Creekside Color, Gray Day, (Clucas Field, Lyme, CT)

8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival panel

For more information about this painting, visit this link.

"The subject doesn't matter. One instant, one aspect of nature is all that is needed...Nature is a most discerning guide, if one submits oneself completely to it." -Claude Monet

Saturday morning rose misty and gray.  I was out in Lyme, at Clucas Field painting with others from Lyme Art Association for an upcoming exhibit in conjunction with the Lyme Land Conservation Trust, and the Lyman Allyn Art Museum. 

One of the things I love about gray days, is that the light is fairly steady. The values are mostly fairly close in range, but there can be some rich color in the shadows.  I took an interesting photo of my work against the woods, sort of blends in! 

At the edge of the field, a creek ran down one side.  The notch of a fallen tree rested on another tree, still barely supported by its stump. A large hole in the base of that tree reminded me of the 'troll holes' we used to look for when my daughters where much younger. I felt like I was "living dangerously" trying to avoid the poison ivy and ticks.  Ugh- I had left my 'wellies' in the garage at home! I had intended to bring them knowing full well that I'd be out tromping through a field, and they would keep wet grass, and biting bugs off of me maybe up to my knees.  All in all, I came home with no itchies, no bug bites, and fairly pleased with this little painting (and reminded of just one more thing I love about Spring, yes- even on gray days- the color is subtle, but lovely)!

New England Summer By The Shore

6"x8" oil on museum quality Belgian linen board

"Don't follow the critics too much. Art appreciation, like love, cannot be done by proxy. It is a very personal affair & is necessary to each individual."
~ Robert Henri


My fellow artist & friend Don Watson found this quote by Henri. I was so glad to come across it, it was like another reminder to pull R. Henri's book, "The Art Spirit" off the shelf for another read through.

What a fabulous day we had again today! Now I know if you've followed this blog for more than six months, you've heard me wail about bleak New England winters. But summer is here and life is GREAT! Here on the shoreline, we even get the 'bonus- breeze'. It'll probably get all muggy in a few days, just because I took a notion to brag on the weather up here. Everyone else is sweltering with the heat & humidity....but I think as it moves up past the mid-Atlantic, we'll be having a "fire-cracker" 4th of July like the rest of the Atlantic coast.

We are so lucky to have Harkness Park as a state park, here in CT. It is one of the lovliest places I've ever seen...and that's in all seasons. Right now, everything is blooming like crazy! There's a large rose arbor to the left, it's tall enough for even very tall people to walk under. Today I could hear the birds echoing inside the thing from across the lawn while I painted. The day lilies are in full bloom, in so many wonderful colors, from pale yellow, peachy cream, orange, all the way to a deep burgundy red. The air was clear and the water sparkled off in the distance, and the breeze was certainly welcomed today. Ahh, can you tell I'm loving summer? By the sounds of all the happy people today, I know I'm not the only one!

While it's wet & unframed:

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