Variation on a Theme: Saignan Valley II

Saignan Valley II

30" x 24"  acrylic on canvas

While working on a larger canvas featuring this same view looking down over the valley from the village of Saignan in Provence, I started this second 'variation'. My idea, once again, was to (try to) keep it loose, painterly and more abstract than the first canvas, which you can see here. 

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After doing a very quick drawing in my sketchbook, I roughed in the design on the canvas using Inktense pencil crayons - they are like watercolour pencil crayons but the colours are more intense and permanent once dry. I then painted clear water on the pencil lines achieving the blurry, watery effect you see here. I really liked my start but had no idea what to do next. I knew that I would lose the graphic quality through painting - so I left it alone for a few weeks.

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When I finally returned to the work, I added colour and paint, filling in a few area and leaving other parts alone. I began to really enjoy the white parts (actually unpainted canvas) and decided to maintain them, but did add white paint. Slowly I added more colour but kept the shapes big, while playing with perspective.

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Knowing that the foreground flowers would be various shades of magenta, I wanted to tone the entire work down with a chromatic grey elsewhere.  And so it went. Final touches were added with the inktense pencils, outlining shapes for emphasis and adding surface detail. 

Fun! And fairly loose and abstract too!

Variations on a Theme: Below Saignan

During the summer I painted several variations of a particular image that I found both intriguing and inspiring. (Truth be told, I have probably always done this.) This fall I  have been re-visiting images and scenes that I have painted in the past - and that has resulted in a number of related works and variations on a theme. 

The first theme or subject was inspired by a particular view looking over the Luberon Valley (in Provence) from the small village of Saignan. I was there is 2014 and painted this watercolour in situ, at the time. 

                             

Of course I also took many photos and thought that I might do another version in acrylic once home. 

Looking around for a subject in October, I re-discovered these photos and decided to try a much larger version of the same scene - and this is how it evolved.

           

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I quite liked what I had by stage 2, however it really didn't look as good as it does here in the photo. I needed to resolve the middle ground, and the foreground flowers - and keep it loose. Easy! Hah!

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Stage 3 was tighter, and by stage 4 it felt like a disaster. At that point I felt quite discouraged and ready to white it all out out and forget the whole thing - or - try something really different  - and turn the whole thing into a mixed media work with collage papers and acrylic paint. This approach sounded like a lot more fun, so that is what I did. I have a very large collection of textured Japanese rice and mulberry papers, in various colours and patterns and began to apply them over the painting, leaving lots of painted areas exposed. Then I painted over those papers to blend them into the painted areas and to soften the colours of some of the papers. I continued working this way until it was finished.  The final work looks like this. It has a wonderfully varied and textured surface, protected by several layers of medium and varnish. I am delighted with the result and will definitely do this again.

The Valley Below Saignan I

40" x 30"  - collage papers & acrylic on canvas 

Painting in Saignan

Saignan is a village perched at the top of a hill behind a large rock which dominates the Luberon valley - and was another location where we spent the morning painting. Two years ago when there, I spent most of that time wandering up and down the narrow streets, looking for the perfect view (and spot in which to sit to paint it), and ended up just taking a lot of photos - for later use. When home I did paint this - and guess what - the blue car is still there.

Blue Car at Saignan

18" x 14"  acrylic on canvas  $250

On this trip I discovered a wonderful vista looking across the valley, and quickly settled down (amongst the bees, and errant poppies growing up between the flagstones) to paint...... 

Several hours later this is what I had.......

and for fun I also did this.....all in all a great day in Saignan.