Stirling Castle

With artist friends at the Tri County Art League meeting, we sketched from vacation photos of Scotland for our program.  This place grabbed me immediately - and it turns out to be the castle in the town my son-in-law grew up in!  Lovely place to paint, and fun to see my local fellow artists again! Painting number 3736 in 3736 days. 

Looking up to Ha Ha Tonka

The castle ruins of Ha Ha Tonka are majestic high upon the bluff in Camdenton.  There is such a feel of the past here, as if time stands still.  I pick up a favorite fountain pen for this one, my TWSBI Eco.  The J. Herbin Caroube de Chypre ink is from their anniversary line, and is full of shimmering gold.  The tiny flecks are visible in the line work, especially in the heavier areas.  Although this gold is supposed to clog up fountain pen nibs, I have never had this issue.  The ink has a rich brown color that shifts to red with a little water.  You can clearly see that in the writing under the drawing.  I love the fancy bottle, too!  Timeless!  Painting number 1906 in 1906 days.

Belfast Castle in Ink

Oh my goodness - what a gorgeous castle this is in Northern Ireland!  I am drawing her today with a fine dark sepia Pitt pen.  With such complicated architecture, I begin with light, sketchy lines until I'm sure my proportions are correct.  Sketching is like handwriting, no two artists are the same.  I let the marks emerge as I concentrate on the scene, loose and energetic in their motion.  I'm not concerned with perfect cross hatching and line structure, though I do like the line to follow the form (just like brush strokes).  I've decided to fill the pages of this journal with places from around the world, rendered in ink alone.  This sketchbook is pretty, which is why I bought it, but the paper is rather thin.  I have to be careful not to get my ink too dark, and watercolor is out of the question.  I check my stats each day on my blog, and choose a unique location that someone has visited me from on that day.  Today, I had one visitor from Ireland - and voila, a little research led me to this composition.  It is just like I've had a little vacation in my warm chair, with a hot cup of lemon ginger tea, and my sketchbook.  Drawing number 1492 in 1492 days.  Now, I'm going to do a little reading on Belfast :)

Autumn at Neuschwanstein

Autumn at Neuschwanstein
Oil on panel, 9x12
purchase here

Today, I had a large block of time with which I could have painted non-stop.  So, what did I do with this time?  Housework!  I went through drawers, bagged clothes, dusted and washed down three shelves, and cleaned the yard before coming to my easel.  Crazy.  So, now, I am painting from a fairy tale today, a different view of the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany.  My son and his wife just returned with so many beautiful photos - and I am really enjoying them!  I painted this castle from a side view a couple of days ago.  This end of the castle was just a very small note on the right side of that painting.  Picturesque in it's detail and elegance, it has been a challenge to paint!  Wouldn't it be fabulous to live a day in this castle - wandering from room to room, turret to turret, exploring every inch?  With my love of historic buildings, castles rate right there at the top on my "must see" list!  This is set so high on the bluff, it makes one wonder how many people have fallen right off through the centuries.  The leaves were just donning their autumn shades, soon to give way to the cold days to come.  And we are supposed to go down to 8 degrees tonight - yuk!  This painting makes 688 in 688 days.

Neuschwanstein Castle

Neuschwanstein Castle
Oil on panel, 12x9
Bavaria, Germany - sold

What better muse for a painting than a romantic castle?  My son and his wife just returned from Germany, and I finished this painting today from his photos.  Who knew Germany was so beautiful?  This stunning castle is in Bavaria, and Disney's Sleeping Beauty castle was inspired by this one.  Perhaps that is why I chose to paint it first - Sleeping Beauty is my all time favorite Disney classic from my childhood!  There is such an aura of romance in this landscape - it has been a joy to capture it in oils.  I am already looking forward to the next one!  Painting number 686 in 686 days.

Rain Over Parkville University

As I set out for Parkville this morning, the sun was shining with a promise for a beautiful day.  As two artists and I walked around scouting our painting locations, thick clouds filled the sky.  Once deciding on my composition, rain was threatening - and I set my easel up under the protection of an awning.  Thank goodness!  I hadn't been painting 30 minutes before a light rain began to fall, and a damp chill set in.  I knew I must finish on location, because chances of finding another day with the same light are doubtful.  I have painted 2 landscapes in the rain this week!  This is my 264th painting in as many days, and Day 24 of the 30 Day Painting Challenge.

Rain Over Parkville University
Oil on panel, 14x11
Parkville in Art