Sketching the Rural Landscape in Charcoal

 This week my theme for the daily charcoal sketches as been "rural landscapes".  There are plenty of interesting rural scenes to find along the back roads of rural Utah and I've explored and photographed many of them so I had plenty of references for this week's challenge.

I don't remember exactly where I found this barn and old style silo but I'm pretty sure it was somewhere in western Utah County. The composition is a study in contrasting elements, the play of the vertical against the horizontal.

I've now taken so many photos over the years I can't remember where I took all of them.  I'm pretty sure this one was somewhere in Cache County.  This is an interesting arrangement of old wood barns, and backed by my favorite contra-element, trees.  I love the play of natural organic shapes against the geometric hard edges of man made shapes.

This composition is a bit different.  In this case the barn is behind the trees and you don't even see the whole barn which is nestled in rolling hills.

This scene is more intimate than the others, almost a close up of a pole barn or hay shed, I'm not sure what these are commonly called. It's also full of those large size rectangular bales, and backed by lots of trees of course.

If you've ever driven up to the High Uinta Mountains on the Mirror Lake Highway out of Kamas chances are you've seen this barn.  It is just off the highway, is large and covered in rusty corrugated  metal panels, just the kind of thing I love to sketch.

This one is very different from the others.  For one thing I only used a charcoal pencil, no blending, no willow charcoal, no compressed charcoal sticks and no trees which resulted in a much lighter image.  This scene is in Spanish Fork if I remember correctly.  I'm not sure what it is exactly, maybe it used to be some kind of coop, or maybe a granary for a very large operation.  Whatever it is it does not seem to be in use anymore except as a parking lot for grain hauling trucks.

Daily Sketch Challenge May 2020 - Day 3-5

Day 3 - Dilapidated Abandoned Barn - Daily Sketch Challenge May 2020

Prints Available

The day 3 sketch is a graphite pencil sketch of a dilapidated barn based on a photo I took in Ogden Valley, in the town of Eden, Utah.  This one might make a good painting.

Day 4 - Abandoned Ford Deliver Truck - Daily Sketch Challenge May 2020

Prints Available

The day 4 sketch is an abandoned antique Ford delivery truck rusting away in the weeds in pen and watercolor. Based on a photo I took at the Antique Power Show in Wallsburg, Utah.

Day 5 - Rural Farm Landscape - Daily Sketch Challenge May 2020

The day 5 sketch is simple pen sketch of a rural farm scene to test the concept for a painting. Based on a photo I took in Oakley, Utah.

Tractor in Charcoal

Okay, I've shown you sheds and barns in charcoal, I decided it's time put some wheels on it.

"Wistful"

12" X 16" Charcoal and watercolor

A vintage Farmall tractor sits abandoned in a grassy field looking towards a stand of cottonwood trees being looked over by a distant hill and backlit clouds.  These old Farmall tractors are scattered all over rural Northern Utah.  This one with it's unusual configuration and attachment is part of a collection in Wallsburg.  I haven't been able to figure out what those things do that are mounted just behind the fuel tank, but there sure are a lot of levers and linkages involved.  The field is more or less from my imagination, the trees from another reference photo taken somewhere in the Heber Valley and the clouds from yet another reference photo taken in some rural area.
I didn't know what I was going to call this drawing until close to halfway through.  The composition along with the use of charcoal created a mood.  I couldn't put my finger on it at first but as the drawing went along it came more into focus.  This lone tractor sitting in a disused field seems to look off into the distance with longing for the days when it could have been put to use to till that field, now it just sits all broke down, a shadow of it's former self and can only wistfully recall those days long ago.  Yes, I just anthropomorphized a farm tractor.  Yes, the tractor is just an inanimate object, but at one time in the hands of an operator it was very animated, and did a lot of work achieved a lot of constructive aims.  Can anyone look at a scene like this and not project some kind of human emotion on it?  Haven't we all felt at one time or another similar to how this tractor must feel if it could feel?  I remember showing my Mom my first abandoned truck painting and it actually seemed to make her a bit sad and her first comment was, "It just seems so lonely.".  She must be getting used to my style because when she looked at this one she didn't have that reaction but she did look at it a good bit.
I never really intend to get philosophical with my art though I do want it show the beauty of the subject and to evoke some kind of emotion, without meaning to I think this drawing took my intentions a step deeper, or maybe I'm just getting soft in my old age.
Now for the nuts and bolts.  At 12" X 16" this is the biggest drawing I've ever done, and is about as big as I can comfortably work on with my current drawing table.  I've tried drawing at an easel several times but I just don't have enough control for that plus it hurts my shoulder more, so 12" X 16" may be as big as I get, we'll see. I started with Arches hot press paper in a block, (I don't really want to stretch paper.) and after a light and simple graphite sketch I applied some subtle watercolor washes.  After the washes dried the rest was just straight up drawing using charcoal pencils, stumps, tortillons, and erasers.

More Experimentation With Charcoal

After a short return to painting I decided to revisit charcoal.  First I did this small drawing;

 

"Wheeler Farm Shed"

Charcoal, 9.45" X 6.92"

Small works are a good way to get lots of practice with a medium in a relatively short time so these first few charcoal experiments have been on the small side.  However, at least for me drawing still takes considerably more time than painting.  Working small also allows me to try different kinds of paper, in this case I used Stonehenge which I found to have a little more texture than I like but I made it work.  The drawing showcases how charcoal is good at providing strong contrasts.  The subject is a shed at a local working historic farm owned by Salt Lake County.  I took a little liberty with the scene, in particular I added a window to the shed.

I have to admit I missed color a bit so I wondered how to put color in a charcoal drawing without having the color compete with the charcoal.  I decided to try an experiment, this is the result;

 

"Soon Forgotten"

Watercolor, charcoal and pastel, 7" X 10"

I started with Arches hot pressed watercolor paper for this one.  After lightly outlining the composition in graphite I applied watercolor washes in various subtle colors.  Once the  paper was dry I started drawing using the charcoal.  Every now and then I decided it needed a touch more color and used pastel pencil but I was always careful to keep it subtle.   I still wanted this to look like a charcoal drawing, just with a bit of color.  To finish I splattered a bit of watercolor in the foreground to add texture and interest.  The subject is a scene that used to exist in the lot next to where I live.  Unfortunately the owner sold the lot where he used to keep sheep and horses to a developer who promptly leveled everything, (why couldn't they have at least saved the apple tree?) that was nearly two years ago, the lot is still empty.  Luckily I took photos before the lot was cleared, so I guess this little drawing is a tribute of sorts.  I really like how this turned out, it has a bit of a tonalist look. I'm sure I'll be experimenting with this process more.





Finally Returning to an Old WIP

I couldn't believe it when I looked it up, it really had been since June 2015 since I worked on that painting.  Yep, I started a painting almost 9 months ago and put the project on hold soon after.  I could have sworn it was late summer when I took a "break" from that painting.  The WIP has even been sitting on the small table next to my easel the whole time.  I finally decided it was time to rectify this situation and finish this beast.  Rather than divert you to links that are nine months old I'll recap those old WIP posts here and add one new one.

This painting is a little more complex than my paintings usually have been so I did more than just a typical thumbnail and made this small but somewhat detailed pencil sketch to plan the painting.  It almost seems like some kind of badge of honor nowadays for an artist to proclaim that they do no planning and just jump in and go where the muse takes them.  I suppose there may be some artists that are talented/gifted enough to get away with that but I can't help but think that they might get even better results if they put some thought into their design, or maybe they do and just want to create some kind of artist mystique but really do plan more than they claim.  I don't know about other artists but I feel no shame in admitting that usually my best paintings are well planned first.



This is usually the first step in making one of my paintings, though not all paintings get a full pencil underdrawing but those this complicated do, and as you can see the design has been refined somewhat as well.  This gives me another design iteration before the paint hits the surface.  After the underdrawing was done I applied a coat of yellow ochre diluted with glazing medium.  This layer serves two purposes.  First it seals the gesso and the drawing.  By sealing the drawing the graphite won't smear around while painting and by sealing the gesso the moisture won't be sucked out of my paint so readily and it will spread easier.  Second it gives me a tone to work against rather than a stark white surface, however I wish I had gone a bit darker with my tone on this.

Unless I'm painting with a palette knife my first layers are transparent.  I like to find my way into the painting by gradually layering transparent paint and even use optical mixing by layering different colors over each other.  Yes, most of this gets covered up opaque layers later but it's part of my process, it's part of my journey through the development of the painting.  I never intentionally mix water into my paint, I always use glazing or gloss medium to dilute it and make it transparent.  My experience is water tends to make the paint chalky or cloudy, or at least not as vibrant as it is using mediums.

This is the last WIP photo I posted last June.  You can see now I've added some opaque layers, still gradually finding my way into the painting.

Here is where the painting stands now, or rather where I left it last June but I never posted a WIP of this point before. Here you can see I've started refining shapes and adding details however that may be a bit premature, I'm guessing at most I'm only halfway through this painting now.  I'm committed to finishing this thing up though so fresh updates will be coming shortly.





Oops! I Lost My Color Again!

In my last blog post I alluded to the fact that I've been playing with a long lost medium lately.  Well, not long lost so much as neglected.  I think I've tried just about every art medium on the planet so I have a lot of art supplies that seldom get used, charcoal is one of them.

"Midway Barn"

Charcoal on paper, 11.3" X 8.5"

Original - $100

"Midway Barn" is my first complete charcoal drawing.  I used hot pressed watercolor paper.  I have some paper labeled as being for charcoal but the texture was more aggressive than I like and it was a laid texture which means it has a mechanical weave appearance that just doesn't look natural.  I might try Bristol smooth paper for the next drawing. 

There's something about the simplicity of using a single pencil to create a piece of art, it just feels so authentic and meditative while making it. 

The drawing is based on a photo I took in the small rural farming community of Midway, Utah in the Heber Valley on the opposite side of the Wasatch Mountains from Provo.  Midway has lost a little of it's small town charm over the years though, it's become a popular resort area and much of the surrounding area has been developed.  This barn however is just a couple blocks from downtown. I took some liberties by changing the shape of the barn a bit, removing a home in the background, adding a dirt road in front and making the field more "wild".

All Caught up on the Ten Minute Sketches

This post will catch you up on all my ten minute sketches, that's partly because it's been a few days since I've made a new one, I've been a bit obsessed lately over a medium I haven't used in quite some time so I've neglect the TMS', my next post will have details.  As in the last post these are all pen.

This one was a test for a minimalist landscape design.  It came out with kind of a graphical feel, I kind of like it for it's simplicity and boldness.

This is a vintage gas station scene based on a photo I took in Wallsburg, Utah. I may make a drawing of this.

A 1932 Ford tudor hot rod sedan, just for the sake of sharpening my drawing skills.

This one is based on a photo I took in Lynndyl, Utah.  I move some things around a bit and added the truck.  I think it came out a bit busy so if I do a drawing or painting of it I'll have to cut some clutter.

And finally my last TMS, a barn and trees based on a photo I took in Midway, Utah.  This subject will make an appearance in my next post.

Some Ten Minute Sketches

Here are the last few ten minute sketches, all in pen this week;

This 1930 Chevy flatbed truck is part of a monument on Main Street, Coalville, Utah

I made this sketch to specific proportions as an exploration for a possible painting.

I don't remember specifically where I took the photo of this 1946 Ford flatbed truck, I think it was somewhere west of I-15 in Utah County.

Sketch Day

It's been a while since I did one of these, a day of travel and sketching.  I forgot how fun and useful getting out to a new place to explore and sketch can be.  I was planning on attending a car show in Coalville, a small, historic rural town about 40 miles East of Salt Lake City on I-80.  The festivities weren't starting until the afternoon so I  decided to make a day of it and do some sketching along the way in the morning while it was still cool.  I've spent quite a bit of time in the rural towns along I-80 but there's always some road or area I haven't explored so whenever I return to an area I look at Google Maps and figure out what areas I can visit that I've never been to before.  I decided to get off the freeway at Wanship and take Hoytsville Rd to Coalville while exploring the side roads along the way, including a piece of the old Lincoln Highway.  I don't know why but I love rural areas so I took a lot of photos, but more importantly I did some sketching;

This is the Weber River just outside of Wanship.  As you can see I used pen and watercolor.  You might also deduce that I'm not really a watercolorist, I tend to use similar techniques as I use when painting with acrylics. For me sketching isn't about creating a finished piece worth bragging about, it's about practice and learning about the subject. Sketching is also very fun and usually very relaxing, almost meditative. I think I learn as much about the subject by making a sketch like this as I would if I attempted to make a plein air painting on location and it took about 1/3 as much time or less.  Sketching also requires much less equipment and is much less hassle.  I still think painting outdoors is worth doing but sketching is a less stressful and useful alternative.

I really wanted to sketch a farm, barn or shed or something along those lines but most every scene I found wasn't convenient for parking and setting up to sketch.  I finally settled on this sheep ranch in Coalville.  Not exactly an ideal subject but the cobbled together structures made for some interest, this could make a good background for a tractor painting.

And finally the car show.  Coalville shuts down Main street for this event and the cars park backed to the curb and facing to the center of the street.  This arrangement makes for good spectating but not good sketching since I'd have to sit right in the middle of spectator traffic to get good views of the cars for sketching.  Luckily just as I was getting ready to leave this car, a late 40's Chevy sedan parked at the end of the line and not only is it the kind of car I enjoy sketching it parked in a spot that gave it the perfect background, the historic Summit County Courthouse, they were even color coordinated.  Luckily I also able to sketch this from a shady spot. An artist can't ask for anything more.



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Layin' Up Hay

Another small rural scene for today;

"Layin' Up Hay

5" X 7", Acrylic on panel

Original - SOLD

I don't know what attracts me to these rural scenes. I really enjoy exploring the back roads of the state looking for old sheds, barns and farm scenes.  However, I really don't have much personal connection to farming.  My grandfather on my Mom's side did have what was essentially a small farm with a very large garden and a corral that he kept everything from sheep to bulls in and of course he had a couple small out buildings to store hay and tools in, it was basically a micro farm but it wasn't his livelihood.  I did spend quite a bit of time at my grandparents house, most of my life I lived close by, even within walking distance for the first 11 years of my life, however as a kid the farming stuff didn't really attract me so I have to confess I didn't get my hands dirty much on my grandparents farm.  I also had a great aunt and uncle on my Dad's side that had a real working farm in a small town just 20 minutes from where I live now.  Up into my late teens my Dad would pick up my brother and I at least once a year for a trip to Aunt Louis' and Uncle Harry's. Their house was very old, I suspect dating back to the 1930's or earlier.  They'd give my brother and I toys to play with, cast iron and pressed steel toys from the 50's, none of that plastic crap! These were real "salt of the earth" people from the "Greatest Generation, (as was my Grandfather).  Of course as a kid I didn't really appreciate the experience, in fact I often dreaded the visit and don't recall ever going out behind the house to see the farm.  I regret having that attitude, I'm sure I missed having some special experiences the memories of which I'd cherish now.  Maybe I'm attracted to these scenes due to that regret, trying to capture what I didn't take advantage of in my youth.



A Small Series of Small Paintings

"June Field"

5" X 7" acrylic on panel

Original - SOLD

"August Field"

5" X 7" acrylic on panel

Original - $50

"October Field"

7" X 5" acrylic on panel

Original - SOLD

All three of these paintings have something in common, they are the same basic composition.  The foreground is a field, bushes and trees constitute the background with a structure in the upper right quadrant for the focal area.  This is a very simple idea but ripe with many possibilities. As you can see each painting is very different in spite of being built on the same idea. The main difference is each painting represents a different season.  In "June Field" is represented the transition from spring to summer, every thing is still a very vibrant green.  In "August Field" the late summer grass has turned yellow and the greens of the trees and bushes much more muted.  Of course "October Field" reflects the vibrant colors of fall, everything from yellow-green to bright orange and red.  The only other differences are minor details that help support the main idea and add a little interest.

These paintings were all painted in my studio using photos that I took in or near Eden, Utah as reference.

Sketching at Wheeler Farm

The weather today was about as nice as it gets in the Salt Lake Valley in mid-November.  I decided I needed to take advantage and took a short drive over to Wheeler Farm to do some sketching.  Wheeler Farm is an historic living farm owned by the county. I've been on a pen kick lately, I don't know why but that's why I made these sketches using a Copic Multiliner .03 pen in my 5x8 sketchbook.  All of these sketches are straight to pen with no preliminary layout work in pencil.  I do this as both a challenge to my drawing skills and because I prefer to have that little bit of extra sponteneity in my sketches from life.


First up is the "Milk House".  This is actually one end of a larger structure, the rest of which is used to store hay.  I rushed it a bit at the start and got the angles and width of the end of the building a bit off.

Trying to learn something from the previous sketch I went a little slower on this one, trying to make sure I got those angles right.  The sign was missing from this little house but if I remember right it they call it the "summer cottage" or something like that.

I did this last sketch quickly, the temperature had started dropping below the point of comfort.  This is a chicken coop built way back in the early 1900's and restored in the 1980's, so even the restoration is old now!



It was sure nice to get outside for a couple hours and sketch at one of my favorite places today.  These opportunities will soon become very rare until spring!