Dog Cures Ornithophobia

Bird Dog painting, 18 inches by 24 inches, oil on canvas board
BIRD DOG | 18 x 24″ | Oil on Canvas Board

BIRD DOG is intended to capture the pure joy of a dog playing on the beach. If I got it right, you should smile or giggle at the scene. For those of you who love birds, rest assured no birds were harmed in the making of this painting.

I was inspired by a photo of a dog playing on a beach, but the most striking thing for me was the stylistic impact of the silhouette. There’s something compelling about the lack of details in the darkened shapes of the dog and birds, perhaps giving more to the imagination of the viewer, allowing it to be personalized. Additionally, the silhouettes lend themselves well to a sense of motion. I’m not sure why it strikes me this way, but I think it has something to do with the stark value contrasts created by the silhouettes on the colored landscape.

Broken Color Palette

My mom happened to mention her recent use of the broken color technique on one of her compositions, something I’d not heard of previously. As it turns out, the technique whih proved to be a very exciting way to add depth and vibrancy to the composition. In short, broken color is a technique often used by the Impressionists that leveraged optical color mixing to make things look less flat and murky. This article, Broken Color and Optical Color Mixing, does a great job describing and illustrating the technique.

I used this approach to re-do the reflective elements on the beach, which I must say was a huge improvement. I took a black and white photo of the color palette of the beach to ensure the values were the same, which makes the technique more effective because the various colors work as one and don’t compete with each other. I’m very excited to use this in my plein air landscapes in the coming months!

BIRD DOG is also a foray into waves, another subject relatively new to me at this level of detail. I enjoy seascapes and incorporating water into my landscapes, but most of that has been lakes and streams. Capturing the force and complexity of ocean waves is a whole different endeavor, but I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and will incorporate waves in future works.

The final decision to be made was regarding the birds. My wife, a frequent source of very helpful suggestions and insights to work in progress, suggested I pare down the array of birds. At some point, she noted, the number of birds pushes the feel of the work from playful fun on the beach to terror at the seaside. And she was right! As I added the bird silhouettes in the final stage, at 14 it felt like any more would start to slide into Hitchcock territory. Compared to the study, which had 21 birds and begged the question “who’s chasing who?”, the final composition was more playful and struck the right “dog on beach having a great time running around like it was the best day of their life” tone.

Thanks for reading and don’t forget to go play with your pups!

Early progress shot reveals previously used canvas
Before use of broken color
Re-painted beach using broken color
Realization that beach was lacking, saw same problem in study
Broken color beach and birds added to completed Bird Dog

#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #rescuedogs #bestfriends #dogsofinstagram #dogsofinsta #dogstagram #oilpainting #fineart #petsofinstagram #contemporaryart #fosteringsaveslives #dogsofig #adoptme #takemehome #austinpetsalive #mutts #muttsofinstagram #beachdog #dogsplaying #silhouetteseries #brokencolor #birddog

Broken Color and Optical Color Mixing
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Rescue Noses

WET NOSE | 18 x 24″ | Oil on Canvas

This is a follow-up piece from SNIFFER, a very similar composition of the wonderful nose of a dog. If you’re a dog parent you’ve seen this perspective before, so I hope it makes you giggle. WET NOSE came to fruition because the original SNIFFER was accepted in a show at Art for the People Gallery in Austin earlier this year, but I had promised my wife that if it went to the show I would make her a new one that could be hung in the house. 

I tend to like to move around with composition topics and challenge myself with new subjects, so I haven’t done many repeat compositions in the past. Painting SNIFFER for the second time in a few months was going to afford me a rare opportunity to learn from the first piece and see if I could make improvements on WET NOSE. 

The first notable benefit of the repeat performance was speed. I didn’t have to spend much time thinking through an approach, and the setup / block-in went very fast. The other time efficiency was in mixing paint colors properly on the first effort without much, if any, experimentation. This is where having a painting journal comes in handy, as I’d made notes of color mixtures for SNIFFER and only had to make some minor tweaks for the new piece. 

I would love to do more dog noses from this perspective, but switch up the mutt mixtures so there are different nose types and hair colors. It would also be interesting to really push the details further painting on a gesso board instead of canvas and see how realistic the nose could become. 

Thanks for reading and please remember to foster or adopt or BOTH. It’s a rewarding experience for everyone involved, and for those who are very breed focused, remember breeders don’t make breeds, they make bread. If you want a particular breed of dog, note that there are thousands of breeds at the shelter and rescue groups (Austin Pets Alive if you live in / around Austin area). As for me, I’m a mutt kinda guy.

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The Best Avocados Are New York Avocados

Pardon the vanity post, but I had to share the news that my avocado still life, “Just the Ripe Size,” has been selected for inclusion in a national juried show at Main Street Arts in Clifton Springs, New York. 

The show runs November 5 – December 23, 2022. See the Main Street Arts website for more pics and information www.MainStreetArtsCS.org. If you live in upstate NY you can attend the opening reception on November 5th – there will be wine and prizes. For the truly ambitious art enthusiasts, you can also make a purchase… or two. After all the show is full of smalls, so prices tend to be more tempting. 

Thanks for reading!


#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #atxartist #atxart #oilpainting #fineart #mainstreetarts #avocado

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Unbridled Zeal For Life

Barks & Birds (study) | 9 x 12” | Oil on Canvas Paper

The unbridled zeal for life is hard to epitomize more than watching a big dog playing on a beach. While I don’t support a dog chasing wildlife, in the case of birds I don’t mind because in all my days I’ve never seen a dog come close to catching one. But the pure joy of exploring and running on a beach is something that brings a smile to every doggy parent out there. 

Barks & Birds is a study to figure out the technique and subtle variations in hues and values needed for a larger composition. I’ve seen photographs of dogs on the beach in silhouette, but I think a painting lends more atmosphere to the scene than most photographs I’ve seen. I made some basic mistakes with this study, having painted the silhouettes first, but I wanted to get the darks mixed properly and take a crack at the shapes, especially the dog, who I like to call Mr Happy Pants. 

The study also allowed me to mix a number of grays to capture that end-of-day post sunset atmosphere. I gambled with the underpainting, using a very saturated orange, but I love how it turned out… a happy accident indeed. I initially thought it would provide some nice highlights around the silhouettes, but as it turns out it nailed the sunset color behind the clouds. 

Lastly, the waves. I didn’t really care about this detail as part of this study, but probably because I kept my technique very loose (i.e. didn’t care how it looked) and fast, they turned out really well. I concentrated on the mix of greenish-blue, which will show better in a larger, more finished composition, but I’ll be keeping it very loose when I do the waves next time. Might need a bottle of wine for that part. 

Thanks for reading!

#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #atxartist #atxart #pleinair #beach #beachdogs #atxlife #rescuedogs #bestfriends #dogsofinstagram #dogsofinsta #dogstagram #oilpainting #fineart #petsofinstagram #contemporaryart #fosteringsaveslives #dogsofig #austinpetsalive #mutts #muttsofinstagram #snouts #wetnoses #shephers #hugyourdog

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Fishing for Edward Hopper

Fishing Shacks | 7 x 5” | Oil on Board

These fishing shacks are located, appropriately, on Fishermans Point in South Portland, Maine. Anytime of day is wonderful to visit the point to soak in the sea breeze, watch the activity in the bay, or simply smile at the beautiful landscape. While this spot has intrinsic beauty and plenty of subject matter for painting, these fishing shacks jutting over the water are inescapably paintable. This is one of what’s sure to be multiple compositions I do at this location. 

This was a particularly challenging piece due to the weather. In the photos you can’t see the wind, but trust me it was whipping around like a petulant child, something that wasn’t typical for this location. Despite the wind, it proved to be a stunning afternoon for late day sun, which lit up the shacks in that special way that only the sun can do. 

I definitely called on my inner Edward Hopper for this piece. My wife also influenced the outcome, noting a need for color so it wouldn’t be so blah with all the gray wood. Pushing the contrasts was easier than expected, in large part because the magic of plein air really helps with getting the light right.

Plein Air at Fishermans Point, South Portland, Maine

Thanks for reading!

#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #atxartist #atxart #cascobay #portlandmaine #landscapesmaine #pleinair #maineart  #portlandmaineart  #southportland #seadogs #smccmaine #southportlandmaine

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Lighthouses and Lobster Rolls

Portland Head Lighthouse | 7 x 5” | Graphite on Paper

This started as a practice sketch to familiarize myself with this iconic Maine lighthouse in preparation for some plein air sessions. But it sucked me in and turned into a full blown composition. It still needs small tweaks and refinements, but that will have to wait because I don’t have all of my drawing supplies on hand. 

The actual lighthouse was the easiest part, whereas the rocky coastline, which dominates the landscape, was the tricky, tedious bit. Despite the slog involved in drawing so many rocks, it was very rewarding as the composition came into view. I worked left to right, which made for a fun time lapse which essentially drew the rocky coast towards the lighthouse… somewhat ironic, too. 

There were some lessons learned as well. When drawing rocks, it was very helpful to focus and emphasize the vertical lines, which were the darkest elements. It was also good to draw many rocks as planes using a very angled drawing stroke, utilizing the side of the pencil instead of the tip. I’m sure that violates various drawing art conventions, but I’m pretty sure I don’t care… lemme check…. yep, confirmed, I don’t care. 

I used more dark graphite than I usually do (2B, 4B and 8B, with some HB) but it seemed to work. As one can see from the reference photo there are cast shadows on the rocks and buildings, as well as darkened rocks from crashing waves and a receding tide, which makes for a lot of graphite. 

Lastly, some advice. First, come see this lighthouse when you visit Portland, Maine. While you’re here, get the best lobster roll in the area from Bite Into Maine, which is open all week in the park. There are numerous picnic benches throughout the area, all with spectacular views. And if you have furry friends, bring them, as this is a dog friendly park. 

Thanks for reading!

#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #atxartist #atxart #cascobay #portlandmaine #landscapesmaine #pleinair #maineart #biteintomaine #portlandheadlighthouse #portlandmaineart #drawinglandscape #landscapedrawing

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Stop With All the White Boats!

Casco Bay Boats (study) | 7 x 5” | oil on Canvas Board

The weather and views were so fantastic, frankly I didn’t care how this plein air piece turned out. The vantage point was from a hillside trail in the shade looking out across Casco Bay. I had originally setup along the water, but had to move due to the rantings of a homeless guy who felt me and another guy nearby had infringed on his oceanfront property.

The boats were tricky to paint because the scale was so small – this was the first time I’d painted a seascape with various boats on a small canvas. I realized I had to pay more attention to giving the impression of details with singular brush strokes, almost dots in some places. The other challenge with boats, maybe it’s just in this particular bay, but the vast majority of them are white, the entire boat, not just the sails.

Overall this was a successful study and I’m looking forward to future compositions, both in plein air and studio refinements. There are also some great hues to work with in the sky, water, and the backdrop of green forests and islands. What’s not to like?

#artbern #berntx #crashboomzip #painting #art #abplanalp #austinartists #atxartist #atxart #cascobay #portlandmaine #landscapesmaine #pleinair #maineart #sailing

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Nautical Profiles

Dead Calm in Casco Bay | 9 x 12” | Graphite on Paper


The Casco Bay of Portland, Maine has an iconic harbor look, pretty much just what you’d want to see when strolling the Eastern Promenade on a cool summer day. Yes, I said cool summer day… they do exist. 

This piece is a plein air drawing from the rocky shores of Casco Bay, bathed in sunshine and 75 degrees. I finished the shading and finer details in studio, but  capturing the moment on site was a lot of fun. It’s as if the boats were posing for their profiles. Most of the practice sketches I’d done the previous week were a real plein air smack down because the slight breezes on those days kept rotating the boats. It did teach me a lesson in drawing quickly, though. 

The lighthouse is a bit of artistic license, in that it’s not part of the actual scene. However there are numerous lighthouses in the area, all of which create a dream backdrop for these nautical seascapes. If I choose to create a painting of this scene, I’ll struggle to de-emphasize the lighthouse because I love their look!

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That little bit of morning air.

I love this piece because it has a balanced look between a photo and painting. I know if I tried to recreate as a paining it would fail, therefore I’ll stick to reblogging Lemanshots’ work.

lemanshots's avatarlemanshots - Fine Pictures and Digital Art

Lemanshots_morning

Photo and design by Josephine.

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Coastal Plein Air

I’ve been traveling a bit this summer and managed to get in some plein air work! At first it was mostly drawings of coastal scenes – lots and lots of boats and beautiful coastline. But lately I’ve managed to get in some solid time with the paints and I’m working a few pieces in parallel.

I still need to return to a few of the plein air locations before I can finish with studio refinement. One basic change I’ve tried with the recent plein air compositions is essentially simplifying the focal areas and zooming in so there’s less to tackle. That’s been hard for me because I typically want to capture as much of the landscape view as possible in any given composition because it’s so damn beautiful.

Next projects will be some very photogenic coastal lighthouses. I’ve done a few practice sketches to get a feel for how I want to approach the works and not self-inflict panic during the speedy reality of painting on site. What’s really apparent, at least in my drawings, is that the lighthouse is going to be a piece of cake – it’s the rocky seaside that might well drive me insane. But I believe if I keep it “fast and loose” and focus on the lighthouse, the rocks will be simplified in a supporting role.

Hopefully I’ll be able to post a couple of completed pieces in the coming week.

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