Abandoned Forever

Some windows are no longer windows. For myriad reasons, the ability of the window to provide light and sight has been abandoned. The window, now boarded up, is no longer a desired feature of the building but rather an inconvenience.

Abandoned Forever is on the side of a decrepit shed. The shed itself in disrepair, the window too is covered over with plywood to keep out the elements. Yet the contrasting color and texture of the window against the shed provides some interesting elements. I am not sure this painting is quite done yet, but wanted to post it anyway.

Abandoned Forever, Acrylic on 140lb paper, 4"x6", Not for sale

Variation on Barn Window

Combining media in art is nothing new, nor particularly notable in itself. Ultimately, as Randall Tipton has pointed out, what artists do aims to produce a good painting rather than worry about rules. Indeed, if artists followed rules there would be no progress in art.

Rough-Hewn Barn Window is just another ordinary window, perhaps on a hay barn, consisting of rough-hewn planks nailed together, less a piece of marvelous carpentry than an example of ultimate American pragmatism. Therein though lies the character of the workmanship, however elementary, done by a human hand.

This piece is done with ink and watercolor which lend it both definite form and some texture. Prolonged study might even suggest directionality to the light falling upon this window that, even in the most fantastic of imagination, could only conceal the basics elements of farm life.

Rough-Hewn Barn Window, Watercolor over pen and ink on 140lb paper, 4"x6", $30 (unframed)

Barn Window

The window theme has interested me for a while and today's post is the third in the series of watercolors. It's hard to know when inspiration will run out but for now I continue to find interesting shapes, colors and textures in windows on which to try out different techniques.

In the three pieces I have done so far, texture appears to be key to an interesting picture. For Barn Window, I used a technique demonstrated by Tom Jones in one of his free videos on Jerry's Artarama website. Bold strokes of color are laid down over the pencil sketch, allowed to dry and then the shapes are pulled out by layering on darker colors and hardening or softening the edges to define the shapes.

Though I have a long ways to go in mastering this approach, I was pleased with how this painting turned out. Feel free to tell me what you think.

Barn Window, Watercolor on 140lb paper, 9"x12", $50 (unframed)