9" x 12", oil on canvas

I loved the pattern the light made on the rhythmic facades marching up the hill, and I was fascinated by the reflected light on the cobblestone. The whole scene is mysterious to me - what is going on behind those still planes, underneath the trees leaning over the garden walls?

Kyoto streetscape

Oil on linen panel, 12"x 12"

This streetscape caught my attention. Initially, it was the glowing umbrella, but then it became the blaring sunlight, the figures in the street, and the beautiful light on the paving. It was fun to pick out the red elements in the various parts of the landscape.

Evening Opening

Oil on linen panel, 12" x 12"

I put up a detail from this painting on the blog earlier when I was comparing camera shots, but I never got the final one "published". I was struck by all the contrasts in value and color temperature and how they contributed to the mood of quiet preparation. I liked how the row of lanterns drew you into the courtyard, and into the picture. In retrospect, I wish we had dinner at the restaurant. It seemed so mysterious behind this open courtyard. The last bit of sunlight is fading in the sky.

Old Park

Oil on Canvas 12"x 12"

In honor of voyages, I am going to post some paintings of places I have been. This view caught my eye, but had to be refined in terms of value patterns to start to work for me. It is in a park near the fish market in Japan. The shade was really welcome on a hot day. The changes in direction on the bridge really helped establish that lazy wandering sense. I love playing with the warm and cool tones in water and reflections. The age of the vine opened my imagination.

Shooting paintings

untouched photos from Canon G7 on left and Canon EOS D60 on right

Yesterday entailed some experimentation with recording paintings. I am not a professional photographer, and my documentation has only slowly been getting more developed. I am getting together a portfolio to apply for a show for my Japanese paintings at the Providence Art Club, and it occurred to me that perhaps I had gotten better since last year when I first photographed these pieces. I always shoot my paintings with my G7, and lately I have been using GIMP to edit them. But I had access to the EOS, and I decided to use it as well when I was photographing.

The results surprised me. I had been expecting some differences, but not to the degree that I saw above. These are two details from the same painting with the cameras set up to the same pixels and exposures. The pciture on the right is more saturated, with less smoothing. The brush strokes appear more painterly. The tones set next to each other are much clearer. It is obvious to me that the EOS is going to give me a far superior result when I have finished editing them.

NowI will have to shoot as much as possible with the larger camera, because I use the detail in my reference photos a lot for painting as well. Even if that reference is only to finish something in the studio that I started in the field.

Ueno Park August

oil on linen panel 24" x 9.5"

This is the painting that I have been working on for the past few weeks, the blog silencing painting for the member show at the Providence Art Club. I wanted to capture the fabulous feeling of being in the cool shade on a very hot day in Tokyo. I have simplified the background buildings, and used the horizontal composition to emphasize the feeling of being under the canopy of beautiful trees. The people in the painting move back through the space.
I am also glad that it is done.
Right now, a little of that heat would be welcome in RI.

Temple Flags

oil on linen panel 12" x12"

A new painting done by an image sent to me from a fall expedition to Kyoto. I love looking at the flags, as I can feel the brisk breeze and the temple routine, playing against each other.

Intermission

I spent the weekend in a combination of busy and sick that has brought me to a halt, but I decided that I would post anyways. It seems best to give myself a few days of permission to lighten up, to get used to the clock change, to let the paint dry. But there are a lot of paintings that I could be posting, even if they are not fresh off the easel.
So maybe this will be a cartoon or a newsreel between full features.
Let's spin the wheel and see what I find.....

Temple Gate 8" x 10" oil on linen panel

This is a painting that I did from a series on Japanese landscapes last fall. I love the mystery beyond the gate, like an Eden of wonderful specimens. The clouds hover above the gates, free, and the tree has grown beyond them. The gate is detailed, heavy, and reflects light into the shadows. It makes me happy to look at again, and that is a good feeling tonight.
I hope that anyone finding this has their own temple gate to look through.