Day 10 Prayers for Sunday

Prayers for the Lake Fire  6x6 Oil on Panel

This painting marks the 1/3 way toward my 30 paintings in 30 days challenge.  This would be the point in the tunnel where the light at the beginning is fading and it is getting really dark.  You start to feel a little worried or anxious because you cannot see the light at the end.  This is the point you need a little prayer to keep you going.

We had a huge fire here in my area of the woods last year.  It burned thousands of acres.  It was called the Lake Fire.  Beyond the actual fire fighting, there are other things that go wrong and must be dealt with and, with limited resources, sometime the call is answered by others.  Case in point, San Gorgonio Search and Rescue Team was called in to help clear up the main drinking water supply to a bunch of camps located just beyond the limits of the fire.  The source of water was up in the fire though.  We hiked in, did our thing and went home.  We didn't make the papers or the evening news but what we did was important to the community.  What we saw made most of us cry.  Our wonderful wilderness that we all love was burned to the ground.  It is a day I will remember for a long time.

Completed (painting) January 10th.

Larry
Artist and 13 year member of the San Gorgonio Search and Rescue Team

Day 9 Three Squares

Three Squares  6x6 Oil on Panel

Day 9 is here and I have new art.  Another abstract to tease your mind.  What do you see in this?

One of these days I'm going to go big with an abstract.  I have only adventured into the 6 x 12 inch realm.  This is mainly because I am just experimenting with paint application, application tools and texture.  I am finding I prefer the less colorful ones and I really like white textural back grounds with the paint skimmed on top.  The hardest part of these little gems is when to stop.  One side of my brain wants to keep going to find the image or to see what will happen if I do this or that.  With just one last application of an "if"  I see the painting go to hell, I try to fix it, I hate it and then I trash it.  The more paint I apply the worse it gets and the more money I burn.  It is a real mind tease to me too, but for different reasons than yours.

What do I see?  I see the two beautiful white rectangles, one with the red square the other with an ivory square.  I'm loving the vertical scrapes through them and how the purple plays a role to the right.  The green shapes are nice but I dislike the reddish brown to the left of it near the edge.  Bad color combination.  In short, I see the color and texture.

Completed January 9th.

Larry

Day 8 The Valley

The Valley  6x6 Oil on Panel

Have you ever been up hiking and you look down and see the perfect place to camp?  I did, but it wasn't in the valley, it was on the next ridge.  I wanted to camp there and watch the sun rise and see what was on the other side.  On my way to this ridge I took water from the muddiest, stinkiest cow water hole.  It was all I could find.  I filter it with a bandanna and a Steri Pen.

Montana- Continental Divide Trail

Completed (painting) January 8th.

Larry

Day 7, The Trumpet.

The Trumpet  6x6 Oil on Panel

This image is a study of a larger image I am thinking about creating.  I'm thinking 24x36 in size.  I like the concept but now that I have added color I am back on the fence with it.  For this study I used Thalo blue.  I really don't like Thalo blue but thought I would give it a try.  It just makes the blue too blue and the grass too green.

So what do y'all think?  Should I make this into a larger painting?  Do you like the bright greens and blues?

Completed January 7th.

Larry

Day6, Long Road Ahead

Long Road Ahead 6x6 Oil on Panel

24 more paintings to go.  Definitely a long road ahead.  

I have to be honest here.  I am actually painting these little artworks a day early and I am calling them completed the day I post the image.  Posting them is the final step and for me this means I can tuck this little guy away and not worry about him.  Today would have been a good day to pass on the painting.  I feel off a roof today.  I landed like spider man and have very minor injuries, but still, it would have been a good night to curl up and watch a movie.  In my world this would feel like giving up.  I don't like to give up and I never plan on doing it.

Paint On!

Completed January 6th.

Larry

Day5. Coastal Memories

Coastal Memories  6x6 Oil on Panel

Day five is here and I have a new painting to show you all.

This is an image of my son looking out at the Oregon coast.  

For this painting I started with a teal green oil background.  The pallet I used was Cobalt blue, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Yellow medium, Ivory black and Titanium white.  Have you all noticed a trend with the pallet choices?  They are basically the same but I am just substituting different shade of colors depending on what I want to achieve in the painting.  In all simplicity the pallet of colors are Blue, Red, Yellow, black and white.  This is as basic as it gets.  I use Winsor Newton oil paints and I can order 119 different colors from them.  Limiting your pallet makes for a more harmonious colors and teaches you to mix all these 119 colors with just a select few.  Cool huh?

Completed January 5th.

Larry

Day 4. An Abstract

Raiders  6x6 Oil on panel

Abstraction.  It looks easy to do.
This is the most common art that people look at and say "I can do that!"  Well, so can I.  The difference is that I did do it.

For me the key components to abstract art is:
One, it's has to be immediately visually compelling.
Two, the colors have to work together and be beautiful.
Three, it has to have little things.  Little placements of meaningful colors. Things the artist added that makes the piece purposeful.
Four, I need to look at it and say, "I could never reproduce that if I tried."

Without the above it's just smeared paint.

Completed January 4th.

Larry

The Wait

The Wait 8x16 Oil on Panel

A new addition to the studio.  One of my goals for the year is to get back to doing more figurative work.  This image is painted with a limited pallet of Prussian blue, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Scarlet red, Titanium White and Ivory Black.  There is a touch of Thalo blue in the scales to add interest.  

The idea behind this image is love.  Who would be able to imprint a map on the back of a mermaid, and why would she stand guard to protect something that is not hers?  She's waiting for his return.  Are mermaids immortal?  I don't think Pirates are.  This could be a long wait.  

Take a look at her back.  Can you find her with in the map?  Below is a close up.

Happy Adventures!

Larry

Sentury

Sentry  6x6 Oil on Panel

I have been to this place many times, in my dreams.  This image is not a real place but a culmination of many experiences and long miles of hiking.

This image uses the same pallet as my first painting but I have used Cerulean blue in place of Prussian blue.

Completed January 3rd.

Larry

Second Painting of the Year

Montana Trail  6x6 oil on panel

I walked a portion of the Continental Divide trail.  Over this portion I was on a fire road in the middle of open hills in central Montana.  It was a true blessing to be out on the trail for over a week with all my supplies on my back.  I wish I could do this more often.

For this painting I used Ultramarine blue, Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ochre, Cad Yellow Medium, black and white.  I decided to set up my travel box in the studio so I could get more comfortable using it.

Completed January Second.

Larry

New Years Challenge

Morning Mist 6x6x oil on panel

I'm going to try and paint 30 paintings in 30 days!

The goal here is to not produce master pieces, but to just paint more.  I have prepared 50 boards, each one six inches square.  The extra 20 boards will be used another time or as back up if I decide to pitch one out the back door.  I thought about what I could paint through the month of December and I tried desperately to come come up with a theme, but I had way too many ideas.  So I have decided to just paint whatever I wanted, how I wanted.  If I learn something new from each painting that will just be a bonus.

This first image is from a picture I shot one early morning after we just started our drive home from my mothers house in Oregon.  I started with an acrylic base color of olive green.  The image is painted in oils.  I wanted to see if there is a textural feel to the paint application vs starting with an oil base color.  The pallet I chose was limited to Prussian blue, Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Ivory Black and a Titanium white.

The painting was completed last night on January 1st.

Larry

One Month

The Hyenas   15x30   Oil on canvas   Larry Reinhart

I typed this blog up and sat back and re-read it and it really sounds like I am bragging.  This is not what I intended, but I didn't change it either.  Pushing yourself outside of the comfort zone is hard and a lot of work.  I think its important for young artists, art collectors, and everyone else to know this.  Painting and producing and publicizing your art is a job.  It's not a hobby.  Below is my original post:

Well it's been a busy one month since my first blog post.
                                    I thought being an artist was supposed to be easy?

So what have I got done?  Well, I got my web site up and running.  I have modified it 6 times trying to make it better for you, the viewer.  I shot a lot of pictures to get my Etsy store up and running, have modified it 3 times to make it right.  I also shot a lot of images to get my print shop up and running and modified it twice to get it up and running.  See the link to your right to check them out!  I have worked on six pieces of art, finishing two of them. I framed two pieces of art. Made a prototype of a concrete pot for a future endeavor.  Made prototypes of some image transfer tiles for a future endeavor.  I cut 50 boards for an upcoming painting spree in January, I still need to sand and gesso them.  I have learned that most successful artists spend 50% of their time marketing their work and the other half actually painting.  Since, I have been on Facebook more, created an Instagram site and have joined about 7 online forums.  I have submitted to 8 online places to showcase my art. And to update all, I have designed and printed new business cards which I can't wait to handout to everyone.

Outside of my art world I have made stepping stones for the garden, started my fire pit, spread mulch, worked on the kitchen counters, worked on the stairs to the garage, built a doll house, planted my fall garden, finally finished my studio table, and traveled to Prescott Arizona for a break.  Honestly, I have been trying to get some of the house projects completed so I can focus more on the art and spend more time with my beautiful wife and daughter.

So whats planned for next month?  I'm going to paint more.  I plan on writing more - I have a list of things I would like to share on this blog, some are requests.  I hope to complete 4 more paintings, two of them are big ones.  I'm going to celebrate Christmas, not winter fest, not holiday fest, but Christmas.  I am constantly developing a lot of ideas for future paintings.  In January my goal is to complete 30 paintings in the month.  They will be small, some will be horrible, but I think I will learn a lot from this.  It will be fun.  I have list of Galleries I will apply to starting this week, West Coast, Mid US, and East Coast.  I won't be applying to them all at once but over the coming year.  This is a culmination of about 2 months of research.  I hope to use start using Pinterest for painting progress shots and to start researching interior designers and licensing companies.  More future endeavors. Yea, in the coming month I hope people will start to know who I am and what I paint.

Giddy-up, times waist'n!

Oh, did I mention that outside of my full time job of being an artist I also hold down a part time - 40 hour a week- job.  It helps me clear my mind.  Life is good!