Sunset Grasses

Attached is a wild waterscape that I completed recently, titled "Returning". The sun was setting as we returned from a day on the water. The grasses captured the colors of the setting sun, creating a display of color that just amazed me. The painting has a second name, "Grass Sunset".

To paint the tall grasses, I used a plastic pizza cutter. I just rolled the pizza cutter in a pan of paint, so it was coated all the way around. The results were very gratifying!

I often paint with odd things - my fingers, paper towels, and more traditionally, palette knives. Yes, I do use brushes, but I love to paint with my fingers. Clouds are especially easy to paint with my digits!

Sometimes a painting will paint itself - others are like hard labor. The ease of completing a painting really depends on two things - how well I "know" the subject, and how large the painting is. I seem to get stuck on larger paintings, probably because there are more problems to work out. Smaller paintings have less detail, and seem to go more smoothly.

I am working to get my completion rate up from about 30% to nearer to 70%. I think I need to put more thought into the process, and allow my brain to solve problems while I sleep. It always seems to help when I approach a half finished painting after a good night's sleep.

Then, there are gems like "Returning". With the goal clear in my mind, and the pizza cutter trick, this painting almost painted itself! Such gems are rare, and much appreciated.

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

www.harvilleart.com

My New Book May be Previewed on Blurb!

Greetings,

My book is now ready on Blurb for previews and purchases! Blurb is a website for self-publishing. I would be interested in what you think, and I welcome all comments, good, bad and ugly! Since this is my first book, there is no doubt lots of room for improvement.

You can buy the book from Blurb - that would be sweet! But if you fund my project, it will enable me to order a large quantity of books at a discount, to distribute as rewards, and sell at cost in my studio. Plus, they would be hand signed by me, with a sentiment of your choice.

Ultimately, I would like to use the funds from the project to work with a real, live publisher, so my book could be offered to a wider audience, and maybe even sold through book stores. It would have an ISBN number, and a SKU! I plan to meet with a local publisher, and discuss details in the next few weeks.

Of course, none of this will be a reality without your support. I want to thank those who are already backing my project. If the Amazon, online method of pledging is too confusing or time consuming for you to make a pledge, please ask me for help, or write me a check - I won't cash it unless I am fully funded. Even a few dollars will greatly help.

And please spread the word by telling all your friends! If 10 people each told 10 people, that would be 90 new, potential backers. And if half of them donated only $10, that would put me much closer to my goal.

When Land Meets the Sea by A collection of paintings and stories by Cathy Harville |BOOK INFO

Click on the link above to see my book on Blurb!

In life, we all get back far more than we give out. As my mom alway says, what goes around, comes around. If we all help each other, we can accomplish great things.

Thank you, and cheers,

Cathy Harville

Immersion

As a painter, I have experienced immersion in many ways:

- I am startled when someone walks into my studio unexpectedly;

- I often forget to eat lunch, or to eat at all;

- I make coffee, and forget to drink it;

- I constantly lose track of time, despite the very accurate "Whatever" clock I have beside me (all the numbers are falling off, so I really never know what time it is);

- I realize I was supposed to meet someone, and forgot;

- After a while, I realize I have been cleaning my brush in my coffee;

- My phone rings, and I am immediately annoyed;

- and, I put off bathroom breaks until the very last minute! (Just let me finish this one area!) Come on, I know you have done that, too!

I also experience immersion while I am kayaking - no, not in the water, but in the act of observing nature. I will often sit, and listen to the wind rustling the trees and grasses. I hear the beating of a swan's wings as it screams at my approach. I watch the reflections in the water change like liquid mercury. I watch the schools of minnows move across the surface of the water, as a bigger fish is hunting them, no doubt. If the light is right, I take some photos. (It is too hard to paint in my kayak!) And, I forget all about everything, except the moment I am in.

This nature immersion serves me well in the studio. I can easily recall the smell of the water, and the taste of the air. I can recall the light shifting, and reflections gleaming. And although I have my pitiful reference photos to work from, it is the immersion I experienced on the water that helps me to capture the essence of the scene I am painting.

Thank goodness for immersion. Like yoga, it is an opportunity to escape, and just be.

Namaste,

Cathy Harville

Reflections

I have been painting a lot of water reflections lately. I have been doing a lot of reflecting. Even when the water is still, the reflections of the trees, sky, and grass are never exactly the same as the actual image. Water reflections tend to be less defined, and defy borders and logic.

Painting reflections is a very freeing experience. It doesn't have to be "right". Moods can be created that are tranquil, active, mysterious, or curious, depending on how the reflections are rendered. I often use unusual colors and patterns, to draw attention to the reflections. Minnow schools create "swirlies". Boats create ripples and waves. The sun casts shadows and light. It is all very cool. The reflections are like liquid mercury, always changing and evolving.

Floating in my kayak, I take lots of pictures of micro-environments, usually in the late afternoon light. (I am not much on sunrises, since I like to sleep!) I have been thinking about jumping fish lately, and how to suggest that in the water reflections, without actually rendering the fish.

I am also experimenting with a new method of creating depth and mystery. By using thick, clear medium between paint coats, a really interesting, 3-D effect emerges. While time consuming, and hair-pulling, I am practicing the technique, and will post the first notable effort sometime next week.

I think setting aside time to reflect on life is really necessary in these complicated times. Yoga is a great help. And painting reflections is another.

Artfully yours,

cathy harville