Are you so familiar with where you live that you struggle to find subjects to paint?
A fellow artist - who happens to live in Europe - emailed to tell me she found my landscapes intriguing because they were exotic, so different from the locale where she lived. Now, exotic is not a word I would normally associate with where I live, but it did make me realize that what we look at and live with every day might seem common place to us, but can be interesting to others who don't enjoy the same views.
Sometimes I think this is one of the most important things an artist needs to remember. Certainly the Hudson River artists were focused on where they lived - in fact, there is a story about Fredrick Church buying land and building a home directly across the river from his mentor, teacher, and competitor Thomas Cole. Their approach to painting the landscape varied, too; where Cole liked to dramatize the landscape that he painted, Church actually rearranged the landscape around his home to create his own idea of the ideal environment.
My exploration of the landscape falls somewhere in between. So many of our rivers in Oregon rush through steep, shadowed canyons, with limited access along the banks. The trees and undergrowth are thick and dense. Moss covers the rocks and forest litter - remnants of winter or the last passing storm - create intricate patterns of light and shade. These are not the quiet, lazy rivers of the midwest, or the granite and aspen banks of the Rocky Mountains. Sometimes I look at what lies before me and wonder - is this something I can paint? Is it something others will enjoy? Am I telling the story of this place, the light at this moment, the sensations I feel as I experience them?
Rocks Along the Santiam, 28"x22" oil on canvas, © 2011 sfsmith
Rocks Along the Santiam portrays a section of the Santiam River that empties from the High Cascade Range west toward the Willamette Valley. It is a river with many aspects: violent waterfalls, rushing currents, and challenges the river rafters crave - but there are quieter sections of the river where the water spreads out and the sun reflects off the polished surfaces of the exposed river rocks. I hope you enjoy it.
If you would like more information about this artwork please contact me.
American Impressionist Society Juried Show
Chokecherry Farm, oil, 12" x 18" ©2011
I am thrilled to announce that my painting, Chokecherry Farm, was accepted into the American Impressionist Society Show, to be held at Mountainsong Gallery in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA, from October 21 through November 15, 2011.
Thank you, Margret! Looking to try some of those mediums you featured on your blog
-------Original Message-------
Posted by: Sue Smith | August 01, 2011 at 01:06 PM
Sue, I LOVE the rich warm tones in Rocks Along the Santiam and Chokecherry Farm. Beautiful use of color. Margret
Posted by: Margret Short | August 01, 2011 at 11:36 AM
Such a great point! I never really thought of it this way.
Posted by: Anna | July 24, 2011 at 08:14 PM
Sue...perfect article! I have trouble seeing the magic where I live. BUT, I can go to other parts of the world and be amazed. Northwest Arkansas, in the Ozarks is green everywhere you look...absolutely magic. I now know why it is difficult for me to paint it.
Posted by: vicki ross | July 24, 2011 at 10:45 AM
Bravo! A very inspirational post!
Posted by: Gaye | July 24, 2011 at 06:05 AM
A very helpful post, Sue. And congratulations on being selected for the American Impressionists show. I love the piece they chose.
Posted by: Serena Barton | July 24, 2011 at 01:08 AM
Thank you for writing this. I think I am MUCH too familiar with where I live, and my wife gets so tired of hearing me grouse about how "there's nothing to paint." The land is absolutely flat, with nice ranch houses evenly dotting every inch of carefully manicured ground for miles on end. So yes, I'm missing the "magic" inherent in my own back yard ... and I need to discover it in some way.
Posted by: Michael Fraley | July 23, 2011 at 02:42 PM