Friday, June 1, 2012

Refuge

In an effort to return to plein air painting a friend allowed me to come to her home. I took photos for future reference. And then I took refuge in a small corner of her beautiful home and yard.  I have a thing for pathways and entries.  This, though not obvious, is the front entrance to this cottage nestled in the hills of Tustin.  It is a warm place of reception.   This was a place of comfort for me as I started to paint with some assembly of order and thought.  There is a strong process to painting.  The direct dialog with the left and right side of the brain must be refereed.  Being dazzled by what we see and want to paint is our right side.  Seeing the order and understanding the materials in the process of painting is the left side.  Putting it to poetic verse and music is the right side and getting that far is like climbing a mountain. Plein air is not very forgiving to those who turn their backs for any length of time.  I am happy with my progress and hope to be up and running for when I meet with Kim Vanderhoek next week for her class.  
Green is not green.  It is an infinite range of hues within the spectrum.  Make me crazy and it does.
8x16 oil on canvas board

4 comments:

Katherine van Schoonhoven said...

Looks great, Dori! You'll be cooking with plein air soon -- smoking all the way to Portland later this summer! I'm excited!

Kim VanDerHoek said...

Nicely done Dori, all those greens can be challenging and you did a great job with color and value. I also like your last self portrait and your honest and beautiful words about painting your reflection. Well said, my friend!

Marian Fortunati said...

How very cool to meet you today... I get a double treat...
Painting in a fun workshop and finally meeting some blogging friends!!!

YAY... Your admirer. .... at least one of them.

Dana Cooper said...

And from another admirer, this is lovely!
Fun painting with you this weekend...xo