Plein air watercolor landscape painting of a working farm and barns seen from the field.
Watercolor painting 9.5 inches x 6.5 inches $125
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Getting into the watercolor mode! I was out on the back roads again searching for that perfect farm to paint. The weather has been absolutely fantastic here in Michigan and the bright sunlight really makes the old red barns pop. I painted this watercolor landscape out of the back of my trunk. There was a lot of activity going on, but the hardworking farmers moved way to fast to paint them!
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.
Plein air pastel landscape painting of silos seen from summer Michigan fields.
Pastel painting 11 inches x 8 inches
This field is not far from my house in an area that is scheduled for a large business park development. It breaks my heart to see all of the beautiful woods and farmlands eaten up by urban sprawl. Its one of the reasons I keep painting pastel landscape paintings of farms and fields. I’ll be able to remember them after the huge steel and glass monstrosities replace them…
Plein air pastel landscape painting of a barn seen from barren fields.
Pastel painting 11 inches x 8. inches $200
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Some of the fields around here are planted and starting to green up, but a lot of them are still full of the stubbly waste from last years crops. The acres of broken stalks make interesting texture for pastel landscapes. Sometimes spring is a difficult time for plein air because everything is so darn “perky” and green. It’s nice to find some gritty compositional elements to break up all of the emerald.
Plein air pastel landscape painting of a spring farm seen from the fields
Pastel painting 12.5 inches x 6 inches $200
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Yeah! The first plein air pastel landscape of the year! I’ve been pining to get out and paint but much too wimpy to brave the cold. This pastel painting was created on a burgundy sanded paper at an old farm site with last year’s sheared crops still visible in the fields.
Plein air pastel landscape painting of a golden autumn field and distant tree line.
Pastel painting 9 inches x 6 inches $100
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After the nice farmer man offered me his “back yard” to paint in, I drove way back in to his fields til I found this intriguing scene. I liked the strong diagonal of the grassy lane and the endless golden fields. The colorful little trees in the background made a perfect focal point. I painted quickly because now it was after five p.m. and REALLY cold. But I’m happy I stayed to add this pastel painting to my autumn landscape series. In a couple of months, when winter descends, I’m sure I will be pining for this type of “mild” weather…
Plein air pastel painting of sunlit fields in autumn
Pastel painting 11 inches x 8 inches $200
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Another pastel landscape painting from my plein air travels last weekend. I was wandering around the farms south of Ann Arbor and noticed the sunlight illuminating the soybean crops and the green fields beyond. The colors were almost psychedelic and the stand of trees in the foreground made a perfect focal point. I’m really drawn to the way forests in the distance turn a vibrant shade of blue when seen through the atmosphere…
Visited the Chelsea Painters show at the Riverside Arts Center in Ypsilanti last night. Wonderful portrait and figure paintings inspired me to work on a new series of watercolor portraits!
Plein air pastel landscape painting of a distant barn seen from the fields
Pastel painting 9.5 inches x 6 inches SOLD
Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.
This beautiful old farm on Judd Road in Saline caught my eye last weekend. On cloudy days, it would seem like the landscape should be dull and drab, but its really the exact opposite. All the colors become hyper saturated in relation to the dismal sky. I love autumn in Michigan when all the crops turn rusty ochre. To me, a pastel painting of golden soy bean fields can be more exciting than the traditional landscapes filled with brightly colored fall trees. I painted this piece on white paper that I had underpainted with a bright red watercolor wash. I like to leave some of that red color peaking through the pastel to unify the painting.
Hope the weather holds so that I can get out again this weekend…
Plein air pastel landscape painting of rolling fields and a farm in the distance.
Pastel painting 9 inches x 6 inches SOLD
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The fields are all starting to turn and the colors are becoming more like autumn here in southern Michigan. In the late afternoon, the sun casts a warm, golden light on the farmland near our home. To me, it is simply irresistible.
I am constantly drawn to this type of pastel landscape painting, over and over again. I swear it is because, in some earlier incarnation, I was born and raised on a MidWest farm very much like this one. I can’t explain my fascination with barns, and crops and fields in any other way. I certainly don’t know much about that lifestyle. I just can’t stop painting farmscapes!
Plein air pastel landscape painting of an old farm in Michigan
Pastel painting 8.5 inches x 11 inches $200
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It was a beautiful and sunny on Saturday, so i wandered the dirt roads west of our home looking for a likely subject to paint. I did this pastel landscape sitting under a shade tree on Lindeman Road. The gorgeous old farmhouse looked like it had been build in the mid 1800′s but was beautifully kept up with loving care. Even the crops looked neat.
Plein air pastel landscape painting of an old white farmhouse and fields.
Pastel painting 11 inches x 8.5 inches $200
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Another pastel landscape painting from my plein air foray last weekend. The dappled sunlight on this old farmhouse seemed to sparkle in the early morning, and the field with its purple-flowered crop made it all the more enticing. My dog, Roxy, sat at my feet the whole time, staring up at me and the easel. She was so patient. But I’m sure she thought her mom was crazy to be wasting time like this when she could be chasing all those yummy squirrels…
Speaking of animals….
I’m taking commissions for pet portraits! Wouldn’t you just love to give a friend or family member a portrait of their furry friend for the holidays? Email me if I can solve your gift giving problems for the upcoming holiday season…
Plein air pastel landscape painting of rolling fields in early morning.
Pastel painting 6 inches x 9 inches $100
Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.
Finally got a chance to get out and paint this morning! 8:30 am, out in the fields with my dog, Roxy. The sun was in and out, and every once in a while, the light on the fields was heavenly. On mornings like this, painting plein air pastel landscapes is pure joy!
