Hooked Him- 6x8-SOLD

i did this hoping that the offshore fishing crowd will snap this up at the show at New Elements in Wilmington in a few weeks.

this is how i did it.

1. used magenta to draw the shapes on
2. laid in all the shadow shapes very thinly with the approximate color family a little darker than the final value will be (easy to lighten as you proceed). then i thickly laid on the light family shapes.
3. tweaked the values, colors and edges (softening and hardening as needed).
4. signed it and stuck it in a frame for some bigtime fishermans wife to buy (hopefully) for her hubby for birthday or Christmas.

dont forget to keep checking this blog for the free painting giveaway in a few days.

In a New Gallery on Bald Head Island

Electric Clouds--8x6

email me if you want this one for $49

i'm pleased to say that i've been invited to show in a new gallery on Bald Head Island, south of Southport NC. i'll take a bunch of new work there in a couple of weeks and i'll give you the name of the gallery and directions on how to get there, when they open in a few weeks. it is really supposed to be a first class operation and i cant wait to see it in person.


glad to see galleries opening and not closing in this tighter economy. thats very encouraging isnt it?!

Recent Commission

On Lumina Ave in Wrightsville Beach. this was a complicated one. difficult architecture made this one a challenge but i like how it came out. this house in kind of new but theres something about it that reminds me of the older cottages up and down lumina ave.

I've updated my workshop schedule for the upcoming months.
its on the sidebar to the right--->
email me if you'd like to sign up early. these workshops fill up fast, so put one on your calendar today.

I'm Baaaack

Beach House Awnings- 12x9

in the New Elements show in a few weeks

this one was done the day i painted in wrightsville beach last week.
i've been painting everyday but ive been besieged by personal problems. thats the only thing that can keep me from painting i think. my grand-dog got hit by a car and we fought the fight to keep him alive only to have to put him to sleep today and bury him. very emotional! cars breaking down, both mine (in the middle of nowhere while i was painting) and my wifes about a dozen times in the last few weeks. i wont go on.... but that gives you the idea of what kind of weekend its been. painting has helped me keep my sanity lately.
the thing i think i'm learning is to trust God and stay grateful even in the midst of these storms. good things must be right around the next corner.
i know this is not my usual blog fare but blogs are supposed to be a REAL look into the life of the blogger and things arent always rosy, right? it doesnt get any more real than that.
i'm back to my regular schedule tomorrow so posts will be more timely

Lumina Ave at 11:30- 12 x16

contact me if you'd like to purchase this one by emailing me at rooneystudios@hotmail.com

Painted this one on lumina ave. in wrightsville beach today. it started out kinda hazy then the sun came out real strong but i stuck with the original lighting effect. its very hard to keep painting from memory but the more you paint outside the better you get at it. you have to. you dont have a choice. kinda like you learn to swim when you get thrown into the deep end of the pool.
my friend and painting buddy Ben Keys joined me today and did a sweet one just a block from me. just google his name to see his website and great artwork.

keep an eye out for the free painting giveaway. check my blog regularly for the day i announce it. todays not the day but it is very soon. even the shipping is free.

Sea View Pier at 6:38 pm

click here to bid on Ebay for this sweeeet pier scene done this afternoon. one of my faves!

this was done by sketching in the outlines of the big shapes with cad red light and a grayed down version of the shapes color family was used to block them in with. then when i felt good about that, i layed in all the subtle temperature and value shifts i saw. its loose but very accurate, drawing-wise.

hope you like it.

• remember to keep stopping by this blog to enter the free painting giveaway. i'll announce it and you have 48 hours to enter. even the shipping is free!

Two Recent 6x8's

Bateaus (work and play) 6x8- $1 auction on ebay- click here

enjoyed finishing the boat painting above. its 100 here in carolina and when i finished this around noon i jumped in the water and cooled off. thats one thing neat about painting around the water in the summer. youre never far from a place to get wet.

heres my other favorite place to get wet.....

Waterfront Cottage- 6x8- $1 auction on ebay- click here

liked the shadows on the little cottage just steps from the new river which leads out to the ocean a few miles from where this was painted. cool area with shrimpers, crabbers and commercial fish houses all over.

i like hot weather but am praying for a bit of a cool down. i dont like when the sweat runs down the middle of my back in the middle of a paint stroke.

Bid a dollar on this one!

Precarious- 6x8 palette knife painting

just posted this on ebay starting at a dollar. click here to bid

this old cottage is staring down the atlantic ocean. how long can it hang on? done entirely with palette knives and some fingers. lots of the nice warm magenta's peeking out all over. you'll love it. who knows you could get it for $1.

Bid a dollar on this one!

In Front of Phillips Seafood- 6x8

SOLD

Smith Creek Industry- 12x16

NFS- going to be in the New Elements Show end of this month

painted outside today in blistering heat and unlike the beach yesterday, no breeze to make it bearable. on days like this i dont know how i used to use acrylics. about the time you'd mix it on the palette it would dry in the brush. impossible to paint with when its sticky as youre putting it on the canvas
oils are soooo much better. i love how theyre gooshy (is that a word?)

this subject matter was very popular in the 30's and 40's. industrial scenes, working themes and working locations. i like that stuff too. i think this place was shredding pieces of trees into mulch. thats what those piles are in the tractor trailer.

todays not the day, but remember to keep watching this blog for my "free painting giveaway day".

DVD filming at the beach today

thanks robert for the photo

today i filmed the second of two dvd's for Jerrys Artarama. this one was on plein air painting and we shot it at topsail island, out on the beach. you may recognize this scene and the cottage from a post or two below.
today the temperature was (heat index) 100 degrees. that was the only downside of the day. i showed how to draw the shapes with magenta, underpaint in thin washes of local color and then finished it out.
both of these dvds will retail for around $20 and are about 90 minutes long. if you'd like to pre-order one let me know and i'll get it to you as soon as production is through.

Down East Farm- 24x30

Not For Sale- will be in the New Elements show end of this month

Sorry for the terrible, glary picture

this one was done today in the sweltering heat of, they say, 100 degree heat index. this is big for me plein air but i kept it loose by holding the brush at the very end being very decisive with the strokes. i tried very hard to put it down and to leave it alone and to watch all my edges. the focal point is strong with subtle temperature shifts and lost- and- found edges, to add interest.

Keep stopping by to win a free painting in my giveaway. todays not the day but very soon. I'll announce when you can send me an email to win.

From Radio Island to Raleigh

View of the State Port- 9x12 --SOLD

Aerial View of Market St- 8x20-- available
Boardwalk Afternoon- 9x12-- SOLD
St. Marys Chapel- NFS-- commission piece- sold

well lets see.... i put my bookbag pochade on my back and hiked around the edge of the water on radio island near beaufort yesterday and a day later i'm in front of St Marys college in raleigh. what a difference a day makes. thats some miles between paintings.

the one from the rooftop is looking up market st and is the same exact view as a previous post. that one was done at around 10. this one above was done at 3 pm. it would be interesting to have them side by side on a wall and see the difference in sun angle, temperature, and lighting effect.

the beach cottage painting was done on boardwalk st in atlantic beach. i love this old neighborhood with its cottages built in the 30's and 40's. i want to get back there soon and do some more.

i'm fooling around some more with the magenta drawing in the underpainting with neutral and slightly grayed home colors in a wash for the underpainting. then i bring up the color and use thicker and thicker paint as i progress. i have a little less bright colors peeking out but theres a richness and subtlety with this method i wasnt getting before. more like classic california plein air "old school" style. i'm liking it and several critics are telling me they like it better than anything i've been doing lately.

dont forget to keep checking the blog to register for the free painting giveaway this month. registration day will be announced and you have 2 days to register for the free painting.

A Few from Today

Princess and Front St at 2:23 pm- 8x10

to purchase email me at rooneystudios@hotmail.com

Tower of Industry- 6x8

to purchase, email me at rooneystudios@hotmail.com

the first painting is looking up princess st. in wilmington and the second is the looming architectural PPD skyscraper at the entrance to the city.

lately, i'm starting my paintings a little bit different than i have the past few years.

instead of painting over a strictly magenta tonal study as my underpainting i'm using a neutral wash underpainting i picked up on ed terpenings blog. he learned it from mark kerckhoff.
it took a few block-ins to feel comfortable with it. its so different than what i've been doing for years.
i'll fool with it for a few months and see if it sticks.

dont forget to keep checking back here for the free painting give-away in June. i'll tell you on the day of the giveaway to send me your mailing address and i'll pick names out of a hat. you could win but you can only enter on that day. its not today but check back often to win.

Three Sisters-16x20

Available- email me (see sidebar on right at top) if you have to put it on your wall

Sunday morning is a great time to paint downtown scenes. there are just enough cars and people around to add interest but not too many to block parts of the scene. the light in this one is pleasing to me. the smaller ones i've been doing paid off on this larger piece. urban scenes are a blast to paint! I could do them all the time. oh yeah.... i do... LOL!

Living on the Edge- 8x10-SOLD

the more i do the block-in with a brush and then knife the topcoat the more i see its potential. i scrape all the block-in color off and start with all new mixtures made a different way (using different color mixtures) thats pretty close to the original shape's color. this gives you plenty of variety in every shape and makes it very interesting and of course being knifed, textural. click on the image and it'll go bigger and you can see the thick paint.

these houses, i'm doing lately, are only a few storms away from being taken out to sea. the water already runs under them on high tide during storms. they look to be circa 50's-60's so somebody got their moneys worth if they fall in the ocean tonight. hope they last for years tho'. i absolutely love painting in this old neighborhood of beach cottages.

Forgotten But Not Gone- 8x10

Available- email me at rooneystudios@hotmail.com

if you want this for your wall

did this one today on smith creek. this old swing bridge was probably heavily trafficked in its day. but now with all the high tech on ramps and new roads into wilmington these days, rarely does it see a car. i was there two hours and dont remember but one or two going across. these old bridges will be torn down, one by one. pieces of transportation history caught in paint for all eternity by yours truly! hope it makes you smile.

OOPS Show News

OOPS, the plein air painting club in Onslow County is showing a major exhibit of plein air work at the Arts Council in Jacksonville starting this saturday. check out the details by clicking HERE. i know you'll enjoy it!

Wilmington Waterfront- 6x8

SOLD

i have always loved to paint backlit scenes and when i saw just the tops of the boats and the green tin roofs lit up i had to paint it!
the colors were clean and clear, near 10 am. no humidity to gray things out.
small formats make you edit things down to the bare minimum and there's a freshness to em you cant get except plein air and small. probably why it sold so quick. i like the feeling of light in this one. wish i had done it a little bigger tho'!

YouTube Demo of knife painting

check out my Jerrys Artarama Mini-Lesson on knife painting on YouTube!

feel free to leave a comment by clicking the comment icon below or email me (look at top of sidebar to the right)
let me know if you like it and want to see more video on this blog.