More Fishing at Pyramid Lake!

Bid for this painting on Ebay!

Well I'm not sure whether I'm in my 'right mind' today (or ever!), but I'm better and although tired felt really restless to paint. I lay on the couch doing sketches yesterday, so was itching to get back into the studio today.

Here's Taylor breaking down the fishing rods at the end of the day. I love the light in these paintings.

So one thought leads to another, and as I was painting this one I remembered Taylor's split bamboo rod, which his grandfather gave him last year. Taylor laboured over this thing for hours and hours, stripping away the old varnish, cleaning and re-tying the threads in criss-crosses on it. I was skeptical at first, I'll admit - I've never seen of of these things before, but when it was finished....wow, what a stunning piece of craft it is.

His grandfather is an ex WW2 pilot, and has a reputation for diligent maintenance. He had a Volkswagon Beatle from the 60's, bought new, and logged every single drop of fuel and price for the 40-odd years he had it. He also waxed it so much he had to have it resprayed because he buffed the paint off the bodywork. I guess Taylor inherited some of that diligence, and I saw it for the first time fixing up that fishing rod. I wonder if he'll ever apply that to washing the dishes...?

Amish Schoolhouse at dusk - Finished!

I've been a bit ill over the past few days (to say the least), so I haven't much felt like painting. Taylor suggested a series of paintings called the 'Percoset Diaries', but I'd rather wait until I'm in my right mind(!) to paint I think.

So instead, here's the Amish Schoolhouse at Dusk canvas which I posted a while back when it was in progress. I'm really pleased with it, and the longer it hangs in our lounge, the harder it'll be to part with. The format of a long thin canvas was really important to capture the vast skies in Pennsylvannia, with it being so flat. It has a kind of nostalgic feel to it, the colours being reminiscent, to me, of an old photograph. I'm also pleased with the composition, but that was pretty much how the scene was composed in reality - a little editing and slight moving of trees here and there, but on the whole, it's pretty true to life.

The Amish kids were playing outside the school in their usual wellies and heavy coats, beautifully silhouetted against the dusk sky. I've still got a fair few more big canvases to go with this series I think, so I'll work them up in mini studies for the daily paintings, and take it from there.

The Watertower, Pyramid Lake

Bid for this painting on Ebay!

You know when you see something so striking, you just shriek (either in your head, or out loud) "STOP THE CAR!!!" well, that was this watertower for me. Anna Lou had kindly taken time out from fishing, and driven me to the closest shop to buy batteries for my camera - which of course had run out at the worst possible time. We drove past this now defunct watertower, silhouetted beautifully against the slightly hazy lake and snow capped mountain range, and then drove back again for me to do a quick sketch and stand in the middle of the road taking pictures. Pyramid Lake is on an Indian Reservation in Nevada, and this watertower was presumably part of the railroad which used to run through near the lake. It's broken and ramshackle, with old cars strewn at its base, along with the ubiquitous high desert sage brush and yellow dust. Beautiful, and a little melancholy.

Fisherman at Pyramid Lake

Bid for this painting on Ebay!

The fisherman in question is Bob, my friend Anna Lou's boyfriend. He guides up there so he knows the ropes - great because I don't really know what I'm doing with a fishing pole in my hand. Taylor and I went up to Hobart Lake last summer, and I caught a few trout then. The thing is, I can't bear to see them in pain, so it was a kind of frenzy when I got a bite to hurl the poor bugger in Taylor's direction screaming "kill it quick!"

So here's the reason I go fishing - I'm a 'pescetarian' (a fish-eating vegetarian) and I feel that if I'm going to eat a fish, then morally, I should be prepared to catch and kill it myself. If not, I shouldn't be eating them, and be a proper veggie. It's taking a lot of desensitizing though, and I still can't actually do the deed myself, but I can watch now, wincing. Mostly I just love being outside, and the lakes here are very beautiful, so whether we catch fish or not, I have a lovely day.

Toothpaste (Duet)

Yay! It's finally finished, I think. This is 'part 2' of a series of paintings of Taylor & I brushing our teeth. I know it seems like a bizarre thing to want to paint, but I think other people have those quirky, intimate moments they share too. I wanted to capture something very private, but not explicit. Part 1 is called Toothpaste (You make me feel so young) And that's part of what all the 'Home' paintings are about, the fact that clowning around with someone you can feel utterly comfortable with can remind you not to take life too seriously. The story behind this toothpaste theme is that Taylor thinks it's hilarious the way I brush my teeth. Aside from the British reputation for bad teeth, there's plenty to poke fun at my technique I suppose. The thing is, nobody has ever said anything before, about my habit of spraying toothpaste all over the place, and looking like a rabid dog when I brush my teeth. I see these American movies, (Frankie & Johnny, for one) where people walk around with a toothbrush poking out of the side of their mouthes, happily conversing and not dripping froth down their fronts, and I wonder - how?

I was talking to my artist friend Melissa Gregory over tea this morning about these paintings, and she asked me how other people respond to these paintings...well here's your chance, public - I know you're out there, I can see the stats for this blog, and I'm happy and flattered to note there are a fair few visitors every day! So I'm not writing to myself after all! Let me know what you think.

Fishing at Pyramid Lake, NV

Bid for this painting on Ebay!

I went with my husband and some friends up to Pyramid Lake yesterday, and it was stunning. I'm really into long shadows at the moment, so the position of the sun was perfect for capturing some dramatic shadows on the sand. It was mightily cold, so despite the sun we were all bundled up in winter jackets and hats. I did some rough sketches whilst we were there, looking at body position and the cool silhouette shapes created by the combination of bulky clothes and the motions of casting and reeling. We didn't catch any fish, but that was ok, we had a fun day out - thankyou Anna Lou and Bob!

More Pyramid Lake paintings tomorrow.

Same Cup Different Day

Bid For this painting on Ebay

Yes, as the title suggests...No more cups tomorrow though, as we went fishing at Pyramid Lake, Nevada today, and I'm really inspired! I did one painting as soon as we got in, which I'll upload tomorrow.