Palmer Museum- Gallery Talk

I attended a gallery talk about Japanese Woodblock Prints at the Palmer Museum on Friday, and enjoyed it immensely! The museum has a special exhibit of these works, "Floating Between Worlds: A Conversation about Japanese Woodblock Prints", which ends December 9. Gallery talks and other special events take place several times a month at the Palmer Museum, and I'm really glad to have these opportunities to learn about different media and styles! If you're interested, check out http://www.palmermuseum.psu.edu/events.html

Evolution of a Work - 'Winter Field and Wild Cherry'

I like the peaceful feeling and sense of distance in this piece, which was inspired during a walk around a neighbor's farm.  In winter, neutral colors predominated, and the red of twigs on the cherry trees became even more prominent in contrast to the background colors.

'Winter Field and Wild Cherry' by Alice Kelsey - completed

I set up my easel and made this quick pastel sketch on location.  It was pretty cold, so there was no question of working for a prolonged time!  Even though I recorded only the bare essence of the scene, there is something about painting on location that enables me to see more and get a feel of the conditions of that particular day.

Initial sketch made on location

Back in the studio, I worked over the top of the field sketch (see image below), elaborating on the colors, emphasizing the pull to the distance with colors growing lighter and bluer, and the energetic tangle of the red twigs.  I liked the mood and feel of the piece, but I just didn't feel the composition was resolved.  My eye didn't move throughout it- rather the two trees in the foreground either drew my attention or my eye moved to the hedgerow... but the parts of the painting didn't seem to relate to each other, and the shapes didn't lead my eye to circulate throughout the painting in a pleasing way.

'Winter Field and Wild Cherry' part way done

For several months I was stuck on what to do with this piece, until one day after I hadn't seen it for a while, I pulled it out from storage and I saw what it needed.  I took out the base of the left hand foreground tree, and then cropped out the left side of the painting, leaving about two-thirds of the original composition (compare the pre-crop and final version of the painting below).  In this resulting square format, the movement from the right foreground tree to the hedgerow seems balanced and pleasing to me - my eye circulates freely through the painting without getting 'stuck' on any one spot.  I also simplified the shapes by quieting the colors in the fields, and taking out the underbrush in the left foreground because it created a visual barrier to the rest of the painting.

I really like this piece with its apparent simplicity, yet strong mood and lots of space and textures for the viewer to explore.  It has that harmony 'as a whole' that I strive for, and I'm really pleased when I can get it, like in this painting.  In the end, it really reminds me of what I felt walking on this land on that cold day (and my gratitude for being there).

'Winter Field and Wild Cherry' before cropping

'Winter Field and Wild Cherry' by Alice Kelsey - finished

Rewarding Time at Lewisburg's 'Stroll Through the Arts'

"Redbuds at the River"

I enjoyed sharing my artwork and talking with art appreciators last night at Faustina's Gallery in Lewisburg, PA. I was one of many artists in and about the town sharing our latest creations during the annual 'Art Stroll' event, and greatly appreciate the comments from viewers about what they see and feel in my paintings. Some frequent comments related to a strong sense of color, distinctive style, expressive gestural mark-making, and a poetic quality of overall mood. I'm really glad that these qualities in my paintings come through to viewers, since they are very powerful aspects of what inspires me as an artist, and what I feel that original visual art is able to add to enrich our lives. The joint exhibit, 'Upstream: Images of Susquehanna Waterways,' includes twenty of my recent oil and pastel paintings, and continues through November 17 at Faustina's Gallery. I hope that you get a chance to see it- if so, please let me know what you think! The gallery is located at 229 Market St., Lewisburg, PA and is open Tuesday - Saturday, 10 am - 5 pm, and by appointment (phone 570-524-5080.)