Watch Me Paint: World-Class Art, World-Class Instruction
The publicâs embrace of plein air painting tells us that our audience, too, is hungry for a good story. The Veteran in a New Field, 1865, by Winslow Homer, courtesy Metropolitan Museum of Art. Painted at the end of the Civil War, itâs a poignant metaphor for the coming demilitarization. The human mind is …
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This is a companion-piece to the oil painting on this site.
I first got interested in Clary Hill because of Joseph Fioreâs fabulous painting from its summit, but it rapidly took on especial meaning of its own. I try to teach up there at least once a season, just to share it with future plein air painters.
Itâs frequently breezy, always cooler than the lowlands, and thereâs a 360° view, including glints of the ocean in the far distance. Youâll often find birders up there, but the blueberry barrens themselves, with their odd red color in the fall, are the real stars. One might see wild turkeys or coyotes, but Iâm still waiting to find Robert McCloskeyâs Little Bear.
This is a dramatic signature piece, loose-mounted in a streamlined narrow black frame for a three-dimensional effect. It would look great in a contemporary home with open sightlines.
This is a companion-piece to the watercolor painting on this site.
I first got interested in Clary Hill because of Joseph Fioreâs fabulous painting from its summit, but it rapidly took on especial meaning of its own. I try to teach up there at least once a season, just to share it with future plein air painters.
Itâs frequently breezy, always cooler than the lowlands, and thereâs a 360° view, including glints of the ocean in the far distance. Youâll often find birders up there, but the blueberry barrens themselves, with their odd red color in the fall, are the real stars. One might see wild turkeys or coyotes, but Iâm still waiting to find Robert McCloskeyâs Little Bear.
It is a significantly-abstracted view, and would look great in a contemporary, open space.
Now you, too, can sound like an artist! Hereâs my glossary of art termsâhighly subjective and relevant mainly to painters. Fallow field, Carol L. Douglas, 12X16, $1449 framed. Abstraction: non-representational art in which meaning is expressed through a formal pattern of shapes, lines and colors. Sometimes called ânon-objective.â There are degrees of abstraction. Alkyd: an oil-based …
The earth pigments are our oldest colors, and theyâve served humanity well. Dry Wash, oil on canvasboard, 12X16, $1159 unframed. Years ago, I met an artist in Taos who told me that he never used the earthsâsiennas and umbersâin his paintings. I don’t remember his name, but I vividly remember his rationale. They were too …
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Why do teachers harp on value? Because it drives everything else in the painting. Belfast harbor, 11X14, oil on canvas, Carol L. Douglas. Available framed $1087. You cannot overstate the importance of value in visual art. It drives our perception and guides us through the painting. There are various ways to focus on value: notans, value sketches, …
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Thought and practice moves our painting style, but itâs incremental, just like the Mary Day docking. Winch (American Eagle), oil on canvasboard, by Carol L. Douglas, 12X16, $1449 framed. Windjammers are slippery little devils. I should know that by now. You think you understand the rhythm of their comings and goings and you find one …
Growth in painting sales is almost all online, which means that we either learn a new way of doing things, or we retire. Belfast Harbor, 18×14, oil on canvasboard, Carol L. Douglas This weekend my open-air gallery at 394 Commercial Street opens for the season. Itâs a soft opening, meaning that the brilliant Aubrie Powell …
Thereâs no âthereâ there to rebel against anymore. Winter Lambing, 48X36, available, Carol L. Douglas My goddaughter Sandy is the child of immigrants. Her family escaped China at the conclusion of the Civil War, when it was clear the communists had won. They went to Vietnam, which has an active community of Chinese emigres. After …
The rookie error for summer is to paint all foliage using the same basic color. You lose more points if itâs sap green. Bracken Fern, by Carol L. Douglas, 9X12, oil on canvasboard, $869. This weekend, the mercury climbed to 70° F., which forced the âwall of greenâ into budding. New England is now in …