Plein Aire Pastel

It's been quite a while since I've posted on UrbanSketchersMidwest. As many of you may have also experienced, I've been going through a bit of an artistic "identity conflict". I started working on my fine art in earnest about 3 1/2 years ago. Over that time I was focused primarily on technique...and getting my skills back up to an acceptable level. Much of that effort was spent painting on location.

About 4 months ago, I became somewhat disenchanted with the work I was doing. I felt it was a little too pedestrian. Focused on simply copying what was in front of me, and lacked the intensity and freedom I was looking to achieve. So...I started doing a bit of experimenting. I tried some abstracts, some tight, realistic approaches - and played with different mediums - acrylics, oils, lots of different watercolor techniques using plastic wrap, string, gauze, salt...you name it.

I also started spending more time composing paintings from photos and sketches I'd taken over the years. It's been a long, slow process - but I think I'm starting to come out of it with a few conclusions.

First, I've decided that I need to develop all areas, techniques and mediums that interest me. Second, that the real key in finding satisfaction in my work has been to spend considerable effort on simplifying my compositions and merging multiple shapes into simpler, larger, more interesting shapes. Within those shapes i have the freedom to work in a very loose manner. Third, I miss drawing, sketching, painting from nature.

This post is from an intentional trip out to paint plein aire. The above pastel was done on location just west of Kansas City in a county park not far from my house. I focused primarily on simplifying planes, and a very deliberate approach to the colors and contrasting warm and cool shapes. There are only four main shapes being 1) The sky 2) The background bank of trees along the horizon 3) The golden field of natural grasses and 4) The clump of trees in the center.

I included a photo of the actual scene so that you could compare the scene to the final work.

I was pretty pleased with the way this turned out. Unfortunately, my choice of fixatives was a poor one - and I pretty much ruined it. I used an archival varnish from Krylon that is made for use on multiple media including watercolor, acrylics, oils and "oil" pastels...I kind of assumed it would work for other types of pastels...oops. Oh well, the experience was well worth the effort - and I learned one more thing that I will put to use more often than not. So remember, if you are working in pastels or charcoal, only use a fixative that's made to work with those media.

Well, I hope you enjoy this post, and the work. Cheers and keep on sketching!

TK (a.k.a. David Tierney-Kanning)

CoffeeShop#2

This is a quick sketch while waiting for a friend at one of the nearby coffee shops. The sketchbook is a nice little Strathmore book that I got from Hobby Lobby. I wasn't looking for a new sketchbook, but when I saw that the paper was 100% cotton rag I just couldn't pass it up. I used a run of the mill roller ball pen...nothing special.

Mini Travel Palette

I have had some issues with my old travel palette (Cathy will recognize this - it's an old Winsor & Newton travel palette that holds full pans. She has one that's identical) I took out the pans and use tube watercolor in the small wells. Below is a photo of my current portable sketch set. The W&N palette, a collapsable water cup, two Utrecht travel brushes, a 1-inch flat squirrel hair brush, a small flat synthetic and a rigger. This is the set I use to paint 95% of the Urban Sketching paintings that I do. I also have a larger travel palette that's really nice and has a lid that seals - but it's too large to carry easily sometimes.

This setup has worked great and is a convenient size, but the little palette is terribly messy and I am constantly cleaning up paint spills. Below is a photo showing how the liquid will flow right out of it if it's still wet when I fold it back up.

I have to include a disclaimer here - I am not advocating the use of a tobacco product, it just happens that the little tins that Camel Snus comes in (snuff in pouches) are perfect for setting up a mini portable palette. You could buy a tin of Snus for about $6 and throw out the snus, ask a friend who uses it for one of their old tins (that is what I did) or look on eBay as I've seen people selling small bunches of empty tins there. Here is a photo of the tin with my glasses close by for size comparison.

As you can see, it's very small - which is something I was looking for. The other thing I was looking for was that I wanted something that had a watertight lid.

If you look closely at the inside of the lid, you'll see a small rubber/foam seal that circles the edge.

It holds 8 half pans perfectly! I painted the inside of the lid with an off-white spray enamel to make it easier to judge colors. (A tip I took from one of Cathy's posts on setting up a portable palette - thanks, Cathy) I used masking tape to cover the foam seal and the outer portion of the lid. I used small dabs of RTV Silicone on the bottom of each half pan to hold them securely in place. As you can see - it's small enough to fit nicely in the palm of your hand, or your pocket. It's a little bit of a challenge to open, but not too difficult. I'll let you know how it goes after I've tried it out a few times.

I'm also in the process of setting up a slightly larger palette in a waterproof cell phone case. (Photo below) It was $5.97 at Walmart. Once I get it completed, I'll post photos and info on how I set it up.

I hope some of you find this useful - I'm looking forward to putting this little fella through the paces.

TK