"Tulips on Orange Batik Shawl"

"Tulips on Orange Batik Shawl" -- oil on canvas 24x24" -- Margie Guyot

Surprisingly, cut tulips seem to last a lot longer than I'd expected.  And they get more and more interesting as they age, with leaves twisting and the blossoms leaning and opening wider.  Why throw them out? 

For an interesting challenge, I decided to set them upon a bright orange batik shawl I'd snagged at a rummage sale.  Some people might find this garish, but I loved it.  It's a bright bit of "fire" in an otherwise dark, gloomy Michigan winter.

One trick I discovered about painting fabric wrinkles is to use Liquin and paint in the "hills and valleys" in the solid background color.  In a day or so the surface will be dry enough to paint in the printed design.  I didn't always know this.  Felt like a genius when I finally figured it out!

And no, it still didn't make things much easier for painting wrinkled fabrics --- only a bit quicker!  But what else is there to do up here in winter?  I refuse to pay for TV (so I don't have any).  And housecleaning is SUCH a drag.  You clean and the next day everything's trashed again.  Might as well sit and play around with colors!

"Barnes Park, Looking South, Looking North"

"Barnes Park, Looking South" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

Photo by Babs Young: view from the shore

Babs Young clambered over the snow and ice to get a closeup of me in action.

This has been the strangest winter.  Unusually warm, with very little snow.  Most days have been dark and gloomy.  With such dreary sights, I haven't felt much like going out plein air painting.  But a few days ago (2/19/12), the sun came out and I thought what the heck!  I'm going down to Barnes Park (in Eastport) and see what the ice looks like. 

I pulled on my Arctic-weight boots and long underwear.  It may be a balmy 40 degrees back at the house, but it can be drastically cooler out on the ice.  That wind can just howl across the ice.  But luckily, it was quite pleasant.  To my left (out of the photo) is a very steep hill, which helped radiate the sun's heat. 

Having grown up in Iowa, the sight of ice pileups on the Great Lakes always amazes me.  After finishing the 8x10" view, looking south towards Traverse City, I gathered up my gear and walked north on the ice a block or two.

All the warm weather affected the snow and ice.  After finishing my second painting of the view looking north, I packed everything up and was making my way back when my left foot fell into a hidden crevass.  Yikes -- it was a struggle to pull out.  It was all I could do to yank my boot out!  I'd gone in up to my knee.  It was a good thing I didn't twist my ankle.  But my painting fell face-down into the snow:

melting snow on "Barnes Park, Looking North"

"Barnes Park, Looking North" -- (repaired) plein air field study on stretched canvas 8x16" -- Margie Guyot

OK, the view is looking more northwest, with the Leelanau Peninsula in the distance.  Northport is right at the tip.  After leaving my snow-covered painting dry overnight in the studio, I was able to repair the damage.  

"Grapes and Pink Glass Bowl"

"Grapes and Pink Glass Bowl" -- oil on canvas 30x30" -- Margie Guyot

When I set up this still life, it looked so complicated, I didn't know if I could pull it off.  Could I finish it before the grapes rotted?  I'm always challenging myself, though, so I just ignore my fears and start.  And how do I start?  Always with something I know: using a yardstick, I lightly draw in the crosshairs onto the canvas.  Looking through my little viewfinder, I try to determine just where the center  point is.  Seemed to me the center point was on the plastic bag.  I put a little mark of paint right there.

Before I figured out the trick of marking the center point, I'd have trouble fitting everything into the still life.  Half of my composition would run off the canvas!  I'm always looking through the viewfinder, trying to estimate whether something is 1/2 or 1/3 of the way up or down, right or left.  And I do a lot of measuring, using my paintbrush at arm's length, comparing distances and sizes to objects.  In this painting, my "unit of measure" was the green apple at the upper right.  Everything related to the size of that apple. 

It's a good way to control one's panic, comparing everything in a painting to one object's size. 

Recently I was given 2 young cats to watch for a friend for the next 6 months.  Of course I'm figuring it will be a permanent thing.  The kitties were fascinated by the grapes in the plastic bags.  They kept trying to fish grapes out and bat them around.  Every afternoon when I quit painting, I had to cover the setup with a tablecloth to keep the kitties from destroying it.  And I always clean off my palette and park it way up high, where Flower and Butterfly can't walk all over it.

I've found resale shops sometimes have very colorful (and ghastly!) silk scarves, quite cheap.  I liked the purple and red scarf.  I wouldn't be caught dead in it, but it added something to the  painting.   The bright reds of the scarf were echoed in the red geranium blossoms.  My studio windowsills are lined with geraniums all winter, where they bloom like mad.  

"Granny Smiths"

"Granny Smiths" -- oil on canvas 24x24" -- Margie Guyot

I had the urge to paint another apple still life.  This time I wanted to do something with Granny Smith apples, since I'd painted quite a few Honeycrisps lately.  I love the green!  If you've been following my blog at all, you may have noticed I love painting vintage tablecloths as well.  And I don't shy away from painting folds and wrinkles, either.  What else is there to do, anyway?  Iron sheets?  Wash walls?  No, I'd sooner be figuring out how to paint things!

Often I'll decide on the color scheme before I set up a still life.  Years ago I was in a gallery out West when I realized that the paintings that seemed to jump off the wall were done in contrasting colors: red and green.  Orange and blue.  Lavender and yellow.  I love bright colors and a "this one's jumping off the wall!" type feeling, so much of the time I will consciously decide on contrasting colors before I set things up.

I've used this red and white tablecloth in several other paintings.  I snagged it in an antique store in Traverse City a year or two ago. 

The apples -- I'd planned on buying a bag of them, but the bagged ones all looked too green.  Like they weren't ripe yet.  Super-green, gill-grabbers!  So I had to pick out individual ones, going for the more pale ones at Meijer's.  A couple had faint tinges of red (all the better!).

And it was such a crazy week to try to paint!  A 6" snowfall, 2 rehearsals (I'm in 3 different musical groups), plus I taught 2 art classes and had art show opening at the Dennos Museum in Traverse City.  There were constant interruptions, but sometimes that's good, too.  It can be helpful to step away from one's painting, then come back to it to "see it with a fresh eye".

What's next?  A red apple with green tablecloth?  Possibly!

"Ford Flex in Snow"

"Flex in Snow" -- plein air field study -- 8x10" oil on birch panel -- Margie Guyot

Setup for "Flex in Snow", January 13, 2012

This has been the strangest winter.  Up until January 13th, we'd only had 1" of snow.  Many days were 40 degrees (or more).  I was hoping we would get some snowfall so I could do some paintings of cedar trees in the snow, ideally on a bright, sunny day, so there would be blue shadows.  I haven't seen this combination yet, but it could still happen.

So last Friday I woke up to 6" of snow.  It was still snowing here and I was so excited, I wanted to paint it.  From past experience, I've learned it's next to impossible to paint when the snow is falling.  It ends up on your palette, mixing in with the oil paints.  Just an icky mess!  

The whole front side of my house has a porch with an overhanging roof, so I set up my Soltek easel and painted this view of my Ford Flex.  Keep your fingers crossed for a sunny day + snow!

Oh -- I get asked this all the time: how is your Flex in the snow?  Great!  This one's got AWD and I've never had a problem.  I managed to get out of my long driveway, through the pileup at the end that the snowplow leaves, and out onto the highway.  And there's lots of cargo room for transporting big paintings. 

Lumpy Blue Pumpkin

"Lumpy Blue Pumpkin" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

Isn't this the coolest pumpkin?  I found it at a roadside stand by Traverse City a couple weeks ago.  To me, it looks a bit on the blue side.  And the lumps just made it even more amazing!  

 

At first I set it down in the green grass, where I'd painted my other pumpkins.  But since it's rather blue-ish, I thought it might look better in warmer rust tones -- dry grass and fallen leaves.  

 

The sun struggled to come out this afternoon.  And it was pretty chilly.  I had to wear my down winter coat to paint this.  The wind was pretty steady, blowing my hat off a couple times.  But at least there were no mosquitoes!

 

Right after I finished painting, the light rain started.  Great timing! 

Hot Dog!

"Hot Dog #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

A diversion from the sweets for a little while!  Who doesn't like a good ol' dawg?  Up north here in Michigan, we're still enduring remnants of winter: dark, gloomy skies, snow, drizzle, etc.  Yesterday afternoon was so dark, the hot dog looked very gray-looking.  Not at all appetizing.  Well, to start with, the dawg itself wasn't so great.  I was using one of the ultra-cheapies from Meijer's.  They were $1 a pound.  I'd bought them 2 months ago to throw to the semi-tame possums.  They looked SO pitiful out in the snow, snuffling for fallen sunflower seeds.  They really loved hot dogs, though!  In fact, if I saw them out in the yard, I'd yell, "Possum!" and they actually would come running to get their dawg.  Nothing quite so funny as a little possum with a weenie hanging out of its mouth, bounding through the deep snow!

So back to this particular hot dog.  I had to make it look fatter and more reddish.  For lack of a better idea yesterday, I just zig-zagged on a line of yellow mustard.  But I plan on doing more interesting combinations in the future.

When I finished painting, I broke off a piece of the bun and gave it to Henny Penny, my studio chicken. She loved it.  But when I threw the rest of it into the chicken coop, the chickens remained on their roosts, peering down at it with suspicion: what the devil was THIS?  Nobody moved.

Having finished cleaning up my painting mess, I snuck back into the coop area to take a peek.  Oh yes -- the hot dog was long gone!  I wonder if their eggs will taste like hot dogs in a few days?   

Donut with Sprinkles; Danish

 "Donut with Sprinkles" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Danish" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

At last: several sunny days in Michigan!  Our winters are generally overcast, so it was exciting to have strong sunlight and shadows.  The shadow shape of the donut, with its sprinkles, was what I found most interesting.  And I loved the bright colors of the sprinkles.  A friend had brought me a few pastries from Johann's in Petoskey.  When I first saw this donut, I was rather surprised.  It is a variety I probably never would have bought for myself.  But it ended up being a visual treat!

Last of the bunch was the Danish.  Painting the jelly was my favorite party!  Love painting "mooshy" things!  The bakery must have some kind of mechanized "thingie" that puts the frosting glaze on.  I found the stripes fascinating, especially the color changes as they fell into shadows.  Another fun one to do! 

"Lunch Break"

"Lunch Break" -- oil on canvas -- 24x30" -- Margie Guyot

Pansies are such sweet little flowers, so welcome after the long winter! I snapped up a flat of them one day last week, getting an assortment of every available color. After laying in the basic lines of the composition, I spent an entire afternoon painting in the blooms. They wouldn't last.

From there it was relatively easy. The pineapple pitcher came from a resale shop. I'll have to use it again -- it's just too cool!

The striped glasses seemed to go well with things, although they're pretty tough to paint. Obelisks are always a big challenge.

But where did I stash my gardening gloves? I've had to move everything I own several times in the past 2 years, so it took a while to find them. These gloves were fairly easy to paint, thank goodness!

I'd painted in the outline of the plate but left finishing it for last. What to put on that plate? I've used cookies so often, I wanted something else. The grocery stores up here offer such nasty-looking pastries: electric blue frosting, plastic toys, glitter -- ugh! So I decided to paint a sandwich. Alas, I haven't had bread in the house in over a year. Luckily, my neighbor Pete had some and graciously gave me 2 slices. I slapped some lettuce between and quickly painted it.

The laundry needed tending, so by the time I got back to the studio, the kitties had disassembled the sandwich. No meat -- sorry buddies! I gave the lettuce & bread to the chickens.

Still, the sandwich looked a bit bare. An olive would look spiffy! Rummaged around in the fridge and found a jar. Yikes! It was pretty old. The olives had turned brown. Had to paint the olive from memory.

This painting went fairly quickly, as I've finally gotten a lot better about using Liquin as a medium. Instead of having to wait days for a section to dry, I can usually continue painting the next day. Ah, what is that saying? "Better living though chemistry!"

"Spring Thaw -- My Driveway" -- plein air field study -- oil on stretched canvas -- 9x12" -- Margie Guyot

After days and days of driving all over, schlepping paintings hither and yon, playing gigs on my sax, I finally had a day I didn't have to go anywhere. So glad to stay home! I carried my Soltek easel down the driveway and set up to paint this view. What struck me as most interesting were the patterns of gravel exposed in the melting snow. And the shade cast from the red pine trees (unseen, on the right).

As I painted, my 3 cats hung close by, exploring and keeping an eye on "mommy".

This was the first time in months that I did not have to wear my heavy down coat. It was relatively balmy, up to around 40 degrees. Although I'll miss painting the ice pileups on Lake Michigan, I must admit I'm happy for spring to return.

"9 Mile Point - 3/06/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on stretched canvas -- 10x20" -- Margie Guyot

Spring is coming. The ice out on Lake Michigan is starting to break up and pile along the shoreline. This spot is south of Bay Harbor, between Charlevoix and Petoskey. There's a pull-off area along US 31 for parking. I was thankf...ul for my snow boots and heavy down jacket. Although it was about 40 degrees, the wind howling off the lake made it feel a lot cooler. I was struck by the patterns of jagged ice that ran diagonally along the shore. As I painted, big chunks of "icebergs" floated in. It was getting to be late afternoon and I just loved the blue shadows. Painting snow colors is quite interesting. If you've never had to paint them, snow colors are surprising. Snow isn't white, but ranges from lilacs to blues to yellowish-grays. Mesmerizing.

"Thawing Ice - 3/04/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas -- 12x24" -- Margie Guyot

Spring is slowly arriving here in NW Michigan. Ice patterns out on Lake Michigan have captured my interest this winter. Today I went to one of my favorite little parks, Banks Township Park, just south of Norwood. It's one of the few parks I can drive into without getting stuck. I perched my Soltek easel on a side of the hill overlooking the shoreline. Every time I go there, the ice looks different.

The diagonal "stripes" in the foreground were caused by the strong winds, blowing the snow along the beach.

I loved the almost turquoise-looking water that showed up in spots. Lots of chunks of ice floating around, blown in by the wind. A few diver ducks were present. Although it was a balmy 40 degrees, I was grateful to have on my heavy down coat and hood, gloves and winter boots. That wind was cold! I'd forgotten to change pants, though. I had on a pair of jeans that have a little rip - and that cold wind was blasting through.

That's the Leelanau Peninsula in the distance. I'm glad spring is on the way, but I must admit I'll miss painting the ice.

Check out the snow on this palette! I could barely paint with it by the end.

"Snowy Afternoon 2/26/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas -- 11x14" -- Margie Guyot

It was only snowing lightly when I left m house, bound for Charlevoix. A photographer from the Petoskey News was going to meet me at the Charlevoix Circle of Art and I couldn't stand her up. Originally the plan had been to meet at the Circle and then head out for the ice at Norwood. However, a blizzard was in progress, so we decided to stay more in town.

I parked next to the Circle of Art and set up my Soltek right next to the building. Anything to keep out of the wind! I also tried setting up the BestBrella to try to keep the snow off my palette. But it was useless. I just vowed to paint fast as I could.

This view is looking north, down a small alley in Charlevoix. The photographer came and got a charge out of my crazy outfit. I had on my neon-orange polartec pants from LL Bean and my wolf fur trapper hat. And my heavyweight down coat that makes me look like I weigh 400 pounds. Rather eccentric. Oh well. At least I was warm.

"Banks Twp. Park 2/21/10" -- plein air field study -- oil on stretched canvas -- 10x20" -- Margie Guyot

A beautiful sunny day here and the temperature rose above freezing. Still, I was glad I had my heavy down coat, balaclava, hat and gloves! That wind coming off the lake was still pretty chilly. I parked in the lot at Barnes Township Park and pitched my easel on the little hill overlooking Lake Michigan. A low cloudbank was in the west, but otherwise it was blue skies. The ice was breaking up and I loved this view. Snow has melted enough to catch glimpses of the boulders along the sandy shoreline (in the foreground). In the distance you can see the Leelanau Peninsula.

"Waves - Norwood Beach 2/19/20" -- plein air field study -- 10x20" -- Margie Guyot

It was a rare sunny day here in NW Michigan and it had me inspired! Not wanting to waste time showering, I pulled on snowpants on over my pajamas, threw on my heavy down coat, loaded my gear into the car and drove to Norwood Beach. The wind was brisk, raising tremendous whitecaps. And the wind had created some deep drifts in the snow since the last time I was there. It was about knee-deep in places as I headed out to my favorite spot.

The ice beyond the big pileup clumps looked treacherous. The crashing waves were causing the ice to undulate. Really cool to watch!

I was glad to have received my box of 10x20" stretched canvases in the mail. Painting in that format is rather new to me -- and I think it's just the thing for this type of landscape.

Wore my balaclava and new hat, which was a great combination. My face didn't feel cold (for once!). The new hat has a wide brim, is very lightweight and has a strong chinstrap. No fun having to chase your hat across the ice!

"Frozen Orchard -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas -- 9x12" -- Margie Guyot

It was 4 degrees out this morning but the sun was making diamonds in the snow! How could I resist? I layered on the clothes, threw on the snowboots and lugged my stuff out into my little orchard. For once I was thankful for hot flashes!

"White Cyclamen" -- oil on canvas -- 11x14" -- Margie Guyot

It felt SO good to be inside my nice, warm studio this afternoon! I'd bought this white cyclamen a few days ago in Petoskey and thought it might look pretty, paired with this old tablecloth. About half the time I spent removing one of the cats from the setup. They liked to bask next to the plant in the sun.

If I can keep this plant alive for another week or so, I'd like to use it in another still life or two.