Return to the Delaware

Schools done and the nice weather is here so the DPC summer painting adventure is in full swing. Today the group ventured back along the Delaware river to the "Secret Spot" full of feral cats, blackberries, a few inebriated types with "Florida Chicken" on their minds and a crazy loud family who ended up destroying our set-up and trying our concentration an patience with their little dog named Doug.

We all spread out and searched for our spot to paint.

We hiked out onto one of the long abandoned piers which had a nice canopy of trees and great views, there were a tone of black berry trees and Alina and Lexi stopped and ate a bunch of them.

Soon we all picked our spat and started painting away. Will gets his paint on!

Lexi brought and old painting and used that to paint over today...

Alina concentrating...

David Wilson taking a cellphone break...

You never know exactly what you will find when going out painting in the Philly area, but you will always have drunk people show up at some point and try and help you paint which happened toward the end of our trip. This loud family showed up and tore down the trash-sail we were painting, they didn't even ask, they just came in like a wild bunch and set about being crazies--I looked up and it was gone. Next, what appeared to be the father of the group set about bring up large boards and logs and started banging on them as the wee dog and kids ran about screaming. You can see them running about as I paint....

I brought along the same kit I used last week when I went out and painted an Beaver Farms, and once I got my gear all set up I did a quick block-in and then with my Speedball roller and palette knife I blasted on the big shapes so I could then go back in and do the smaller work as the sun changed position. Things like the water changed a lot from the beginning of the paint to the final hour of painting, so I ended up repainting the water 3-4 times.

Goodbye cool trash sail! The family was soon followed by two guys that smelled like stale Budwiser, who spent 15 minutes trying to buy the dog from the crazy family,then crit and teach us how to paint as they made their way to each of our easels and inspected what we had and at the same time tried bargain for everything the family seemed to have by saying they'd be happy to trade them for the dog or some pot for some 'Florida Chickens", whatever those clucks might be....

Here is Will's painting, it was kind of hard to keep at it once our friends arrived on the scene.

here is Dave's awesome painting

Alina took a break before she had to leave...

Here is my painting and part of it was finished from memory after the crazies came. I was definitely thinking about Sargent, Sorolla and Edgar Payne, I just got a great new book on him this week. I had to force myself to slow down and think and not get distracted and either not really pay attention to how I was painting and get seduced too quickly by details. Having the Speedball roller is great for that--if I get too picky I just roll over that spot and repaint. Eventually the sun was too low and the crazies were too much so we packed it in. Next week we'll be back out to paint around the Philly area--so check back next week and watch out for those "Florida Chickens!"

THE DPC takes in a Demo

Yesterday the DPC made a little road trip over the river to Willingboro, NJ and took in a portrait demo by John Ennis. It was a short demo where Ennis demonstrated his underpainting technique.





Working with an burnt umber mixture he toned the canvas and then basically did a modified wipeout. Ennis went a little further than he would in the studio for the purposes of the demo for the crowd last night.
Ennis stopped along the way and answered questions from the audience and then gave a nice slide show talk about his work and career as a national portrait artist and his transition from being an illustrator.
Will and Alina squint like good painters...

Ennis' painting gear.


Afterwards the DPC stopped a diner for some dinner and discussion about what we saw and about the issues with painting we all have gong on. then we parted ways in the rain looking forward to our next painting outing as a group.

Brandywine

With the break in the current heatwave which had been baking almost the entire country it seems the DPC or Alina and I decided to hit the road and paint. I decided to drive down to the Brandywine and along the river in Chadds Ford, know for being the homestead of the Wyeth clan. in fact we were just a short distance from the Brandywine River Museum. We came along Brandywine Picnic Park and set up and got ready to paint.

Alina checking out the spot. We couldn't have asked for a better day really, just perfect blue, blue summer skies and it was cool in the shade. We saw several people canoeing or floating down on big inner tubes.

There was so much good here to paint it was more of a choice of what not to try and paint, so many good views--so we'll deninitely be going back!
Alina searches for a composition and settled on the bridge.

Alina painting away.




Alina's progress as the day wore on. She say right down on the river bed because the water level is pretty low due to the fact we have had so little rain.


I settled on the dynamic composition of the two trees arching over the riverbank, and here is my initial block-in.











Here is my final painting. Since we kind of got a late start we had less time before the sun changed the shadows too much, but I'd say we still got near 4 hours of painting time in. I'm really trying to both add more paint and more color into the shadows to really paint the light. Looking at Sorolla and Sargent to really see the masters at work and to try and take their lessons into my own thinking, yet I always want to be open and responsive and if I find if I get unclear, I wipe it off or scrape it off or re-mass it all back. I am also really looking at and studying the Russian Social Realist painters too, I love how they handle light and the dash of their paint application.




The stream makes and handy wash if you remember to bring soap!



Alina with her wonderful painting, her best yet.

A close-up of Alina's painting. So it's back in the studio for a few days but I am really charged and plan to head back out next week and engage nature again!

The Return to Darby Road

The DPC headed back out this week and a few more friends came along this time, our friends David Wilson and Diane Feissel joined in for a gorgeaous Saturday's afternoon of painting. We returned back to our secret spot on Darby Road and everyone quickly made the rounds to find a spot to paint. Alina was here for the first time since she was back in Toronto for the past few weeks.


The Jeep was full of gear this week! Try as I might I still end up carrying extra stuff which always seems to come in hand--like baby oil, which is great for removing oil paint and much better than using terps as that pushes the paint right into you skin...




Everyone picking their spot and setting up.




Alina framing her composition.

Diane set up in the meadow across the road.
Lexi set up on the bridge.
Dave had a little trouble with his easle so Alina gave him a hand by finding a few flat rocks--the McGiver or Toronto!

Dave eyeing his painting.

Alina painting away!


I decided to try painting a small painting of the horse barn and knew it would be a race with the sun.
Here is my block-in...
Dave's handsome painting of the Darby Road Bridge.

My painting at the finish line, I wish I had an extra 45 minutes on this one as I ended up havng to re-mass and repaint a lot of the trees in the background as the light changed by the end so much.
Alina's bold-brush landscape.
Jane decided to draw this week instead of painting.
Diane's cool small canvas hiding inside of a carryout bag from pod.

It was a great day and we had a great time despite the bugs, we ate our llunch at our usual spot the Llanarch Diner. I can't wait to go back out next week!