ALEc EAMES RICHARDSON
The Process Story of "A Solitary Spruce"
***See all of Alec's pieces in the exhibit following the Process Story.
As an artist, I tend to be moved by humbler subject matter than most. Where I live in Maine,
there are plenty of places with grand drama just a short car or boat trip away.
But I’ve had my mind equally blown by a simple stand of trees at dusk driving back from visiting my mom. In those ordinary moments, one is aware of the art in one’s life—weeding the garden,
checking in with family, the day job-—it’s all part of the same painting.
Travelling downeast this past year, on a whim, I pulled over to an abandoned parking lot
at the Corea Heath National Wildlife Refuge near Prospect Harbor, Maine.
A boardwalk led through the initial hedge and opened up to an amazing, expansive, space.
I loved the hardscrabble vegetation and spring color- paintings popped up everywhere!
Considering ideas for the Process Series, memories of that visit and others seemed like a good place to start.
Within my artistic process, I generally start with drawings, watercolors, or monotype prints.
To get the juices flowing with the Corea Heath, I began with a number of quick monotypes u
sing India ink and plexiglass plates. I then worked into them with graphite and/or aquarelle pencils.
I try not to fuss too much over these. They are supposed to be fast and fun.
Here, I simply look to explore many subjects in a cursory way.
there are plenty of places with grand drama just a short car or boat trip away.
But I’ve had my mind equally blown by a simple stand of trees at dusk driving back from visiting my mom. In those ordinary moments, one is aware of the art in one’s life—weeding the garden,
checking in with family, the day job-—it’s all part of the same painting.
Travelling downeast this past year, on a whim, I pulled over to an abandoned parking lot
at the Corea Heath National Wildlife Refuge near Prospect Harbor, Maine.
A boardwalk led through the initial hedge and opened up to an amazing, expansive, space.
I loved the hardscrabble vegetation and spring color- paintings popped up everywhere!
Considering ideas for the Process Series, memories of that visit and others seemed like a good place to start.
Within my artistic process, I generally start with drawings, watercolors, or monotype prints.
To get the juices flowing with the Corea Heath, I began with a number of quick monotypes u
sing India ink and plexiglass plates. I then worked into them with graphite and/or aquarelle pencils.
I try not to fuss too much over these. They are supposed to be fast and fun.
Here, I simply look to explore many subjects in a cursory way.
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When the time was right, I switched over to oil and developed a few subjects on small canvases.
Note that these canvases are tacked and stretched on a board--
they will be cut and applied to wood panels later, that is if the paintings are any good!
Note that these canvases are tacked and stretched on a board--
they will be cut and applied to wood panels later, that is if the paintings are any good!
Lastly, I continued to explore painting in oil on 300lb paper.
I have learned over the years that surface and medium definitely affect my artistic approach
and thus what I may want to say about a subject.
Oil on paper has always been fast and expressive for me.
The smooth surface lends itself to intense color and fluid strokes.
Here though, I also experimented with neutral tones and even black and white.
Some pieces were relatively thin, on others, I tried thicker layers of paint.
I have learned over the years that surface and medium definitely affect my artistic approach
and thus what I may want to say about a subject.
Oil on paper has always been fast and expressive for me.
The smooth surface lends itself to intense color and fluid strokes.
Here though, I also experimented with neutral tones and even black and white.
Some pieces were relatively thin, on others, I tried thicker layers of paint.
Within my process, I continued to return to the solitary spruce tree
seen in "Heath Study #3" and "Spring Color": Corea Heath as a subject.
Spruce trees in Maine, both black and red, tell the story of their conditions in how they grow.
It is not uncommon for a 300-year-old red spruce to top 125 feet feet in an inland grove
whereas a tree of the same old age may reach only 12 feet if hugging a weatherside cliff on Monhegan.
I loved the gesture and form of the small tree I found out on the heath......
the poetry in its perseverance was inescapable.
seen in "Heath Study #3" and "Spring Color": Corea Heath as a subject.
Spruce trees in Maine, both black and red, tell the story of their conditions in how they grow.
It is not uncommon for a 300-year-old red spruce to top 125 feet feet in an inland grove
whereas a tree of the same old age may reach only 12 feet if hugging a weatherside cliff on Monhegan.
I loved the gesture and form of the small tree I found out on the heath......
the poetry in its perseverance was inescapable.
Final Painting:
A Single Spruce"
Oil on 300 lb. paper
Image 8”x 8,” Framed 16.25" x 16.25"
Oil on 300 lb. paper
Image 8”x 8,” Framed 16.25" x 16.25"
So that is a bit about my process. I enjoy different artistic approaches to subjects--
something I am sure has frustrated some of the galleries I have worked with!
I try to give ideas time to distill and come forward.
I try to be present, and indeed thankful, for all the art in my life, in all the ways it manifests.
I am not sure the energy I found on the heath has subsided.
I really like where some of the ideas led and I kind of want to get back out there and look around further.
But who knows, maybe something else will emerge from morning fog on my drive to work.
something I am sure has frustrated some of the galleries I have worked with!
I try to give ideas time to distill and come forward.
I try to be present, and indeed thankful, for all the art in my life, in all the ways it manifests.
I am not sure the energy I found on the heath has subsided.
I really like where some of the ideas led and I kind of want to get back out there and look around further.
But who knows, maybe something else will emerge from morning fog on my drive to work.
Additional Oils on Paper & Monoprints in the Exhibit:
"A Tangle of Spruce"
Oil on 300 lb. paper
Image 8”x 8,” Framed 16.25" x 16.25"
Oil on 300 lb. paper
Image 8”x 8,” Framed 16.25" x 16.25"
"Haze Creeping In"
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 8”x 8” SOLD
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 8”x 8” SOLD
"Night Falls"
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 8”x 8”
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 8”x 8”
"Heath Color"
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 12”x 12”
Oil on 300 lb. paper, image 12”x 12”
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Heath Study Images, I—XII" Ink monotype and pencil on 300 lb. paper 3” to 5” *Please inquire for images of the individual studies in the above "Process" section.above. |
