Sunny Morning Lane

Here is a painting I recently finished in Key West. This is a quiet lane with fences and flowers. The lane reminded me so much of Provincetown. I painted this painting with a knife only.

Key West Old Wharf

I started painting in Key West last week and over the next few days I'll share some of my paintings around town. Here I painted a cloudy day of the wharf. On gray days I enjoy painting marine scenes.

Last night was an opening for Jane Washburn at the Gingerbread Square Gallery in Key West. I was pleasantly surprised to see a couple of my paintings hanging as well. Of course I brought my dog Sophie with me. Sophie's a big hit with her bangs and Key West is a dog friendly place.

View Across the Lake

I have been doing some small landscape studies around Ft Myers. It's been unusually rainy here getting back to the same lighting conditions are impossible, for now.

Study in Sunlight

i am discovering that simple head studies in outdoor light is as effective as the block studies that have been painted.
The Cape School has a long tradition of studying colored blocks in natural light. This is a long traditional practice for seeing light, shade and reflections.
Hawthorne had his Cape Cod School of Art students paint simple portraits of children on the beach known as "mud heads".
Using myself as a model I quickly block in the form, with patterns of light and shade. Without destroying  the patterns I begin to get more specific with the color I'm seeing within the form.
It's not so important to make your studies a true likeness. I found that perhaps a little attention to drawing is required in contrast with the colored blocks.
I will be teaching a Mud Head Class in Falmouth this summer.