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Chief Cliff from the Bend
36 x 24
There’s nothing that quite compares to the combination of a lake, surrounding mountain ranges and cloud formations to accent the day’s end. It speaks for itself, and it speaks often enough to want to bring it indoors. Wherever we’ve seen this, it’s never the same – like a crackling campfire. This size painting is a studio production, but relies heavily on actual observation rather than photographic references (at least mine) for realism and excitement.
20 x 24
I liked the instrument and its elegant woody contribution to the overall composition of the woven basket, irregular flowers and smooth fruits. Studio lighting and fixed conditions are a real luxury after braving the elements outdoors. There’s something comfortable in groups of familiar things – like visiting with a group of friends who maintain distinct personalities.
12 x 16
It had been many years since I’d experience a fall in orchard country – and the thrill of fruit tree color changes. Flathead Lake’s Big Arm Bay view was temporarily displaced by the beauty of the old apricot, plum, apple, crabapple, cherry and peach trees double harvest: fruits and harvest leaves. The variety was surprising and shined against the pale fall skies. Sometimes I just paint to outdoors to enjoy the sun on my face (with sunscreen, of course). Canning is now a new hobby!
11 x 14
Interesting scenes can be momentarily glimpsed from driving by. I know when my peripheral vision catches one, I’m looking for a way to pull off and stop – at least for a photograph. Sometimes there is no way. I return another time to determine how I can get the view, the angle, the same scene that attracted me, and when possible I set up to paint. If you look closely at these roadside paintings, there’s usually grit of some kind reminding me of the turbulence traffic creates and how passers-by usually slow to look at what’s got my attention. This day just shown!
16 x 12
There’s something about an old church, even a vacant one, which represents welcome and serenity. (I’ve painted in less hospitable surroundings.) But it was quiet this day, the lilacs were minding well enough alone, and no one was appearing to do any yard maintenance, so I set up to enjoy the atmosphere. Appealing in its state of disrepair, the blooms accented the church’s missing entry gate. The church was approachable by all, ushered in by lilacs and an overgrown path.
20 x 10
My neighbor has a flower garden. It’s another wonderful sight after living at elevations where few cultivated flowers survive the deer and elk grazing. My amazement at 5’ tall delphiniums was only surpassed by the varieties of blues in them. These had toppled over, late in the season, but soon enough to make a great bouquet. Placed on a north-facing windowsill with the Lake in the background, the blues of sky, earth and flora became plenty of encouragement to paint.
9 x 7
Greens are peculiarly fleeting in outdoor painting because the sunlight affects what we see at the moment and over a period of time. It was then a real challenge to present a full range of the perceived greens that were not harmonious in an otherwise harmonious setting. Spring and fall cattails in Montana seem to change colors by the minute when they start to grow or die and on those days when the sun’s shining or fleeting, they are really showoffs.
9 x 12
The huge old lilacs peeking over the building were planted by the original owners to block their view of it. By the time I came here, the lilacs had become a spectacle of their own – their fragrance teasing me into the yard with my easel. The boat just seemed to be waiting: soon the blooms would be spent, and the sailboat would have its turn. I didn’t consider how quickly my landscape would change: a two-story 3-car garage has replaced the little building. The boat is now inside and the lilacs, intact; their blooms and fragrance will take their turn.
30 x 24
My granddaughter went to a friend’s birthday party at the Missoula Carousel. The party hostess took and shared photographs with participants. The glee showing in her face was too hard to resist. By the time I finished it I think her friend had had another birthday, which is why it’s
Not for sale!
8 x 10
January in the Hawaiian Islands is still winter! The winds had been battering us for days as we toured the Big Island. Snorkeling was out of the question with the resulting surf. Though I’d prefer not to paint outdoors (plein air) in such a quickly changing environment, I was inspired to meet the challenges. I set up at the water’s edge with the early morning walkers, painting as rapidly as the materials would allow me to capture the forces of nature in a tropical paradise. It was an exhilarating and demanding morning!
9 x 12
One of the few splashes of color in an otherwise evergreen environment, these blooms called out as I drove down a mountain road whose twists, turns and traffic demanded my full attention. I stopped. Sometimes the only thing to DO is paint what you see – and hope to do it justice!
Not for sale.
36 x 24
There’s nothing that quite compares to the combination of a lake, surrounding mountain ranges and cloud formations to accent the day’s end. It speaks for itself, and it speaks often enough to want to bring it indoors. Wherever we’ve seen this, it’s never the same – like a crackling campfire. This size painting is a studio production, but relies heavily on actual observation rather than photographic references (at least mine) for realism and excitement.
"All text and
Images Copyright . . . . Karen Maurer. All Rights Reserved."
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This site was last updated
04/22/08
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