Autumn Sounds

Walking on our farm this morning, sounds of shifting season gathered my attention. Hoards of starlings dashed in waves above with restless, impatient calls, and then left quiet in their wake.  Wind rustled leaves of hushed colors, and my own footsteps crunched dried grasses. Usually I'm filled by sight- colors and shapes, but this morning the newness was auditory. From there I went to my studio and worked on pastels, carrying forth the grounding I found outside.

Delivery day!

'Spirit of Joy' by Alice Kelsey.  Oil on Canvas

I'm feeling very tired but very fulfilled - delivered 38 paintings to the HUB Gallery at Penn State for my solo show, which opens May 20th.   There were so many works, and so many big works, that it took four car loads to get them all there today.  Many thanks to my friend, Betsy Whitman, for helping to transport paintings.  It is a really lovely gallery space, and I'm eager to see how the gallery director hangs the show.  I'm not sure they'll all fit!  But I'm very happy with all of the pieces, and think they look well together as a body of related work.

The Making of Mt. Nittany (In Oil and Pastel!)

'Mt. Nittany and Fall Colors', Oil on Linen, 31 x 49 In.

The genesis of this large oil on linen featuring Mt. Nittany includes several metamorphic stages, of experiences and materials evolving together. Looking back through the strata, here's how it came to be:

'Mt. Nittany Across Autumn Fields', Pastel, Private Collection

The pastel above was created on location (on Nixon Rd., near Pine Grove Mills), on a crisp, fall morning. The gold of the soybean field, wind of shifting season, jewels of fall foliage, and interlaced layers of hedgerows drew me in.... I see the traces of these elements in the work itself- something I like very much about plein air works.

'Mt. Nittany from Nixon Rd.", Pastel, Private Collection

Next, back in the studio, I started a new pastel based on the plein air work, with some compositional and color variants (see above)

'Mt Nittany and Fall Colors' In-Progress 1

The expanse of land, and mass of mountain called for a larger scale, and the textures of oil and linen, so I hand-stretched a canvas measuring almost 3 x 4 ft., prepared its surface with four coats of acrylic gesso, and started in with thin washes of oil color, laying in the essential composition (see above). I like the experience of working on a canvas that's almost as big as me- there's room for gesture, and 'paintings within paintings' (sections of the painting that interact which each other). Pretty soon, the painting starts 'talking to me', with one adjustment opening the door for the next. Here's an image of the middle period:

Mt. Nittany and Fall Colors' In-Progress 2

and now this geological survey brings us back to the top of the page, with the completed oil painting! The next leg of the journey resumes on May 16, when 'Mt Nittany and Fall Colors' will be auctioned at the Palmer Museum of Art Gala Event. I'm delighted to have been selected as one of three featured artists at this annual event, and hope that this painting continues on a fruitful journey! For more about the Gala Event, see http://www.palmermuseum.psu.edu/

Solo Show- Final Strokes in Place!

'Uphill to the Ridge'

Yeah! An hour ago, I finished the last stroke of the last painting for my solo show at Penn State which opens in next month! I'm VERY happy with these latest works- bigger and brighter than ever before! Here's a rough still-in-studio photo of the painting which I finished today- one of nine large oils (almost as big as me) and more than thirty works total, which will be in the exhibit ('Passages'- Recent Paintings by Alice Kelsey, The HUB Gallery, Pennsylvania State University- see my website for details www.alicekelsey.com)

To give you a glimpse of the making of this painting, here's some photos of interim stages over several months:

Beginning

I laid in the essential composition and colors with thin oil paint, aiming for shapes and gesture that harmonize and energize.  Once these forces are present, the painting itself gives me ideas about what to tune, what to add to augment it's mood and overall balance....becoming something more 'whole':

Middle stage

And then some more balancing (note lighter and softer color in left sky):

Mid- Late stage

And finally, today I made some small but essential (to me, anyway :)) changes... not sure if they're readily apparent-  I wonder if viewers can find the three changes to this last image:

Final stage

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Walk in the Woods

I have a painting on my easel that I'm waiting to speak to me about where to go next. I looked and wasn't getting 'leadings', so did some art business work (warm by the woodstove!), then went out on a walk. This was just what I needed! It's been a month or so since I walked very far, given the serious cold, and troublesome footing (icy in places, break-through crusted deep snow in others), and now filled back up with natural wonders, I know how much I've missed it. Today I suddenly felt warm sun (despite cold air), and heard cheery songbirds- a turn towards spring! There were lots of animal tracks- deer, squirrel, rabbit, mice, opposum or skunk, and even a bear who had been searching along a hedgerow. I noted dirt-marked snow which gave away several burrows in a wooded hillside, and a place on a steep slope where a small animal had slid on its belly down the hill. Looks to me like animals are waking up, and all of this life was renewing for me!

Blank Canvas

I'm excited to get started on this canvas. It took a few weeks to make it (raw canvas and big stretcher bars and cross brace treked here by UPS, my artist daughter Emma helped me stretch it, and then I prepared it with three coats of gesso.) These preparatory phases are time-consuming, yet I've come to value the process as a step in creating the work- touching the canvas, I admire it's texture, and applying gesso, I'm connecting with the movement and mood of the image-to-be, and start to see it on the surface. I'll let the gesso 'cure' for a few days, and THEN, I get to let loose with springy brushes and lovely color- can't wait!

Paintings within Paintings

Close-up

Entire canvas

Something's stirring my creative spirit with bright warm colors and large scale! I'm surprised and enthused with the 'zing' of color and gesture in my recent oil paintings, and they are taking off to a  larger size than ever before! It's so rewarding when the canvases develop and start to 'talk to me' rather than the other way around.... I see marks and moods that arose as something beyond myself, and seem to have a 'powerful tenderness', something that resonates and lasts. On these larger scale works, there seem to be 'paintings within paintings', as sections of the painting hold me eye with room to explore, and then weave in to the painting as a whole. Very fulfilling!

'Pastel Sampler' Workshop

Alice Kelsey painting with pastel

I'm one of three artists teaching a pastel workshop this Saturday, and am really looking forward to sharing the wonders of this medium, and creating in general! I'm also eager to talk with other artists, and learn of some of their discoveries and approaches. I'll be covering basic pastel techniques, and sharing the stages of development of several of my works with photos at various stages- I learn a lot from this process, and hope that others will too! I'll also be doing a hands-on demonstration of starting a new painting. Anne Kenyon will focus on materials available to pastel artists, and Marianne Fyda is doing a still life of artful dessert items (and we get to eat the still life when she's done!). The workshop is co-sponsored by the Art Alliance of Central PA and the Central PA Pastel Society, and I just heard that it is filled- sounds like a fun day to be among a tribe of artists!

Our Land

'Pasture in Morning Mist', Alice Kelsey, Pastel

I'm so grateful to live in a place where the land around me inspires my artwork, and touches my soul. As I walked on our fifteen acre farm this morning, as I often do, the frost on the hay field refracted slanty sunrise light, creating zillions of gems. The grass crunched underfoot, a distinctive sound, that recalls Fall and adventure.These 'jewels' are the most valuable of all to me. The pastel in the photo was created after a summer morning walk, looking across our pasture and hay field.

Art Alliance 'Fall Colors' Studio Tour

Flowers and pastel at Studio Tour

I enjoyed meeting new people who love art, and sharing my own recent works at last weekend's Art Alliance of Central PA 'Fall Colors ' Studio Tour. I was delighted that many people made the trek to our 1870 farmhouse, where I have my studio and studio gallery. Visitors shared enthusiasm about my framed oil and pastel paintings, as well as the set-up in my studio. Many were interested in how to organize equipment to paint outdoors, and I showed them the backpack and pastel box which I use- maybe I'll post a photo and description of that in an upcoming blog entry. I also enjoyed hearing about others' approaches to art-making, and art appreciation- it was fun to share with so many lively, spirited people! And many, many thanks to my friend Betsy for creating the artful floral arrangements which so nicely complimented my paintings, and to my husband, Tim, for building so many helpful items for my art-making!

Fall Colors

Palette for oil painting

As I stepped in to my studio this morning, and saw the palette of mixed oil paints, I was struck by the shift to fall colors... neutrals, and some bright warms are moving in, and greens quieting. I love the grey blue of the sky on many of these recent days too! I've been out plein air painting on a few crisp mornings just after dawn, and am also working eagerly on a large (3 ft. x 4 ft.!) oil painting of Mt. Nittany in the studio- am enjoying working on this big scale, with lots of room for gesture and texture!

Plein Air Painting: Interesting Question #1

Alice Kelsey painting at Spring Creek

I gave an informal talk/ show-and-tell about painting outdoors last weekend at the Bellefonte Art Museum, and really enjoyed the thoughtful questions offered by attendees. Many people were wondering about the experience of painting outside (en plein air), and the questions gave me a chance for fresh reflections on this mode of creating. I'll write about several of the questions and discussion in blog posts this week.

Do you remember the colors after you leave the scene?

Yes! I do, if I've managed to connect deeply with the scene, and engaged with it with some form of art-making at the scene. I've discovered that drawing or painting on location really helps me to harmonize with the scene before me, and see so much more..... there's something about getting my hand going making marks, even scratchy grey pencil touches, and my eye searching deeper, that centers me in the artistic process. Once I'm there, colors register somewhere in my being, and I can conjure them up later. With these color memories comes a sense of gratitude for having learned from nature about subtleties and combinations of colors that I wouldn't have dreamed up on my own. yet become part of me during the process of plein air painting!

Rug Hooking Workshop

'Pullets' 3 x 4' hooked rug, designed by Alice Kelsey, hooked by State College Rug Hookers

I'm excited to shift gears a bit, and concentrate on fiber arts in addition to continuing plein air painting.  I learned the art of rug hooking fifteen years ago from Sarah Hess, who grew up on a farm near Pine Grove Mills. Sarah recalls farm women making rugs from worn-out garments, reusing the material to add warmth and charm to the home. Rug hooking became a wonderful, exciting, new medium for me, and was very conducive to creating while my three children were young. It kept the 'creative fire' kindled in me, and was a bridge to learning how to use pastels as I created designs for the rugs. A small group of 'hookers' (wool that is!) gathered monthly to work together on the same rug, with younger women with kids (playing around the rug frame), and older retired women  working (and visiting!) together, until loop-by-loop a finished rug was grown! The group (State College Rug Hookers) created more than five large rugs, which were donated to raise scholarship funds for a local school (State College Friends School), and 4-H group (Centre County 4-H Sheep Club).

I enjoy the easy-going, bold creating in rug hooking, and the friendships developed in a shared creative process. I'll be teaching the basic skills at at local Fiber Arts Festival organized by the Huntingdon Arts Council, and hope to pass along the techniques which may blossom in others' lives! The PA Fiber Arts Fest takes place on May 25, 2013, and offers workshops in many types of fiber arts and related crafts- see http://fiberartsfest.org/information.html for information. There's still time to register, and if you are interested in rug hooking, I'd love to share my enthusiasm and technique tips with you!

Blossoms Like Crazy!

I'm astonished by the density of blossoms on the fruit trees right now! The peach trees are covered with swaths of pink, and apple trees studded with white petals! I've been painting them en plein air, and can't seem to go fast enough to keep up with their pace of growing! There's also so many aspects that appeal to me, from the beauty of each blossom up to the overall rhythms of the grove as a whole, and wonderful lines and interesting colors. I hope to go out painting again tomorrow, and see what I can learn, and come close to fitting on a piece of paper!

Evolution of a Work - "Fisherman's Paradise - Early Morning'

'Fisherman's Paradise - Early Morning' by Alice Kelsey (finished painting)

I've just finished this oil painting of a famous trout stream (Spring Creek), and thought I'd share a bit about the experiences along the way. Here's some photos and descriptions of the pastel which I created on location, and the stages which the oil painting based on the pastel went through.

 

Initial pastel, created on site

It was early morning on a chilly spring day when fellow artist Jeanne McKinney and I arrived on the banks of Spring Creek at Fisherman's Paradise (between Bellefonte and State College). This is a well-know, hallowed place for flyfishermen, where large numbers of healthy brown trout reside year-round, and are pretty challenging to catch! This was among the first places where Jeanne and I painted in the year-long stream painting project which is culminating in an exhibition at the Bellefonte Art Museum which opens in one week (May 5)! Standing on the bank, I liked the arc of the stream in to the distance and the rhythms of the big tree shapes, set off with backlighting. I described the experience of painting this pastel in an earlier blog post (see the March 21, 2012) As I painted, a flyfisherman appeared along the distant bank, studying the water, and I added a suggestion of his form in the distance.

Initial oil underpainting of 'Fisherman's Paradise - Early Morning.

After returning to the studio, I liked the composition, yet felt a need for a larger 'scale' (size) to fit the feel of the scene. I chose oil paint, to be able to work with thick and thin paint, and transparent colors in capturing the atmosphere of this place- the feeling of the cool spring morning, and mystery of the stream moving away to the distance. The above photo shows the initial lay-in, where I 'm establishing the basic composition

Early workings of 'Fisherman's Paradise - Early Morning'

Next I started to lay in some color, searching out the lovely, fresh colors of early spring greens.

More color added to 'Fisherman's Paradise - Early Morning'

The above photo shows the painting about mid-way through, with basic shapes and colors established. The main alteration to the finished work (top photo at beginning of post) was lightening the foreground stream, and darkening the left background trees.

Initial pastel and final oil

And here they are together, the plein air pastel, and finished oil painting! The oil painting can be seen at my joint exhibition ('Water Ways- Paintings by Alice Kelsey and Jeanne McKinney') at the Bellefonte Art Museum. I welcome you to come to the reception (May 5, 1 - 4:30 pm), and would enjoy talking with you more about this work and others! See my website www.alicekelsey.com for info. about the show.