Wendy Ervin Fine Art
  • Home
  • New! Latest Paintings
  • About
  • Paintings
    • Landscapes and Seascapes
    • Cityscape and Figurative
    • Flora and Fauna
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Blog

The PNW

9/27/2018

2 Comments

 
What about the PNW?  I was born there; lived there most of my adult life; have my closest friends and some family there; it's beautiful even if rainy; and I love going back at least once a year for several weeks. Now when I go back I spend a fair amount of my time with a paint brush in my hand and understanding, supportive friends encouraging me on. This past July/August was no exception. Here are some paintings from that trip: 
PictureCountry Garden 8x10 oil on panel Private Collection
One longtime friend that I love staying with lives in the "north county", a couple of miles from the Canadian border. Dairy country...and all that goes with it: barns, tractors, manure, pastoral fields. She also has an amazing view of Mt Baker when the sky is clear. Very inspiring! So I paint there pretty much every time I go. This year her little raised garden was brimming with success so I set up my easel and did this small sketch, keeping it bright and painterly. I love the "BEANS" sign and thought it was a great little structure to balance out the verticals of the barn.

PictureSemiahmoo Morning 8x10 oil on panel $300
Semiahmoo Spit was at one time the site of busy salmon cannery and many of the old buildings are still standing. It's a lovely place to go for a walk on the rocky beach or have lunch at the Semiahmoo Resort. I found a good spot to set up my gear slightly off the beaten path and I even had some old pilings to use as a table for my paints. It was sunny and hot and the tide was coming in. Normally an outdoor painter has to avoid "chasing the light", but I was challenged to resist "chasing the tide"!  By the time I was satisfied with the result, the waters were well up over the building footings.

PictureFive Blue Pots 8x10 Oil on panel


​Another dear friend who graciously houses me while I'm there has one of the sweetest hidden gardens ever! We've been known to consume a fair amount of wine in that quiet retreat. She is an avid gardener and has a collection of these beautiful glazed ceramic pots in the most saturated cobalt blue color... an entire row of them on her garden wall! Well! I got busy. This painting makes me feel so happy.

So I am quite the vagabond when I go "home to Bellingham" and am filled with gratitude for the deep and meaningful friendships that have only grown stronger in the years we are living in Tennessee. Me and my suitcase are welcome in the homes of so many friends. Now I have a new slew of reference photos waiting to be painted from this great trip. 

​Thank you for reading! Please comment!!
2 Comments

Porch Life!

9/18/2018

1 Comment

 
If it's summer in Tennessee then you must be sitting on your porch! And so many different porches there are: we have a back porch, covered but not enclosed, and we have spent many lovely hours reading, visiting, eating and just listening to the cicadas and songbirds this summer. Some good friends of ours have both a front and back porch large enough to do some good old country living on. With just a little pleading they let me come over and do some plein air painting of their sweet Southern porch life.
I really enjoy painting structures, but what a challenge! Finding a compelling focal point, getting perspective close enough to not look wonky, eliminating unnecessary details...whew! Plus, I was hot and sweaty and standing next to a tree with a little poison ivy climbing up.  Needless to say, the painting was incomplete when I packed it in so it got more attention later in the studio to finish. My friends liked it so much that they bought it and commissioned a second painting of their back porch!
Picturereference photo

​
​Once again, I painted what I could within a 90 minute time period and then refined and finished the painting in my studio. One technique that can be really helpful is to edit the reference photo into gray-scale and let it be a guide for developing accurate values in the painting. I am much more excited about my figurative paintings when there are fewer details and more light/shadow suggestions.

Picturereference photo in gray-scale
I have struggled for hours trying to get a face exactly right when what pleases me most is just the suggestion of a cheek, nose, or chin. So with "Back Porch Life" (and with the wishes of these dear patrons) I kept the details on Charlie's face and body and let Eban be more mysterious. 

The other challenge I faced was choosing what things to leave in and what to leave out. Charlie had a career as a newspaper reporter, so I wanted to add the element of folded newspapers on the table and eliminate the bottles of bug spray. 😜

Here are the finished paintings! You can see where I added and took away details, such as putting their cat, Taboo, on the Front Porch swing to strengthen the focal point and adding the spots of red on the Back Porch to move your eye around the painting. 
Picture
Front Porch Life 9x12 oil on panel
Picture
Back Porch Life 9x12 oil on panel
Thank you for viewing my art!! And thank you to Charlie and Eban for all your support!!
1 Comment
    Picture

    Hello! My name is Wendy and I am passionate about oil painting! Whether in the studio or out in Mother Nature, I get lost in the experience of capturing on canvas the moment and the feel of what I am painting. I pour my love and energy into every single piece of artwork and I hope it shows! This blog is a place where I can use words to talk about art, painting, life, faith, things that make me laugh, and things that inspire. I love every response, so don't be shy about leaving a comment...

    Archives

    December 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    April 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013

    Categories

    All
    Artist Workshops

copyright © 2013
  • Home
  • New! Latest Paintings
  • About
  • Paintings
    • Landscapes and Seascapes
    • Cityscape and Figurative
    • Flora and Fauna
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Blog