The Marsh

We have so many marshes here in the north country of New York that on every hike I find another place to paint!  This pastel is of a march in Tupper Lake, on the way to Lake Placid.  Pastel on a 6x18 board gives this piece a long format in which to view the distant hills.  It seems a peaceful place.

6x18 pastel on pastelbord

Autumn Under Foot

This past October, on a walk to our lake, I brought my digital camera and was taking shots of all the gorgeous colors on the trees.  It was a beautiful day, as autumn was fast disappearing - lots of leaves had already fallen from the trees.  One look down and I was awed by the beauty of the pattern of leaves, the colors and the fallen dew drops from that morning.  The photos I took were like a work of art in themselves but, I was determined to try to paint at least one of the photos.  I loved the white leaf that is prominent in the painting.  Where did it come from, when all the others were faded and full of color?  This is my rendition of autumn under foot.

11x14 pastel on Richeson gatorboard

Twilight

My reference photo for this pastel was taken one evening on our way home from Lake Placid, New York.  We were crossing Tupper Lake and I stopped to take many photos.  The sunset was magnificent, going from pink, violet, red to yellow.  In painting this landscape, I scumbled the pastel all over, then dripped alcohol down it, deciding to leave the drips on the surface as I put the final pastel on the paper.  It was not a totally planned painting, I just went where the drips went and had fun.  I enjoyed the long format - 10x20.

10x20

August Afternoon on the Hudson

Last year the state of New York opened up a tract of land called the Essex Chain of Lakes. The state bought the land from a corporation and an organization called the Gooley Club.  The club consisted of  a group of people who built camps and a clubhouse on the property years ago and were avid fishermen and campers.  Now that the land is open to the public, my husband, grandson and I walked back to the end of the Indian Lake section, about four miles.  This section of the Hudson is about a mile in, near the Gooley Clubhouse.  It's so serene and peaceful back there, although, as we walked down to the river, my grandson and I heard dogs barking.  Knowing that no one else was around, we acknowledged that the "dogs" were probably coyotes, who were not happy with us invading their territory.  Once at the river, they disappeared and Matt and I enjoyed the gorgeous setting and beautiful day.  I took the reference photo before leaving and started this painting before setting out for California in late April  I have just now finished it.  A lovely afternoon on the Hudson.

16x0 pastel on board

Cascade Under the Bridge

 Pastel - 18x12 on Wallis Belgium Mist pastel paper
 
A couple of years ago, we took our granddaughter, Ava, to this landmark in Pottersville, NY, in the Adirondack Park.  Called The Natural Stone Bridge and Caves, it is a natural wonder of water, rocks formations and caves.  I just finished this pastel last week from a reference photo I took on that trip.  I remember how Ava loved climbing around on the rocks below these falls.   I was drawn to paint it because of the composition and the strength of those huge boulders. 

Hydrangea Blooms

I'm so sick of winter - we've had weeks of minus 10 degrees, where walking is a literal pain.  I have to cover my face from the ice, and then my glasses fog up and I have to take them off and walk in blur.....not fun......This autumn we took a trip up to Lake Placid and I took lots of photos of this hydrangea bush.  They looked so lush and spoke to me this week of the summer and warmth to come.  We hope - snow predicted tonight - up to 8 inches......

12x18 on Wallis Belgium Mist pastel paper

Snow Train

Finally finished the pastel of the train that comes to North Creek NY.  Every winter the train makes trips from New York City and Saratoga Springs, to North Creek, where the skiing is great at Gore Mountain.  The train specializes in a great breakfast before skiers disembark at the North Creek station for a day, or a week, of skiing.  I always love to see these trains stopped in the snow.  I took this photo last year - it was snowing, cold and quiet at the station.  Getting the snow on the pastel board was a challenge.  I tried Liz Haywood Sullivan's method of alcohol on a toothbrush with pastel and it worked up to a point, but I also manually added the flakes.  Between the two techniques, I think it worked!

This pastel is on Ampersand board and is 16x20.

Two days at the North Creek NY Fall Festival - Painting

It was a beautiful weekend, almost too hot, for Fall in the Adirondacks.  I was asked to bring some framed pastels and my easel and paint at the North Creek Fall Festival.  We had so many people and many questions about "chalk" and "how do you do that"?  I gave out lots of my bookmarks and spent time explaining the process in painting with pastel.  It was lots of fun.  I guess if I didn't enjoy people as much as I do, I might have had a huge headache at the end of the two days, but I felt invigorated and happy to share pastels with so many people who have never seen them in action!  These are the paintings I completed during the festival.

                                                               Fall Colors  9x12

Autumn on the Hudson  9x12

                                                        

Shaded Path to the Lake

I have been so busy this summer with grand kids visiting so painting has been put on the back burner for awhile.  I've missed it, though,  and now that everyone has gone home and the house is quiet, I have started painting again.  This was done a few weeks ago.  We walk down to our lake in the mornings with the dogs and it's always so peaceful.  The quality of the light through the trees just gets more pleasing to me every time we walk there.  And, of course, the lake itself, is the special gift at the end of this shaded path. 

12x9 pastel

Sacandaga Falls

When my grandson was about ten, we hiked up to this waterfall.  Actually, there was a trail leading to three waterfalls, off the Sacandaga River, in the Adirondacks of New York.  The photos I took of that day are in my files for potential paintings.  I've used them many times, keying in on the banks along this river. I have one painting with my grandson swimming in the scene and another  painting I did of the rocks along this shore has won a few awards.  I keep coming back to the photos and this special spot for many paintings.  This time I came in close for a painting of the waterfalls themselves.  There's something about rocks, waterfalls, and the light that hits them under a canopy of trees that is so beautiful to me.

$8x10 $145.00

Lake Snow

Finally!  A week ago we had a nice, sunny day!!  My neighbor and I drove down to our Lake Snow and painted for about an hour and a half.  It was so quiet and peaceful, AND very little bugs.  Anyone who knows the Adirondacks, knows that this time of year the black flies can surround you and drive you nuts - also the deer flies.....but not that day.  It's always a good day when I get out to paint!

9x12   $125.00

Golden Afternoon

A couple of years ago, we were bored and decided to driving to Lake Placid, from Indian Lake.  If anyone knows the area, it's a good one and a half hour drive along lakes, wilderness, and small towns.  We drove past Tupper Lake and this scene.  How could I not take lots of photos, with the intention of painting it?  Well, two years later, and in anticipation of giving a pastel workshop next week, I finally took the time and effort to paint it.  I did a basic value study, laid in the color, did a mineral spirit wash, and then the final pastel details.  I intend to use this method next week in my demo for the workshop.  Hopefully, it'll be fun for the students to try this method. 

9x12 -  $175.00

Terry's Peonies

 12x16 pastel (unavailable)



It seems as if winter is never going away this year.  It has snowed for the past two days with an accumulation of 14 inches.  I went through some photos I took this past summer and found one of my neighbor's peonies, pink, full and beautiful!  Gave me a thrill to ward off the cold and snow and paint them as the snow fell and the wind blew the trees outside.  I labored over the petals on these peonies, not wanting to get too perfect in my execution, wanting a loose rendition.  I don't often get there, and I might alter the stems a bit, but right now, with five feet of snow outside, those peonies are looking pretty good to me......

Glistening Water

 9x12 pastel  $125.00

I'm eager to paint outdoors, but we still have so much snow, so I'm going back to photos I've taken on hikes this year.  We hiked up a mountain in North Creek in early Fall, following this creek until we come upon a reservour high on the mountain.  I remember how the water trickled down the rocks all along the route.  It was another amazing day with the Adirondack Mountain Club.   I wanted to show how slick those rocks seemed and the light as it changed on the water.    Painting from photos is the best I can do right now, but as soon as this snow is gone,  you'll see me along the paths and roads with my easel!

Hudson River Respite

 8x12 pastel - $140.00

Last fall we stopped at the Hudson River, where is weaves along Route 28 before North Creek.  There are rest stops along the river, where people can picnic and walk down to the river.  At one of the stops, I found a small tributary off the main part of the river.  Since I had my camera, I took many shots of this lovely little spot.  The sun was shining on the water and rocks, the colors of the leaves, bushes and water was incredibly vibrant.  A true respite from the swift flow of the Hudson and the cars driving by.

Afternoon on the Moose River Plains

I'd like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year.  I hope it will turn out to be a happy and productive one for each and every one of you.   I'm hoping to spend more time painting this year, after a very busy Christmas season working part time at the ski slopes.  I'm also preparing for a solo pastel exhibit at the Widlund Gallery in North Creek, NY from January 26 to February 24.  I'll have approximately 40 paintings on display and will have a reception on February 16th.

 11x14 pastel - $150.00

I painted this a few days ago, from a photo I took late August from my kyack.  I've talked a lot about the Moose River Plains and the Cedar River Flow, of which this is the main body of water.  It's a wonderful place to canoe, picnic or camp.  The area is very large and very wild and, although it's a 20 mile drive to get there, once out in a canoe, you feel as if you are alone with nature.

Morning Glow

 16x20 - pastel (sold)

I put this painting on my facebook page but never included it in my blog.  I'm starting to get interested in painting Adirondack inspired still life. I have another on my easel right now, but haven't finished it.    I loved this pewter pitcher sitting near a window, filled with light, at Washington's Headquarters in Morristown, NJ.  I went to my high school reunion last year and visited some nostalgic tourist spots.  Washington's Headquarters was one of my favorite places to visit. It's just as I remembered it.  It reminded me of the Adirondacks - light-filled, historic and beautiful.

I'm not a painter who gets too inspired by detail, I'm too impatient to spend lots of time painting things to look exactly as a photograph.  Why bother?  This pastel is as close as I can get to detail!

Morning Mist

With all the rain we've been getting here in the Adirondacks, we've had some mornings where the mist has lingered over the mountains and lakes, creating lovely fall mosaics.  Last Tuesday,  I drove to Adirondack Lake and took some photos of that fog lingering over the water and trees on the shores of the lake.  It begged to be painted.

 16x20 pastel - $675.00

A week later, it's still raining, and only things that are begging are the dogs, who need their walk in the rain!  At least we don't have to worry about forest fires now.

Summer Chickadee

 11x14 pastel  $145.00

This summer we had so many chickadees at the feeder, in competition with the squirrels, I might add, and the nuthatches.  The chickadees are friendly little birds, chicka-dee-dee-deeing away.  They are not afraid of anyone or anything, as far as I can see, and will eat out of your hand if you're very still and very quiet.

Resting Place

18x24 image, framed to 24x30
 $675.00

I just took this pastel out, after having put it away for a couple of years.  I painted it after a visit to the Adirondack Camp, The Hedges.  It shows their dock and the boats and kayaks available for the guests.  I do love this place, on Blue Mountain Lake.  I hope it conveys the feeling of a resting place, where one can relax, commune with nature and enjoy the quiet.