Summer WaterScapes

Watercolor on paper, 6x8 

 During this year,  I have found that working in watercolor is more relaxing than oils.   They are easy to set up for a work area, and it's much easier to be able to finish a painting in a single day or weekend.  I love being able to take small breaks while the paper dries before I put on a new layer of color.

These lake scenes  are en plein air paintings while vacationing in northern Michigan.  It feels good to get out of the studio and sit outside all day, and still be productive. If not painting, I can sit outside all day lounging under a tree looking at the water and waves, feeling the cool breezes.  Summer is a short season up there, but its short life is balanced by the abundance of beauty it displays.

Watercolor on paper, 6x8

Last Spring I worked on a few paintings using photographs from past trips to the sea.  I started to become tired of my typical "blues" and as the weather became warmer, I started to experiment with  orange and yellows.  I found an inspiring photograph on Instagram by one of my friends, and used it as my guide for a sunset on the sea.  I am looking forward to returning to this color palette this autumn and winter.

Watercolor on paper, 6x8

  I would like to do more painting en plein air this year.  It feels awkward for me to be out of my studio but I think it might help me grow. I am hoping to make this a new challenge that will take me out of my routine, and to find inspiring landscapes in Indiana.

Watercolor on paper, 6x8

watching the water from sunrise to sunset

Water Inspired

Water color on paper 6 x 8

 I had a little time to travel in June up to great northern Michigan.  I have Oil paintings that I have posted of this small, calm lake.  For this vacation, I wanted to do some sketching, and I chose to bring along my water colors as a way to quickly bring some color to my thoughts and sketches.    

Whenever I am at the lake, I can feel the history of the area.  The summer travelers since the early 1900's have come up here to escape the heat of the summers. Ernest Hemingway had a cottage on a lake near by.   I always feel inspired, as maybe he did, to express the peace and calm of the surrounding nature and the lake.  It's a peaceful retreat to be able to calm my thoughts, release tensions, and fill my senses with nature.

I feel privileged to be able to continue to enjoy this home away from home that I have known all my life.  I can feel much love permeating from the walls when I walk around the cottage.  Every room and hallway are filled with the love of my grandparents, and the continuing care of everyone in my family who enjoy the cottage.  The rooms still have all the same comforts that I remember from my childhood.  It is a place to escape that is familiar,and not changing too fast. I am able to easily slip into a routine that I have know all my life.   

Water color on paper 6 x 8

Water color on paper 6 x 8

Pencil on paper 5 x 7

Pencil on paper 5 x 7

Pencil on paper 5 x 7