Full Moon

 "Full Moon -- Rex Beach" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

 "Full Moon and Cloud" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10" 

"Full Moon -- Scott Road" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

The other night the full moon was glorious!  I tend to hit the sheets pretty early, but I was just WIRED!  How could I possibly sleep when it was so beautiful outside??  I'd never painted en plein air during a full moon, but nothing was going to stop me. 

Since you see only 3 values during a full moon, the darkest dark, a medium sky tone and the bright moon, painting is relatively easy.  I pre-mixed a dark-dark and a medium tone in the studio before I ventured out.  Once out on location, I only had to turn on my flashlight a relatively few times to see what I was doing.

First stop was my favorite hang-out, Rex Beach.  You can drive right down to the water.  As usual, I had the entire park -- hell! the entire coastline! -- to myself.  Normally I park back in the parking lot, but I felt daring enough to park on the sand.  Sometimes people get stuck there, so I very carefully cruised through in low gear.  It was SO wonderful to be down at the water's edge, painting!  All I could hear was gentle waves and once in a while a coyote yipping.  Still, I did look around once in a while for any approaching cougars.

A big cloud moved over the sky and as it passed under the moon, I was amazed to see the rusty tones and hints of ochre!  Very bizarre.  

I only had 3 panels with me, so the last painting was done on my road: Scott Road.  I could have painted ALL NIGHT.  Really a blast!  Maybe this winter I'll try doing it in the snow.

Late September Sunsets

 "Sunset #1: Rex Beach, 9/28/11"  -- oil on birch panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

 "Sunset #2: Rex Beach, 9/28/11"  -- oil on birch panel 8x16" -- Margie Guyot

 

Running behind on my blog posts again!  Towards sunset there was an interesting bank of clouds moving toward the west.  I threw all my gear into the car and headed down to my favorite spot, Rex Beach, south of Charlevoix.  That's the Leelanau Peninsula in the background.

 

It's amazing how quickly the sky changes!  I painted as quickly as possible to finish the first one, then walked it back to the car.  Sitting finished, wet oil paintings on the sand, I discovered to my chagrin, is a no-no!  Although it might seem to be calm, there is always a little breeze going on down at sand-level.  I have a beach painting that's covered with a fine layer of sand.  And contrary to what people say, it does NOT brush off once the painting is dry!  Same goes for bugs, too.  They are attracted to wet paint and by golly -- they die there.  I end up having to paint over them later.

 

By the time I got back down to the easel everything had changed.  The sun had actually dipped below the horizon, but there was still plenty enough light to see to paint.  I liked the clouds, how they appeared "dotty" at the top. 

9/23/11 Sunset at Rex Beach

 

"9/23/11 Rex Beach at Sunset" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

It had been an absolutely gorgeous September afternoon, with clear, blue skies.  That morning I'd butchered one of the rabbits (quite a job -- I was new to the procedure!).  And it seemed like I'd labored most of the afternoon, making rabbit stew.  Which was an adventure in itself.  

As evening approached, a large cloud bank came out of the East, promising for an interesting sunset.   It appeared my long-awaited rabbit stew was finally ready.  Ah, the dilemma: paint or eat?  But the clouds looked so wonderous, I just had to shut off the stove, cover the pot, throw my Soltek easel into the car and head down to Rex Beach.  All I'd eaten all afternoon was the rabbit liver (which was delicious!), but eating could wait!

Good thing I'd put on a polartec jacket AND a windbreaker: it was getting a bit nippy!  I set up on my favorite spot, next to a couple relatively flat large rocks, with a view across Grand Traverse Bay towards Northport.  As usual, I had the entire coastline to myself.  Sunsets change SO rapidly, there's no time to chitchat or dither.  It's a race to finish!  Ten, fifteen minutes and the show's over.  Darkness descends.

As I was packing up, a minivan pulled up into the boat launch area and parked.  It was driven by a young woman nurse who had taken her patient, a quadriplegic older man, for a view of the sunset.  They were both friendly.  We talked briefly as she exercised her patient's legs.  Like many of us up here, she'd moved up from one of the Detroit suburbs.  The man seemed in good spirits.  I could see he was in good hands.

So it was another experience reminding me of the importance of making the most of every day.  Everything is a choice: do we want to lay on the couch, watching TV -- or do we want to go paint a sunset?  The rabbit stew?  It was just perfect!  Oh, and I only had 2 bugs stuck in my paint at the end.

Rex Beach 9-15-11

 "Rex Beach - 9/15/11" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 8x16"

setup at Rex Beach 9/15/11

All day long the clouds were SO fantastic!  I waited until late in the day, then drove to my favorite spot, Rex Beach.  Glad I'd dressed in layers -- that wind was howing the whole time and it was pretty chilly.  Here I'm looking over Grand Traverse Bay to the Leelanau Peninsula.  Parts of the peninsula were getting rain squalls.  

Up until this summer, I'd not tried painting in this type of format: long and narrow.  It's kind of fun to do, as I get to show more of the dramatic skies.  

And yes, that's a Soltek easel.  After having to get the legs repaired a couple times, I've finally learned to keep the leg tips enclosed in plastic.  Once sand gets inside, the legs go kaflooey!  Other than that, it's been a good easel.

As usual, I had the entire beach to myself.  This little park is only 3.5 miles from my house and I can drive very close to the beach.  There is a turnaround at water's edge, designed for boat drop-offs, but I've seen many people get stuck there.  Which is why I always park in the designated parking lot.  

Although it was still light enough to paint another, I thought it would be pushing my luck.  The rain squall might just hit in the middle of another painting.  I packed up and stashed everything into the car, then returned for a walk along the beach.  Found 2 small Petoskey stones (fossilized coral, originally formed along the coastline of Chile).  Beach visits always revive me!

Sometimes it's almost dark when I walk back to my car, carrying all my equipment.  That is when I think about packs of rabid coyotes, hungry bears, mountain lions on the prowl.

Sunset - Rex Beach 10/01/10

"Sunset - Rex Beach 10/01/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

Rain, rain and more rain!  It stopped for a few hours at the end of the day, so I took a chance and went back to Rex Beach to try to do another field study.  I'd finally run out of canvas panels, so used a birch panel, heavily shellacked, my friend Caesar Citraro gave me.  Wow -- a friend with a table saw -- who's not afraid to USE it!  Worth his weight in gold!

I really enjoy painting on birch panels.  Unlike canvas, they are nice and smooth, allowing the oil paint to goosh out freely.  I'd paint on nothing else if I could.

The entire sky was filled with dark rain clouds, with the exception of this thin wedge of gold to the north.  Right as I finished painting, the rain started again.  Chilly rain, too!   

Sunset paintings @ Rex Beach 9/29/10

 "Rex Beach #2 --  9/29/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

Sometimes I'll get 2 paintings in before it gets too dark to work.  This is the 2nd one of the evening.  When I look around, trying to figure out what to paint, the question on my mind is always "what is there that is most amazing?".  In this case, it was the bank of dark storm clouds to the north.  While I painted happily away on the beach at Eastport, Harbor Springs and Petoskey were getting pounded!  The rain didn't arrive at my house until after 10:30 PM.   

"Sunset #1 - Rex Beach 9/29/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

This view is looking west across Lake Michigan from Rex Beach.  That's the Leelanau Penninsula in the distance, home to many small vineyards and wineries.  When I came down to paint this evening, what struck me immediately were the beautiful clouds to the south of the larger, ominous storm front in the north.  I had to paint very fast to get this onto canvas.  

This winter I might use some of these small field studies in a larger work.  I'd like to experiment with a technique to get the skies to appear to glow.  First I'll paint the sky in pure white and leave it dry.  Then I'll follow with some very thin glazes of color and Liquin.  It seems that when you mix white into colors to create a pastel, it tends to gray everything.  Make things chalky.  Which is not "glowing".  It's worth a try.

Dusk - Rex Beach 8/29/10

"Dusk - Rex Beach 8/29/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel -- 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

The cooler, chilly and rainy weather of late summer has arrived.  This view was painted from my favorite "sunset" spot, Rex Beach.  It's about 3 miles from my house, right on the shoreline of Lake Michigan.  People may be surprised, but the lakeshore is full of little inlets like these.  The water stays shallow for quite a distance out.  

We're starting to experience an invasion of "phragmites": tall, non-native reeds.  Efforts are underway to eradicate them before they take over the entire shoreline.  

This painting was done AFTER the sun had dipped below the horizon and the light was fading fast.

"Sunset #1: Rex Beach 8/15/10"

"Sunset #1: Rex Beach 8/15/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel -- 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

It's been very windy here the past couple days, so when I first got down to Rex Beach I prowled along the shoreline, hoping to find a Petoskey stone or two.  The waves usually bring them in.  No luck.  I was killing a little time, waiting for the big cloud bank to move south a little more.

The view was spectacular!  I could see patches of heavy rainfall out over the lake.  Somebody was getting pounded.  I found out later Harbor Springs, Petoskey and Charlevoix were catching hell.  Dry as a bone where I stood (just north of Eastport).  

But the wind!  It was difficult to paint a straight horizon line with my hand being buffeted by the wind gusts.  I looked up and saw the sun in this position, peeking out for one last look before being covered by the clouds.  

The view changes by the second!  There's the urge to keep changing the painting, but I've learned from experience not to do this too much.  You can drive yourself crazy, following the endless changes.

"Sunset #2: Rex Beach 8/15/10"

"Sunset #2: Rex Beach 8/15/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel -- 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

The sun had just dipped below the horizon, but there was still lots of light, enough to paint a second (or even a third) painting.  I was looking north, out over Lake Michigan, towards Harbor Springs.  I could see there was quite a rainstorm going on out over the lake.  Still very windy -- hard to hold my brush still enough to paint the horizon line.  But very refreshing, after last week's heat wave!

After I got home, a friend called to say his wife (an oboe player) had gotten rained out of the Harbor Springs Community Band's concert.  They'd gotten through about mid-way through their third number when the conductor had to stop and announce they had to end.  Such a mad scramble to pack up instruments, stands, chairs and music!  They managed to square it all away seconds before the giant deluge.

It was dry as a bone where I stood, thank goodness.  The rain didn't hit here in Eastport until after about 11 PM. 

Sunset 7 07 10

"Sunset 7 07 10" -- oil on stretched canvas -- 8x16" -- Margie Guyot

I've been lagging behind on my posts!  Trying to catch up.  Last night a storm was rolling in over Lake Michigan; there was no bright red sun peeking out.   No dazzling oranges, no golds.  It was actually quite monochromatic between the shades of grays/lavenders/blues.  But I drove down to Rex Beach (only about 2 miles away) and painted anyway.  I loved the way the distant water seemed to have a bright glow, reflecting some of the clouds above.  I liked the "dappled" look of some of the darker, closer clouds.  


As usual, I had the entire beach to myself.  It was very peaceful.  Once in a while a big fish -- a carp?  lake trout?  would leap up and grab a bug.  I'd sprayed myself with mosquito lotion back at the car, so I was able to paint relatively undisturbed.


Today I had to gently scrape off 6 dead gnats that had imbedded themselves into the painting, in between the beach and my car.  At least they were small!  Sometimes the larger mayflies swarm and stick not only my painting but the palette and turpentine bucket as well.  Such fun!


That's the Leelanau Peninsula in the distance.  And it's Lake Michigan.  A great place to live (and paint!).

Nearing Sunset - the Deer Field

"Nearing Sunset -- the Deer Field" -- plein air field study -- oil on stretched canvas -- 8x16" -- Margie Guyot

The clouds looked promising for an interesting sunset painting at Rex Beach, so I loaded up the Flex and headed down Old Dixie Highway, towards Norwood.  On the way I decided to pull over and check out this field.  It's only about a mile north of my house.  What a view!  I had to paint it.


I love painting in late-day.  Love the shadow patterns and colors!  Very peaceful time of day.  Unlike where I used to live, in a suburb of Detroit, up here the air is clean.  Very little traffic.  Nobody hassles me.  I was able to paint this "unmolested".  The only sounds were the insects.  


Right here the soil is very sandy.  I guess it used to be part of the old lake bottom.  Lots of rocks.  If you're lucky, you can spot old Indian arrowheads.  Or maybe Petoskey stones, which are fossilized coral that was originally formed off the coast of Chile.  Over the millions of years, these fossilized coral pieces have moved (via plate-shifting) up to the coastline of Lake Michigan.  They're found nowhere else in the world.


So the soil is very poor in spots.  Some fields aren't used for crops.  There are certain weeds that do well here, however.  A type of wild sorrel, known by some as "British Soldiers" for its red blooms, likes it here.  And moss.  Daisies grow here, too.  I added a few into the foreground of this painting.  In the distance you see maples, aspen and birch.  Out of sight, to the right, is a lily pond.


My some miracle, the mosquitoes weren't too horrible.  Or at least I didn't notice them much.  Threw it all into the back of the Flex and hurried down to Rex Beach, where I painted a sunset scene (see next blog).

Sunset - 6/16/10

"Sunset - 6/16/20" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas panel -- 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

I painted this down at Rex Beach, south of Norwood.  Nobody else on the beach (which is the usual case).  It's wonderful here!  Felt like a millionaire -- like it was my private, personal beach!


But there was no time for dithering!  I'm always careful to park in the parking lot -- not in the turnaround place, as it looks like a good spot to get stuck in the sand.  Seems so rude to park there, even if nobody else is around.  And I don't have a cell phone, so if I got stuck, that would be a major hassle.  

There were very large dog tracks in the sand.  Or at least I hoped they were dog tracks and not coyote tracks.  Large, ravenous coyotes.  But one has to think positively!  Can't wimp out!

The sun was sinking fast.  I'd left most of my gear back at the car, only carrying the Soltek easel, my turpentine, paper towels and a canvas panel.  Set up the easel and realized my palette wasn't very full of "the essentials", especially white paint.  Wondered if I'd have enough to paint this, but didn't want to walk all the way back to the car.


Sometimes I think paintings turn out better if you paint them fast as possible, anyway.  Use a big brush.  Go for the main shapes.  Small canvases are good, too.  And thank goodness the bugs left me alone!  Or, at least I was so interested in what I was doing, I didn't notice any mosquitoes.


How does one paint a brilliant sun?  It's impossible to look at.  I had to look to the side, as it was absolutely blinding.  White with a touch of yellow is about the brightest, most intense tone I could use.  All the other colors had to be related to that, to make the sun appear glowing. 


Ah, I wish I could let you hear the tree frogs in this post!  They were almost deafening as I walked back to the car. Wonderful little frogs -- and I never see them.  May they prosper and multiply!