Celebrating Summer

                                        "Another Look", oil on canvas, 20" x 30"
I am packing a whole new batch of paintings that I will be taking down to the Edgewater Gallery in Middlebury, Vermont this week.   I like to paint in a series, and this time I was trying to capture the low, concentrated golden light that occurs at dawn, and at the end of day. It feels good to be wrapping up another painting cycle, I am looking forward to getting out for some plein air painting the rest of the summer. I have discovered a few new locations that I am very excited about, there are so many wonderful painting sites in the Champlain Islands, sometimes it's hard to choose!

                                                                "Golden", oil on canvas, 8" x 6"

Welcome July!

                                                           Historical Society Building, oil on panel, 8" x 10"

 

 

July always turns out to be the busiest month for me.  There are so many festivals, art events, teaching workshops, and of course trying to get out to paint as much as possible.

I have lots to be grateful for as well, I am exhibiting at the Art House Gallery at Craftsbury Common, Vermont, for July and August, with a Reception and Artist Talk on Friday July 11, at 6:00.   

My other big news is that I will now be represented by the Woodstock Gallery, in Woodstock, Vermont. I am so happy to show in this very fine gallery along side some of my favorite painters.  If you are in Woodstock, I hope you will drop in to see my work.

Lastly, I have just learned that I have been juried in to show at the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire in October. 

It is so rewarding to receive this validation for my work.  I think we artists work so much in solitude, sometimes we can become uncertain about our abilities.  I'm very much enjoying being in this place right now.  

 

 

Happy May Day!

                                                                           Driving Home, December Sky
                                                                                 oil on panel, 10" x 8"
This painting is one that was completed this winter, a view from Route 2, North Hero Island. It is an impression of the lake, frozen and bleak, with the winter sky in late afternoon.
It is one of the paintings that I will be showing in an installation called "Across the Seasons" at the Continuing and Distance Learning offices at the University of Vermont in Burlington for the Month of May.  I will be teaching a painting work shop for them at the end of May. There will be a reception and artist talk for this show on May 22 from 5:00 - 6:30, the location is the Kelley Building, 322 South Prospect Street in Burlington. If you are in town that day, drop by!
I painted more winter paintings than usual this winter, the colors of the ice and snow, plus some dramatic skies really attracted me.  Now the lake is open again and the landscape is changing fast. I expect the trees will be fully leafed out by next week, and the cycle of green starts again.

 



Grateful Notice

                                                       "Mustard Field", pastel on paper, 15" x 15"
It's been a while since my last post, a very busy summer, with many plein air days. 
I want to give special thanks to a sweet couple from Pennsylvania, who were on a bike trip through the Champlain Islands, and purchased the pastel painting above, "Mustard Field".  They told me that this painting would be a special remembrance of their trip to Vermont.  I am honored.

                                                      "Snow Farm, Across the Road", oil on canvas, 12" x 16"
One of the favorite places I painted this summer was the Snow Farm Vineyard in North Hero Vermont.  It's a beautiful location on the west shore of the island, with many great views. In August, I was fortunate to teach a plein air painting workshop at the vineyard.  It was so much fun, I had terrific students, and the weather was perfect.  I'm hoping to teach many more of these workshops in the future. 
All in all, it was a very productive summer, meeting some wonderful people, and I am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to paint at so many beautiful locations here in the Champlain Islands.

New Wesite is Up and Running

 

Missisquoi Blue

Pastel

 

It has been a busy few weeks.  I have been spending a lot of time working on getting my new website up and running. It's still a work in progress, but I hope you will visit it at:

www.susanlarkinpaintings.com

 

So cool to have my domain name!

 

In May, I received a grant from The Vermont Arts Council to help pay for website design and construction.  I am so thankful to this important organization and all they have done in support of me and all the other Vermont artists who are learning about the Business of Art. I could not have taken on this project without their support. 

 

Last Sunday afternoon, I was at the Fisk Farm in Isle La Motte, for a reception for a show I am participating in along with fellow artists, Valerie Ugro, of Fairfax, and Ginger Johnson , of Alburgh. I have 15 paintings in the show, and they look terrific in that beautiful ancient barn The turnout was great, and I want to thank everyone who came by on that beautiful day. This show has been extended until June 19th, I invite you to stop by.

 



 

 



Spring Show at Fisk Farm

     Savage Point Barn

oil on canvas

24" x 24"

Tomorrow I will be hanging a show of 15 paintings at the Fisk Farm Arts Barn on Isle La Motte.
My paintings will be up through the end of June, so I am hoping if you are up this way, you'll stop in and take a  look.  The painting above, Savage point Barn, was done from a plein air study last summer.  The barn is located at Savage Gardens, a wonderful vegetable farm on Savage Point Road in North Hero.  We painted up there on an incredibly hot summer day in brilliant summer light.
I think we returned to this farm to paint about three more times during the summer, it is one of my favorite painting spots in the islands.

A Celebration of one of Vermont's Beautiful Rivers

 

  Missisquoi Kayak Wanderings, oil on canvas, 30" x 30" 

 

The painting above is one of a series of larger works that I completed over the winter.  I never seem to tire of the beautiful Missisquoi river as a subject. It is one of my favorite places to kayak.  It is always changing; last year the river was very low, now in April it is running high again, overflowing its banks. It is truely a treasure of northern Vermont.

 

 

Orange Grasses, oil on canvas, 24" x 30"

 

This Painting, "Orange Grasses" is one of two paintings that will be included in the "Art on the Refuge" show at the Missisquoi National Refuge open house in Swanton Vermont, from May 18 through July 20. A portion of the proceeds from sales of these paintings will be donated to Friends of the Refuge, an organization that sponsers conservation and preservation,  many events throughout the summer, bird walks and canoe tours to the great blue heron rookery in the Missisquoi Bay each year.  The open house at the refuge will be Saturday May 18, from 10:00  - 3:00 with presentations at 1:00 on birds of the region, and at 2:00 for the art exhibit.  I hope if you are in the area, you will drop in!





Working Small

Rising Mist, Winter
oil on paper, 6" x 7"

Near the Lamoille
oil on paper
6" x 6"

I've decided to continue working on these small paintings for the time being, and having fun.  I am learning so much about composition, value, and experimenting with new brushwork techniques. I am able to paint, scratch out areas, paint thick and thin, and try a whole bunch of things I would be reluctant to try on a large canvas.  I am working on some large paintings at the same time, and they should be ready to post soon. My painting style has been moving in a new direction, using all the new discoveries from the minis. 

 



Painting My Way Through February

                                             Imaginary Winter Scene, oil on paper, 6" x 6"

                                                      Absrtact, (Michael) oil on paper, 7" x 6"


These are three of the small works on paper I've been doing for the past month.  I've tried to keep up the practice of painting one of these each  day, and for the most part, I have been able to accomplish this.  It's been interesting to experiment and stretch, using all kinds of techniques and tools besides my trusty brushes, pallette knife, sticks,  paper towels, and cardboard.  My goal has been to simplify, simplify, simplify!

                                              Orange Everywhere, oil on paper, 6" x 6"

This way of working has led to some nice small studies that I think I will use as reference for my larger paintings.

 

Amber's Day, and other news

 

                                                              "Amber's Day"
                                                                             oil on canvas, 24" x 30"

Here is one of the new paintings completed this summer.  It is named for my daughter, based on a reference photo she took at the Alburgh Dunes last June.  I just loved the look of that brilliant blue sky and the plane of empty beach.  The perfect June day.  This painting is in the "Art at the Coach Barn Show" at Shelburne Farms, the show features over 100 artists this year and runs from Oct. 18 - Nov.4.

It was a busy summer, and because we had day after day of hot sunny weather, I was able to spend many days outside painting plein air.  My painting partner, Maurie Harrington, and I found ourselves painting many local barns around the Champlain Islands.  We are thinking of turning this into a project of documenting the many beautiful old barns in our region.

                                             "Dawn, Isle La Motte Bridge", oil on canvas, 12" x 24"

This painting is from a series of dawn paintings I have been working on. In April, the sunrise was just east of our bridge to the island, I enjoyed the peace of these early mornings, just the birds and an occasional fish jumping to break the stillness.

April News and Upcoming Events

Noble Hill Road

oil on canvas, 10" x 20 "

This is one of my paintings accepted to the show "Land and Light and Water and Sky" at the Bryan Memorial Gallery in Jeffersonville, Vermont. The scene is a field on the top of Noble Hill in Isle La Motte, one of the highest spots on the island. Noble hill road is one of my favorite painting sites, with views down the hill to the lake. It was painted last November. 

The opening reception is on Sunday, May 6th, from 3:00 -5:00.  There will be an artist round table and awards during the reception.  The show runs through July 8, and will showcase many fine regional landscape painters.

I have been gearing up for a plein air event in May, a plein air festival at the Horticultural Farm at the University of Vermont in Burlington on May 19th.  I have never painted there before,and I'm looking forward to capturing all of those beautiful spring flowers, and trees.

Landscape Alterations

We have been having some serious floods here on ILM. Not the best conditions for painting out of doors, but thanks to our heroic road crews, I am able to get on the road again. I should be back in the routine of painting outdoors soon. It will be interesting to see the alterations in the shoreline as the lake recedes.

In the Yellow Field, oil on canvas, 10" x 10"

$ 350.00

The new work coming out of the studio has been a series of small paintings, in a square format. I have been lightening and intensifying colors. It is still a struggle for me to loosen up with the brushwork, and push the colors, but it is a process. I have a busy summer coming up, so there will be plenty of opportunities for improvement.

Carry Bay Reflection, oil on canvas, 9" x 12"

It's been a long winter of painting, working indoors from studies that were started outside last summer and fall. In the new work, I have been concentrating on techniques that will illuminate my paintings to try and capture the radiant light I find in the islands. I have been starting with transparent washes of bright color before painting in the final colors.

I've just returned from a field trip to Connecticut, and a visit to the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme. I saw a wonderful exhibition of American Impressionists from the Lyme Art Colony. This museum is such a treasure, and well worth the trip. It was interesting to see work by so many women in the collection. The museum's website is www.FlorenceGriswoldMuseum.org, if you'd like to know more.

"Early Evening #4, Blue", oil on canvas, 24" x 36"
$ 785.00


Mirror #1, November, oil on canvas, 48" x 36", SOLD
                                                              

                                                                

These are three of the paintings that I have on exhibit in the Art's Alive Festival in Burlington, Vermont through June 17. They can be seen in the windows of the Homeport Store, on Church Street Marketplace.

I have been working the past couple of months on paintings that deal with reflections, a theme that I have been exploring for a few years now. I am intrigued with the variations and patterns of value and the many color shifts that are seen between sky and water. The clarity and precision of the reflection captured in water is a challenge to replicate, and I enjoy the experimentation with brushwork and layering of color to capture the liquid quality of these reflections. While painting "Silent Morning", I took some time to study the water paintings of Claude Monet. The simplicity and brevity of his brushstrokes to suggest the alive feeling of reflections in water is remarkable. I briefly considered titling my painting "Channeling Claude", though I am far from achieving his level of mastery.

When I painted the "Early Evening" painting, my challenge was to suggest the stones that are visible below the surface of the water in the foreground, without painting them with too much detail, so that they appear as if looking through the surface. These puzzles are endlessly entertaining for me, sometimes it is difficult to let go and decide that the painting is finished. Sometimes I am thankful for deadlines.

Back to the Studio

West Shore, November, oil on canvas, 24" x 22"

I have recently finished an eight week teaching position at Stowe High School in Stowe, VT. I was back teaching painting, figure drawing, and ceramics. As I reflect on the experience, I realize that I had forgotten how much vitality and passion these young people have for their creative work. It was a sincere pleasure to be in their midst every day, watching them work out the problems of design and composition that full time artists grapple with each day as we work in our studios.

Now, I am back in the studio again, starting a new series of paintings for a show that I will have at the Fisk Farm in Isle La Motte this August. I am returning to my compositions of the water and sky, early morning, and at the end of day. I am hoping to explore more fully the abstract forms of color that are unique to this subject. I never tire of painting the peaceful calm of the lake at these transition times of each day. I am also continuing with a series of paintings documenting the barns, mostly ancient, of the Champlain Islands. The brilliance of light that exists here in the islands seems to illuminate these old buildings, giving a sense of time and history. I will post photos soon.

Blue Day from Saint Anne's Shrine, oil on canvas,
18" x 18", $700.00

Early Evening # 1, oil on canvas,

18" x 18", $700.00

Missiquoi Reflection, oil on canvas,

18" x 18", $700.00 Sold

These three paintings are from a collection on view at the Downs, Rachlin, and Martin Law offices in Burlington, VT. They are for sale and can be purchased through contacting Burlington City Arts, in Burlington, VT, or by contacting me through my email address.

The paintings are a series that explores sky, water, relection, horizon, and light. I am fascinated by the variation of light and color that is constantly changing in the views of the champlain Islands, where I live.