"As Long As You Can Start…"

Out looking for something to paint can be a frustrating thing. You know you are going to invest two or three hours so you want to find something to paint that assures your time will be well spent. I should know the the folly of that attitude by now. After wasting an hour driving & walking around in Charleston, Utah searching for a paint-worthy subject, I finally just got out of my car, lugged my traps out into a field and started painting. The house didn't really excite me but I decided to give it a shot. I took Hemingway to heart: "As long as you can start, you are all right. The juice will come." He was right. I began to see the quality of the mid morning light as a worthy subject.

Therapy

Robert Redford once said, "Everyone in Hollywood has their therapists. I have Utah!" 

Bob has it right. I've been spending time in Utah every summer for the last 50+ years of my life. I went to school at BYU in Utah. My parents both grew up in Park City, Utah. It is a glorious place. One of the fringe benefits of marrying my wife is their family cabin just behind Redford's Sundance Resort.

This photo shows an example of the therapy that Redford spoke of:

(Our cabin is a couple hundred yards behind me as I take this photo.)

Most years I don't spend very much time painting while there and spend time with my family. But since I have that Sonoma Plein Air thing coming, I decided I would try to paint a few pictures.

A Road In Utah

I spent a week up in Utah with my family at the first of July. Here is one of the paintings I did. I'll write and show more about it soon.

More Utah

Farmhouse in Utah

Working in a palette of purple, green and a little blue, red-orange. 

Ink Studies, Siguenza Spain and Heber Utah

I'm wanting to take a break from the city work I've been doing. Just for awhile.b So here are some ink studies I've been doing to explore some ideas for paintings. In these studies, I am trying to break the composition down to about 3 or 4 main values.
These first 2 are based on sketches and photos from a trip to Spain a few years ago.

In the mountains of Utah is the Heber Valley. My Mom was born there and then grew up not far away in the then mining town of Park City. We visited there every summer of my childhood. We now have a cabin in the same vicinity, thanks to my wife's family, so we continue to spend a week or 2 there every summer. For years I have thought, I need to paint this place. I'm finally going to start. This again is based on a photo from some time ago.