Plein air pastel landscape painting of an old farmhouse seen from the fields.

Pastel painting 11 inches x 8 inches

Wandering the farmlands of southeastern Michigan, I find many beautiful old farms tucked into the rolling hills. I did this pastel landscape painting just west of Saline. While I was painting, an old man who was cutting the lawn came up to my easel to chat. I thought he was the owner of the farm but he was neighbor who rented the land to plant his crops. He explained to me that the owners had recently moved to a senior home and that none of their children wanted to take on the hard work of farm life. So, over time, this old place built in the 1880s, will probably be abandoned. When I paint, I often wonder about the history of the site: Who lived there? What did the many generations of family experience here? Sometimes I’m lucky to learn some interesting little tidbits about my subjects and that makes them all the more fascinating to me.

Watercolor painting 8.5 inches x 4.5 inches   SOLD

Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.

This is another plein air watercolor study from Labor Day. I loved the way this old family farm nestled into the scraggley fields that had been harvested and cropped to the ground. It gave the scene some texture and interest.

I paint a lot of my watercolor studies on a plastic-like paper called Yupo. The surface allows the color to pool on top instead of sink in like most watercolor papers. It really forces me to use a quick, fresh approach because you can’t keep layering over the paint you’ve already put down. If you do, it tends to bring up the color you have already applied. The final artwork looks a bit more like an acrylic than traditional watercolor.

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 4 inches $100 + shipping

Please contact me if you are interested in this artwork.

This is another small plein air watercolor of the same farm. I painted this on yupo which is a new plastic-type paper. The colors pool on the surface instead of sinking into to the paper and create a very dynamic, expressive image.