I love January!

Gentle Wave

an oil painting by Bonnie Mason

Gentle Wave was a commissioned piece which I started the week after Christmas. One thing led to another and I decided to do two more beach scenes.

Gentle Sunrise

an oil painting by Bonnie Mason

In this second painting (and the one above it) I wasn't thinking big waves. I was thinking soft, gentle, wash over your feet, foamy warm waves which is why it just seemed right to title them as I did.

The First Day

an original oil painting by Bonnie Mason

This last beach scene is titled The First Day because I was remembering how I love to get up early before everyone else is up and go for a walk on the beach as the sun rises. That first time you can just feel your brain, muscles and emotions unwinding. I was also trying to imagine what the first sunrise in this lovely world God gave us was like.....This was an unusual and really fun painting to do because I was able to use lots and lots of cadmium red light, magenta, and purple.

Somehow, doing beach paintings allowed me to imagine myself being warm in the middle of a really cold spell. It was great to get back to my studio and that's one reason why I love January!

Fall Fireworks!

                       "Bright Autumn" won an award of merit at the Barns of Bedford show!

I love this time of year. The cool sunny days are perfect for plein air painting- unless you have a cold! Since I can't be out there I've spent some time updating my website with several new paintings. The painting above was begun as a demo on the deck at the Little Gallery. I'm always amazed when a demo turns out well because I find it difficult to concentrate on painting and talking at the same time!

"A Golden Day"

This 11x14" painting of a pathway around the lake at Fairystone State Park was a lot of fun and seemed to almost paint itself. This is a great time of year to visit the state parks here in Virginia.

"Fall Fireworks"

Our local greenway is a wonderful place to walk, visit with friends and paint! This piece is a little more loose and wild than usual for me- and I enjoyed every minute of it. Hope you do, too :)

Be sure to check out all the new paintings on my website ( http://www.bmasonart.com ) and leave a comment below if you have a favorite!

Summer in My Head...

"Summer Place" oil 18x14" by Bonnie Mason

I don't know about you- but it doesn't take very many gloomy wet winter days before I'm dreaming about summer time or escaping to a warmer climate! One of the great things about painting is that it can take you back to someplace wonderful.

While on vacation at the Outer Banks a few years ago we discovered this quaint old home with its beautiful little garden. It always seems that wherever we go we spend more time at the local gardens than anywhere else. I think its where we feel most at home...

I recently had a chance to paint this view of the garden and it is now hanging in a Double Line Painters exhibit at Harrogate in Salem. Whenever I see this image the memories of laughter, warmth and sunshine come rushing back. I hope it will help you remember some happy times in your life today! 

The Zorn Color Palette

Last week after experimenting with the Zorn palette of colors during a plein air session I painted this chart on a scrap piece of canvas. My husband had a good idea (because I have a habit of making these charts) that I could punch holes in the sides and keep them in a 3 ring binder - which I thought was a great idea! Its not perfectly balanced in hues or values but was a great learning tool. A nice side effect was that I ended up with good size piles of all the colors to use on some backyard plein air pieces.

"Down the Path" on 6x8" canvas panel

"Down the Path" is a 2 hour sketch of a view into the garden from my kitchen window. It was a cold drizzly day so I was glad to have something I could paint from inside. One morning a few days later I painted the garden bench from up in my studio. It was a sunny day but very windy and cold. The red oak leaf hydrangea leaves were stealing the show. Reds seem to really pop in this palette of colors so I probably should have toned it down a bit, but had fun just letting the colors fly!

"Stealing the Show" on a 6x8" canvas panel

The Zorn palette consists of Ivory Black, Cadmium Red Medium (which I didn't have so I used Grumbacher Red), Yellow Ochre and Titanium White. I've been working on a larger studio piece of a foggy autumn day using these colors and will share it next time if all goes well. Thanks for stopping in!

A First Time for Everything :)

Today was a wonderful day to be outdoors painting! It started out a bit windy and cold but the sun warmed us up pretty quickly. The Double Line Painters obtained permission to paint from the R R Donnelly parking lot area and met there at 10:20 this morning. I decided to use the Zorn palette today. I had always meant to try it out in autumn but also - I was feeling wimpy and didn't relish the thought of  lugging 20 tubes of paint along! The Zorn palette consists of Ivory Black, Cadmium Red Medium, Yellow Ochre and Titanium White. No Blue.

This was the view I painted- after rearranging a few things:)  As you can see, there is a good bit of blue in the scene-although not as much in real life as there appears to be in the photo. Amazingly, when you mix ivory black with white it is blue compared to the other colors. In my sketch below (which took about an hour and 15 minutes) you can see this first attempt at using such a limited palette.

I have a lot to learn about how to use this palette of colors and plan to make a chart this week so as to better understand its possibilities. In my next blog I'll share the chart and any further "experiments".

Hope you have a great weekend! -  Bonnie

Christmas is coming!

"The Christmas Card" an original oil painting by Bonnie Mason

of the Duck Pond in Salem Virginia in all its Christmas finery!

I almost hate to say it but- Christmas will be here before you know it! Next week I'll be hanging two holiday shows with my painting buddies, The Double Line Painters of the Blue Ridge. (Check out our group blog listed to the right.) The Jefferson Center and The Salem Museum will be exhibiting our artwork beginning Thursday, November 7th until the end of December 2013. If you need some peaceful, inspiring moments during the holidays stop by and give yourself a gift by enjoying some beautiful art at these shows. Admission to see the art is free at both venues but donations are definitely appreciated and a portion of all artwork sales goes to support them.

The Salem Museum is located at 801 East Main Street Salem Va. 24153. Their hours are Tuesday-Friday 10am-4pm and Saturday 10am-3pm. You'll find more information about their many holiday events at their website  http://www.salemmuseum.org

The Jefferson Center is at 541 Luck Avenue Roanoke Va. 24016. They are open during regular business hours and you may see the art when attending performances there. Go to http://www.jeffcenter.org for more information about some of their fantastic offerings this season.

Reception at The Lynchburg Art Club tonight!

Tonight is the reception for The Double Line Painters show title "Town and Country". It will be from 5 to 8 pm at the Lynchburg Art Club which is located in a lovely old house with a fantastic display space. The address is 1011 Rivermont Ave. in Lynchburg. If you happen to be in the area we'd love it if you'd stop by! The show will be on display until October 20th, 2013.

The Lynchburg Art Club