ARTiculations by C.S. Poppenga

So, how much snow?

2012-01-28T00:18:00.000-08:00

Some years are big on snow. Some are not. And 1909 was pretty big. Here's an interesting photo I came across that shows a steam locomotive "stuck real good" in the winter of 1909. It is located somewhere along the run between Lewistown and Buffalo-Judith Gap area (immediately west of Lewistown.) In 1994, when I was the Home & Family Editor of the Lewistown News Argus, I interviewed Red Hanley. Red had worked as an engineer and he told me an interesting story about how he got a steam locomotive stuck in snow along the same run as in the photo. But, unlike this train, Red's was pushing a weighted boxcar with a plow in front instead of just a plow. As I recall, he told me he'd been advised to "give it as much speed as possible" --- he did and the train went pow! right into the snow drift---in, in, in, in, ...in...........in.............in............in.......and then it stopped. It was buried at least as deep as the one in this photo, or maybe more.

Aaaah! The drive home after a day's work. . .

2012-01-23T21:30:00.000-08:00

This is the last ten miles before Lewistown (photo above.) Actually, less than ten at this point. It is one of my favorite "road views" The Big Snowies are on the horizon, the road is bare and dry. The usual amount of "quitin' time" traffic and a freshly brewed (in the car) cup of ginger/lemon tea on the console.

Another photo (below) of today's drive home, taken just at the top of the Arrow Creek Canyon (with, at that point, more than half the drive remaining.) I almost always stop at this field entrance to take photos of the Highwood Mountains and Square Butte, but today I turned the camera to the southwest and captured the late afternoon winter sun and the Big Belt Mountains on the horizon.

Over most of the climb up Arrow Creek Canyon, I got to share the road with some big boys coming down (photo below.) Perhaps a half dozen of these rigs and their multiple advance and rear guard vehicles passed me. I didn't get a very good look at what they were hauling except that all carried an identical load. Perhaps it is something headed for the Canada oil fields.

And today's drive was not entirely all peaceful and idylic. On the morning leg, a large cock ringneck pheasant made a bad decision and the jeep's passenger side mirror caught the bird. It sounded like something far larger than the bird hit. Had I not seen the pheasant, I would have thought a deer had run into the side of the vehicle. What a loud bang! I was doing 65 mpg. The mirror is designed to "give" and that's exactly what it did (which is cool for this is a 1996 jeep.) The mirror and its housing and manual cable controls were undamaged. Only one little piece on the part mounted to the door actually broke. With that and some assembly, it will be as good as "new" (which is to say, as new as a nearly 20 year old vehicle can be.)

Long Thin Road

2012-01-12T19:06:00.000-08:00

Mr. Lightfoot (Gordon ta dem dat know's 'im) may sing about the "Long Thin Dawn" but here's one for a long thin road. This windshield view is heading east to Lewistown. I'd spent the day, first at Surprise Creek Hutterite Colony and then at Geyser School, teaching art. This photo (above) was taken on the fly somewhere just east of Stanford (No, I don't know what mile marker it was---gotta keep my eye on the road, ya know!) I've long liked this stretch of blacktop. It's one of the few places to have two lanes in the uphill (west-bound) lane. See all the traffic? And it's rush hour too!

This next photo was taken just a little bit farther down the road but before Moccasin. I had to stop and get out for this one. (click on any of the photos for a larger view.) I like the way sunset turns snow to pink on the east horzon. The mountains in this photo are the Big Snowies.

And for the grand finale, one last view of the setting sun. I'm not skilled at sideview mirror photography, so this was a stop too.) This is looking west, as the sun sets behind the Belt Mountains.

Hope you enjoy the views! The land and skyscapes are what keep the drive fresh every time, no matter how many times I've traveled the route before---it is always "new again."

War Horse Reservoir

2012-01-06T00:37:00.000-08:00

It has been so warm the past several days (60 degrees F yesterday) that a drive was in order today. Bright blue skies and warm sunshine in January -- how could it be any better?
The end destination for the drive was a reservoir named War Horse northeast of the town of Grass Range. Grass Range is 30 miles east of Lewistown, so War Horse Reservoir is about 45 to 50 miles from where I live. Once you leave the black top just east of Grass Range a very good gravel road takes you north as it arcs slowly back to the west while also heading north. A rougher (but very passable) two-track road takes off into the wind beaten ponderosa pines and eventually leads to the south shore of the reservoir. The clusters of pines are a shale forest and in places on the forest floor a fine shale "soil" is visible. It is an area of critical environmental concern by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) because of the unique plant community.
The photo below is taken from the road on the south shore looking west. The edge of the reservoir is visible to the far right. The Judith Mountains, with Black Butte on the far right of the string are on the horizon.
(click photos to view larger)

This next photo shows the good gravel road at the point where the two-track takes off (that would be to the right of where I stood to shoot this photo.) I love how roads can seem to have no end in the vastness of the central Montana prairie.

Driving down the road shown in the previous photo, the creek that feeds the reservoir crosses. I was surprised at its size for this time of year, but considering how large War Horse Reservoir is, this creek must carry a lot of water year round.

The following photo is prairie, prairie, prairie -- with the Judith Mountains in the distance to the west.

The next photo is a view farther down the road from the previous photo but looking south. In the distance are the Big Snowy Mountains (also referred to locally as the Big Snowies or, simply, the Snowies) The dished in middle of the Snowies' skyline is Half Moon Canyon.

Hope you enjoyed the photos! Your questions or comments are welcome and I will try to respond to questions within a day or two.

100th item listed in Etsy Shop, 100th Blog post entry!

2011-12-31T17:31:00.000-08:00

Hooray! I am closing the year 2011 with 100 works of art for sale at my Etsy Shop! I just posted item number 100 a few minutes ago. And, if that isn't cool enough on its own, this right here is my 95th Blog Post Entry!

Below is a sampling of some of the works at my Etsy Shop. Click on individual images to go directly to those specific listings or click the link directly below the block of images to go the home page of my Etsy Shop. Please visit and "walk around" my Etsy Shop to see the variety of art I've listed.
Who knows? Maybe you will find and purchase the first work of art in the new year!

Kitchen Lithography once again

2011-12-22T19:00:00.001-08:00

Wow! It's been over a month since I first posted my results from a try at "kitchen lithography" (November 17th blog post, if you want to review it.) I've been busy with monotype printing -- teaching it at all the rural schools and Hutterite Colonies that I work with as a visiting artist once a month. The students had a good time with the monotype process, but I still have hopes of presenting a kitchen lithography session. So today I revisited kitchen lithography.

The first litho did not turn out as it should have but I think I may be onto something that I noticed during the pouring of the soda over the plate. I talk a bit about it in the first video (posted below.) For anyone who does not have speakers on their computer (like I don't), basically I'm pointing out in the video a pattern that matched the pattern of flow the soda took on the initial pouring over the plate. The effect seems to be that the soda "over etched" and also may be eating out under the litho pencil marks. The pattern was in exactly the pattern the soda took on the initial flow over the plate. Hmmm.

NOTE: I had to post both videos onto facebook because they wouldn't load onto this blog host. Hope that doesn't create any problems for viewers.

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150483491744349#!/video/video.php?v=10150483523749349

In the second video, you see the plate being inked for my fifth print pull. I clean the plate between prints, using a little bit of vegetible oil and a soft cloth. I don't know if that's really necessary, but it does help me see the "print" areas (what the ink will be sticking to) on the plate. I like being able to see the quality of the lines and what marks are where. For example, there was a stray mark in the cat's right eye and during the first "roll up" with ink, I pushed the ink around that spot quite a bit with the sponge before I realized it was in fact a part of my original litho pencil drawing on the aluminum. Successive roll-ups reveal more and more of the actual drawing and I get a better feel for when the ink coverag is complete.

This second video is a bit longer. I haven't been able to get my video editing software to function quite right (yet.) In the beginning of the video you'll see that the image appears when I start the inking and then I essentially wipe it off. Well, actually I don't wipe it off; It only appears that way in the video. What I did was to wipe enough off so that I can see the "drawing" and how it is taking the ink. I've found that it helps me spot potential problem areas where I might need to not wipe so much or maybe need to deposit more or less ink with the brayer/roller.

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150483491744349

And here (next link below) is the last part of the preceding video. In this one I run the etched/inked aluminum plate through the etching press. I had the camera mounted on a tripod that in turn sat on the end of the tables that hold the press and provide the space to ink the plate (previous video.) Maybe I can get someone to operate the camera next time and so get a better view of the whole process.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=598509348&ref=tn_tnmn#!/video/video.php?v=10150484090474349&notif_t=video_processed

All That Jazz

2011-12-22T01:33:00.000-08:00

Reorganizing the studio is a good time to say good-bye to "old friends" -- paintings that date back a ways and for various reasons remained in the studio, through several re-locations and several years. "All That Jazz" is one of those works. Time for it to find a new home where it can be displayed rather than tucked away in my studio storage.
"All That Jazz" was painted in 1988. I was studying anatomy at the (then) Alberta College Of Art (in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.) I supplemented my in-class live model sessions with visits to Calgary's various live theaters to sketch/draw during performance rehearsals. "All That Jazz" captures one of those performances where singer and musician seem to intertwine and boundaries between them (and the audience) become fluid until everything is in the moment.
The painting was done on stretched canvas. To protect the work from damage, I unstretched it and kept it in a flat file for a number of years. Recently I decided to mat it flat rather than restretch it. It is currently listed for sale at my etsy store at http://www.etsy.com/listing/89090029/blues-jazz-singer-saxaphone-is-subject
Here is "All That Jazz" and some close-up detail photos (click photos for larger images):

Even after the interim of 23 years, I still find this to be a good work. (Wow! almost a quarter century! Does that make this a vintage work?)

I should note here also that this painting served me as a reference for a portion of a mural commissioned by Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. You can see that mural at my web site at: http://www.poppenga.com/ReidCampusCenterMural.html

War Horse

2011-12-19T23:29:00.000-08:00

Wish this stage production would come to a theater close enough to be able to go see it. There's a movie version set to be released around Christmas, but somehow film just never quite compares to live theater. The horse costumes are fantastic and are both spell-binding and uncanny. A great stage performance causes the audience to suspend reality and within a few short minutes, the horse costumes become living breathing beings.

Watch a video of segments of the theater performance at this link:
http://www.lct.org/mediaPlayer.htm?id=59

BLUE PENGUINS IN SWEATERS

2011-12-17T09:59:00.000-08:00

While at the studio last evening, I listened to an interesting radio discussion about the origins of some of the icons of the Christmas holiday season. It was a compelling enough program that I decided to stay to hear it all (I don't have a functioning radio in my vehicle, so I'd have missed a bunch of the program while driving home.)
The topic set off a bunch of images in my brain and at some point the little Blue Penguins (also called Fairy Penguins) of New Zealand came to mind. The penguins have been in the news lately because of a tanker spill that threatens their immediate survival. There's been a world-wide call for volunteers to knit or crochet sleeve-less "sweaters" for the rescued penguins. The sweaters cover the penquins body from neck to feet. They look pretty cute waddling around in their recovery cages after they've been all cleaned up as best as possible. The sweaters prevent the birds from preening and ingesting any left over oils, but also keep them warm until the full insulating quality of their feathers is restored.
I still had some paints out from my previous monotype session and decided to make a few whimsical penguin prints. Here is one from the session plus a couple detail close-ups (click the images to see larger):

And here is a link to a video of the penguins being being cleaned and then shows some pics of them in their sweaters. The video also shows some other kinds of penguins which are very large compared to the Blue Penguin. Notice the size of the sweaters when a woman in the video is holding one; and the tiny sweater covers the whole body of the bird.

The penguins don't look very blue in the video because they have so much oil staining. Here's a video of what their plummage normally looks like:

As for my penguin monotypes, I had fun and am thinking maybe I should pursue this a bit more. Maybe polish the image a bit, try some different poses and see if I should push it to something more realistic or stay with a bit of whimsy.

YEE HA! Pronghorns at a run!

2011-12-09T18:42:00.000-08:00

Today was clear sky, gusty wind and sunny, though not much above freezing (high for the day was 36 degrees Fahrenheit.) Perfect for a drive over some local gravel roads, as the surface is frozen.

Just northeast of town About 35 miles northeast of town (less by air) was a large herd of Pronghorn Antelope. Filming from the vehicle, I "captured" about half the herd on video. They were really flying! The truck was moving at about 40 mph. The second video below is of the group that split to the right at the end of the first video. Estimate there were at least 200 antelope in this herd.

Typical of camera work, objects (in this case the antelope) always look farther away than they actually were. Still, the video is a nice treasure to remember the day.

Give the video sufficient time to load. Enjoy! (P.S.--If the video blocks below are black, click on the start arrow at the bottom of each video)

Cats Again! This time with monotype process

2011-12-04T14:49:00.000-08:00

It's been a couple weeks at least since my last post. Using as much of my time as possible in the studio, I decided to make some monotypes. It was a good diversion from the aluminum foil etching process I'd been experimenting with (see my November 17th post.) The end result was a lot of small monotypes, all similar in subject (cat), but all different in various ways.

I started by painting a simple, stereotypical sitting cat image on a piece of plexiglass. I used a type of tempra paint that is non-toxic and under the brush it has the feel of fingerpaint -- sort of "slippery" even on paper, let alone a plexiglass surface. All of the monotypes in this series were executed with a sable brush. The paints are water-base so they dry fast. That meant decisive, quick work on my part. But I enjoy working that way so this was actually a very relaxing process and the immediate results captured my interest and enthusiasm. The session only ended when I had to hunt the studio for more paper to use!

Once I had my painted image, I placed the paper on top of it and hand-rubbed with a baren to pull the print. I tried different kinds of paper and also experimented with pulling prints from prints that had larger amounts of paint on them. Some of those prints are among my favorites. I also pulled some second prints from the plate image if there seemed to be sufficient paint remaining.

I did not remove the paint from the plexiglass between prints. Instead, I allowed it to build up and found that it provided a better "tooth" for subsequent layers of paint. Also, I did not enslave myself to the exact contour of the image from one print to the next. At some point it occurred to me to put more control on the direction and pressure of the baren and in that way I could indirectly manipulate the way some of the paint contacted the paper.

Here are the top 25 monotypes -- the ones I decided to mat and offer in my art shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/PoppengaArtStudio. Not all of these are currently listed at the etsy shop but eventually will be. All of these are for sale, so if you see one here that you'd like to purchase but that is not yet listed at my etsy shop let me know. I've put numbers next to each print shown below; use the number to refer to the print when you contact me. Each print is matted as shown. Some are printed on a kind of Japanese Rice Paper, and so in those particular ones you can see some "waving" that gives a textile feel to the print.

1. 2.

3. 4.

5. 6.

7. 8.

9. 10.

11.SOLD 12.

13. 14.

15. 16.

17. 18.

19. 20.

21. 22.SOLD

23. 24.SOLD

25.

Number 1 has an oriental feel, I think. Number 25 was among the first ones printed. See if you can pick out the ones in this group that are "second pulls" or "mirror pulls." Most of the prints are sort of generic cats of the kind commonly referred to as domestic short-hair, which is what my cat is. However, there are a few that resemble the Maine Coon breed. My mother has a Maine Coon and so I suspect that's how that interpretation got from my visual memory to the paint to the paper. One does, afterall, paint what one is familiar with.

Two more cat paintings - Siamese please

2011-11-20T23:52:00.000-08:00

It's been a productive week at the studio. Besides experimenting with the kitchen lithography process (see my November 17th post), I've also finished two small paintings of Siamese cats, titled "Siamese - AUM 1" and Siamese AUM 2." These paintings were not intended to be a "pair" but that is what they ended up being.

Both are very simple and in that simplicity they are also elegant. The canvas paper, on which the works are painted, has a linen-like texture that I like. So I applied the oil paint in thin layers, allowing not only the paper texture to show but also my initial brushstrokes and color layers.

These paintings are the first that I've ever applied goldleaf to. I've been wanting to incorporate goldleaf ever since I first saw Gustaf Klimt's gold-embellishmented paintings. In my Siamese cat paintings I added a Sanskrit word (it is pronounced A + U + M) in goldleaf. I've never used goldleaf for anything before, so it was quite an experience (don't breath in its direction or POOF! it drifts away like air!) The ornate frames, like the goldleaf, contrast with the simplicity of the paintings.

As for the word AUM. there are a hundred or more meanings to AUM, but I was especially drawn to the explanation that "the word AUM itself is total divinity manifested." Ah, I thought. And is that not a cat? Especially a Siamese cat?

Here are the two paintings (shown with frames.) The first painting shown is based on an adult cat named Louie who is waiting to be adopted at the Pet Paws See no-kill shelter. Both of these paintings are listed in my on-line Etsy Shop at: http://www.etsy.com/people/PoppengaArtStudio As with most of the cat paintings I'm creating, a portion of the sales from these two works will be donated to the shelter:

Below are a couple details from the Siamese cat paintings. Eyes are a specialty I take a certain satisfaction in accomplishing. Whiskers scraffitied (scratched) into the soft oil paint before it dries--which means being very certain and decisive about where to place each mark, because once it's scratched in it's there to stay.

Aluminum Foil Etching

2011-11-17T16:50:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in quite a while but have been busy in the studio -- and also making the monthly rounds as Artist-In-Residence teaching artist at several central Montana rural schools. The AIR job only takes me out of town on six days each month plus five days that involve just an hour or so of teaching teaching time just a few blocks from where I live in town. What it all boils down to is that, unlike last school year, I'm getting a fair amount of studio time.

So, what is happening at the studio? Lots! Besides painting more cat portraits and some landscape/skyscapes, I've been having a great time experimenting with a process generally refered to as "kitchen lithography."

Hmm, lithography you say. Expensive, you say.
But no! This "litho" process uses aluminum foil in place of the expensive limestone and soda pop instead of acid for the etching part of the process. The only other "tools" needed are some rags, a couple sponges and a baren or spoon. (Note: The baren or spoon sustitute for an etching press. I have a press so everything I'll post regarding "Kitchen Lithography" will use the press unless I state otherwise.) Other supplies include soap, soft brush, litho crayons or pencils, ordinary cooking oil, etching ink and suitable paper.

Years ago, I took a half year of lithography class at the (then) Alberta College of Art in Calgary, Alberta. Rummaging around in some storage boxes in the studio, I found my stash of remaining litho crayons (sticks, pencils and disks) plus my Tamarind Lithography textbook (great reference source!) I also have a supply of etching paper -- plus a big assortment of other kinds of papers. Two plexiglass plates (one to roll-up ink and one to hold the aluminum foil) and I was ready to give Kitchen Litho a try. Which I did. Over and over again.

Here are a few of my print experiment results:
This first one was drawn on the foil with soap and brush. Just simple quickly done cat lying down printed on yellowish domestic etching paper. The three images are the result of three progressive print pulls without re-inking between so the print is progressively lighter in value (I did, however, re-sponge the plate to push around the remaining ink.) (click for larger view)

The next print (at right) was pulled from an aluminum foil plate drawn on with a #1 litho crayon (I have #1, #3 and #5 crayons.)

As with all of my kitchen lithography experiments, I kept the drawing simple and worked very rapidly, not worrying about how the drawing looked as far as accuracy or proportion, etc.
This one was pulled on a snowy white card stock (which is why the edges of it do not show up on the blog/computer screen.)
(click for larger view)

The next print shown below was pulled from an aluminum foil plate drawn on with a #1 litho pencil (I have #1, #3 and #5 sticks which are thin like pencil lead and go into a special holder---sort of like a mechanical pencil.) I like this image. I based the drawing on one of my existing oil painting sketches. It is pulled on a white card stock just like the print shown immediately above. I feel like this print starts to approach some of the qualities I'm searching for.

The next print experiment used the same plate with still intact soap drawing of the cat reclining as shown in the first print above. For this print, however, I laid a cloth mesh over the image area and then ran it through the press (first image.) Then I removed the cloth mesh and printed again (without re-inking or responging) for the second image shown below. The results on the second print are of interest to me as I seek ways to make this process unique with my work. Both are printed on yellowish domestic etching paper. (click for larger view.)

The last print posted below was done with the #5 litho lead in holder. Because it's the hardest litho grade of what I have, it made finer lines and I was able to layer lines without "clogging" them. It's a freely drawn shell form. The lower half of the foil accidently lifted from the plexiglass when I was removing the litho crayon in the last step before inking. It got pretty wrinkled and I had to re-flatten it out carefully -- but even at that, I lost some of the lower left of the original litho drawing of the shell. Left of the shell print below is the foil plate used to make the print (click on image for larger view.)

Kitten Trio - Suki, Kato, and Jetta

2011-08-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

I'm cutting back just a bit on my hours in the studio as I am getting ready for another year of teaching art in several schools within about a 100-mile radius of my home town. Once that schedule starts in earnest, there will be less evening hours for the studio too because I need to be alert and driving miles to schools first thing in the mornings.

However, a couple days ago I did get another oil painting off to a start. The kittens featured in this work are Suki (white) and Kato and Jetta. All three are with the no-kill shelter PetPawSee in Great Falls, Montana (as are most of the other cats/kittens I've been painting and posting here.

This painting is on stretched canvas and measures 18 inches by 24 inches. What I'm thinking about for "background" is to portray a blanket or quilt design. But for now, I've blocked in the negative space with a lavender hue.

As with all my work, this is free-hand with brush and paint. Also, in this work two different references were used although the viewpoint was essentially the same. At this stage, this work is very simple. I'll post it again as it evolves.

Cats: Barn Kittens

2011-08-24T00:11:00.000-07:00

This work is in-progress, so it was photographed under just the light used for painting. I find it interesting how the digital camera sees some colors precisely and yet not record others. This painting is one of those that was hard to photo and get an accurate color read. The "barn kittens" are based on two kittens - Bolt and Helen - who are with foster homes via a local animal no-kill shelter and are looking for permanent homes. The tractor seat shown behind the kittens is one of a various few I have as props in the studio. This painting is oil on canvas and measures 24 x 24 inches (60.96 x 60.96 cm.)

Cat Portrait of Mae Ling completed

2011-08-24T00:02:00.000-07:00

I completed Mae Ling's portrait a couple days ago and cut a double mat for it. Now it's ready for a frame. At this point I have close to 20 cat portraits on canvas and in various stages of completion. That's about the right amount to be working simultaneously in a revolving manner. I start each session in the studio by starting a fresh painting as a way of "warming up" and then I pick one of the in-progress paintings to work on and may or may not bring it to completion but bring it closer to that stage.

Cats: Portrait of Whiskers completed

2011-08-19T19:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I posted that the portraits of Whiskers and of Mae Ling were completed. So today, I went into the studio and set each painting on the easel. And decided that I needed to adjust the painting of Whiskers. Specifically, I decided that it needed to show more of his left front leg behind the tulips. I also did some adjustments to his eyes to more closely approximate the bi-color mottle typically seen in older cats. I'll check with Whiskers' "Mom" to see if I've accurately portrayed the eye color or if they need to be more/less green.
Click on the images below to see larger views.

This painting had a layer of beeswax over which a mixture of colors were applied and formed an interesting base of interesting colors and textures for the eventual painting of Whiskers. I like the way this process worked out and it can be seen in the following detail photos of the painting:

Such a handsome cat!

Orange Cat, Linus

2011-08-19T00:11:00.000-07:00

Well this was another good day in the studio. I finished Mae Ling's portrait and the painting of Whiskers, who was one of the first ones begun. I'll post both completed works sometime over the next day or two.

Also today, another cat painting was begun. This one is of Linus, a large orange tabby. His name suggested he might be King of the Back Yard and so I included in the background some clematis flowers and a small lion-head fountain. I'm contemplating place a small bird (maybe a wren) perched on the basin part of the fountain. So far, I like the complementary red/green and orange/blue arrangement and can envision this with the colors stepped up in brightness as the painting progresses. Plenty of adjustments yet to be made in this work. Like the painting of the cat named Miss Smith, this one has a naivete (stylistically speaking) that gives it a Colonial era.

After I photographed this work I hung it on the studio wall while I completed the Mae Ling and Whiskers paintings. Then I took some time to simply sit and look at this painting. The result was to make a small change: cross the cat's right leg/paw over the extended left leg. I didn't photograph again after making that change, but it was a good move that improved the attitude/posture of the cat. It will show up the next time I photo the progress of this painting.

Esmeralda and Mae Ling

2011-08-16T21:26:00.000-07:00

Two more cat paintings today! The first one, painted in oils on canvas paper, is Mae Ling, a mostly white intensely green-eyed beauty. As with the black cat named Asia (see previous day's blog post), Mae Ling's name suggested the other elements in the painting -- in this case, mystery and travel by moonlit sea. A Chinese coin hangs from the red ribbon about Mae Ling's neck

Although this oil painting may have a bit to go yet before I'll feel it is finished, I also feel that it is very close and the eyes are, in fact, finished. It's possible that I may look this painting fresh in the studio tomorrow and decide that all it needs is my signature. The canvas paper yielded an interesting texture when I layered and wiped the paint, then layered again. This painting measures about 12 x 8 inches (I will post the actual size tomorrow - if I remember to measure it!)

My favorite part of each of the cat portrait paintings I've done so far are the eyes and this is especially true of the Mae Ling portrait:

The second painting today is oil on stretched canvas and measures 18 x 24 inches (45.72 x 60.96 cm.) This work is in-progress and seems to be stylistically very different from the Mae Ling work. It's an intentional shift, as I was inspired by the wildly mottled coloration of the cat named Esmeralda. I'm especially drawn to the color divide down the cat's nose; it brought to my mind Henri Matisse's painting, "The Green Stripe," which was of his wife. This painting has quite a bit to go yet. I plan to push the paint and colors around a bit and generally experiment to see where it leads.

At this stage in Esmeralda's portrait, my initial brush drawing is visible throughout the cat and is especially noticed in the extended front legs where I've adjusted the initial drawing a couple times over. To a lesser extent it is also visible in the cat's head.

A Cat named Asia

2011-08-15T21:03:00.000-07:00

Another feline portrait today at the studio. I think this makes over a dozen cat paintings on canvas and a total of over 40 counting all the rest painted on canvas paper or birch panels. This cat's name is Asia. An older cat, Asia has been looking for a permanent home for at least two years that I know of.

This oil painting started out small and on canvas paper but it wasn't looking or feeling right and so it eventually led to painting on a 18 x 24 inch stretched canvas. All I had was a head/shoulders reference for Asia. Anything else I've added or will add as the painting progresses. I like Asia's round head and intense mint-green eyes. Asia's name is what suggested the evolving background and rich warm colors to go with this nearly all black cat (just a patch of white on her throat.)

My thoughts at this stage is to incorporate some sort of geometric design into the red surface the cat and vase are resting on. Several of Gustav Klimt's works come to mind as inspiration. Maybe this is the painting I will decide to try affixing some gold leafing to some of the decorative elements.

The detail image below shows some of the facial structure that is visible to the viewer's eye but not picked up very well by the camera and the the lighting conditions when the photo was taken. This will be a difficult painting to photograph once it is completed.

Cat painting finished - Thomas BigEater with iris

2011-08-15T00:19:00.000-07:00

I decided to "take a chance" with this painting. instead of leaving the irises blue or painting them white, I opted for a reddish hue for the flowers. This gave a nice contrast/complementary hue to play off the green leaves. I'm pleased with the results. The finished painting, which is on stretched canvas, measures 18 x 24 inches (45.72 x 60.96 cm.)

Next photos below are some details from this painting. First is this cat's face--but especially his eyes, which are a luminous minty green.

Next photo shows portion of cat's front leg and some markings.

Last two photos here show a couple of the irises and the layering of first blue, then lavender. And then the reddish tone over top of those other colors.

Cat: Tangerine Dream

2011-08-13T23:19:00.000-07:00

Well this is one of those fun surprises at the easel! I started out with a small oil sketch of a kitten called Tomas and ended up with the 18 x 24 inch painting shown above. The painting is not what I'd called "finished" yet but well on its way. I envision the finished work as depicting Tomas and the tangerines/oranges on a warm sunny day on the lawn, so there is a bit more to do to create the contrasts and brightness of color to convey sunshine. As usual, it's hard to get a totally accurate photo of a painting's actual colors and values without setting up special lighting. This photo is not as bright in color and value as the actual painting.

But before the painting above came about, there were two small oil studies painted. The first one (9 x 11 inch) is shown below. I have a collection of various still life props at the studio and decided that the white porcelain Chinese teapot with the blue carp painted on it went well with little Tomas' Siamese-like colors/markings. Here's the first oil sketch:

And here's a close up detail from this first sketch:

At some point I set the first study aside and started a second one, this time adding an orange or tangerine. It was this study that really made the leap to the larger work :

Neither one of the sketches are actually "finished" but when I put the oranges in the second one, a title popped into my brain: Tangerine Dream. And so I picked up the 18 x 24 inch canvas and painted the composition that was posted at the top of this blog entry.

Cat with checkered past

2011-08-12T02:50:00.000-07:00

Another good evening session in the studio. I got the painting of Thomas Big Eater close to being finished and also started another painting -- this one is of a cat called Little Kitty. The "biography" of this cat has a twist not found in any of the other cats so far: Little Kitty has been homeless and in foster care for close to two years but her initial cause of homelessness was the misfortune of having had an owner who was sentenced to a jail term. Poor kitty! This is a very beautiful cat that has multiple colors but also some tabby stripes, such as the "necklace" rings on the neck and chest. This painting is only in the beginning stage, but off to a good start. The floor tile and background are invented directly on the canvas with no reference material. And, as always, free-hand drawn with paint and brush.

Cat in Iris Jungle, third in-progress

2011-08-11T17:55:00.000-07:00

Here's Thomas Big Eater as it progressed today. I did scrape down some of the previous day's work in the face area, which left a nice patina to work over top of. I like the effect that can often have on the final paint layers. (The cat named Wilson in a blog post a few days ago was also the result of scraping down paint - in that one the result was a very atmospheric effect.) The lighting was not 100 percent correct for the camera shot for colors but it's pretty close and certainly close enough to convey the direction this painting is taking. Click photos for larger view.

First, here's a close-up of the eyes. The larger size of this painting (versus some of the tiny ones I've done) let me focus on this cat's luminous lime-green eyes. It was the intensity of the eyes that made me decide to create an Iris "jungle" for this cat to be strolling through. I'll be painting in the whiskers in the next studio session.

And then, a look at the whole painting. I'm pleased with how this is going thus far. But still tossing around whether or not to make the iris flowers white or blue (realizing, of course, that either color will not be "pure" white or "pure" blue, but will have all kinds of subtle hues and values throughout.)

Cat an Urban Jungle

2011-08-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

Started this big silvery grey tabby last night. His name is Thomas Big Eater. Painted in oils, the canvas measures 24 x 18 inches (60.79 x 45.72 cm) As with all my works, it's free-hand drawn directly on the canvas with brush and paint. Here I've posted a couple photos of it in-progress. This painting took off very quickly once I started getting a build-up of linear marks, which I always like in a painting anyway. So at that point it started moving along very quickly. The motivation for the composition was that this big cat is staring straight out at you as he walks across the lawn --- he seems to have an "I own the place" attitude about him. It made me think of jungles and so I invented a "backyard jungle" of iris for the painting. His eyes are a minty luminous green but at this stage (and also still in the second photo below) I only suggest the eyes. They will be painted fully once more of the rest of the painting has progressed more.

By the next photo (below) I'd started adding some greens where leaves may be and lightened the iris, starting to build up their forms. My intent is to have them be white iris or perhaps one white iris and the remainder in blue. Hmm. Or maybe reddish. I'll decide that in the next painting session.

Two more Cats

2011-08-09T01:04:00.000-07:00

Monday was a productive day in the studio. I finished a small cat portrait and wrapped up a study for a larger work but really like the way the study came out.
The first image below is of Keesje, a cat who passed away earlier this summer at the age of 18 years old. I decided to place Keesje in a patch of poppies. The flowers add bright colors in contrast to the cat's black and white coat. The poppies, as with all flowers, symbolize spring/summer and are generally associated with life or renewal of life. I started this 8 by 11 inch (20.32 cm x 27.94 cm) painting on canvas paper with the intent that it would be a study to solve some compositional concerns before committing to a larger canvas. But what started out as a study very quickly became a painting. When I look at this painting again tomorrow, I may decide it is finished. Click on the image for larger view.

The next painting is also on canvas paper. The subject is KO, a senior cat who appears to have something of the Maine Coon breed. A very pretty pastel-like color and lovely eyes. This painting is small - just 4 by 5 inches (10.16 cm x 12.7 cm.) The view as it appears below is close to the actual size. Click image and the detail image for larger views.

NOTE: Since posting this, the painting of KO has been finished/signed and so I've replaced the in-progress photos that were in this post with images of the painting by directly scanning -- and so colors are closer to the actual painting. The painting of Keesje will be updated too when that work is also finished/signed.

A Cat named Emmy

2011-08-07T20:26:00.000-07:00

Well this cat is named Emmy. Not Emily, but still a whole lot closer than Bonnie! Refer to my previous post to see what that's about.
Black cats interest me for plenty of reasons, including the visual reality that black cats are not really black. And that suits me just fine in the studio because I don't use black paint. The "blacks" that are in my paintings are mixtures of deep blues and earthy reds such as Sienna or Venetian Red. Sometimes a Cobalt Violet works well.
At any rate, here is a black cat named Emmy. This is a simple small work still in-progress but not much else will be done to it - perhaps I'll look at it in the studio tomorrow and decide that all it really needs is my signature. I free-hand sketched Emmy with a number 4 brush in oil paint on a 6 by 6 inch (15.24 x 15.24 cm) canvas paper. The camera did not pick up the pinkish background color very well, so I will post this work again when the paint is dry enough to put the painting on the scanner (which always shows colors the most accurate when compared to the actual work.)
NOTE: Since posting this, the painting has been finished/signed and so I've replaced the in-progress photos that were in this post with images of the painting by directly scanning -- and so colors are closer to the actual painting.

Detail photo reveals more of the blues, violets and reds that combine to give the overall visual effect of "black".
Click on the photos to for larger format.

More Cats!

2011-08-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

An archaeological project in Wyoming took me away from the studio for two weeks.Since returning, I've been busy making up for the down time. I've only been back home for four days, but those have proven very productive. Posted below are photos of some of the works in progress. The last two paintings shown (Miss Smith and Harley) were started before the Wyoming trip. All the works are oil on stretched canvas. As with all my works, these are done totally free-hand directly with brush and paint. Be sure to click on the images to see each in a larger format.

This painting is of Wilson. He's an older fellow. I think this is the cat who is missing a front leg (and it looks like possibly some toes too?) but his profile is not posted now (it use to be.) He is what I'd call a long-faced cat -- his nose is noticeably longer than average. In this painting I plan to have him sitting on either a colorful quilt or floral sheet and I will "pose" the fabric on the studio table as a model to work from for the folds and pattern placement. I may or may not paint in anything behind Wilson (perhaps a pillow or two. I want to make this work Wilson's dream image of his "forever home." His markings and color are subtle and very beautiful. I still have more to ad to Wilson's fur pattern and, of course, his whiskers. The painting measures 16 x 18 inches (40.64 x 45.72 cm.)

The next painting is of Whiskers, a 21 year old with a large round head, small intense eyes and LOTS of white whiskers. I decided it would be nice to depict Whiskers in a tulip bed. Over the years I've used tulips symbolically in my art. As always, they allude to spring and the rebirth or continuation of life and, because they are a bulb plant, they also speak to the persistence of life.
The painting of Whiskers is 14 x 11 inches (35.56 x 21.94 cm.)

The next painting is of Miss Smith. This cat's name dictated my attitude and sensibilities while painting the work. The formality of the name comes out in the formality of the painting. The blue background wall will have ginko leaves arranged in a non-distracting design/color/pattern to suggest 1800s wallpaper or 1700s stencil. To me, this painting as it is has a "colonial" feel to it -- perhaps because it is still plain and simple but also because of the conventions of the body and face. Once I add whiskers and a few other details, perhaps that will change the feel of the work. I will place a feather on the red carpet in front of the cat. I think Miss Smith should "marry" Whiskers and then whichever one gets adopted first, the other will tag along. Miss Smith's painting is 24 x 24 inches (60.96 x 60.96 cm.)

Next is a cat named Harley. This is a young cat that has some of the qualities of an ocelot. I'll title this work "Urban Camouflage" as the potted snake plant resembles Harley's fur pattern. Still a bit to do on this painting too. This painting seems to appear a little darker on the computer screen than what it actually is. It measures 24 x 20 inches (60.96 x 50.8 cm.)

The next painting is an older cat named Bonnie. When I started painting Bonnie's portrait, I got the name Emily in my head and by the time I'd gotten the preliminary sketch done, the name Emily had pushed the cat's actual name completely out of my brain. Hence my thoughts wandered to the short story, "A Rose for Emily." And that led to the rose on the carpet and the wall paper (not yet done) which will depict a subtle rose stencil design. I find Bonnie an interesting cat because of her very round head (which makes her eyes seem smallish, minimalist markings and white body with dark tail. Like the painting of Harley, this work seems a little bit darker on the computer screen than it does in reality. Bonnie's portrait painting is 18 x 24 inches (45.72 x 60.96 cm.)

Hobbes again!

2011-07-20T12:22:00.000-07:00

This cat is Hobbes. I may have mentioned this in an earlier post but repeat it here: Hobbes passed away from injuries received in an encounter with a vehicle. In an earlier entry to this blog I posted the first study of this cat. Here is a second study, again in oil paint but this time on canvas paper; the image measures about 4 x 5.75 inches. As with all the cat paintings thus far, I used only three colors plus Titanium White: Yellow ochre, venitian red; ultramaring blue..Click images for larger view.
(NOTE: I've edited this post by putting the finished/signed work in place of the photo of the work-in-progress.)

The greenish line that appears in places where the cat form meets the background color was an accidental result that I liked well enough to leave in place. It came about as the result of three other actions: First, I'd painted the background a yellow and then, not satisfied it was the color needed there, I wiped it out with a rag. Next I painted the background a mixed green (lemon yellow and ultramarine blue) but wiped it out too. That left a bit of green in places around the edges of the cat, which I left when I decided to paint the background venitian red with a touch of yellow ochre. I liked the result and so left it.

Cat eyes -- well, any kind of eyes -- are just plain magic fun to do. I use hog hair brushes so it is a challenge to paint the details. It means you don't "worry" them. One stroke. If it's "right" then great. If not, wipe and make another stroke. I get to know the brush very well and automatically turn it one way or another to take advantage of any traits it may have developed from use and then put those to use.

With Hobbes I decided to scratch the whiskers in rather than paint them in as I'd done with the painting of Bizou in the previous post.

Bizou again!

2011-07-19T20:36:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I sketched in oil a 3.75 x 5.5 inch study on canvas paper of the cat Bizou. Bizou is the large black and white cat I posted a painting of a couple days ago. This time I focused on his head and primarily his eyes, which are interesting because they are actually bi-colored (particularly his right eye.) Again, limited palette: venetian red, ultramarine blue, naples yellow and yellow ochre (which I mixed with the background hue.) I consider this sketch essentially finished and probably won't visit it again other than to frame it. I am pleased with the eyes, especially because it's a small work Click on the images to see them larger.
(NOTE: I've edited this post by putting the finished/signed work in place of the in-progress image.)

Urban Tree Branch - Black Cat

2011-07-17T22:19:00.000-07:00

This painting is shown here in-progress, though I don't feel like there is much, if anything, more to paint or adjust. I rather like it just the way it is and feel like maybe all it needs most is my signature. I title this one "Urban Tree Branch" because it reminds me of how the big wild cats will drape themselves on tree branches to either snooze or keep an eye on everything below. It is oil paint on stretched canvas and measures 14 x 18 inches. Click on any of the images to see them larger.

This painting is very loosely done and also very loosely based on a small photo reference. As always, I free-hand sketched with a number 4 filbert brush and blue/red paint. Like the little Calico kitten I posted previously, this study is done on one of my existing paintings, in this case one of my "warm-up" paintings. Below are a couple of close-ups of details from this work.

I like the accidental overlays and adjustments that happen when I work quickly, as I did with this painting. And of course, the underlying painting contributes something to the work as well. I used titanium white and just three colors here: naples yellow, ultramarine blue, and venetian red. No black.

The cat's outstretched leg and paw would seem "unfinished" but in this stage it also is highly suggestive of motion. Something for me to think about -- do I refine it more or leave it as it is. I'm inclined to do the latter.

In this last detail view, the hind side of the cat is very sketchy in appearance too. The tail pinched against the legs or partially hidden in the pink cloth that is covering the back of the upholstered sofa. Accent pillows are propped on the sofa's back and make a more interesting backdrop for the cat rather than a blank wall.

Ten days ago I started with no paintings of cats. Now I have close to 40. Gradually I will post more of these works on this blog.

Cats! More Cats!

2011-07-16T18:10:00.000-07:00

Today when I left the studio, I didn't count how many cat oil paint studies I have as of today, but I'm sure it's close to two dozen - maybe more. Here's my favorite one so far; I think it has the highest "cute" rating:

This study (and the others in this post) will be worked on a bit more - perhaps not much at all, as I'm satisfied with it as it is at this stage. Maybe all I'll do is add some whiskers. The background colors are the remnants of an earlier landscape study on this masonite panel. I like working on top of previous works and in this case, the existing pattern of colors added greatly to the white areas of the kitten's chest, belly and legs. THis painting measures 7 x 9 inches. Below are two close-ups of details from this work. First, the face. If this were a real kitten, I'd take it home!

In the next detail, the positive contribution of the underlying painting's colors is especially great in the legs and body. Click on the images in this post to see them in a larger format.

The next photos posted here are studies based on a few of the very few responses I got to a facebook posting I made several months ago when I called for 100 pets to paint in 100 days. No strings attached. The low "turn out" was disappointing (five pets from four people) so it blew my project.

But yesterday I decided to do small studies of those pets that were submitted to the project. These are not "complete" yet, though like the kitten shown above, I might leave them as they are. The next few days at the studio will see what happens.

This oil study is of a cat named Bizou. It is oil paint on masonite panel and measures about 5.5 x 8 inches

Here's a detail from the study of Bizou. This cat has some interesting markings on its muzzle and also two little "freckles" of color on each of its forelegs:

This next study is of a cat named Hobbes. In the photo Hobbes was stretched out on a wooden deck. The owner indicated that Hobbes had not survived an encounter with a vehicle. With that thought, I decided to portray Hobbes as if lying on a grassy space. Besides some adjustments to the cat's coat color and whiskers to add, I also envision painting some gone-to-seed dandelions in. Those will represent both the fleeting and the promise of life. This study measures about 7 x 9 inches.

In the detail shown below, you can see the transparency of some of the colors as they are layered one over the other. This was a fun cat to paint.

Okay, so this next one is not a cat. There were three different dogs submitted. This one is named Sam. A very fine looking fellow. As with the other studies posted here, this one is photographed on the easel and so there is some light bounce from the surface that could not be avoided with the camera. Like the others, this is also an oil paint on masonite. Although the eyes haven't been done yet, the work reads well at this stage. It measures about 7 x 9 inches

Gotta Have It

2011-07-14T02:28:00.000-07:00

The cat as subject is really taking off in the studio. Fun to take on something new and I plan to follow it as far as it wants to go. Some works are or will be of specific cats and some invented. But Neko will be sprinkled throughout (scroll down the column at right to see a photo of Neko when she was just a "pup".)

So here's a small (4 by 5 inch) oil sketch of something Neko is good at doing -- swiping goodies from the table! I've titled it "Gotta Have It."

The actual incident that inspired this little painting happened a few months ago during a breakfast. Neko decided to "see" my jellied toast with her paw. I remember just catching, out of the corner of my eye, Neko's sideways head tilt and then WHAP! I don't think I actually saw her paw hit my toast - she was lightning fast! A flash and then she was licking plum jam from between her toes.

In this quick oil sketch I simplified everything and focused on the head tilt that cats do when they are eye-balling something they want to grab on the sly. Tail straight out for counterbalance and a paw on the table cloth just in case. Instead of toast, I show a pancake topped with whip cream and cherry because it "reads" better in a painting this small.

Below is a close up of the "action" - keep in mind when you click on it that you're seeing it significantly larger than the actual work.

"Gotta Have It" is painted on a wood panel. It's probably birch (most of my panels are) but I'm not totally certain as I had painted on it some time ago (a landscape sketch.) The prior painted surface is what gives this work some of it's accidental texture. I used a number four filbert hog bristle brush and manipulate it in anyway I can to get the marks I want. I don't worry about placing every stroke just right when I work like this.

Recent change of subject: Cats

2011-07-11T23:04:00.000-07:00

Well, this has been an interesting week. Clouds and landscapes continue to be my dominant subject but cats are slinking in here and there. Cats have always been in some of my studio work, but as the third year since Canuck's passing draws near there seems to be a growing need to paint cats - especially black cats. The portrait of Vern the orange tabby (see my previous post) set the ball rolling to try other colors and patterns of cats. Following are three studies painted with ordinary acrylic water-based wall paint using only red, yellow, blue and white (and a small dash of black here and there at the finish.)

This first painting measures 6 x 8.5 inches.

Very little actual black paint is used. My challenge was to paint a black cat without using black as the main color.

This is a memory sketch of Neko and how she looks so intense with her ears turned back so sharply that they look like little horns on her head. She cuts this expression when she's deciding whether to grab something (usually me) or spit or tear off in the opposite direction. She usually vocalizes the instant she has made up her mind what to do and then springs into action!

I like the sketchy quality I'm getting out of the wall paints and the immediacy of them--they dry so quick I can layer lines and color fields almost immediately and build up texture qualities. This is great because that means the paint is able to "keep up" with my thought process and nothing is slowed down. This painting consumed just five minutes.

At the right is a detail section from the work The layers of lines and colors are very visible. I might change the background color a bit when I go back to the studio tomorrow, but possibly I will decide to leave it as it is and sign the work. This painting is titled "Seeing the Unseen."

Click on the images to see them larger.

This next work (also in wall paint with just the colors mentioned earlier) is a cute little tuxedo cat that belongs to a member of a group I belong to. Again, this is a quickly done painting - about 15 minutes. I title this one simply "Tux with Bell."

The painting measures 6 x 6 inches. I especially like the asymmetry of the white blaze on his face. Again, the layering of lines and colors was lots of fun and the fast drying paints let me work continuously without stopping. My brain and hand were able to work in complete immediate unison.

I'm satisfied with how the eyes appear -- exhibiting a certain amount of "depth" similar to what can be accomplished in oil paint. But wall paint is totally opaque so to get the effect of glazes it was a matter of getting the colors "right" in relationship (value and hue) to each other within the eye.

The little gold jingle bell around this cat's neck is a nice touch. I treated the white bib as a wash and overlapped the black with it to suggest the intermingling of white and black hair.

This last painting is of Sierra's cat named K.C. Like Vern in my earlier post, K.C.is, as they say, on the other side of the rainbow bridge. The reference was a small image on Sierra's photo pod (or whatever those things are called.) Not a great reference photo but good enough to see the main marking/color patterns and general shape of this cat. Sierra said K.C. did not like having his photo taken and he shows it by holding his head downward and turning one ear back.

This was another 15 minute painting in wall paint. Like the other works in this posting, this is on canvas paper.

And, like the others, only the three primary colors and white are used along with just a few accent marks in black. This work is signed, as I considered it complete at the end of the session. The paper it was painted on had an incomplete single still life object on it from a painting session the previous evening. A slight hint of the object impacts the blue above the cat's head and gives the appearance of a halo - appropriate for a departed cat. Below is a close up detail from this work.

One final note: As with all my art, these works are free-hand and drawn/painted with a hog bristle brush.

An oil study in-progress - Vern

2011-07-04T00:07:00.000-07:00

The last few days I've created several very small to small oil paintings of black cats. But throughout the process I also kept thinking about an orange cat named Vern who recently passed over the rainbow bridge. His coloration and expression were interesting and I visualized his portrait in oil.

This 6 by 6 inch (15.2 X 15.2 cm) study on a wood panel is the result. When does a study become a painting? I've asked that question in this blog before. In this case, although there are some things I want to "tweek" a bit (but not much--add a few hints of whiskers), I feel that this study reaches beyond itself and becomes a painting. Click on the images for a larger view to open.

The colors in the photos posted here are very close in hue to the actual work but the brightness is not. The painting is far more vivid and the oranges remind me of Van Gogh's self portraits showing his flaming red/orange beard. Like most oil paintings, there is some glare on the paint surface which is visible in the photo but not a distraction in the actual work. The panel had been gesso-primed earlier and exhibited groves in the paint that are still visible in this painting. Although strong, these groves add a textural quality to the portrait.

Personally, I like this painting of Vern.

"Goose Woman"

2011-06-23T21:43:00.000-07:00

This work spent time as a "warm-up" painting in the studio. What that means, essentially, is that now and then it ended up on the easel those times when I wasn't quite ready to paint on any of the in-progress works. I usually have about two or three works that are in the "warm-up" category. These paintings get painted, scraped down, repainted, over-worked, under-worked, and generally pushed around until I'm either tired of them or something suddenly clicks and I end up with a "keeper" instead of an addition to the discard box.

Early on, I titled this "Goose Woman." Originally this title referred to the figure's ample thighs combined with a "pigeon-toe-like" stance. At that point, the birds were sandhill cranes. The scene was evening/moonlight because at the time I was painting plenty of night/moonlit landscapes, so this allowed me to test out colors or approaches without worrying about messing up one of the works in-progress. Warm-up paintings seldom make it to "finished work" status because of this process. But day before yesterday, "Goose Woman" clicked and so now it has a lovely pale yellow mat and awaits a frame.

I've found that "Goose Woman" is a difficult work to photograph. Outdoors in natural diffused light (north side of my studio) it takes on more blue than it actually is. Indoors it becomes very warm-toned with sepia and honey yellow tones. The photo above is as close as I can get to the actual color of the work. There is a slight glare visible in the upper left from the overhead lamp.

The detail photo at the right shows the overall tonal quality the painting takes on when placed under incandescent light. I think under this light it reminds me of some of Renoir's romantic female figurative works.

The golden highlights in the hair fall beyond the hair into the reeds and read as fireflies.

Below is the painting, with matting, on my framing table. I even like this work upside down! The painting is about 12 by 22 inches. Outside dimension of the mat is 19 by 29 inches.

So, now the question is: Do I keep this work in my "studio collection" of works that still speak to me at some level, or do I offer it for sale at Etsy? And if so, then what price to place on it? "Goose Woman" is truly a "one of a kind" among my studio works, so with nothing to compare it to (other than size) it is not as easily priced as other paintings are.

Readers, please comment with your thoughts. Thanks!

Fiberglass Bison now in Custer, South Dakota

2011-06-04T21:07:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago the bison was ready for the clear coat to seal it against the elements. Then the local auto paint shop said they couldn't do it. So I bought the acrylic varnish to brush on. I emailed the client in Custer, South Dakota, and as a result found out the bison had to be clear-coated with the automotive sealant and there was a shop in Custer that would do the job.

So, all set to drive the bison to Custer on Friday, May 27th (when I returned from my art residency in Pendleton, Oregon.) Upon returning to Lewistown that day, I learned that substantial portions of the roads I needed to travel were closed due to major flooding -- in fact, the town of Roundup, MT was under six feet of water from the Musselshell River. I phoned the client and it was agreed that I wait out the weather and the re-opening of at least one good route.
The sun finally prevailed on Tuesday, May 31st, so the bison was loaded into an 8 ft UHaul trailer, hitched to the truck and headed to Custer at 5:30 a.m. the next day (when it started to rain -- again.) Custer was reached in time to drop off the bison at the shop that would clear-coat the bison. Yea!

The photos posted here of the finished and clear-coated bison were taken at the Steele Collision shop (either in the spray booth or outside the shop.) The outdoor installation sites for all of the fiberglass bison are not expected to be ready until mid-June. Until then, the fiberglass "herd" will be in safe storage. Click on the photos to see a larger image.

One side depicts prairie, some distant bison and native cone flowers (also known as Mexican Hat flowers.) Clouds are building into thunderheads and large thunderhead moves over the bison's shoulder hump and head.

I used a rich brown hue on the hooves to represent the deepest connection to the earth, followed by a reddish brown/sepia to signify the fertile soils. The yellowish (ochre) represents the vegetation. A slight hint of red beneath some of the horizon-touching rain curtain of the large thunderhead signifies fire started by the lighting of the passing storm

The flip side of the bison depicts essentially the same prairie landscape, except this scene shows a harvest operation underway in the distance instead of more bison. In the foreground is wheat -- prairie has been transformed from native plants to the mono-culture cropland

Overall, I'm pleased with how this turned out. It would have been great to have more time to create this. The short turn-around schedule was cut even shorter by a 10-day delay in shipping/arrival of the fiberglass bison plus another 7 days lost to prep and prime several areas that the manufacturer completely missed in the priming process.

Fiberglass Bison in-progress

2011-05-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

The current 3-D project at my studio is a fiberglass Bison for the City of Custer, South Dakota. The purpose of the project is not to create a "real Bison" look but rather to create a painting of any theme desired. My concept is to suggest a prairie landscape/skyscape that will show a thunderstorm passing over, with a lightning strike/fire at the horizon. The large thunderhead will flow over the area that is the Bison's hump/neck.head. On one flank the prairie will portray a Bison herd in the middle ground and native grasses/flowers in the foreground (up the Bison's legs.) On the opposite flank side a wheat harvest operation is trying to beat the storm and cultivated wheat is in the foreground.
I've posted a photo of the Fiberglass Bison and some photos of the first stage in the painting process. For those interested, I am using Golden Acrylics with GAC 200 hardener added and applying it with a soft brush.

Photo above is the Bison just before taking it into my studio. I'd visited the manufacturer's website prior to being selected for the project and got the dimensions, so I knew it would easily fit through the door. I didn't have to take the door off the hinges either. The manufacturer says this is a life-size Bison. Well, maybe a life-size Bison yearling calf. I've seen and drawn real bison up close, both at the Calgary Zoo (Alberta) and at the American Prairie Foundation's prairie preserve (northeast of Lewistown, Montana.) Couple other things I noticed about this fiberglass Bison is that it has no ears and no testicles. His (Hers? Its?) front hooves are not splayed at all and are small even for the size of the Bison.
Oh well. I'm not painting it to make it look like a real Bison, so those are probably "minor" details in the larger scheme of things.
The photos below show the first stage of painting. More in-progress photos will be posted as my time allows.

RIGHT - Five color bands base coats for Thunderhead/storm; Sky; Prairie & Wheat; Soil (reddish brown - symbolizes portion of earth that contains remains of all that's been and nourishes all that is); and Deep Earth that reaches beyond what Native Americans typically refer to as "Time Immemorial."

Left side

Right side

Hind side

Head - Front

Spring is getting closer. . .

2011-05-04T21:29:00.000-07:00

Even though the calendar indicates it is officially "spring", the actual weather here has been more winter than spring. Every night I still have to bring all my art supplies in from the car and then re-load them all in the morning before I leave to teach at whatever school I'm scheduled for on any particular day. Today the school was in Winifred, a small town about 50 miles north of my studio. The day was sunny with lots of interesting clouds and plenty of gentle winds. Here's a panoramic photo taken from the road on the return home around 5 p.m. and about halfway home to Lewistown.:

Click on the photo to see a much larger version. The mountains in the far distance (toward the middle of the horizon) are the Big Snowies (which are just south of Lewistown) and the mountains that start at the left are the Judiths. The mountains to the left of center are the south Moccasins.

"Paper" Airplane Bench in progress . . .a couple more photos added

2011-03-25T21:39:00.000-07:00

The City of Idaho Falls, Idaho sent out a Call To Artists last spring (2010) for bench designs; the selected benches would be installed in the City's Snake River Greenbelt Park. I submitted a concept for a "Paper" Airplane Bench. It was among the 20 designs ultimately selected but placed in the group of ten that had to wait for the next funding round.

So now it is spring 2011 and the bench is "taxiing for take-off!" Metal fabricators on this project are Warden Bourne and Jeff Martin, both of Lewistown. A big thanks to them for their expertise and abilities to modify a design as needed! I totally trust their work! Shane Ruckman (also of Lewistown) will apply the finish coat of industrial polyurethane, hopefully within the next week.

Below is a photo taken just this evening of the bench in the back of Warden's flatbed truck. I wasn't able to get a better photo because of lighting issues but will post a better photo when I can take one in the daylight and from a better angle. In this photo, the leading edge is all you can see of the wing:

The three "legs" are going to be coated in a neutral color that will "disappear" visually once the bench is installed. All edges and points are rounded so this bench will be safe for kids to play on.
This was the second time the City of Idaho Falls called for this type of competition. A few years back (in 2005) there was a similar Call To Artists to which I responded and was selected. The bench that time was a skateboard design, which you can see at EastMontProductions (scroll down the page at that website to see it.)

MORE PHOTOS . . . Nice sunshine the day after the evening I shot the photo above. Here are some more photos. Additional photos will be posted after the bench gets its finish coat.

This first small photo (at Left) shows how each of the three support posts hide the bolts. Arched opening allows finger/tool access for tightening or loosening bolts.

The next photo (immediately below) is a nice side view. I cropped out all the extraneous stuff in the background, as everything was about the same color gray as the bench's bare steel and didn't let the profile of the bench show up very well in a smaller sized photo.

Photo at Left: Vertical stabilizer presents a flat panel rather than an open space (as a real paper airplane would.) This means no space for small hands to potentially get stuck in.

Top view (photo at Right) shows seating surface. This bench gives sitters the option of facing in different directions yet still have a backrest support.

Last photo, another view that shows off the seating surface. Very comfortable! NOTE: Bench is 7 ft long and 4 ft across at the widest spread of the wings. Three 4-inch support posts: One about 2 ft from nose and one under each wing (and each set at 1 ft from rear edge of wing and 7 inches from side edge of wing.) Distance between front and rear support posts is about 3 ft. Approximate distance between front post support and rear support posts is 3 ft.

Kinetic Sculpture walks the beaches

2011-03-05T08:39:00.000-08:00

Check this video out! Theo Jansen has assembled an amazing kinetic sculpture. The smoothness of movement makes me think of centipede and millipede insects scurrying sideways across a floor. Click: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HSKyHmjyrkA

"Mr. Snuffles" the Sadly Blue Basset Hound

2011-03-03T19:52:00.000-08:00

He's big and he's blue. He's a teary-eyed personification of that Elvis tune "You Ain't Nothin' But A Hound Dog (Cryin' All The Time)" This was a fun project and I learned more about fiberglass than I thought I would ever need or want to know. "Mr Snuffles" is one of many artist-decorated fiberglass dogs and cats that will be auctioned to the highest bidder at an event to help raise needed funds for OFSA (Oregon Friends of Shelter Animals) a no-kill shelter in Beaverton, Oregon.
I was pleased with how this "critter" turned out. My only disappointment was not being able to affix the blue suede shoes onto the doggie's big fat fiberglass feet. The vest is a type of suede and I think the color is pretty against the doggie's blue body. (The vest is a dusty rose kinda color --- it may not show true to hue on the web but enough to give some idea of what the effect was..) The vest material co-operated and I was able to glue it into place. Then I added faux buttons to the vest back and music notes to the sides. The paint is artist's quality acrylic and sealed with a clear acrylic varnish in a mat finish (low gloss.)

Such sad eyes!
But he won't be so lonely and blue for long!
On Saturday, March 5th this life-sized hound dog
will go home with the highest bidder
and helping to raise funds
for OFSA.
When I get the rest of my photos sorted, I'll post a couple more views. What a cutie!

Etching Press - Session 5

2011-01-26T20:27:00.000-08:00

Experimented with some more monoprints on the etching press. This time I inked the plexi-glass plate and carefully place a piece of either newsprint or rice paper over the ink. Then, using either a soft pencil or the rounded tip of the handle of a paint brush, I very quickly drew a line image on the paper. Once the drawing was done, I lifted the paper from the plate and the result was an inked line, with the drawing now in reverse. To conserve paper, I tried the same process also with two pieces of paper -- one next to the inked plate and a second piece on top of that. The drawing was executed on the top paper, with the transfer of inked lines going to the paper against the plate. The drawings done with the brush handle were the most fun and challenging because I couldn't see the lines as I "drew" them and could only guess at where one line left off and another might begin. Here are a few samples of the monoprints I ended up with:

I made several prints of cats in various poses. The intent was not to create the perfect line drawing of a cat, but rather to have fun with the quick line. The smudges seen on this print (at Right) and the others here are the result of using newsprint that had been wrinkled or buckled when it had been used as a protective layer between the press' pusher blanket and the inked plate with the dampened paper laid over it. The "used" newsprint touched the inked plate in places and picked up some ink in addition to the lines I was drawing. Both cat monoprints shown in this post were done with the handle of a paintbrush instead of a pencil.

In this second example I'd grabbed a piece of newsprint that had been used in the printing process the day I was experimenting with embossing. Two embossed circles are visible in the lower right near the cat's tail. I like the randomness of the lines, smudges and the embossing.
The next photo shows a close-up from this print. I include it here so readers can see what kind of line I was getting on the newsprint. The line is darker at its edges.

The next few photos show:
1.) The line print done in the same manner as the cats (also with newsprint that had been used previously.)
2.) A print pulled from running the plate and rice paper through the press after the line print was taken.
3.) A detail from the print shown in the second photo.

1.)

2.)

3.)

Etching Press - Session 4

2011-01-25T22:28:00.000-08:00

Today I took some time to create a few monoprints. A couple days ago I did some research and reading and concluded that what I'm creating are monoprints and not monotypes. I'll explain the definitions of the two terms in another posting later.
The imagery I worked up for today's press work were mostly grouse. I intended to try some loons as well, but got carried away with exploring the feather effects on the grouse. It was very entertaining, plus I discovered some more ways to make marks in the oil paint that I've been substituting for printing ink. Also, on the way to the studio, I stopped by our local glass shop and purchased an 11 by 14 inch piece of plexi-glass to use as my printing plate instead of the 8 by 10 inch paper-thin acetate that I'd used before.
Here is one of the grouse monoprints from this printing session:

This is printed on the same kind of Japanese paper that I used in the earlier printing sessions. Using a rubber brayer,I rolled out the paint in an irregular rectangle shape. Then I wiped away the "air" (negative space) around the bird, leaving bits of the rectangle's edge to serve as a kind of border or "frame" for the bird. Rolling a coat of inck onto the plate and then removing areas from it to create the image is a reductive process/print. Had I started with an empty plate and then brushed the grouse on that would have been an additive process/print. I used a cotton rag to remove the white areas; if I removed too much, I simply painted it back in using a bristle brush. The sharp white lins were created using the edge of a small scrap of matboard

The final image measures about 8 by 6 inches.

Well, as I'm writing this, it's very close to turning into tomorrow. And Coast to Coast is on with some lively discussion about the State of the Union address. I think I'll make some hot tea and sit a little closer to the radio for a bit.

My Studio Front Door

2011-01-23T21:27:00.000-08:00

When I started this blog site in December 2008, I posted a photo of my studio building -- scroll down the right-hand column to see it.
Whenever someone asked me where my studio was located, I'd describe it as a large blue building immediately north of Highland Park Elementary School. The studio is on the corner of 7th Avenue and Hilger - or so one would think. But 7th Avenue bends slightly at Hilger and at that point 7th Avenue magically becomes 1st Street for the distance of all of a half a city block or less to where it "T"s with the truck bypass street. I was unaware of that little "detail" until one time I'd given driving directions as: "follow the truck bypass, then turn on 7th Avenue." My visitors promptly became lost! After that I always referenced the school and the fact that my studio is large, blue and sitting in full view on the corner. And somehow lots of people managed to drive right by and miss it. A vacant lot, it seemed, would be more visible. (I must admit though, most of the time I'm okay with this "hiding in plain sight"; I get more art done when no one stops in.)

I decided to give the studio front door a fresh coat of paint in 2009. It was autumn, which meant that while I painted, dozens of red and black Box Elder Bugs plopped into the paint can. No surprise. Twice a year (spring and autumn) their population explodes. Harmless -- Box Elder Bugs can't bite or sting -- they're regarded as a nuisance because there are so many.

Picking wriggling lumps out of the paint, it occurred to me that everyone has a box elder bug story to tell. I don't know if that's the reason I decided to paint a very large Box Elder Bug on my studio door but in hindsight is makes perfect sense. My bug is complete with it's shadow in the proper relationship to the actual direction of the sunlight on the door.
Now, when people ask for directions, I simply say "a Box Elder Bug is on the door." And there is instant recognition of my studio and location. I don't even mention the school anymore.
Just the big Box Elder Bug.

Readers,
What kinds of insects signal the changing seasons where you live?

Etching Press - Session 3

2011-01-21T23:37:00.000-08:00

A couple days ago I had some fun creating monotypes (monoprints) using my etching press. I followed that session with one creating embossings. I used a variety of objects to run through the press, among them some coins, paperclips, buttons, a flat bicycle wrench and some patterns I cut out and built up with scrap matboard. The results were mixed and it took several runs with each new object to determine the correct pressure setting on the press.

Here is a sample of a "domino" pattern I created using strips of matboard and nickles on heavy watercolor paper which had been soaked in a tray of water for at least 30 minutes before running through the press. I shot the photograph at an angle so the light would show up the embossing:

In this close-up photo you can see that Jefferson's head and some of the lettering on the nickles are visible in the embossing:

If any of my blog readers have done embossing with a press, please feel free to comment on your experience with the process. What is the most unusual object you've embossed and what kind of paper did you use?

Recent listing on my Etsy Shop

2011-01-21T22:14:00.000-08:00

Here's a recent listing on my Etsy Shop: Poppenga Art Studio.

This is a small oil painting titled "Rain On The Flat." It measures 4 inches high by 8 inches wide.
I simplified the land/sky-scape, distilling it to two competing sky areas - dark and light - and a narrow strip of tan to indicate the land. I enjoy this particular theme and have painted several variations of it in addition to this one.
As for how are things going via Etsy, well, there are no sales yet, but plenty of visitors. Google Analytics shows I've had visitors from 39 states plus the District of Columbia. And visitors from around the world, including cities in the Netherlands, Norway, Germany, Australia, India, Pakistan, Israel, Greece, Poland, France, Portugal, Brazil, Russia and Belgium, just to name a few. Wow. As of today, I have 36 works of art listed for sale at my Etsy Shop, Poppenga Art Studio.

Full Moon Setting over Prairie

2011-01-20T02:01:00.000-08:00

The early morning drive to the school at Geraldine, Montana rewarded me with this fantastic westward view of the setting full moon. Wow!
The camera doesn't do this any justice. It may not look like it in this photo, but there is a deep barrow ditch immediately off the edge of the paved road so there was no place to pull over safely. I made a quick stop, hop out, snap the photo from the drive lane. Given more time (and a safer place to pull over) I would have tried some different settings on the camera. But I think this photo conveys the overall mood of the scene. The distant lights are the tiny community of Coffee Creek. The mountains (starting at the left) are the Highwood and to the far right is Square Butte.
What a nice way to start the day!

Etching Press - Session 2

2011-01-17T22:04:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I created embossed designs on heavy watercolor paper with the press. The results were very good, but I'll have to figure out a way to photograph the work so it shows up. The scanner doesn't do very well when it's "seeing" just white paper with indentations in it.

The paper I used is some that I've had stored away for a long time. It is Arches watercolor paper and I'm guessing it is probably 300lb weight cold-press. This paper is heavy enough to take some real serious pressure under the press, but at the end of the session I wondered if a lighter weight and less textured paper might give even better results (and possibly with less pressure under the press.) The paper soaked in a tray of water for at least an hour before I used it.

I used scraps of mat-board (standard thickness) to make the raised areas of the designs. This works well enough but, as the printing process gradually compresses the mat-board pieces, there is a limit to the number of top quality embossings any one design can produce. In addition to the mat-board, I used some pennies.

There are plenty of other materials that can be used for the embossing - lots of other materials. And not only for embossing, but printing too. When I prepared dinner this evening, I noticed the styro-foam tray the pork steaks were packaged in has an interesting pattern on the bottom. Hmm. Maybe that tray can be inked and printed. I opened a jar of sauerkraut and thought, hmm, maybe the lid can be used for embossing. And on and on. So many potential objects - I will be counting them instead of sheep when I go to bed.

Etching Press - Session 1

2011-01-16T23:54:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I dug out the Japanese rice paper I had squirreled away. Located the brayer, grabbed a tube of burnt umber oil paint, a generous pile of cotton swabs (Q-Tips), a bristle brush, and a clean cotton rag.
Then I taped a piece of acetate to a scrap of white matboard to serve as the "printing plate" for a session of experimenting with subtractive technique making several monotypes (or monoprints, which is what I believe they technically are called -- I'll delve more into that in another post later.)

This small print (Left) is the second one I pulled. The first one was too light. I decided it was not enough paint on the plate, so I really gobbed it on for this one. I think the thicker layer of paint is good up to a point. Too thick and it will "squish" under the press and all the linear marks and texture would be lost.
Print size is about 7 x 5 3/4 inches.

I used the cotton swabs in the dark passages. It didn't take much of a pass through the paint to completely filled a swab, so I used a lot more of them than I thought I would. In the detail photo (Below), you can see the cotton swab strokes cutting across the brushstrokes. I like the way that looks; it reminds me of some passages in the monotypes done by William Blake (1757-1827).

I was trying to get a sense of a storm cloud bearing down on the land, maybe even crushing (Detail above). I got some surprises with the cotton swabs--those that were "frayed" left more interesting "starting" and "stopping" marks.

This next print (Above) scanned as if it were brownish -- which it should be, as I used burnt umber. Print size is about 4 x 8 inches.

This print (detail at Right) was the result of partially cleaning the plate with mineral spirits and then deciding I liked what remained after the first wipe of the rag. So I went from there and invented something of a prairie landscape with patches of snow in it, some sagebrush and distant mountains or hills. I used both ends of the brush (bristle and handle tip) along with cotton swabs. The texture of the paper is very evident in this print. I need to think about how to take advantage of the paper texture.

This print (Left) started with a REALLY thick, tacky layer of paint on the plate. I didn't think it would work very well, and the only reason it worked at all was because I was aggressive with the used of the rag. I think I wasted a bit of paint on this one.
I should mention here that the clean edges around the first two prints are the result of taping off the image area before rolling out the paint and creating the image. The tape has to be peeled off before running the plate under the press and it was sorta messy, so I decided not to continue taping the plate off for each print.

I like the random edge made by the brayer better than the clean edge left by the tape.
The detail (Right) shows the amount of detail I was able to achieve on such a small format using just the swabs and rag.
Print size is about 5 1/2 by 7 1/2 inches.

This next print is even smaller than the others. It is about 3 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches. The ridge appearance was left not by a brush but by the rag. It must have been the way I held it, because I went through another several prints trying to duplicated that and it didn't quite repeat in this way. I think it has an appearance that is almost like wood grain. I used the handle of the brush to make some of the contour lines.

The detail (Right) shows areas where the paint itself is suggestive of form with no real "help" from me. I like that!

And what's a studio without a fruit still-life? So here's mine for the day -- an invented pear.

I like this print. I like everything about it. I suppose when I look at it again tomorrow, I'll find all kinds of things in it that I don't like. But for now it's of interest. I especially like the irregular border edge of the image. It makes the taped-off "perfect" edge seem boring. I tried a little yellow ochre in this print. I wasn't happy with how that color printed; it's too dull compared to the result I'd envisioned. Next time I'll try a cadmium yellow or even a lemon yellow.
Print size is about 9 x 6 inches.

The detail (Above) shows what I achieved with the stem. I was really surprised by the printed image versus what I saw on the plate.

This detail (Right) shows the upper left corner of the pear print. I was very excited to see how the layers of paint retained their own individual characteristics, texture and shape. I must have the press pressure about right for the amount of paint I was rolling onto the plate by the time I got to this particular print. Hmm. I see that the thinnest (most transparent) layer of paint is what the scanner saw as brownish and the progressively thicker (more opaque) layers it saw as somewhat blackish.

This (Below) is the last print of the session. I don't think it is necessarily the best of the session. Just the last. By this time I was becoming more comfortable with the speed at which I needed to be creating the images so that the paint would be fluid enough to transfer with the printing press.

I applied a thicker layer of paint onto the plate for this image and then tried to realize the image as quickly as possible. The result was more of a dark/light contrast rather than any real subtle shifts from dark to light or vice versa. I'm not sure I like the resulting print quality of this manner as well as the earlier ones. Print size is about 8 1/2 by 5 1/2 inches.

The detail (Right) shows strong decisive directional strokes or passes with brush and rag. I didn't use the cotton swabs on this print.

Another detail (Right.) I really tried to build form with just two or three values. Actually, only two values; the middle tones are the result of paint film left behind by the rag. If I wiped out too much, I simply added more paint with the brush.

All in all, the printing session was productive, not only in numbers of monotypes printed, but also in what I discovered in the process.

High Prairie in Winter

2011-01-15T14:01:00.000-08:00

Thursday's sunrise was spectacular. I was driving west to the town of Geyser and the Surprise Creek Hutterite Colony, but when I caught a glimpse of the light show in the eastern sky I decided it was worth pulling over and taking a decent photo (instead of one of my "point the camera and shoot" without looking in the viewfinder to see what I've got.) This photo was taken just a mile or less west of Lewistown. The pinks in the clouds spilled across the sky and could be seen even if you were looking southwest.
Below is another photo taken on the same drive, in the vicinity of Windham (a tiny town just off the main road.) The view in the photo is to the south, southwest and is about 35 miles west of Lewistown. By this point the morning pinks are either gone or fading fast, but the lighting is still very interesting. The mountains are part of the Little Belt Mountains, one of many isolated mountain ranges on the high prairie of this part of Montana.

By the time I arrived at the Surprise Creek Colony for the morning's art session, the storm clouds that had been bunching up on the western horizon over the Rocky Mountain Front were beginning to spill across the prairie and snag on the isolated mountain ranges. This next photo shows the Colony as I approach, driving south from the main road. I'll have to post another photo sometime that shows this view in nicer weather, as it is a very picturesque setting. The mountains are foothills of the Belts.

The drive home to Lewistown that day provided some beautiful sky views too. Here (below) is a hint of what views were seen on the 75 mile trip back to Lewistown at the end of the day. The view is southwest of the main road as I was heading east.

Printing Press Arrived!

2011-01-12T21:14:00.000-08:00

It's here! The Blick 999 Model II Etching Press from Dick Blick Art Supplies! I'm familiar with a variety of printmaking processes and have long wanted to return to using a press.

So here it is.
It arrived safely in a very sturdy wood crate that is suppose to be kept for return shipping should I ever need any warranty work done on the press.
I'll find a spot in the studio's back storage room for the crate, along with the eight wood screws that held it together during shipment.
The truck driver who delivered it wheeled it into the studio on a handcart. Drivers are not suppose to deliver shipments beyond a place of business' front door or loading dock, so I feel very fortunate that he did bring it into the studio, even though just barely inside the door. I managed to shove the crate onto one of the small area rugs you see in the photo and then drag it to the other end of the studio where I wanted to set the press up.

So, here it is all set up and ready to "test drive"!
As you can see, it has three handles to turn the rollers with. I checked it out and found I can turn the press rollers with just the touch of a finger!
This press can take prints up to 17 inches by 35 inches. Plenty big for what I want to do.
There was a metal tubular stand available for purchase for this press, but for the cost of it, I figure I can use this old (and very sturdy) desk. The desk is big enough that I have plenty of room for inking wood/linoleum blocks or plates.

High Prairie in Winter

2011-01-12T20:45:00.000-08:00

Looking at the snow photo I posted on January 8th, I thought it might be interesting to contrast that with what my drive back from Winifred was like on January 3rd, just five days earlier. This photo was taken as I was heading south back to Lewistown after a day teaching art to about 60 students at the public school in Winifred. The road was a lot better on the drive back from than it was on the way to Winifred in the morning just ahead of the sunrise. I couldn't take any photos in the morning, as I needed both hands on the steering wheel. During the day, a warm chinook wind blew and cleared some of the roadway. In the morning, I was dodging snow drifts. So this was the perfect ending to the day----or at least as perfect as a high prairie winter day can end!

The mountains visible on the horizon to the left are the Judith and the ones to the right are the North Moccasin. The mountains that appear blue and very low on the horizon just to the right of the Judith Mountains are the Big Snowy. The highest point in the Big Snowy is 8,681 feet (it's named GreatHouse Peak.) They look so unassuming in this photo. Lewistown is just north of the Big Snowy, so you can see that I have a bit of a drive ahead of me yet when I took this photo.

Last snow fall was pretty

2011-01-08T22:41:00.000-08:00

Relatively warm temperatures lingered here the past few days. Okay, so it only seemed warm because of the sunshine and blue skies, but the psychological effect was real.. Part of the "warmth" of the last snow fall was in it's moisture content and the fact that it arrived without the usual wind which added up to snow that was able to cling to every branch and twig it landed on. Here is a photo of Spring Creek at one of the access locations along it's journey through Lewistown.. This is near Garfield Elementary School and is a favorite location for youths in summer as it is deep enough here to jump in from the short concrete wall that parallels the street where stream and street cross paths.

Etsy Shop update

2011-01-08T18:10:00.000-08:00

I've got 32 artworks listed now at PoppenaArtStudio, my online store at Etsy. My primary goal is, of course, to sell art. But my first objective is to get my shop listings up to at least 60 and probably settle at around 75. That will put my monthly cost for listings at a manageable amount if it were to turn out that I make no sales.
Since being on Etsy, I've had fun with the free Google Analytics that comes with the shop. Google Analytics shows, via a map and text reports, where my shop visitors are coming from -- country and city! That's pretty cool. So far I've had visitors from 32 states in the USA and from 20 different nations around the world. And what's really cool is that a percentage of my visitors are categorized as returning visitors.
Here's my most recent listed item as of today, January 8th. It's a 4 by 4 inch oil painting titled, "Road to Square Butte":

Long Holidays . . . and time to think

2011-01-03T10:03:00.000-08:00

Well, another year passes. Another year begins. Something about windows and one is never closed but that another is then opened. So it is with the calendar. And here it is already the THIRD day of January! I'll be writing my art goals and some objectives over the next couple days and share some or all of them here.

One goal is to do a better job marketing my studio work. I seem to be able to land at least one sizeable public art commission every year or two and that certainly helps the annual income bottom line. But the studio work is important to me as an artist, so I produce quite a number of such works each year. Translation: Lots of dollars tied up in mats, glass and frames. I need to market this work more aggressively so one goal is to make art sales online. Even before the new year began, I accomplished the first objective towards that goal: I opened an Etsy online store at: PoppengaArtStudio.etsy.com I've already got enough art my Etsy at this point to spill over into a page two of listings. There are more objectives to achieve in order to realize the sales goal, but getting the store online was a significant start.

With Etsy there's also a free tracking service called Google Analytics. It lets me see that my Etsy store visitors are coming from all around the world. Google Analytics also generates various reports that can help me analyze the data collected. A filter on one of the reports shows which page a visitor entered on (Google calls it a "landing page") and how many pages each visitor visited (at Etsy "pages" are each listed painting.) If a visitor lands and then leaves without checking out another painting, that translates into a 100% bounce rate. In the marketing world, you want a low bounce rate. Right now, I'd be thrilled with an overall bounce rate of 50% (half the visitors land/leave and half of them stay to look at more paintings.

An interesting trend I've noticed already with the help of Google Analytics is that in the USA the two states sending the most visitors are New York and California. New York is ahead with twice as many visitors and a significant difference beyond just numbers: New York visitors linger and look at more paintings (pages). California visitors land and leave. Don't know yet what that could mean, but it is curious.
As for other goals and objectives, I'll sprinkle a few more thoughts at this blog as I find time to.

Painting accepted in CCAHC Works on Paper Exhibition

2010-12-17T20:05:00.000-08:00

Today's post mail brought some good news. One of my stormy cloud works is accepted for the Custer County Arts & Heritage Center's 32nd Annual SouthEastern Montana Juried Exhibit. The 2011 exhibit, set for January 23rd through March 6th, is titled "Works On Paper." The CCAC is located in Miles City, Montana.
Below is a photo of my work, titled "Thunderhead Over Hobson, Montana."
This work is an oil painting on gesso on acid-free paper. The image measures 18 by 24 inches. The exhibition is not an auction, so this work is still available for purchase. I'm pricing this painting to encourage a sale.
The thunderhead in this work is one I watched as it grew bigger and taller just east of the Hobson grain elevators (one elevator is no longer standing at this location.) When I finally left (after I was certain I could capture its essence back at the studio) this storm cloud was being pushed fast enough by an up high wind that it tailed me all the way to Lewistown.

Below are two close up detail photos so you can see the layered, sketchy brush strokes that make up this work. I was especially pleased with the results achieved on the more distant grain elevator.

Two paintings in 43rd Annual Yellowstone Art Museum Art Auction

2010-12-08T23:12:00.000-08:00

Good news arrived in today's snail mail! Two of my oil paintings have been selected for inclusion in the Yellowstone Art Musuem's 43rd Annual Art Auction. The auction takes place in March 2011 at the museum in Billings, Montana. I've posted the two paintings below:

This painting titled "Prairie King" is a stylized building thunderhead in the late afternoon sky. It's a visualization of any and all of the super clouds that I've witnessed over years of observation. I used birch panel for the support instead of canvas. Sometimes I prefer this kind of surface over stretched canvas because it "fights back" when you attack it with brush and palette knife. "Prairie King" is 20 inches by 20 inches.

This painting is titled "Powerful Storm" and is not as recent a work as "Prairie King" (which was completed this past spring.) "Powerful Storm" is one of my favorite works out of what I've done over the past four or five years. It depicts a tremendous storm I witnessed over the eastern edge of the Belt Mountains about 80 miles west of Lewistown. The far left solitary mountain is an extinct volcano cinder cone. To create this work, I thinned the oil paint and then applied it in several layers so that layers remained visible through successive layers. The whole effect is very drawing-like and textural. "Powerful Storm" is 18 inches by 24 inches.
A further note about this painting: I've recently opened an online art sales shop on Etsy.com and included this painting as one of the few that I initially posted. The notification deadline for the art auction was long past and since I'd not received any word regarding my entries, I figured it meant I wasn't selected. So imagine my surprise when I got today's mail! (which, by the way, was postmarked over a week ago---and it's normally "next day" delivery to Lewistown from Billings.) So, I got to see how Etsy's delete and archive functions work!

Serigraph (silkscreen) Commission in progress

2010-11-21T00:53:00.000-08:00

I pulled Colors 12 and 13 today. I'm thinking one more color on the far side of the river, possibly two more. Then the Bighorn Sheep will be started (probably five or six colors on each one.) It's been cold outside; Minus 8 degrees when I left the studio at midnight. It did stop snowing (finally) but the night sky was clear, so with no cloud cover the temperature will drop even more before daybreak. I keep the studio at about 50 or 55 degrees - perfect for working and the screen inks flow just right.

(Above) Color 12 is a slightly peachy tone that covers the far side of the river and the distant landforms. My lighting was slightly different when I photographed tonight so the colors as they appear in the photo are a bit closer to the actual colors than most all of the previous progression photos posted.
(Below) Color 13 starts to show some definition in the far side of the river and the distant landforms.

Serigraph (silkscreen) Commission in progress

2010-11-16T00:22:00.000-08:00

Here are updates for colors number 10 and number 11. I'm happy with the way the rocks are coming out. One more color to represent the surfaces of rock that are sunlit and then the distant landscape and the mountain sheep will be tackled next. This has been a little slower-going than I'd hoped as I'm having to fit this project into a full schedule with other projects in progress as well.

(Above) The serigraph at the 10 Color stage.

(Below) The serigraph at the 11 Color stage. Just one more color for the foreground and middle ground rocks and then on to the background landscape! Nice to finally see the foreground ram starting to take shape, even if it is only because the color field around him is what is being printed.

(Above) The serigraph at the 10 Color stage.

Serigraph (silkscreen) Commission in progress

2010-11-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

Here's today's update! Only got one color done today but am pleased as now the shapes are starting to become apparent. If I think of it tomorrow, I'll photograph my line drawing that is the basis for this serigraph.
Two things I forgot to mention in my previous post: The image area is 30 inch by 19 inch and the commission is for the Friends Of Missouri Breaks Monument (the Missouri Breaks Monument is a wild/scenic area along the Missouri River north and east of Lewistown, Montana.)
Also, this serigraph is being done in solvent-based inks (Naz-Dar 5500 Series) and a mucilage block-out.

Serigraph (silkscreen) Commission in progress

2010-11-06T23:36:00.000-07:00

Before I write/say anything, I should note that the colors as seen in these progress photos are not completely true to the actual colors on the serigraphs. I'm photographing these on the layout table and so lighting is not the best and there is also some distortion as I can't get the camera quite far enough away.
In the photo at the right, you are seeing the upper third of the image area -- at this stage the rest of the image area is still just the white paper. In this photo there are two colors: The purplish sky (pulled first) and the lighter bluish tone beneath where the thunderhead will be. Where these first two colors overlap it has the effect of creating a third color. I masked out the remainder of the image area, including the far ram (seen here as white.)

Photo at the above is at the five color stage. The thunderhead is starting to take on a nice decorative shape.

Photo above is at the six color stage. At this point I decided to stop working on the sky portion of the image and tackle the main body of the serigraph, and especially the lettering that would appear at the bottom of the image.

Photo above shows the 7th color now added at the bottom of the image. Again, I should note that colors are not entirely true in these photos (for example, the blank area is actually pure white of the paper still.)--and also there is some distortion due to having to photograph at too close a distance. The brown area (actually a salmon-ish brown color) was pulled for the sake of the lettering as seen once the next color is pulled.

Photo above shows the nine color stage. Again, some distortion due to the camera---the actual serigraphs are nice and straight/squared as are the straight lines of the shape that contains the lettering. Prior to pulling the peachy color over the brown, I hand-brushed the mucilage block-out over each letter (which I'd free-hand drawn onto the screen.)

If you have any questions about my process up to this point, please feel free to email me or, if you've accessed this posting via my Facebook page, then please leave comments/questions there. I will try to reply in a timely manner.

Photo Above shows the eight color stage on the table in the foreground. Beyond that is the screen, which is swung open and fully back so I can brush on the mucilage block-out on the back side (the ink is squeegeed across the reverse side.) You can see that I am also attaching some tracing paper areas to serve as a block-out for those areas that I don't want to print in the next color, but also do not want to cover with mucilage only to have to remove it after the next color run.

The best money spent in the studio this year was the $375 for a used but fully functional Saturn Print Drying Rack (new ones approach $2,000 or more). There are 50 trays, each measuring 40" x 52". Trays are spring-loaded; when not drying prints, the trays are in the upright position---and just a touch of the hand lowers or raises each tray.
I use to have to run (literally) all around the studio to hang my wet prints on make-shift cloths lines and trying to hang prints back-to-back was nuts! And hurrying because the inks would be drying in the screen and could mess up the next several prints! So yes! This was money well spent!! (even though I had to leave off the top ten trays because my 8-ft high studio ceiling wasn't high enough to allow those trays to be in the fully up position.
But even with just 40 of the trays installed, I LOVE my print drying rack!

Band Shell Mural Project Completed!

2010-08-29T22:33:00.000-07:00

Here's the completed Veterans Memorial Park Band Shell Mural. The RFP called for only a new image in the shell, but I decided to also add in the arches and the wing walls as part of my proposal. It was an amazing transformation of the space to make the former faded dark brown arches over into red-white-&-blue. The band shell now appears larger than it did and it is highly visible from across the park and the nearby roadways. In this photo the performers on stage are the US Air Force Brass In Blues. The early evening performance caught the band shell in the setting sunlight cast upon the historic cathedral image on the right side of the shell.

Band Shell Mural Project Completed!

2010-08-29T22:21:00.000-07:00

USAF Brass In Blues performance on stage in front of the newly completed band shell mural. The band was great and the singer was fantastic! The performance was a collection of American compositions from Ragtime through the Big Band Era.

Band Shell Mural Project - Helena, MT

2010-08-07T14:30:00.000-07:00

Here is the band shell project at Day Eight of painting (not counting the three days of prep work to get the surface ready.)

A close-up photo of the capitol dome. The forms are simplified to facilitate "reading" the imagery from a considerable distance across the park and from the surrounding streets---which is what the Call For Proposals specified.

This photo gives some idea of just how big this band shell is. The scissor lift is extended to it's full height so Nathan can reach the outer most arches to apply the blue paint.

This photo captures the effect of the setting sun on the cathedral image in the band shell. Note the capitol dome image in the shadow. In my original proposal for the project, I'd stated that quality of light and its effect on the mural was something I considered when I opted to do the work in a gray scale. I'd also opted for the gray scale because one of the requirements of the project was that the imagery below the band shell wainscot walls be "neutral" so as not to visually interfere with performers on stage. The cathedral image was not completed as of this photo.

2010-07-25T09:30:00.000-07:00

The Veterans Memorial Park Band Shell Mural work got underway last week! After plenty of washing, scraping and sanding the entire shell was primed. Then the "sky" area of the shell got it's coat of light warm gray; it has just a touch of pinkish to it so it takes on a different color appearance depending on the time of day.
Here is a link to an article and related video in the Helena (Montana) newspaper where you can see the old mural that I am covering up:
http://helenair.com/news/article_76c13284-9491-11df-b698-001cc4c03286.html?mode=story
I don't know how long the newspaper leaves their article/video links online, so check this one out soon.
Here's a photo of the primer being applied (Nathan operating the airless sprayer and me doing the rolling to even out the spray.

And here is a photo of the band shell all primed and with the sky pinkish gray painted in the shell.

Oscar the Bionic Cat

2010-07-02T22:27:00.000-07:00

Well, this is a blog site about my art, but I found this series of videos to be of enough interest, that I thought I'd share them here. They are about a two-year old cat named Oscar whose hind legs are cut off in a farm accident. The videos document the medical marvel that gives back Oscar's mobility and life.

Here's a video that shows Oscar his with his first proto-type legs/paws; The veterinarian's comment at the end is especially touching:
Oscar's First Bionic Feet

Here's a video giving some information about the medical procedure that gave Oscar his bionic legs/paws;

Here's a video that shows Oscar with his permanent "legs" (as opposed to the proto-type legs shown in the first video with the veterinarian:

Mural Proposal selected!

2010-06-22T17:22:00.000-07:00

I've been selected to create a new mural for the Veterans Memorial Park Band Shell in Montana's State Capitol, the City of Helena. I'm excited about this for two reasons: First, I'll have the opportunity to create a large public art work that will add meaning to an existing structure; Second, the mural site is one of high daily visibility to not only people using the park but also passing motorists (both local and tourist.)

The imagery in the band shell represent three Helena iconic structures: Historic Fire Tower, the Capitol building's dome and St. Anne's Cathedral. On the wing walls are: On the left wall, a cavalry soldier with flag (Ft Harrison is across the street from the band shell) and the pick/shovel/gold pan (a subject also on Montana's state flag); On the right wall a WWII soldier with flag and the sod busting plow (also a subject on Montana's state flag--and like the pick and shovel, allude to different eras important to the state's history.) The band shell, not counting the two wing walls, is 48 ft across the opening.
(To access a larger view of this sketch, click the image above.)

Sidelines of History

2010-06-08T18:18:00.000-07:00

This video is one of those interesting tidbits I find while researching art projects. For more information visit Vojtek - WWII Soldier Bear

"A Cat's Lullaby"

2010-05-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

"Spring Sky Over the Judiths"

2010-04-28T18:49:00.000-07:00

"Spring Sky Over the Judiths" and "March Skies #3" (the post immediately below this one) each measure 9 x 7 inches. Both are on board panels and both were brought to their current state in one very short paint session. Both are also what I call "cold" (explained in the post appearing below this one.)
This painting was done "plein aire" outside my studio door. It's very intense painting session for about 15 minutes and then it is set aside as the sky has changed too much to continue. I enjoy working in this manner and am never disappointed with the results. Works like this are always about the paint as well as the subject.

"March Skies #3"

2010-04-28T18:32:00.000-07:00

This small painting is based on an earlier larger work which I no longer own, but which still influences my stormy sky paintings. "March Skies #3" as it appears here is a work in-progress, but it may not change much (if at all), as it is now cold. The painting was started before I left for my most recent two-week residency in Oregon and now enough time has elapsed that the energy of the first session is cold. Is there energy still? Yes, absolutely! But it's not the same energy. Also, the paint has dried so additional brushwork will sit on top of this first layer rather than merge or flow with it. And that's an important consideration because this work is as much about the paint as it is about the subject.

"Spring Winds" (or, Gusty Skies Over the Judiths")

2010-04-10T02:21:00.000-07:00

Painted on a gesso primed wood panel, this oil painting started as a sketch that developed a mind of it's own, so to speak. Upon reaching a certain stage I determined that it be declared finished and then left alone. Sometimes talk is cheap and I might push a painting too far. This painting, however, works for me. The scratchy, hurried linear marks that make up this work give a feel for the crisp spring winds that pack a good bite for all who were fooled by the sun and so are unprepared for what spring is on the high prairie.

"Hmmm. . . . ."

2010-03-29T23:42:00.000-07:00

This is a small work in-progress. It is oil on wood panel and measures 8 inches high by 4 inches wide. It's my impression of Neko when she's thinking: "Hmmm. . . what can I get into next?"

Often I paint on small panels to "warm up" before doing anything else. And just as often, I end up liking the spontaneous quality of these small works. Always, the warm up paintings are as much about paint as they are about subject. This particular work will, no doubt, lead to more and larger works based on Neko.

The eyes at this point are simply lifted out of the blackish/brownish paint but I may decide to leave them at this stage. For me, there seems to be enough "attitude" in the gesture of the tail, head and ears. And there is a sense that the cat is lifting itself slightly on it's toes, ready to spring into action.

Neko, by the way, is a small black kitten growing into a leggy long-tailed mischievous cat who needs to know absolutely everything about everything in the whole house! Neko's fur is black, but her attitude is pure sunshine!

"North Of Town"

2010-03-02T01:33:00.000-08:00

"North Of Town" is a 5 x 7 inch oil painting. The town referred to is Lewistown and time of year is late winter, when the snow is getting yellowing thin. This is a memory work--i.e., I created it based on landscapes recalled from auto trips taken in the area. My initial intent was to create a study that would resolve some compositional thoughts leading to a larger work. When it reached this state, it felt "finished." Pinning it to the studio wall, I left it to dry for several weeks and then decided to sign and frame it.

Back Home (for a while)

2010-02-19T11:49:00.000-08:00

I'm finally back home! The return road trip was long but uneventful. But I've hit the ground running here, as I have several new project applications to get into the postmail and email within the week or so.
The Redmond Proficiency Acadamy students got their mural project off to a good start the week I instructed there. The school set up a "moodle" access for me to stay in touch via the internet between now and when I return to Redmond in late April to facilitate the actual painting. Sometime over the next few days, I'll be posting some photos of all the residencies I conducted in Oregon since January.

Mid-week point - Artist Residency at RPA

2010-02-10T12:28:00.000-08:00

Since the previous blog post, the first week of my artist residency at Redmond Proficiency Academy is at the mid-point and the mural is starting to form as an image with specific elements. Working with a small core group of students, I've taken them through the following steps since beginning on Monday:
Site Visit - After a brief introduction and overview of the mural project, we visited the site where the completed mural is to be installed. There are actually two sites involved; one is a temporary site in the City of Redmond Centennial Park and the other is the permanent location the mural will be moved to at the end of summer.
Brainstorm Ideas - Group discussion to generate ideas for subjects that may be included in the mural. Follow-up research for source images was begun after the brainstorming session.
Formal Meeting with the "Client" - Students met at City Hall with Economic Development Director and representatives from the RCAPP and the Centennial Committee. A pre-meeting group discussion generated questions the students determined they needed to ask at the meeting. The meeting ended with a visit to the mural installation sites led by the Economic Development Director; additional questions and concerns were discussed at each site.
Formulating the Basic Composition - Students discuss and map out what images go where in the mural. This process will continue through the end of the week.
Creating a Budget - Students create a budget, working with unit prices and then calculating total costs. I also introduce line items that are typical requirements in "real world" proposed budgets and discuss the purpose of each and why it is needed.

Final Residency begins Feb. 8th

2010-02-06T15:13:00.000-08:00

My last artist residency in Oregon begins in a couple days. This will be the first time I've conducted my program for a proficiency acadamy. I'll be working with about 20 high-school-age students in the City of Redmond. For this residency, I've proposed to conduct one week of "real job" introduction for the students. Students will be required to perform all the tasks and steps that a working artist must successfully complete when applying for an opportunity to create specific public art.

Two Artist Residencies completed and two more to go

2010-01-30T17:20:00.000-08:00

I'm about to begin the third Artist-In-Residence on my loop through eastern Oregon. This trip began with two weeks at the elementary school in the town of Irrigon. After that, it was on to Canyon City and now La Pine. The last residency will be in Redmond.

FIRST OF SEVERAL ARTIST RESIDENCIES . . .

2010-01-12T19:13:00.000-08:00

My artist residencies in schools are off to an earlier start this year. I'm halfway through a two-week residency in Irrigon, Oregon already. The students will be creating a large mural of the Oregon Trail and Native Americans. Grades involved are K-3, so it should prove interesting and a challenge. But, judging by the first two days here, I'm sure they can handle it.
After Irrigon, I'm off to Canyon City for a week, then La Pine for a week followed by a residency in Redmond (all in Oregon).
My blog entries will be slim or absent until I return.

"Petrolia Reservoir Memory"

2010-01-03T22:15:00.000-08:00

To create "Petrolia Reservoir Memory" paint was applied and removed several times. Each time some paint was left behind to interact with the subsequent layers. I enjoy working this way as the resulting art is as much or more about the paint as it is about anything that inspired it in the first place. Petrolia Reservoir, which shows up as "Lake" on some maps, is located southeast of Winnett (east of Lewistown.) This painting is 5 x 7 inch.

UPDATE: Benches completed and delivered!

2010-01-03T10:19:00.000-08:00

All fourteen benches ready for delivery. The gold disk visible on each bench backrest is a cast metal replica of the Rotary Club emblem. The local Lewistown Rotary contributed funding to the bench portion of the street amenities project. To see more photos of the the finished benches visit EastMontProductions.com

"Cloud Deity"

2010-01-01T16:28:00.000-08:00

Even though the subject of "Cloud Deity" is a building thunderhead, I find this a peaceful work to gaze upon, in part because it is essentially a memory of late summer recalled in the studio as winter is tightening it's grip outside. I frequently shift the sky hue on either side of a cloud. Sometimes the shift is subtle; other times drastic. My small paintings, such as "Cloud Deity" (5 x 7 inch), are usually driven by the sky. I think the small format of these works causes viewers to acknowledge his/her own small presence on the land form in the painting while at the same time the sky is portrayed in a manner that speaks of it's overwhelming expanse.

Prep work for my project: 100 Pet Portraits in 100 Days

2009-12-29T20:14:00.000-08:00

This morning I painted an oil study of my cat on a 6 x 6 inch panel. This is the size I intended to do the 100 Pet Portraits. After completing the study, I decided I'd rather work a little bit larger. I finally settled on 9 x 9 inch as the size for each of the 100 pet portraits.
This afternoon I began preparing panels and got several cut before leaving the studio for dinner. Panels consist of acid-free archival Rives BFK paper (heavy weight). I apply four thin coats of white gesso on each side of the paper, lightly sanding between coats.

100 PET PORTRAITS IN 100 DAYS

2009-12-27T20:27:00.001-08:00

Several artists I see are doing "100 paintings in 100 days" to expand their exposure and possible sales. The paintings are small (5 x 7 inch). Typically, they are landscape or still-life works. One artist I found does portraits; People were asked to email the artist snapshots of themselves for consideration to be among the 100 paintings.
Well, I haven't found anyone doing pets this way. So . . . . .
I'll paint 100 pet portraits in 100 days. Each oil painting will be at least 6 x 6 inch and done in any style I deem appropriate.
Interested?
If so, email me a snapshot of your animal pet (dog, cat, bird, horse, turtle, etc.) Include the pet's name and breed and be sure to write "100 PETS" in the email subject line so it doesn't accidently end up in my junk mail folder.
My email address: poppengacarol@hotmail.com

Big sky, small paintings

2009-12-22T23:25:00.000-08:00

"Distant Weather" is one of several small (5 x 7 inch) paintings I've created recently. The challenge is to convey the big sky of the high prairie I live in. Storms or unsettled, changing weather (like a cold front or a chinook rolling in) are what I find the most interesting, although I do paint "fair weather" skies too. I like to experience weather in "real time" and then paint the memory of it later in the studio.

"Black Butte Memories" is another 5 x 7 inch painting completed this week. Personally, I find this kind of painting more interesting than the one above ("Distant Weather"). Black Butte is a landmark northeast of Lewistown, MT. When portraying large land masses such as this, I "immerse" it in the even larger sky. Even though it's only a few miles away, Black Butte is not visible from my studio as it's mountain neighbors, the Judiths, rise to the immediate west/southwest of it. This painting is based in memories of pleasure drives taken along the gravel road that meanders around the butte's base. The general view is from north looking southward toward the butte (not the view most people in Lewistown are familiar with). It's not a literal recording of the butte but rather a collective sense of the butte as one would see it from changing angles as the road meanders.

"Pincushion Cactus with Shasta Blues (butterflies)" original handpulled silkscreen

2009-12-14T00:32:00.000-08:00

Part of my strategy in 2009 was to work in mediums that would allow me to offer a lower-priced original artwork. Many years ago I'd done several silkscreened works with fine results, so I thought I'd return to that medium again and see how marketable it might be in this economy. This particular work is a 15-color, measures 15 inches diameter, and is in an edition of only thirteen. As always, I destroy the screen once the work/edition is finished.

Streetscape Amenities

2009-12-10T22:00:00.000-08:00

Streetscape Amenities commission close to completion

I've created designs for street amenities for the City of Lewistown, Montana. There will be 14 benches (7 distinct designs), 14 bike stands, and 14 waste receptacles. Bench designs are based on architectural elements of historic buildings on Main Street (which is where the benches will be installed.) Below are photos of several benches in the fabrication stage. Each bench is six feet long, will have two arm rests, feet drilled for mounting bolts (sidewalk installation); and a Rotary Club plaque (the local Rotary provided a portion of the funds for the benches). For the bike stands and waste receptacles, I created a design based on wheat (a major agriculture product in this part of Montana.) Bike stands were completed and delivered in October. Benches in-progress shown in the photos. Designs include: Lion; Egg and Dart; Roman Column Capital; Full Fan; Quadrafoil.

Moon at Daybreak

2009-03-19T19:29:00.000-07:00

This is a detail from a large mural created for the St. Mary's Hospital Cancer Clinic in Walla Walla, Washington. The mural was a landscape based on a particular foothills canyon near the city. I chose to depict the early dawn hour when the moon is still visible--as is the evening star, seen here in the bluish-greenish patch of sky below the moon. Besides being peaceful, that time of day symbolized hope in the beginning of a new day. I "hid" all kinds of animals and birds in this mural for patients to discover while they were receiving radiation treatment.

I used commercial grade oil-based paints (durable, washable, scrubbable.) Because the wall was in a fully functioning clinic, I could only work on it between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. (which allowed for the air to completely exchange with fresh air before the clinic opened.

"The Sorrel Mare"

2009-03-17T00:30:00.001-07:00

"The Sorrel Mare" was inspired by several horses near my studio and one in particular that would only stand broadside to me at the fence. Very aloof, very ancient. I took that as the starting point for this small intimate work.

Small amounts of beeswax and thick paint applied with brush. Final touches included color scumbles over the high points of the paint surface (for example, the blue cast over the primarily greenish background.

"The Sorrel Mare" measures 3 3/4 inch by 3 inch. This painting is included in the portfolio presentation that appears in the red square at the bottom of this blog.

UPDATE:
"The Sorrel Mare" is now sold.

Sun Dogs

2009-03-15T03:31:00.000-07:00

"Sun Dogs" is an oil on stretched canvas painting of a small cluster of poplar trees bathed in yellow light. I was more interested in creating texture and having fun with color layers over layers in a scumble (dry-brush) that allows flecks of each color to remain pure beside its neighboring color specks.

Commercial Art is always there

2009-03-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

I've always done commercial work including a plenty of signs, some complex and painterly while others are simplistic and direct to the point (like the one shown here.) Yes, I invent and paint the lettering too.

The sign for Superior R.V. Storage is in Milton-Freewater, Oregon. I had started a frog craze there with window paintings of my original cartoon frogs depicted doing things somehow related to the business on whose window any particular frog appeared. I did this for several years, in conjunction with the Muddy-Frogwater Festival until the city manager high-jacked my concept. Sad but true, idea high-jacking happens a lot to artists and especially to those involved in the creation of commercial art. Still, I continue to create signs and other commercial art (posters, t-shirt designs, logos, etc.) and find it a pleasant break from the studio work.

Besides the sign shown here, I created two more large-scale permanent "frog" signs. The number of original cartoon frog art I created on windows numbered over 100 total individual works. Some businesses liked the work so well they left it up for years. I used high quality paint and proper technique so the window art lasted several years in good condition even though it was constantly exposed to the weather.

Oregon landscape

2009-03-11T16:39:00.001-07:00

This untitled painting was intended to be a study for a larger work (I'll call it "Eagle Cap Mountain - Study" for this blog entry.)
Once this study reached the state shown here, it possessed the qualities that I desired to reaccomplish in a larger work to come. As with most of my studio work, I personally prefer the "unpolished" studies to the later works such studies often lead to. I'm interested in the spontaneous feel the study achieves --- or maybe, more accurately, the "presence" of air and light resulting from translucent layers of paint which I build up over several painting sessions.
(Eagle Cap Mountain is in the Eagle Cap Wilderness in eastern Oregon -- an area I've hiked/camped in many times. The suggestion of a body of water in the middle ground represents Mirror Lake.)

Frog Gothic

2009-02-26T11:47:00.000-08:00

I painted "Frog Gothic" (16 x 20 inch in oil) several years back, but have never posted it on my fine arts website because I keep my commercial work separate from my fine art. So, folks, here's a chance to view a work never before seen by my viewing public!

I created the work as a commissioned piece for an eastern Oregon potato farmer's wife.
Her only instruction was that she and her husband be "frogs" and to somehow indicate that they grew potatoes for the frozen french fries industry.
The famous (and often parodied) painting "American Gothic" by Grant Wood immediately sprung to my mind --- because french fried potatos, like Wood's painting, are such an icon in American culture today.
And so here they are, dour expressions and all. The farmer's wife looks like she has thoughts of hitting her bespectacled hubby with that potato she's holding.

After I completed this painting, I began inventing other frog characters and eventually did literally dozens of original frog cartoon window art over a period of about four years for businesses in Milton-Freewater, Oregon to help visually unify the town for the annual Muddy Frogwater Festival. Eventually the city took over my concept and expanded to wooden frog statues. Some of my window art was still in place as of 2008, though the colors were fading. I also created several "frog" T-shirt designs for the chamber of commerce and individual businesses.

The painting "Frog Gothic" is just one example of the commercial work I do in addition to my fine arts paintings. I welcome commissions and can be contacted via email at poppengacarol@hotmail.com

2009-02-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

Using latex wall paint, I created this ceiling mural of an early evening full moon in a den/family room.
There is a fireplace in one corner of this cozy room and a comfy twin recliner faces the fireplace and is right below the view shown in the photo above.
The mural subject was the homeowner's idea. Originally he wanted several aspen branches cris-crossing overhead, but as the painting progressed, he and I both concluded that "less" is "more" and the aspen branches became just the suggested few seen here. I used violet, brown and cream paint to create the branches and leaves--not thoroughly mixing but rather going with the limited mixing that occurs during the application of the paint to the ceiling. Touches of the cream with a dash of orange-ish red created the moon glow around the edges of the leaves. The effect is either spring or fall evening.
The rest of the mural (not visible in this photo) is evening sky - the kind you get on a full moon night when there are wisps of cloud vapor that create an almost cottony texture (you can see some of that effect in the photo posted here.)
The ceiling perimeter is trimmed out with a wide crown moulding stained a warm golden tone to show off the wood grain. The crown moulding serves to transition the mural (especially the aspen branches) to the walls.

2009-01-27T21:53:00.001-08:00

This is a detail from a lithograph I created when I was a student at the (then) Alberta College of Art. The title derives from the Egyptian hieroglyphics I incorporated into the composition. Also, the cat is drawn with a definite dividing line down the middle of its face so that if only the dark side is focused on, it gives the profile of a mummified cat (and the dashed white lines across the body below the neck suggest cloth wrappings.)

The "model" is my little furry black buddy, Canuck. I say that in the present tense because Canuck is still very much alive and present; she's about 23 or 24 years old now but still very active and a great companion.

UPDATE: DECEMBER 5TH, 2009
Canuck, my little black buddy for nearly 25 years, crossed over to the other side. It was a privilege to have known her all those years and her conversation will be missed. She was a talkative cat with a very large vocabulary of distinct sounds (way more than the ordinary meow.) All cats have their secret opinions, but Canuck voiced her's. She is missed very much.

2009-01-25T19:36:00.000-08:00

This painting, "Anchored in a Sea of Grass" is one of six works I recently entered into the Montana Triennial Exhibition. Hoping this or is selected for inclusion (or, better yet, ALL of the entered works). There was quite a bit of interest in this painting at it's exhibition venues last fall, so I feel good about its chances for selection. Lots of layering of brush marks and colors---it has a watercolor feel but with stronger pure color.

2008-12-05T23:42:00.000-08:00

This is a detail from one of the 4 ft by 8 ft paintings I did for a percent-for-art commission for the U.S. Army Armory in Baker City, Oregon. The commission consisted of several paintings depicting events or people significant to the military and civilian history of the community.

To see other paintings in the series, click http://poppenga.com/BakerCityCommission.html

2008-12-05T13:34:00.000-08:00

"March Skies - #23" is an oil and beeswax painting on canvas, measuring 24 x 30 inches.

This painting is a memory work---i.e., I experience the environment (in this case: see the clouds and their movement, feel the cold wind, sense the overwhelming expanse of sky that seems to press down on the prairie landscape--even the distant mountains seem to shrink down in the face of the winter sky.) Then I return to my studio and attempt to capture the experience in paint.