Painting the Town: SouthEnd

"SouthEnd Scene"
12 x 9, oil on linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2014

Where I live, there is a very limited window of time in which the outdoor climate is actually a PLUS for outdoor painting, rather than something to be struggled with. In fact, I once heard somebody say that the reason there are fewer plein air painters in the Southeast than other regions is that
the heat, humidity and mosquitoes virtually guarantee that nobody wants to paint outdoors! Nevertheless--the window of perfect weather was definitely open for a while this fall, and I tried to take full advantage of it.

"Industrial Artifact"
14 x 8.25, oil on linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2014

I took the "look in your own backyard" lesson to heart, and painted right in the parking lot and sidewalks surrounding my studio building. The painting immediately above is an old dust bin that towers over my studio building--it used to filter the factory air, back inthe years when the building was a cut and sew plant. I love it!

"Looking Uptown"
12 x 16, oil on linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2014

I wrote recently about taking inspiration from past painters who have focused on industrial, urban views. I love the geometry of these scenes, and find them unexpectedly beautiful. There are a lot of lines, between the railway tracks and the telephone wires, so I have chosen to be selective in what I include. I'm excited about this new series. Stay tuned for more! (True confessions: The last painting above was done in the studio, based on a plein air study that I didn't have time to complete on location. Even though I was rushing to beat the meter, I got the first parking ticket of my life that day!)