"Seafaring Wreck"

On the South Carolina coast in the barrier islands, this old hull spoke to me like a beached whale, still breathing. 

"Seafaring Wreck", 14" x 11", oil on canvas panel, studio painting from photo reference

Painting a Fishing Boat is Getting Me In the Mood for Summer!

"Tied Up in Newport Harbor, Oregon"  14" x 11", oil on linen panel

This spring, I haven't been painting as much as I did last spring.  So to get in the mood for summer, I painted a commercial fishing boat that catches crab in Newport Harbor, Oregon.  This painting was done from a photo that I took last summer when I was there and was painted in my studio over two days, about five hours total I think.  Another reason I painted this is that, in a few days, I'm going to Seabrook, SC with a couple of painting buddies (Therese Lynch and Margaret Hanke) to paint (of course).  I suspect there'll be lots of boats there, and I had never painted a real, traditional fishing boat so I thought I should give it a try before I get to the ocean in South Carolina where we'll be painting plein air.  I loved the reflection of this bright blue boat in the water and its juxtaposition to the yellow and orange boats.  Never knew commercial fishing boats were so colorful!  Life is Art and so is fishing!

Several people reminded me that, in my last post, I raved about Twinrocker Handmade Drawing Paper but didn't include the link to their web site.  Here it is:  www.twinrocker.com.  If you want to get a swatch set, ask them questions, or place an order, their toll free 800 number is on their web site also.  Paintings and drawings on my web site are now for sale through PayPal and include packing and shipping.  www.kathrynclarkfineart.com  My next post will hopefully include some paintings from Seabrook, SC---sun and sand, oh boy!  Thank you for your comments and for viewing this blog.

"Summer Play Time at the Lake"

This past weekend, I painted and played at Lake Wawasee & Lake Webster in northern Indiana with about thirty other artists at a paint-out by the Indiana Plein Air Painters.  Nothing says "summer" quite like sunny skies, a warm breeze, water, boats.  This quick, little 6" x 8", alla prima oil is of "Honky Bridge", as the locals call it, since the underpass is only wide enough for one boat at a time.   I caught the morning sun at about 11am, just as it peaked over the top of the bridge.  Yum!  In the afternoon, we found Webster Lake full of party boats, and ski dos, with some of them congregating at this island and jumping overboard for a swim.

"Summer Play Time at the Lake", oil, 9" x 12".   Hope you're finding time to play this summer too!