Dramatic Skies over Maine Farms

One of the great things about fall in New England is the dramatic, changing weather. 

In southern Maine it's been a sunny warm fall with the trees turning colors in start and stops...

The turning leaves have been bright and colorful in some neighborhoods and dull in others.  Some trees are bare while others still have their green leaves.

Marcus and I went out for an afternoon drive to check out some of the neighboring farms.

We parked at the golf course and I set up to paint.  I wanted to try for a few sketches of the quickly changing light on the landscape.

The Dunn farm is one of those rare small dairy farms that are still in operation. I love this farm!

I used my large Gloucester easel because there was a strong wind from the west and my other easel wouldn't have a chance in this steady onslaught...

The cows moved in slow motion across the pasture as clouds raced across the sky, alternately lighting and darkening the landscape. 

I moved briskly as I put colors on my palette.

It looked like mother nature had plans for a change in the weather.. the clouds kept building.

Ooh... it was getting pretty nice out there, the farm was face-lit, the trees and cows had nice shadows behind them and the distant trees were a deep wine color in the cloud shadows. 

Late afternoon low light offers such a nice dramatic contrast.  I was hoping there would be enough big sky holes so I could keep getting glimpses of sunlight on the farm.

The clouds got thicker, and soon everything was in shadow. 

I sketched in the outline of the farm.

The cows kept moving in and out of these great patterns across the meadow. I really like the challenge of painting cows, as they rarely stay still in one spot.

I had my panel set up facing the sun, so the light on it and my palette stayed consistent.

I put in more colors as spots of blue sky appeared overhead.

All the great dramatic contrast of shadows and light had disappeared from the meadow.

Hey, that's the nature of plein air painting...here one minute, gone the next.  That's what I love about it!

PAINT EAT SLEEP

Vermont Cow Portraits

I parked the car at the edge of the field.  As I began to set up the entire herd ran toward me.  Did my Easy L look and sound like their feed box ?

I'm glad there was a fence and a ditch in between us...

They stayed all lined up in a row looking at me... 

sniffing and snuffling a bit, but not wandering off.

 I started talking to them... 

...telling them to stick around till I finished.

They did pretty well, even with the occasional car passing. 

It was great entertainment for the neighbors and I could barely stop laughing. 

Then of course there was the "great noble one".

Who wanted me to paint him all alone.

He parked himself right in front of me and held the pose.

I worked as fast as I  could. 

The entire herd was young males.  They had these big tufts of spiky hair on their heads. I found out later they are a hardy breed of cattle from Scotland known as Ayrshires. 

Soon they all wandered off. 

And I called it a day.

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A Quiet Corner of Vermont

  Every fall I go on a painting trip in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts and southern Vermont.  

  Late one afternoon I found myself exploring the countryside north of Bennington.  The rolling hills, open meadows, bits of autumn color and 70 degree temperatures created a mellow mood.  

 While looking for a place to park I spotted a a small, side road with a red covered bridge over a river with the Dutch sounding name "Battenkill". 

A white grange hall was next to the bridge. It looked like a church. The trees on the hill behind it were turning orange.  The setting sun was golden.  It was a perfect Vermont scene. 

A white farm house sat nestled in the valley across from the grange with an artists studio behind it. It seemed familiar.  "That's Norman Rockwell's house!" I said.  I remembered the studio from a picture I'd seen of it in a book.  Sure enough, when I backed up to get a better look there was a sign on the front lawn indicating that Mr. Rockwell had lived and worked there. 

  

I knew he lived in Vermont but didn't remember the name of the town. This was the first time I'd visited this quiet little corner of the state.  What a surprise and delight! 

Vermont is full of treasures you never know what you'll find here!

Twin Maples Barn, 6x12 watercolor, Rives BFK 

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