So Sonoma!

I have recently returned from two weeks in California wine country--Sonoma, to be specific. My husband and I were lucky enough to be invited to house- and cat-sit for friends  who live there, while they were traveling abroad. Not a bad gig!

"Villa View"
8 x 16, Oil on Linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2019

Faithful readers know that one thing I am constantly seeking in my landscape painting is SIMPLIFICATION. And the landscape of the region around Sonoma provides ample opportunities for this quest. But what sounds "simple" isn't necessarily so! This approach involves looking for interesting shapes, and composing a painting whose shapes marry together in a wonderful harmony. 

"Near Kenwood"
8 x 16, Oil on Linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2019

It's hard enough to see good, strong shapes in a chaotic world. But it's an entirely more challenging endeavor to compose a painting in which the the shapes all work together in harmony. I want the big shapes to feel like arms wrapped around each other, or lines of a poem that rhyme.

"Sonoma Estate"
12 x 16, Oil on Linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2019

Shape on shape, color on color. I work to fine tune the color relationships, always mixing and re-mixing, until the colors are just so. Often I brush a color on the canvas, and realize that it is not right. Then it has to be scraped off, and the color tweaked on the palette, and then reapplied--until the color is in the right relationship to the surrounding colors. Sometimes this trial and error process happens several times in one passage of the painting. But by scraping down and applying the paint anew each time, I try to retain the freshness of the brushstroke.

"Keiser Ranch Road"
8 x 12, Oil on Linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2019

I'm illustrating this post with paintings from my trip. Most of them have just been uploaded to my website (lesleypowellart.com), so take a look there for more paintings from the trip, as well as more details and prices. Thanks!

Inspiring Words, Recovered

"Dusk Colors"
(c) Martha Armstrong, 2014

Years ago, I attended an "Artist's Talk" by Martha Armstrong, at Elder Gallery in Charlotte. I don't know exactly why I set aside the time to attend the presentation that morning, but I do know that I went away totally inspired. Martha was so down to earth, and she said so many things that really resonated with me. She talked about her perceptual approach to painting, and her words really hit home. This was long before I even knew what the term "perceptual painting" meant, and long before I tapped into that approach as my preferred approach to painting.

"View from Peter's"
10 x 16, Oil on Canvas
(c) Martha Armstrong

I scribbled some notes, and tried to write down word for word Martha's remarks that meant the most to me. And then I lost the notes!! Many times over the years I have searched for the notes from Martha's talk, as if finding them would unlock the key to some painting struggle that I was experiencing. 

"Lines of Light"
Oil on Canvas, 30 x 48
(c) Martha Armstrong

Well, dear Readers, I found the notes this week! Tucked inside of a monograph on Monet. On pages from my 2010 Daytimer. So it's been a while. But the words are no less inspiring eight years later. I am illustrating this post with Martha's paintings, and am sharing a few of my favorite quotes from her talk. If you are so inclined, you can also read a wonderful interview with Martha on the Painting Perceptions blog here. 

"In painting, the motivation isn't to get a representation, but rather to bear witness to the act

of seeing."

"Cedar Trees, Umbria"
Oil on Canvas, 20 x 24
(c) Martha Armstrong

"I repeat the same subject over and over. I want to get to know it. It's like a piece of music that you want to play again and again."

"When my granddaughter said that my drawings didn't look like flowers, I replied 'They're NOT flowers--they are DRAWINGS!'"

"Apples and Maple with Post 3"
Oil on Canvas,  5 x7
(c) Martha Armstrong

"Remember the words of Freud: 'Our senses are to the eye as intuition is to the Id.'"

The Gallery Wall

Wall by Artspace

Some ideas never go out of style. The gallery wall is one of them. It's one of my favorite ways to display artwork. A gallery wall can be created to suit the minimalist (see above), or it can be "over the top" (see below), or anything in between. You can create a gallery wall from work you already own, or you can start one and add to it as you collect over time.

Gallery Wall by Jeffrey Bilhuber

Sometimes hanging art in this manner is called "salon style", because it first became popular in 17th century Paris, in the days of the grand salons. Here's a bit of history, from the Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College:

Image from Somerset House, London

"The “Salon-Style Hang” is a method of hanging and displaying paintings that originated in 1667 with the beginning of the annual Royal Academy salon in Paris. The major entertainment events of the year, salons were juried showcases exhibiting the best of the best work of the year, by both students studying in the Royal Academy and by established masters. Because so many works were to be crammed into the exhibitions, walls were hung floor-to-ceiling with paintings on many scales and of many different genres. Usually the largest paintings with the grandest subject matter (history and religion) were hung highest on the wall, while more intimately-scaled work like still lifes were hung at eye-level or below."

Photo from West Elm

Well, over three centuries later, the style is still with us--and it has recently taken the decorating world by storm. A recent article in the Washington Post interviews experts on various approaches to gallery walls. They discuss using a subject matter theme, or a consistent framing theme, or even abandoning all rules and just hanging what you love! I like the interesting color theme in the grouping just below. It really sings.

Gallery Wall from Ace of Space

Whatever your personal preference, don't be afraid to give the gallery wall a try. It's not as hard as it might look. And it's a wonderful way to make a big statement, without breaking the bank on a single huge painting. You can even incorporate objects other than artwork, such as mirrors or sconces. Let your imagination run wild!

Photo from Better Homes and Gardens