On The Tracks

Last Thursday 6 of us made the Alamosa Train Station our painting destination. If it isn't enough watcing the locomotive work up a head of steam, it is fun to be a part of the excitement of train enthusiasts, all ages, preparing to board the Alamosa Scenic Line to LaVeta. The train takes off at 9 am so after a flurry of excitement we had the station to ourselves.
My piece, at the bottom, is a view south of the tracks; again a small panel - 6"x 8".

Just Hearing That Whistle Makes Me Think . . .

By way of introduction, David Roberts, an online friend I met through this blog, who frequently comments and gives thoughts on the artist's journey, shared this wonderful bit of personal nostalgia.
I wanted to share it with you all because it brought up so many memories of living near the tracks, in California and here in Colorado.
Thanks David.-------------------------------

My home town, Crystal City, Texas, about 90 miles south and slightly west of San Antonio was bisected by a main street which was really just the two-lane highway running through those parts, paralleled by multiple train tracks. Being an agricultural center for onions and spinach (a statue of Popeye stood in the park), the trains were the lifeline for this little hot, humid Texas community in the
30's, 40's and 50's.
Shopping trips on foot with my Mom or Aunts meant crossing the dreaded railroad tracks...something I adored and feared both at the same time as a small child. I was drawn to the power and noise of the big steam locomotives parked on a side spur while the cars were being loaded with produce from the packing shed, but I was also terrified to cross in front of them. The boilers were kept going at all times which meant that even idle, the engines would occasionally 'belch', letting forth with great explosions of steam and fury. Mom had to hold my hand tightly so I didn't bolt and run, but after I calmed down, I would also look back in anticipation of the return trip on the way home where I knew I'd get another jolt of adrenalin from these marvelous clanking, groaning beasts, now long gone.
But the best part was lying in bed at night with the windows wide open for any cool breeze and hearing the distant wail of an approaching train. It would wind its' way down from the north, and you could hear the whistle growing louder with each successive road crossing. Finally, the puff, puff, puff would grow slower as it pulled into town, bell ringing all the way and come to a stop in front of the onion-filled packing shed for a night of furious loading. All night long you could hear an occasional steamy shudder and jerk, jerk, jerk as the old steam engine advanced the cars one by one.
Those were the best nights to sleep,
for a kid who both loved and feared those great mechanical monsters!

Merit Award at PAINT COLORADO

Winning is always fun! My "Zapata Aspens" took a Merit Award at the PAINT COLORADO Show that opened in LaVeta on Saturday night.
Tim Deibler, noted Colorado painter, judged the show and was at the reception, which certainly added something special to the evening.
Tim is an astute critic and teacher, and was willing to talk about our pieces - if we wanted to hear. Having your work "criticized" may not sound like fun, but having a master/painter and judge tell you exactly why your painting worked, or not - SO worth it.
For me, this was the highlight, and most valuable part of the evening.
As an aside, we did not talk about this piece, but my other entry, "PileUp on LaVeta". Tim Deibler was also a Juror for the PAAC Show that opened at the Abend Gallery in Denver last weekend. He looked at over 300 paintings entered in that show, remembered mine, and could speak directly and knowledgeably about them. Thanks Tim.

PAINT COLORADO at SPACe Gallery

The PAINT COLORADO show at the SPACe (Spanish Peaks Arts Council) Gallery, in LaVeta, opens this Saturday, July 18th with a reception from 5 - 7 pm. The SPACe Gallery always hangs a good show and Tim Deibler will be judging which certainly adds luster to the festivities. Alamosa painters Judith Greenwood and Heidi Algrim, as well as myself, were juried into "Paint Colorado" and we are headed over to LaVeta on Saturday for a little afternoon painting and some par T time at SPACe Gallery in the evening. If you are in the area, that would be within 100 miles, this is a great excuse to visit charming and beautiful LaVeta and view paintings with a Colorado bent.
Shown here are the pieces that I entered: Zapata Aspens, 12"x 9" and PileUp on LaVeta, 12"x 16".
View the winners on the Spanish Peaks website - Click on this link to SPACe Gallery.

Finding Our Roots- and Some Nice Views

Thursday morning 7 painters met at the site of Wayside, about a mile North of town. This little cabin is about all that is left of the original supply and ferry settlement, by the river, that predated the founding of Alamosa. Margaret Jones hosted our morning on this historic property where the great grand parents of Lloyd Jones (Margaret's late husband) raised 7 kids - yes, in that little cabin.
My painting is at the bottom - not that there is much to it. . . .
All I had was a 4 1/2"x 6" panel because I could not get to my studio - the road was being repaved. Very annoying!
Fortunately, there were a couple of small panels in my kit, but painting this small is not my favorite thing; I consider it a discipline for sure!
The day was a beautiful one tho'; sunny in the morning, giving us a chance to lay in strong shadow patterns, then we got a nice cloud cover that kept us cool.

Imagine the Perfect Afternoon

Oh wait, I don't have to imagine - I was there.
Nine painters met out at the "marsh" east of Alamosa last Tuesday and we could not have picked a more perfect evening: balmy breezes, glowing afternoon color and a mountain view that only got more spectacular as the sun dropped.
We all waited for the mountain light phenomenon - sunset version of dawn's "Alpen Glow" - and we weren't disappointed.
Blanca lit up in front of us and we had a wonderful sunset behind us. There aren't very many better ways to spend such a perfect summer evening.
My 6"x 8" piece is at the bottom.

13th Annual PAAC Exhibition, Denver

Otherwise known
simply as,
The PAAC Show;
Plein Air Artists Colorado Exhibition will open this weekend, July 10th at Abend Gallery in Denver. Sue McCullough, David Montgomery, and I are members of the Plein Air Artists Colorado. We paint all year and hope to get pieces juried into this show because it features some of the best plein air work from all over the country. I was pretty pumped to get these 4 pieces chosen and am so looking forward to seeing painter/friends at the opening.
Sue and I will be heading up to Denver on Friday for the 5 pm Opening Reception at Abend Gallery, 2260 E. Colfax Ave. Denver, CO. If you are thinking of making the trip this show will be well worth the time, and of course, everything will be for sale. You can also see the entire show in the online catalog by clicking on this link: 13th Annual PAAC Exhibition at Abend Gallery

My pieces are, from the top:
Sunny Spot, 16"x 12"
This is the Day, 12"x 9"
Waiting, 11"x 14", and
Crestone Morning, 12"x 16"
Click on the photos to view them larger.

Plein Air Artists Colorado - San Luis Valley

Here we all are - IN the landscape. David is working on the piece that ended up going to the PAAC Show; painted in the Zapata Ranch area in early February.
Sue and I went to Rock Creek Colorado to paint in February and below is the piece that she will show in the PAAC Show. The last photo was taken by Dave up on LaVeta Pass in January; a windy day and very cold.
Painting in the Winter can be testing for plein air artists but the work has an immediacy that I like. On the other hand, these photos remind me of how short our summers are and how much I want to hang on to every beautiful day and make the most of it.
Just last night a group of us painted out east of town, over looking the marsh with a knock out view of Blanca at last light (more about that later).
The evening breezes were actually warm. Oh, so fine.
Warm or cold - Any day painting out is a good day!

The Little Caboose That Could

We are so lucky to have a working train yard in Alamosa and "scenic" trains, pulled by steam locomotives that go out of town in 2 directions.
Back in March, Sue McCullough and I went out early on a beautiful morning to paint this little caboose and got a pretty good start before the wind really kicked up. There is no protection out on the tracks and always a lot of dirt flying around. We were holding down our easels and chewing grit before finally baling out.
I really hate leaving the field with a piece unfinished and tell my students how important it is to do the center of attention (or the complex) stuff FIRST.
HA! Good advice I did not heed in this case.

So the "unfinished caboose" has been sitting around my studio -
until Cody, a 4 year old friend and train enthusiast came by recently - just because he saw it through the window. Cody is not a casual train fan; he knows his stuff, wanted to view all of my "train work", gave me a few pointers and suggested I finish the Caboose painting.
Thanks Cody!

Well, this piece, may or may not stand the test of time but it made one train enthusiast happy.

The Locals

Speaking of trains - this was Cody's favorite; a little beyond his budget, and as he pointed out, a diesel locomotive, when he would prefer a painting of a steam locomotive . . . . I'll get right on that.
"Commuter"(11"x 14"), was painted one morning while the locomotive sat in the station before heading out on the daily run from Alamosa to Monte Vista. This painting sold to another train lover just last week.

To the right, "Little Red" (9"x 12") was an unusual little engine, and only in the rail yard for a short time. I painted it on a beautiful day last March and it sold out of Earthwood Gallery in Boulder.











All these pieces were painted en plein air and depict areas around the Alamosa rail yard except for this one "Cold Storage" (9"x 12"), done one late afternoon at the tracks in Monte Vista. I remember it being very cold.

For awhile there was the coolest yellow diesel locomotive in the yard, and a red crane that I was so wanting to paint - and I did - in the rain, and I wasn't dawdling.
You can see, at the bottom, where rain drops have lifted my acrylic under painting.
At the time, I thought "Storm at the Railyard" (12"x 16"), was about the craziest painting I had ever done but it went on to win 1st Place at the "Trains, Planes, and Automobiles" Show at the Cloyde Snook Gallery and I was especially flattered when it was purchased by a railroad worker.


This last one (14"x 11"), on another rainy day, was actually my first trip to the tracks in Alamosa - to paint. It was purchased for the collection in the SLV Regional Medical Center.
So that is my train "stuff". Of course, not every attempt;
I've had my share of bombs and wipe offs. I hope I am getting better; sometimes it doesn't feel like it, but I will keep going back.