Skyline Atmospherics ~ Potomac Artworks

5.01.2011

Skyline Atmospherics

Skyline Atmospherics was created based on a picture I took from Skyline Drive. It's a very close recreation, which began as a watercolor underpainting.

Put together as a demo for the Springfield Art Guild, I am happy to have volunteered for the project. Today is another demo day for SAG, so come by the Springfield Mall's Community Room (between JC Penney and the elevator) between 2-4 to see demos and the current show, a Member's Choice Award Exhibit. As you can tell below, when given a whole table and not balancing it all outdoors, it makes me very happy to spread out.

Photo by Jon Strother

Next weekend, I'll be doing a demo in water soluble oils at the Workhouse in Lorton from about 6-8pm May 14; there will be a framed wet canvas sale when I am finished. My goal will be to recreate a larger version of Evening Flame, a 5x7 which sold there last year.

Skyline Atmospherics
pastel
12x16
SOLD

1 comment:

ariel freeman said...: Nice Bonnie, I love how the warm underpainting compliments the blues.; May 3, 2011 at 11:10 AM

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The Charm of en Plein Air

Much of my work is done en plein air, French for "in the open air." People often associate it with the Impressionists, but the move to paint outside preceded them by a number of decades. The trend to appreciate landscapes as a genre at all was new for the time.

Several characteristics contribute to the distinctive beauty of en plein air painting. They are generally smaller in size in order to be able to capture a scene in a single sitting. Because of the time limit and environmental factors such as the sun and shadows moving, they often lack extensive details and might appear slightly fuzzy or unfinished. Lastly, they tend to have a freshness and spontaneity which makes them impossible to compare to traditional and methodological studio work. That said, my own studio work tends toward the same feel as en plein air, which then identifies my overall style: softness with an edge.

My aim when painting en plein air is for alla prima paintings, which roughly translates for me as "what happens outside, stays outside." It adds another level of difficulty to the work.

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5.01.2011