Work In Progress

The way I paint is described as "dry brush" because I use very little water on the brush and at times even scrape the semi dry fibers across the paper to achieve the effect I'm looking for.

Work In Progress 6-19-20

Every person who creates art takes some time exploring new directions, style, and mediums as they feel the work they produce is "in a rut". I've been trying to force myself to try some new "stuff" for about a month now and I finally said to my wife "I like farms and I like painting them so that's what I'm going to paint. I don't care what anybody thinks!" So, I guess we are all stuck with Gibson's American Farm for quite some time to come.

The challenge for the above painting is to get the three small barns to appear to fall away toward the horizen. I want to put a farm animal in front of the barn door on the left barn.

5-11-10 "Not Long Till Spring"

It's been over a month since I last posted but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. In the last few weeks I've been prepairing paintings for juried shows here in Iowa that will be judged this summer. I've been experimenting with acrylics on board and paper, gouche, and egg tempera. Actually the egg tempera is my own twist on the medium and I like it a lot. The painting above is water color and egg mixed to just the right consistancy for nice fluid washes. This farm is not new to me and I have used it to produce a painting this past winter but its worth coming back to again.

Water color and egg

16x20

4-7-10 "All The Snow Is Gone"

Gouache was the only paint I used on this landscape-sometimes it helps me, sometimes it works against me. This time I went very heavy with the paint just to be different.

Gouache 7x10 for a 10x14 frame

$50.00 plus $5.00 postage

3-30-10 "Another Snowfall"

Earlier I had posted two seperate paintings that were used to make this one large painting. I had painted them about one week apart and as soon as I saw them side-by-side I realized they could be combined into one beautiful scene. When painting the sky I have to have about four shades of blue mixed up in seperate pans and lay it all down in one wash in about two minutes. I don't dare go back into it a touch it with a brush, it is what it is!

Water color and gouche,

15x21 20x25 frame.

Will be for sale after exhibited

3-22-10 "Waiting For Spring"

Just before the first warm spring days break through the strong hold old man winter has on the barren landscape and delivers to us green grass and shoots of the first spring flowers there comes that last blast of snow. That's just the weather we had this past week - another four inches of snow!

Gouche 6.5x9.5 for a 9x12 frame
$50.00 plus $4.00 shipping

Work In Progress

I have 3 trees in pencil marked on the left side and ready for the first layers of paint.

I will be working on it this week and will have the final product in a few days.

3-5-10 "Canada Geese at Sunset"

I don't usually paint in a series but I've got geese on my mind after seeing so many still here for the winter. They are a beautiful bird when in the sky flying overhead in that gigantic V and bigger than you think when on the ground and you're up close.

Water color 6.5 x 9.5 matt opening

$50.00 postage paid

2-24-10 "Cananda Geese Over Iowa"

I thought all geese flew to warmer weather during the late fall months to avoid the cold and snow but I've seen quite a few different geese and swans around here this winter.

The colors are quite subdued in this painting but that's the look I was aiming to achieve. I just kept putting on paint and washing it off till it left the stain in the paper grain then I gave it several more light washes to finish it.

Water color 6.5 x 9.5 matted $40.00 free shipping

2-17-10 "Looking for Dinner"

You can expect to find cats around a barn as sure as there are cows in it. If it wasn't for the hard work of the barn cat the mice and rats would be running the place.

This painting actually started out as somethig totally different that wasn't working out well so I washed it away and started all over again. The stain of the first painting left a blueish tint to the paper that fit this time of day perfectly so I made the most of it.

16x20 frame size, Water color

$50.00 plus $5.00 shipping

2-8-10 "Lucas Farm"

Wouldn't it be nice if summer were here and the grass was green and the sun warm overhead? This painting is about as close as we are going to get for a few more months. The size of this painting is a lot larger than what I have been finishing lately, it is actually 13x21 unframed, which is large enough for me to complete in a couple of days.

Water color, 13x21 unframed

$150.00 plus $5.oo postage

2-2-10 "A Tribute to Winslow Homer"

I guess I could call it the winter humdrums. After several landscapes I needed to brake away from the norm and try something out of my comfort zone that would challenge me as well as entertain me. I wasn't trying to reproduce this painting (Apple Picking, 1878) exactly (as if I could) but use my limited talents in this simple likeness. Homer used opaque water colors (gouche) to create a painting that was very dark so th sunlight striking the bonnets and folds of clothing would stand out. I've always appreciated this painting and am happy with my results. I'm going to frame it today and my wife already has a spot on the wall for it.

1-18-10 "January 1st. #2"

Last fall we took a road trip over to Pella, Iowa to look at some preserved door and window trim in an old farm house that was going to be torn down. The owners were selling the woodwork and we were interested. While I was there I snapped some photos of the house knowing it would be torn down in a few short months. This is a likeness of it at dusk on a snowy evening.
Water color 9x12 $45.00,
Matted, shipping $4.00

painting in progress

Water color can be transparent or opaque, it all depends on the whim of the painter. I use to try to keep my work transparent but anymore I don't even try to follow that path. I paint any old way I want.