Puzzled A Bit

Trempealeau Bay-1 8x10 

I know it takes time to master a new technique, but it also takes time to find out your style.


Each one of these paintings is from the same scene overlooking Trempealeau Bay at Perrot State Park.



So I began the first painting with he same approach that I'm trying to master, which gives a lot of detail.

Trempealeau Bay-2 8x10

For the second style I held back more, to what usually happens toward the beginning of a painting, and then tried to finish off the lines and with the simplest of details.

Trempealeau Bay-3 8x10

Then It tried to do again what I did in the first painting but with more restraint and softer with less detail.

Trempealeau Bay Before Wax

 Now for my last attempt, you could almost consider this a style something very abstract, but it was really the under painting for my next experimentation with cold wax. A product you add to the paint to thicken it creating a more imposto texture. It also makes the painting more matte. You use any tool at hand to apply or remove as needed. The under painting then can be revealed if needed.

Trempealeau Bay-4 8x10

So the fourth is highly textured and so much looser in identifying the landscape.


So which Style do you prefer?

 Inspired by Kevin Macpherson who did 366 paintings, one each day of the year. Yes it was leap year. He used the same pond setting and accomplished this over several years noting each day he had done a painting. The variety of weather and light was amazing from the few paintings I've seen. I hear he even made a coffee table book about this artistic endeavor.

A gift from the Larson's

So as you can see I'm a bit puzzled. 

I know I just had to get this cute little image in my blog somehow. Thanks for indulging me.