head when I'm painting, but it was weird to have it coming from the outside in. It felt like the old cartoons with the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the other (won't say which one was which) - let's just say it would have been an entirely different painting if I'd been standing there alone - and not nearly as entertaining!

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #81/#82/#83

#81 - "Light and Shadow"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/08 (7:30pm)
I LOVED this subject, it's always intriguing to paint from the shadows into light, I find it's a composition that really invites the viewer into the painting.

These 3 pieces were painted on the same day as the 4 in the last post. Yup - 7 paintings in one day... this was the most painted on any single day in the project, my average was 2 or 3.

#82 - "Mountain Patterns"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/08 (8:55pm)
Went home and stocked up on more panels, wanted to try another speed painting. With timed paintings sometimes my approach is to seek out a rhythm and try to get that down in as few brushstrokes as possible. Really fun!

#83 - July Evening"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/08 (9:25pm)
Mosquitoes were out in full force for this one! Same spot as #81, turned 180 degrees. Halfway in I heard rustling in the grasses behind me and turned to see this female elk wading through the water. We eyed each other up for a few moments, decided we had our own agendas, and proceeded to get on with them. (Keeping one eye over my shoulder - just to be sure she hadn't changed her mind.)

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #77/#78/#79/#80

#77 - "Afternoon on the Bow"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

Sorry I've been M.I.A., had some company in town. I'll post 4 today to make up for it.

10/07/08 (1pm)
I'd like to share a quote from American artist Bill Anton. He says, "Painting outside is essential to growth in an artist. The best artists always address their weaknesses and nothing points these out like working directly from life." (Boy have I confirmed that in the last 3 months.) He adds, "There is nothing better or more fun for the dedicated painter." I would agree with this, but one revision: it's fun when your painting's working.

Robert Genn's daughter Sara once said to me, "The crazy thing about painting plein air with a group of artists is that their mood is entirely dictated by what happens in the next 45 minutes." Indeed it is quite a challenge to stay cheerful and 'thrilled to be outdoors painting' when your painting is going down in a ball of flames. That said, it's the joy when you hit one out of the park that keeps you coming back!

#78 - "Summer Afternoon"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/08 (3:30pm)
This was painted directly after # 77, (on the shores of the Bow River) turned in the opposite direction. It was the effect of sun sparkling off of moving water that I was compelled to try and capture.


Note: the next two paintings are the only variance from the 6x8" size I have been using for the project, they are each 3x4". Bidding on them begins at $75.

#79 - "Fairholme in Shadow"
Original Oil 3x4"
For purchase info click here

10/07/ (5pm)
#79 and #80 were an exercise in speed painting. The challenge was to paint the same scene twice and get everything necessary down in 15-20 minutes. I really wanted to try this challenge and I only had one panel left with me, so I divided it in half and painted two paintings on it.

#80 - "Reverse Pattern"
Original Oil 3x4"
For purchase info click here

10/07/ (5:30pm)
What was so cool about this one was that there was a lot of afternoon cloud building up, and just as I finished #79, which had the foreground in light and the peaks in shadow, the light completely reversed, so I got to tackle a whole different story - super interesting!

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #74/#75/#76

#74 - "Secret Vantage"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/07 (5:30pm)
When I found this little spot tucked away  at the base of Tunnel Mountain, I was super keen to paint it but I knew the danger would be in making it too busy. Which I then proceeded to do. After fiddling endlessly with it, I took out a big brush and knocked it all back to big, simple shapes, and immediately liked it much better!

#75 - "Tunnel Mountain"
Original Oil 8x6"
For purchase info click here

10/07/07 (8pm)
One thing I have loved about this project is that I am getting to know places I have walked in for 20 years much more intimately. That, and discovering all kinds of little nooks and crannies that I never noticed before. I've always thought it was cool the way the strata on Tunnel arcs toward the sky, so that was the subject of this painting.

#76 - "Very Last Light"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/07 (9:30pm)
This was the 3rd painting on this day. I had hiked back up to the parking lot and was moments from the car when I saw this over my shoulder. I really debated whether I wanted to unpack all my gear and set up for another painting. Once again the project motivated me and then it was a race to get this down in the remaining half hour of light.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #72/#73 (and just crossed the finish line!)

#72 - "Blast of Summer"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/03 (7pm)
This was SUCH a difficult subject, and I made it even harder than I thought I would! Really took a lot of painting in circles to get it right, but it was a great challenge to tackle a more intimate plein air subject.

"73 - "Evening Storm"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/07/04 (8:15pm)
I think my brushwork on this one shows how fast I was working to capture the fleeting light!

I am super excited to announce that at 11:15pm on July 17th (day 100), I finished the last painting of the project! Yay! In total I painted 115 paintings in 100 days including wipers - some were just not meant to see the light of day.

For those of you wondering why I am only at #73 in posting, I started the project on April 9th, but knew I was going out of town for the last two weeks of April, so I didn't begin posting until May 1st.

I learned SO much from this project and will continue to share my insights as I post the final 27 paintings.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #70/#71

#70 - "Rain Approaching"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/02 (6:30pm)
I LOVE painting storms! There is wild energy bouncing around, the air is electric, and things are moving fast. I was driving back to the mountains from Calgary when I saw this storm moving across the foothills and had to stop and paint it. I initially set up outside but then thought better of it and jumped in the back hatch of my car to paint, good thing because halfway through it was pouring rain. SO much fun!

#71 - "West to Banff"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/07/02 (8pm)
Once the storm passed I set up outside of the car in the same spot and painted the clearing sky. Such great light after a storm, and I've always loved the view heading into the mountains, the clouds and the land seem to go on forever.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #67/#68/#69

#67 - "Wind Shelter"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/30 (4:20pm)
All 3 of these paintings were painted between 4-8:30 on the same evening. This was hands down the windiest day of the project, gusting to 50kms., really quite insane to be even attempting to keep an easel standing in these conditions.

#68 - "Twisted Wood"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/30 (6pm)
I recently learned about a terrific Australian artist by the name of Herman Pekel. Check out the YouTube trailer for his DVD here, you'll get a lot just from it, but I highly recommend the DVD. He is carefree and all about the exploration while he paints - SO inspiring! He often starts by laying in a super thin, watercolor like wash and then moves to really thick, juicy paint in key areas. My plan was to try that here but I didn't get as far as the thick paint because the wind shut me down and I moved on to another location - but I had a ton of fun with this composition!

#69 - "Cascade Mountain"
Original Oil 6x8"

10/06/30 (7:30pm)
The wind had died down a little as I was about to start this one, so I was cocky enough to set up my umbrella. Walked away for a second to throw the ball for Lily and turned back just in time to see the wind pick up my easel and toss it through the air, turps flying, brushes scattered across the shoreline. Not a very smart girl...

I am amazed at how peaceful looking this painting is considering the conditions, I think it's a result of having a wonderful evening wandering the shores of the Bow with my dog and my painting gear on my back (dog on ground), stopping whenever I saw something intriguing to paint. Truly one of my favourite days of the project, so glad I didn't let the wind confine me to car painting.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #65/#66

#66 - "Foothills Sunset"
Original Oil 6x8"
10/06/28 (8:30pm)
I have included a photo of the scene on this one because I wanted to illustrate that often I draw a lot on what's in front of me while embellishing based on my personal response to the subject. (I find much of this happens sub-consciously.)

#65 - "Alberta Sky"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/28 (6pm)
Both of these were done in the foothills just south of Calgary. I was painting once more with my new painting friends, Bobbi Dunlop and Sharon Williams.

Sharon was the guide on this evening and took us to a couple of really great locations, loved the change of scenery, especially the chance to get a sweet little farm in, not many of those in the mountains. This one will definitely be turned into a large studio painting as there is so much great material to work with. For those of you curious about the process, I will use my photo reference for more information about the structures of the farm, and the study for colour and value reference. I find there is much more latitude to push colour from a living subject. In contrast, photos seem to have a static end point that dulls inspiration. I am discovering that there is a subtle energy driving your choices when painting outdoors, things are heightened in away that is hard to explain but unmistakable.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #62/#63/#64

#62 - "Early Summer"
Original Oil

10/06/26 (5:30pm)
Okay, I was DETERMINED to do a 15 minute study for this one, and finished it 90 minutes later. Just can't seem to stop when it's "not finished". Reminds me of an Oscar Wilde quote: "I was working on the proof of one of my poems all morning and took out a comma. This afternoon, I put it back in"

#63 - "Rundle Near Sunset"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/26 (9:30pm)
This one had about 15 minutes of light left when I started it - I wound up finishing it in almost total darkness.

Sorry I am a little behind on posting. The crunch is on now, so being out painting is going to start taking precedence over photographing/editing/posting, and I may continue to be a little behind in this area until the project is finished. Will post 3 tonight to make up for missing yesterday.

#64 - "Fading Light"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/27 (7:30pm)
Painted myself in circles on this one. At first it had a bright green foreground of trees and bushes, but it just didn't read so I wound up completely repainting the foreground in a more silhouetted manner to keep the attention on the background, which was the point of the painting. Definitely got lost here by not having a clear idea at the outset of where I was going and had two equal centers of interest battling it out.

100 plein air paintings in 100 days - #60/#61

#60 - "The 1A"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/25 (8pm)
This scene is from a field about a 5 minute walk from my studio. LOVING the long days, started this at 8pm and still got another one done after it.

#61 - "Moving Through"
Original Oil 6x8"
For purchase info click here

10/06/25 (9:30pm)
Same spot as #60, turned 180 degrees. This one was fast and furious, trying to get the sky down before the light was gone.


Here are some primary questions I have learned to ask myself before I start that seem to lead to things going well:

• When I squint can I reduce the subject to large, abstract shapes? (meaning things I can block in on a 6x8" panel with a 1 inch flat). 

• If I can, is the design still interesting now that I have eliminated the detail?

• What are my chances of success with this subject? (Good design, interesting light, relatively easy to simplify, is there a center of interest I am excited about?)

• What is the light doing (late morning moving in to mid-day flat? mid day subject-lots of time? about to cloud over? stormy with all kinds of changing, interesting things to choose from? late afternoon moving into gorgeous evening light?) Primarily: What needs to be addressed immediately and where do I have a little more time? Or am I setting the stage and waiting for the light? (this works in a place you know well with steady weather).

When first starting to paint plein air, there is a tendency to be excited by a subject and jump in with no conscious plan, or even a clear consideration about what the primary focus will be. Next thing you know you're out there mid-painting doing the dog-paddle for life and wondering how the water got so deep.

John Carlson puts it beautifully: "Art is the transmittable, personal impression of one quality in the quantity before us. It is the ability to determine consciously what it is that interests him, and why, that differentiates the artist from the art student."