Falls Mill

...Falls Mill...
oil on canvas - 6" x 8"

Last week, I went out plein air painting with some friends. We went to this little waterfall. There had been a mill here long ago, but all that's left of it is part of the stone foundation. At this hour of the morning, most of the scene was in shadow. I had to work really fast and did a quick study, which I finished later in the studio from a photo.

The photo, by the way, was really boring and looked nothing like my quick study. (Did you ever take a picture of a scene you thought was really beautiful, and when you see the photo, you wonder why you took it?) I altered the photograph on my computer so that the colors and contrast would match my study. Otherwise it would not have been useful at all.

CLICK HERE TO BUY $75

Oh, and here is the plein air study:

Lewis Falls

...Lewis Falls...

oil on canvas - 6" x 6"

Another scene from Shenandoah National Park... Getting to the falls was quite a hike, but it was downhill all the way. Getting back was another story. This was as much of the falls as I could see, because there was so much brush in front of me, I couldn't see the bottom. As you can see, there wasn't a lot of water.

CLICK HERE TO BUY $75

Blue Ridge Mountains - SOLD

...Blue Ridge Mountains...
oil on canvas - 6" x 8"

I can't believe how hard this was to paint. I had to wipe it off and start over three times! And I'm still not totally happy with it. I just keep telling myself, "It's only a daily painting, it's only a daily painting, it's only... "

Maybe I'm being too perfectionistic, but the very slight changes in the value and temperature of the colors, plus all the soft blending made a huge difference in the aerial perspective. The so-called "rules" of aerial perspective, (that colors get lighter and bluer and less intense as seen from a greater distance), seem to have been written on a sunny day with a blue sky. Here, at dusk, there was so much red in the light, there was a lot of purple in the distance. Actually, the color of those background mountains, which appears blue-violet here, had so much red it, it looked pink on the palette.

The sun seemed to be floating on a layer of purple mist. I put a little thalo turquoise in the sun, so it would vibrate against the reds.

CLICK HERE TO BUY $75

Shenandoah - SOLD

...Shenandoah...
oil on linen on board - 6" x 8"

I spent last weekend at Shenandoah National Park. Beautiful! The flowers in this painting are black-eyed-Susans.

CLICK HERE TO BUY $75

Silver Morning - Sold

...Silver Morning...
oil on canvas - 9" x 12"

I have been invited to take part in an exhibit, Carnegie Painted, hosted by 3rd Street Gallery in Carnegie, Pa. So, I went to Carnegie with Monica, an artist friend, to see what the town looked like. It was one of those misty mornings, and the sun was just starting to burn off the haze. I liked the silvery light shining off the rooftops.

Having grown up in the mountains, I know there is a comforting feeling of being nestled in among the hills, almost like being wrapped in a soft blanket. Their undulations protect you from the extremes of wind, snow, and sun. I lived for awhile on the plains, and it felt exposed, raw, but also expansive, and the sky was huge!

I really tried with this photograph, but can't get the colors to match the painting... Hope it doesn't look too bad on your monitor.

A Surprise!

Several years ago, when I first heard about Google alerts, I set an alert for my own name. Now, whenever "Linda Schweitzer" is mentioned on the internet, I get an email with a link back to it. Yes, it is usually something that I have put in the internet myself. And of course, it keeps me up to date on what all the other Linda Schweitzers are doing. ;-) Obviously, this only works if you have an unusual name.

Recently, I was very surprised to get a Google Alert for this:

Linda Schweitzer Painter (Nx Power Lite)

View more presentations from ADRIANA CIOBANU.

I have no idea who Adriana Ciobanu is, or why she made the slide show. From what I find on the internet, she is in Romania. She did a very nice job! There is no link back to my website or blog though. I emailed her but have not received a response.

You read so much about people "stealing" your artwork on the internet, it makes you sort of paranoid. So while my initial reaction was suspicion, I am now very pleased! Thanks Adriana!

Mill Run

...Mill Run...

oil on canvas - 8" x 6"

I was painting with the international plein air artists' group when I did this one. Every year we get together for a week of painting on location, taking turns going to each others' countries. This year the USA was the host country, and we were painting in Western Maryland, near Deep Creek Lake, Swallow Falls and Friendsville which was all beautiful! And the people were so friendly and generous! And, yes, we did see wild bears, but they didn't hang around long enough to pose for a painting (or even a photograph for that matter).

While I was painting, one of the other artists took my picture...

Heavens! I look like I am totally concentrating on it, which I guess I was...