Gruening Cabin Artist Residency

oil painting 24x24 inches

 I had the honor of spending two  weeks of August as an Artist in Residence at the Ernest Gruening Cabin near Juneau.  The cabin and surrounding forest is a state park and the cabin opens for artists residency in the summer month. 

 Ernest Gruening  was the Governor of the Alaska Territory from 1939 until 1953, and one of the first United States Senators from Alaska.  The cabin was a get-away for his family and he an his wife lived in it much of the time after he retired. 

My goal for the residency was to start painting larger with oils.   I began the above piece the second week and worked on it for much of the rest of the month of August and some of September.... not steadily, as I've been working on other pieces too.  I worked on it from photographs taken on one of the trails in the park.

You can see some little watercolors I did at the cabin on my Watercolor Postcards blog. 

This painting was purchased by the Juneau-Douglas City Museum in December. 




 

On a Clear Day

It has been more than a couple of weeks since I did this painting of my favorite trees at the beach.  This was the first time I've finished a painting with cumulus clouds in oil.  I do remember doing one that got wiped out.  There are just so few days here with these clouds, especially this year, and there hasn't been another one since I painted this.  I don't remember so many rainy days.

Two of my Favorite Trees

When I go to the beach to paint, more often than not, I'm drawn to these trees.   I painted these a couple of weeks ago, before I messed up my knee again.  I'm struggling in the studio with two larger paintings and watching rain most days.  It is a very cool summer.

oil painting 6x8"

oil painting 6x8"

Provence

I returned last week from a wonderful trip to Provence, France where I attended an oil painting workshop taught by Carol Marine.  My neighbor Aimee and I flew to Paris and took a train to Avignon where we got picked up  and taken to nearby beautiful Chateauneuf de Gadagne where the 10 day workshop was held.  Other than learning from Carol, we toured the area, painted in different places, shopped, and enjoyed amazing food and wine.  Carol is an excellent teacher.  Her demos and suggestions for my painting were very helpful and I'm home with inspiration to paint every day.

 Julie Snyder who runs Workshops in France and her helpers Shirley Hemlick and Balinda del Pesco (all three are artists) did a fabulous job keeping us happily busy and comfortable.  

Here are 2 of the paintings I brought home.  They are both on Gessobord.

View from the Chateau  oil painting 8x8 inches

Lavender at Clinique Van Gogh oil painting 8x8 inches

After the workshop, Aimee and I met our friend Carolyn and went to Aix in Provence where we rented a lovely apartment and enjoyed the city and surrounding area for a week.

As on all my trips, I make a book of watercolors. I was so concentrating on oil painting that I didn't get much done in it, but there are a few pages on my Watercolor Postcard blog here. 

Point Retreat

oil painting 6x6

This painting is of Point Retreat Light house on the north end of Admiralty Island .  I pass it or go over it every time I go to or from Juneau on the ferry or by air.  It is no longer used for navigation and the quarters are rented out for overnight stays.  I painted this from a photo I took last month from the ferry, coming home one beautiful morning.

It's the 22nd day of Leslie Seata's 30 paintings in 30 days challenge and though I've hardly missed a day of painting, I have completed only 8 oil painting and 4 little watercolors.  They will get posted eventually.  I have yet to figure out how to get a decent photo of my little oil paintings, and wait until they are dry and scan them.

Aimee's House

oil painting 5x7 inches

One morning a couple of weeks ago, I walked over to my neighbor Aimee's house to visit, in hopes for a visit and a cup of coffee.  But she was getting ready to go somewhere else.  I did get a nice photo of her house as the sun was rising behind it and went home and started this painting. 

Salmon River From the Boat Harbor

oil painting 6x8 inches

We've had spectacular sunsets this winter and I've been going down to the beach most afternoons when we've had sun.   Just after the sun went down one night last month, I stopped at the boat harbor and took some photo which I used for painting this.

This is not what most towns have for a boat harbor.   We don't have any protective waters on our shoreline, so we bring boats up this small river on a high tide and the boats sit on the sand when the tide goes out.  The tide is out in this painting.  I took the photo from the parking lot.

I've been painting most days, but a long ways from producing 30 paintings in 30 days as I'd hope to do.  I am happy though with the few I've done so far.

My First Painting of the Year

oil painting 6x6 inches

 I signed up for Leslie Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 days challenge and am finding myself way behind.  First, I was in Juneau on the first and spent most of the second on the ferry coming home and at least a couple of days recuperating and catching up from the tiring time in Juneau.  And now that I am getting down to the studio and painting, it is very slow.  And every time I start to snap a shot of one, I see something that I want to paint over and  then I do so.  Well, this one I think is finished and though it isn't a very good photo I will put it on the site today.