Plein air pastel seascape painting from Fisherman's Island Park near Charlevoix, Michigan.

Pastel painting 11.5 inches x 8.5 inches

Last day “up north.”  Wanhhhh! I packed up our hotel room and worked my way toward the golf course where I would pick up my husband and head back down south. I had time for one quick pastel landscape on the way, so I stopped at the little Fisherman’s Island Park just outside of Charlevoix. It was a gorgeous morning but the mosquitoes were ferocious! I literally was eaten alive. But I was happy with way this pastel seascape came out. No pain, no gain…

Pastel painting 8.5 inches x 11.5 inches

This is the last painting I made in Harbor Springs when we were “up north.” I stopped on a quiet little dirt road far from the tourists when I saw the bright light filtering through the trees. There was NOBODY around. Halfway through the painting a car stopped and a couple stepped out to see my pastel landscape. We chatted for quite a while. Turns out the woman’s brother was a plein air artist –who died of Lyme’s disease! You would think being an artist is a poor-paying but relatively safe career. I guess not. I quickly applied another layer of bug repellant.

Plein air pastel landscape painting of a home in BayView near Lake Michigan

Pastel painting 11.5 inches x 8.5 inches

Spring in Northern Michigan is a wonderful place for a plein air artist. The landscape is bursting with color and there’s always Lake Michigan for a perfect backdrop. I stopped by BayView, a neat little area filled with old Victorian cottages near Petoskey and painted this pastel painting. The sun was just coming up and the light and shadows on this old home drew me in. I was able to combine a painting of architecture with gorgeous blue-water seascape.

Pastel landscape painting of a light-filled afternoon on the Lake Michigan coast.

Pastel painting 14 inches x 10 inches

Still deeply focused on my new set of paintings of Italy. I turn Andrea Bocelli music waaaaay up and sing in Italian as I paint. It’s actually pretty embarrassing but it seems to be working for me…

Every once in a while I have to take a break and do some pastel paintings of different subjects. Northern Michigan is one of my favorite places on earth and the gorgeous scenery always calls to me. This pastel landscape shows a little cove that I have painted many times, between Charlevoix and Petoskey along Lake Michigan. I’ve stopped at various times of day and this water scene always inspires me. On this piece I worked mainly with my Great American pastels. They are square and flat like Terry Ludwigs, and great for working loosely and eliminating unnecessary details.

I just ordered a 100 new Terry Ludwig pastels with the gift certificate award I received for my marsh painting in The Pastel Society of North Florida’s National Exhibition. I am excited but overwhelmed by the prospect of adding MORE pastels to my already huge collection. I should be set for life!!!

Don’t miss the Artist Reception for the Saline Plein Air Painters Exhibit at My Favorite Cafe in Saline. Friday, 7-9pm, 101 South Ann Arbor Street.

Plein air watercolor painting of the lighthouse near Charlevoix, Michigan

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 13 inches

Please contact me if you are interested in this artwork.

I’m on a comparison binge this week. The watercolor painting above was done plein air a couple of years ago in Charlevoix, Michigan. And the pastel landscape below was done plein air last year. Almost the same seascape view but using very different mediums.

Happy Anniversary Johnny Wags!

Plein air pastel landscape painting of the bay near Harbor Springs, Michigan.

Pastel painting 8 inches x 11 inches   SOLD

Hmmm…..I think I may change my mind. I think THIS may be my favorite pastel painting from our trip to Northern Michigan.

I’ve really been trying to simplify my plein air attempts lately. I want to capture the very essence of a scene but not overload it with endless, useless details. It may sound simple but it is really very difficult to do. When you are on location there are so many items and sounds and smells vying for your attention. And everything you see seems worthy of portraying in your artwork. I find that if I focus on what drew me to the scene in the first place, I have a better chance of eliminating all of the extra “foo-foo” that seems to creep in. It seems that they way overused acronym “KISS” (Keep it simple, stupid) really does apply in some instances–especially pastel landscape painting.

Plein air pastel landscape painting of the lighthouse at Point Betsie near Frankfort, Michigan

Pastel painting 8 inches x 11 inches

We just returned from a wonderful week in my favorite part of Michigan: Up North. We attended the opening of a new show including two of my pastel Orchard paintings at Tvedten Fine Art in Harbor Springs. Then traveled over to Traverse City for the Film Festival, and spent the last 3 days at our friend’s cottage on beautiful Crystal Lake. We were having so much fun, I found it difficult to tear away and paint. But i did find time to create a few pastel paintings that I am very happy with.

This is pastel landscape painting of the lighthouse at Point Betsie is one of my favorites. It was a sunny, windy day with very few people at the point. I was able to pick a view where the diagonals of the shadows matched up with the angles on the window roofs. Always a bonus. Plus, I think I managed to quit before I overworked it!

Plein air pastel landscape painting of the rocky shoreline along Lake Michigan near Charlevoix.

Pastel painting 6.5 inches x 6.5 inches     $100

Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.

Another pastel landscape scene from the shores of Lake Michigan. It’s amazing how the color of the water and landscape changes at different times of day. In fact, it changes by the hour. After spending an 90 minutes or so on this small pastel painting, the view in front of me didn’t look at all like the one on my easel. The water had become much lighter and the shoreline in the distance a dark, midnight blue…

Plein air pastel landscape painting of a path leading to a Lake Michigan beach near Charlevoix, Michigan

Pastel painting 8.5 inches x 11 inches

When I was painting the previous pastel landscape post, a man who was walking his dog came by to chat. Turns out he was a plein air pastel painter to0. And in yet another “small world” example, he also winters in Naples/Bonita Springs Florida, near where my husband and I spend time during the cold Michigan winter months. My new friend, Mike Coltman told me about some great art associations down south and also directed me up the beach a bit to a place that he likes to paint. I followed his directions and found this lovely scene to capture in pastel. Thank you, Mike!

Plein air pastel landscape painting of the shoreline near Mount McSauba in Charlevoix Michigan.

Pastel painting 12 inches x 5 inches     $150

Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.

There are so many beautiful points along Lake Michigan just made for pastel landscapes. I went out on the farthest point of the Mount McSauba natural preserve to paint this piece. I really enjoyed working with horizontal compositions on this trip. Its good for my creativity to work in different formats and paint different subject matter. I get bored easily and would go insane if I had to paint the same thing every day! Of course, it probably means I will never become an expert at anything. Oh, well, life is too short. So many paintings, so little time…

Just passed 300 posts! Whew. I’m exhausted.