Back in the swing.

 Well yes, I guess it has been a long time since I posted. After a long illness in the family, I am slowly getting back into the swing of things.
 There are several drawings that are in the works that involve an Oregon Junco and a Black-tailed Jackrabbit. Also brewing in the back of my mind is a colosal sized acrylic painting of a Polar Bear.
 There are still a few paintings I am close to finishing too. The Raccoon in the rafters, the Oyster catcher and Kernavė. It is nice to have several paintings in the works because it gives a refreshing of the mind.

Terns on the Neris

 

 
During the time of around early spring of 2011, I painted a small “portrait” of the Neris River and the Terns that are frequent residents. I still have a plan to paint a portrait of the river during the seasons of summer, autumn and winter.
  I always enjoy the views along the Neris River. With every step along her shores, there something different to see. And the subject matter for sketching seems endless. A couple of days ago I spent some time along the Neris and noticed there is still an abundance of small wildflowers around that are still in bloom. So as my wife read a book and our daughter napped under the shade of a tree on the river bank. I took the time to sketch a few of wild flowers and some of the intimate views around.

These are some loosely painted watercolor sketches of some of the wild flowers found along the Neris River.

  Usually when I’m out on a hike looking for interesting subjects to sketch, I will rarely stay on the trail. It has always proven to me that off trail is where I find the most beautiful and inspiring things to sketch. A couple of days ago while out on another hike in the forest, off the trail of course, I came to this amazing old tree on a hillside that has a beautiful root system partially exposed and covered with lush moss. I couldn’t resist sketching this. I knew right away that it will definitely be a prominent subject for a future wildlife painting. With the tree on the hillside and its roots following the grade of the forest floor, it will make a nice composition.




Watercolor and ink on paper



 

A Balancing Act? How is it done?

How is it done? Is it a balancing act? A magic formula? Having a home studio and a family with an infant can be very, very complicated when you try to get any work done.. As an example; you can just get the brushes wet then all of a sudden it happens; an unavoidable call for duty that can be any of the common house hold tasks that can’t wait for a later moment. So you switch gears and jump to it and get it accomplished. Now that you took care of that, you go back and try to get into that creative composure again and then you realize you forgot to clean out the brushes so now the brushes are ruined and the paint has dried on the palette. Sigh…..Keep working home studio hours like you would at an office? It doesn’t work in my case. So, how about some suggestions from other artists out there with home studios? If you have found that balance of creative work time and family duties, maybe you can share that with us?

Anykščiai Rail Station

This is a small 9 X 12 Acrylic painting I recently completed of the rail station in Anykščiai Lithuania.

See the little field mouse crossing the tracks?.....no, just kidding. There is no wildlife in this painting but I know there is plenty of little critters running around in this area. I just happen to have a little bit of interest in historic railways and I wanted to paint this scene.

(The following source is from  www.siaurukas.eu )

 Narrow Gauge Railway of Aukštaitija has rich history. Its mission changed several times in the course of time.

The construction of narrow gauge railway took several stages. Started in 1891, the first 750 mm wide section was opened in November 11, 1895 to connect Švenčionėliai and Pastovai.

In 1898 narrow gauge railway reached Panevėžys, and the first trains were launched in autumn 1899. Initially, both cargoes and passengers were carried by this narrow gauge railway.

In 1916 German Army laid two new sections of 600 mm width: Gubernija-Pasvalys and Joniškis-Žeimelis.

The period between the two wars was the time of prosperity of narrow gauge railway; it was widely used in different fields of the country’s economy.

During the period of the independency of Lithuania (1920-1938) local municipalities contributed substantially to the development of the narrow gauge railway network in the country. At the time Panevėžys was the centre of the region; thus a direct line to Panevėžys was necessary to export flax, bacon, grain, and supplying timber and flour from the regional centre to local areas.

For some time after regaining the independence, narrow gauge railway functioned as a part of company Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (Lithuanian Railways). In 1999, the freight carrying was stopped. On November 1, 1999 a new structural department was established within the Board of Lietuvos Geležinkeliai which was called Narrow Gauge Railway.

In 2001 narrow gauge railway was closed to passengers. In 1996 Narrow Gauge Railway of Aukštaitija was given a status of national technical heritage and started functioning as historical tourist train. The interest in Narrow Gauge Railway of Aukštaitija has been growing significantly. From 2006 on, its regular trips have been reopened to passengers.

Presently operating line Panevėžys – Rubikiai (68.4 km) runs past Taruškos, Raguvėlė, Surdegis, Troškūnai, Anykščiai and Bičionys.

The complex of Narrow Gauge Railway of Aukštaitija, including stations and road structures, is a highly valuable object of country’s historical and cultural heritage.

In 2003 some objects of the complex were declared a cultural heritage.

In 2005 a partial financing of Narrow Gauge Railway of Aukštaitija as an object of cultural heritage was initiated. 

Today while out for a walk in the forest with my wife and our daughter, I was doing some field sketching and my wife was observing the leaves of the “Liepa” trees (Linden) that are prevalent here. Every year when these trees blossom, my wife will collect the flowers to make a natural tea that is proclaimed to have properties that have a calming effect and that are good for the immune system during cold and flu seasons. I heard that the wood of Linden trees is used for treatment of liver and gallbladder diseases too. However, I have never researched this claim. Currently these trees are not blossoming but it is very close.

 

Look at that!

One particular painting has been giving me a lot of grief. I just keep finding things about it I don’t like. So I will put it away and bring it out another time and re evaluate it and try to make changes to my satisfaction. One part of the painting that I was not 100% satisfied with was the clouds. I looked at them for a long time trying to figure out what to do with them. My enthusiasm for this painting was sinking and I pondered the thought of scraping the painting. This thought crosses the minds of some artists’ whose creation is not going as planned. I turned away from the painting and gazed out the window of my studio and there they were! I exclaimed out loud, "Look at that!" The perfect clouds were hanging in the sky just waiting for me to capture them for this painting. I swung my easel around and faced the window and painted them  before they decided to float away!

Ah….I feel a new life for this painting and the enthusiasm is back.

What is that!?

Imagine you are walking in the woods. Just in the distance you see this and think; " What is that?" As you approach a little closer....Yikes! Now you know and that you are a little too close.
You can see the complete painting at my website or at this link;
http://www.jerrymoreau.com/large-multi-view/PAINTINGS/2101815-1-162710/PAINTINGS.html
     

 

 

I thought that I would post another one of my “fun” watercolor and ink paintings. I think I saw this character on an old Russian fantasy movie? From what I remember, I changed the character a lot; he actually had fangs in the movie and a really pointed, “witch” looking nose. The stones in the background are from my many references of stone castles. It took only a couple of hours to paint and was a nice escape from the real world.

For the fun of it.

Once and a while I like to sit down and paint something without having to think too much about it. Usually I will  paint in watercolor and ink. This watercolor is one of those times. It's 6 1/4 X 17 1/4 on watercolor paper and I named it the Hunter. It is in no way close to being perfect but I sure enjoyed painting it. Someday I might put together a small book of all of these small watercolors that I have done over the years.

                                                        
                                                      

A new painting in the works

One of the paintings that I am currently working on is of a Black Oyster Catcher. I didn’t want a scene of just a typical seashore. So I included an old rusty anchor to add interest and to portray a presence of humans.

The composition is almost at ground level and the Oyster catcher is facing slightly towards the sea. More than likely I will create a foggy day to add a little eeriness to the scene.

I started out making a small watercolor and ink sketch of what I had in mind. I then drew it larger, about 12" X 24". I changed a couple of things. One; I added part of an anchor chain and a chain ring on the anchor. And two; I placed the bird on the other side on the anchor instead of in front of it. This seemed to make a big difference visually giving more depth to the composition. Soon I will transfer this drawing to a gessoed Masonite panel.Then the fun part starts!…….

 

The art studio

Finally back to work!

I’m sure you all have moved at least one time in your life. So you might understand my brief absence form my creative time. Just moved into a new flat and still getting settled in. The art studio is basically finished and now it’s a matter of getting set up again.

The window in the studio was replaced. The oak flooring has been sanded and refinished. I painted the walls the brightest white I could find to help reflect the light better. A new desk is coming sometime next week. I’m still on the search for a good track light with full spectrum lamps to illuminate the work space at the easel.

Even though the only painting I have done has been on the walls and not on the canvas, I have had a flash flood of ideas for future paintings. It’s great to be back in the studio again.

The Idea

Sometimes when I’m out and about, I may see something that inspires me for a painting and I may not have my sketchbook in hand. So I make a mental note. When I get to the studio, I will draw a small sketch of my “mental note”, so that I won’t forget about it later. Most artists refer to these little sketches as “Thumbnail sketches” Some of these little non-detailed sketches may develop into a more refined drawing and then maybe into a painting. I don’t take these sketches too seriously and I don’t always save them. If I look at one that has lost its appeal, it will just be tossed away.
  One day during during a drive, we made an unscheduled stop at an outdoor informal and unusual museum of mill stones. The shapes and textures of the stones and the birds that were hopping stone to stone drinking water from the center holes was visually appealing. After returning home, I quickly sketched out this thumbnail to hold the thought. I think this thumbnail sketch might develop into a completed painting……….. hmm?  By the way, I never seem to learn my lesson; Always, always carry a sketchbook.

 

Really, He posed for you?

 At the Kaziuko Mugė last weekend in Vilnius, one of the questions asked by a visitor at our booth was about the painting, “Memories of Yellowstone”; “Did that bear pose for you?” of course it was asked in the spirit of good humor. But the interest was there. The partial answer to that question was “yes, he did.“ The grizzly that modeled for this painting lives at the Olympic Game Farm in Sequim Washington. He is actually a retired movie star, no kidding! And he will pose for you. I also modeled a small bear "bust" out on non-hardening clay so I could get the position and lighting I was looking for. I saw a few grizzlies in the wild during my Yellowstone days but I never had the courage to ask one to pose for me.



 

Portrait or Stillife?

Although almost all of my paintings are related to wildlife and nature, once and a while I break away from this subject matter to hopefully improve my skills in someway.
Recently I found some old tools that belonged to my wife’s father. They are well used and show some character. A pair of pliers, a screwdriver and a wrench… Perfect! So I placed the three tools on a dirty table (which I dirtied up) and sketched the tools individually onto three small gessoed Masonite panels. The only technique that I used that is unusual for me; I used my fingers and old rags to scrub the painting periodically during the painting process to create texture and give the painting a worn look to emphasize the real character of the tools…..I guess you could say, I painted their portraits.


 

 

 

 

 

 

Kaziuko Mugė

 On March 1 -3 2013 was the Kaziuko Mugė ;  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaziuko_mug%C4%97   held in Vilnius Lithuania spreading about 9 km. There were thousands of attendees and about 2000 participants. We were one of those participants. People endured the cold and snow and came from all over Europe to see or participate in this event.
 Thank you to all of you that visited. Thank you for your kind comments and interest in my art.
 I want to say a special thank you to my wife / representative, Jūratė. For her love, enthusiasm and for believing in me. And for enduring the cold snowy, weather during the Mugė. She made it a big success.
                   THANK YOU VERY MUCH

Back to the drawing board

It has been a little while since my last blog entry. It seems time flew past me with a lot of events happening in my life that are not art related.

I would like to mention that I completed the Kernavė  buffalo painting…..well, I thought it was completed. After looking closely, I decided it is in fact not finished. I am not at all satisfied with the buffalo, the river, foreground grasses and some of the clouds. That is a lot to be “unsatisfied” about. What I believe happened is I got bored with it and rushed through it to just get it finished.
 So, it is on the “back shelf “ just for a little while. With the painting out of view for a while, it will give me time to refresh my inspirations for this piece. When I take it out to view it again, I hope it will be clear as to what I need to do to rescue this painting. Or I may look at it and say…”nope, it’s going back on the back shelf again for a little while longer.”