Monday, June 28, 2010

Fishing in Kennebunkport


I've been out straight a bit lately so haven't had a chance to post what I've been  up to. So I'll try to catch you up .  


I headed over to the Kennebunkport docks - its now become one of my favorite places to paint because its small, quiet and I can get really close to my subjects.




Everybody over there is really nice and the lobstermen are mellow and ok with me painting there. 
They come by to talk to me and check out my paintings.



I was doing a quick sketch of a lobster boat as the weather was iffy and it was beginning to rain. The dock was pretty quiet as the lobstermen had all come in for the day. 



Suddenly this huge fishing boat pulled in right next to me and started unloading fish.



These guys showed up in the parking lot to meet the boat. Two guys on the boat started loading fish into crates that went into a refrigerator truck next to me. 



They didn't stop moving for half an hour , just packing fish into crates. The unloaded 4,000 lbs. of fish,  huge fish of all types.   



These lovely smiling people are Knute and Lindsey the couple who own the boat. Knute is the champion fisherman- he leaves port at 4 AM and fishes 35 miles out !


They came by to talk to me as they saw me painting and taking pictures in the midst of the unloading frenzy.  Lindsey is a painter too! Marcus & I really enjoyed talking to them.  I meet such nice people when I'm out painting.



Here's the sketch managed to do.  Next I'm going to paint the fishermen unloading the fish! 

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Watercolors & Sketching in Cape Porpoise


Cape Porpoise is a tiny harbor with an active fleet of working boats. Its in my neighborhood so I go up there a lot to paint boats and anything else that catches my eye.

I decided this year to spend some time painting boats and harbors.  I'm living in the middle of them so its good to take advantage of this great scenery.


Emile Gruppe in his book "Gruppe on Painting" writes its difficult to do good harbor compositions so I'd like to get good at it. Watercolor, 6x9, on 90 lb. paper.


Another watercolor sketch, 6x9 done with my water brush and Koi half pan set on 90 lb. 


There are some good spots to set up near the harbor , but parking is at a premium , no space on the skinny two lane road on the peninsula.


Here's a sketch of lobster boats and some of the small islands that are scattered around. I like doing these water color sketches as it gives me a chance to try out a variety of things do it super fast, then go on to the next one. Its about looking and seeing, drawing, then seeing more each time you look.   6x9, watercolor on 90 lb. paper.  


Here is a favorite spot looking east toward the harbor and the channel. Only about 2 cars can fit in the parking area that is on rocks at the high tide mark on the clam flats. 



These are a couple of lobster houses from across the harbor's deep water channel.  When the tide goes out the mud flats stretch in all directions. 7x10, watercolor on 90 lb. paper.


This is the view from the town wharf looking back up at the village of Cape Porpoise.  



 6x9, watercolor on 90 lb. paper.


I often stay there till dark, sketching and painting as the sunsets can be quite dramatic across the water from the town wharf. Lucky me, no accident that I live in Maine!








Monday, June 7, 2010

Kennebunkport, Artists & Wet Paint

A whole bunch of artists arrived this past week to paint in Kennebunkport, ME and a few of its the neighboring communities.  Turbot's Creek was a favorite spot.



I painted out there with John Caggiano  and Lucia deLeiris. 

This is looking east out toward Vaughn's Island, which you can walk to at low tide.  




On another much foggier day I painted along Shore Road in Kennebunkport . Here is the beginning of a painting overlooking the coast. 


Below me set up in nice spots among the rocks painting rocks and surf was Phillip Frey, Stefan Pastuhov and...



of course Stapleton Kearns doing a favorite surf and turf scene.  These guys are the greatest to paint with!  





After three days of painting, the opening on Saturday evening at The Gallery on Chase Hill was a big event. Here is the crew from Heartwood College of Art one of the sponsors of the event.  


Amy Bouchard the gallery manager doing some last minute things like making sure I had my name tag! 


It was a mob scene.  At times you couldn't even move into the next room , it was wall to wall people.

Phillip Frey, me and Leonard Mizerek.



 
I went out to the porch with Nancy Davidson a friend of my husband's for 22 years!   


The crowd inside was so dense that the party had expanded to the porch where I joined Stapleton who was sitting on the steps.



Lucia, Stefan, Stapleton and I relaxing on the front porch next to the sculpture garden.   




Here's one of the paintings I did during the week.  Its the building on the Kennebunkport town dock that is going to be torn down and replaced this coming winter.  All these fishermen stopped by to talk to me while I was painting it.  It was a great week of painting!