Fleeting Moment Painting
What better way to experience a fleeting moment than to paint it in spring in a cemetery, eh? I’ll share more. Whether this is your first or millionth visit here to this blog, hiya, hello and a warm welcome! To read about this year’s painting theme, check the description in this link here. To subscribe and get a weekly dose of color and blog posts, subscribe here. Let’s get to this week’s painting. OK?
The Setting
Turns out there’s a super friendly and talented group of plein air painters that meet here in Raleigh. I have been lucky enough to paint with them three or four times now. This past week the wonderful organizer, Ann Neely, suggested we meet in downtown Raleigh at SmokeStacks Cafe. It’s a nifty local spot.
First, decision of the day: to paint the cafe or some other view? Lately I have loved painting trees outdoors with buildings in the background. So, I confess that I let out a “Yip Yippee” when I could see the gates of Historic Oakwood cemetery a block away. I hopped into my car and nearly stopped in my tracks at the beautiful dogwood tree in bloom just past the gate.
What An Adventure
Having found my spot, I began to set up. And, within minutes of setting up under beautiful blue skies, clouds moved in. Luckily I set up under the canopy of a massive magnolia tree. By 10:00am the rain and wind picked up.
While the wind whistled, I did quick compositional sketches. I confess that I barely noticed what was happening. All I knew was the sun was gone and I was going to have to act fast! After three or four quick sketch ideas, I was ready to go.
Mixing
As I mixed the general colors for the sky, background and foreground, I realized my palette is speckled with water drops of rain. Hmmm! Will I be able to continue or not? Over the course of the next several hours, I kept at it. That means colors got mixed and painting started.
And, I was having so much darn fun, all the wind and rain didn’t really matter. Between brush strokes and gusts of wind, I kept thinking how can I communicate the fleeting weather patterns and constant change of light?
The Moment
Guess what? My thoughts got a sunny, fun answer. The sun came out, the clouds parted and I even had cast shadows. Wahooo! This gave me the opportunity to revisit the composition and the feeling of the painting. Here’s “Fleeting Moment,” a 10×10 inch oil painting on panel.
Yes it’s for sale for $273 + $19.79 tax + $25 shipping = $317.79. To make it your very own “Fleeting Moment” simply PayPal.Me.
In the Midst
In the midst of the painting preparation, shifting weather and winds, I loved this painting session! Why? Because I got to be outdoors, to hear birds and to see that gorgeous white dogwood tree. This entire painting session reminds me of how beautiful spring is!
And You
How about you gentle reader? Have you experienced a fleeting moment worth remembering and even sharing here? If so, please share in the comments below. Thank you!
6 Comments
Kathy Michaud
March 30, 2023Hi Julie,
Great painting story today. I can imagine you all set up under a magnolia tree and then in rolled the rain! More to the point though, I’ve just come in from the park and the dogwoods are GORGEOUS. I’ve been trying to imagine how to paint them….in watercolor…a whole different story, right?
Loving Spring too,
Kathy
Julie Holmes
March 30, 2023Hi Kathy!
Thank you for reading and commenting. Sure hope you can get outside with your watercolors and capture some of those gorgeous dogwoods.
As you know, they’re fleeting, right?
xoxo
Alexandra
March 31, 2023Your sheer joy for painting always come through in your blog posts, especially this one! It’s wonderful to read. I enjoyed reading your experience at Oakwood Cemetery and looking at the variety of edges and colors in your painting. Nice! I also liked the title you chose – “Fleeting Moment” – the ever-changing weather as a backdrop and metaphor for the past lives at the cemetery.
Julie Holmes
May 5, 2023Hi Alexandra, It’s so cool that you could pick up on the joy factor here. I definitely had a blast painting this one.
xoxo
Beth Dyer Clary
March 31, 2023OH HOW I ENVY YOU MARCH SPRING! That painting seems to capture it beautifully. And the title? Perfect. Our March days have been fleeting warmth, then chilly, then fleeting warmth and chilly. At least we know it’s headed in the right direction.
I find your choice of buildings and trees as your subject for painting kind of fascinating. I wouldn’t put the two together in a first glance. HOWEVER, I love the softness of the natural world set against the geometric angles and edges of the humanmade world. Very cool!
Julie Holmes
May 5, 2023Hi Beth, I wish I could say I imagined this view (and the buildings beyond the trees), but I didn’t. This was a case of painting what I was seeing, mostly.
TY for seeing the soft and hard edges. That’s part of the fun of this process. Seeking that out and making it work somehow.
xoxo