Floating

Floating acrylic 6x8

This is a photo montage of three small paintings that have been on my easel recently. I enjoy working  out ideas in a spontaneous manner on scale that encourages immediacy and experimentation. In a way, these are notations to myself and they provide a way to kickstart creativity when the “muse of painting” seems to be taking a vacation!  One stroke, one color leads to another and before long the process of painting becomes a joyful and challenging exploration. It is very easy to step into the role of self-critic and sometimes that little critical voice can become oppressive. I frequently remind myself that the playfulness of a creative pastime is one major reason that it is so fulfilling.
Small works that have a open ended quality can be a doorway to something more. Carpe diem -seize the brush!

A Quiet Place

A Quiet Place
8 x 8 acrylic on a cradled archival panel

The cool colors of a snowy evening inspired this small winter study. I am usually drawn to simple themes and the effects of light on a subject.  Often when I  look for inspiration in nature, it is the hidden or quiet places that bring me a feeling of peace and calm. And it is those feelings I like to share. This painting is also an exploration of a limited palette consisting of three primary colors plus white. My challenge was to find and enhance the many colors of “white”  on a snow filled day when the ambient light was low and warm at sunset.

Bird and Stone

Bird and Stone

Acrylic and mixed media on paper

On a recent trip to Charleston, South Carolina, dear friends gave us a “grand tour” of the city and the the surrounding area. We took in as many sights and tastes of this historic city as we could pack into our three day stay. The culture, architecture, food and beaches were impressive. Our friends took the time to share their insight into their new home state with us.
One interest we share with them is history and especially how a place is shaped by it. A trip to a plantation and and a narrated carriage ride through the old streets of Charleston brought the enslaved African-Americans role in the construction of this southern community to a stark and tangible reality for me.
Despite the fact that most of the buildings and streets we saw were constructed of the bricks made by the enslaved, only one very small monument to that dark history was present as a memorial. Near a church yard our guides pointed out a slight brick tower mounted by a small black sculpture of an bird with a stone on it’s back. Based on an old African tale of a blackbird whose troubles were symbolized by a stone, the sculpture depicted the bird reaching backwards to toss it’s  burden aside. It is a powerful image suggesting that one can overcome oppression and darkness with courage and persistence. I have not been able to get the image of the small bird and it’s stone, and the feelings that it evoked, out of my mind.
Hatred, racism, fear, greed, envy, despair and poverty are all stones one might bear. When we see and feel their hardness, we as one community can find the courage to toss them away.

Blue Shadows

Blue Shadows
Pastel on sanded paper 10 x 10

Late last November, before winter enveloped the woods in a cloak of white, the sparse foliage allowed the sun to penetrate the woods. I looked for color and found that the woodland had it’s own design in mind. The angles of our fallen trees created a pattern against the erratic rocks that are strewn throughout our land. Bare of leaves,  the sandy soil that makes up so much of  the north woods  forest floor was revealed. Blue shadows and warm notes are the basis for this little painting. Often, it is the ordinary that causes me to pause and find beauty where I stand. Available Daily Paintworks
Bonnieparuch.com

The Gift

The Gift
8x8 acrylic painting on a gallery wrapped canvas

Welcome 2020!
It seems that with the arrival of the new year  a renewed Spirit arrives for me one which encourages experimenting and creating. This little painting is my first painting of the year , a gift to myself , after the hustle and bustle of the Holidays. It offered me moments of total concentration and an almost meditative mindset , free from distraction.
Painting can be a gift in and of itself. When I can enter the experience of creating with open-ness and acceptance I always walk away with some joy and peace.
There are definitely times when self criticism and judgement interferes with a feel-good process. Not every brush “at bat” is a good one. The challenge is to find and hold tight to creative energy while striving to grow.
This is  a new painting  and the gift of a new beginning.
Available.   www.bonnieparuch.com

The Little Bouquet

The Little Bouquet 8 x 8 acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas

Flowers, still life , impressionist

Each Saturday the farmers market in our downtown draws a huge crowd. Including us! We have our favorite vendors and enjoy supporting the local and sustainable farmers who share their harvest with us. Many Hmong families sell beautiful, inexpensive flower bouquets along with their vegetables. I generally scope out the best and brightest blooms and bring home a feast for my eyes as well as the soul. As the time passes, the bouquets will get smaller to accommodate the droop that is bound to happen with the passing days. I cut and cull and cherish the blossoms that linger , for they still add beauty and breath to the day.
At auction DailyPaintworks.com
www.bonnieparuch.com

Bayside

Bayside 8 x 8 acrylic on a gallery wrapped canvas

Landscape, abstracted realism, waterfront,

This painting is less a landscape than it is a painted idea. I have been interested in the characteristics of acrylic paint. It is similar to pastel painting in that multiple layers of color and texture can be quickly place on the painting surface.  Unlike oil paint,  it drys so quickly that changes can be made within a very short painting process. To approach this painting I randomly placed warm tones on the canvas and before the paint dried - scraped some areas down to the tinted surface. Negative and positive shapes were built on this base with an emphasis on the pointy roof and building shapes that emerged. The reflected colors in the “water” simply arrived and this little harbor study came to be. Sometimes nothing leads to something.
www.bonnieparuch
Dailypaintworks auction

Nature made

Nature Made 10 x 10 acrylic on a gessoed archival board

Impression , abstracted realism , nature, landscape 

I love the idea of taking a form from nature and making it my own. When I first began painting I was learning to see as a painter in the medium of watercolor.  The Artist Barbara Nechis was a an influence as I poured over her book “Watercolor the Creative Experience” . One significant idea that she planted in my mind is benefit of conceptualizing a place, or a significant experience in nature, in one’s mind only. No brushes required until things percolate in the studio.

I think that both boredom, a creative itch and a desire to let a remembered place come forward led to this small painting. When time and motivation are available it becomes easier to take risks and to let things happen.  

There are a few treasured books I pull out when inspiration fails. They are a mixed lot, chosen for the message I gain from the authors verses the style they represent.  They range from impressionists to realists, abstractionists to expressionists, Ashcan  artists to Wyeth . Thanks to all!

The Boat Yard

The Boat Yard acrylic 8 x 8 on a cradled archival board

Architecture, impression, waterfront, Maritime

Some of the old timers I admire painted coastal towns with glee and abandon. I have never been able to get too far from a great expanse of water. My coasts have been on the inland lakes and Great Lakes of the Midwest but I feel an affinity to harbors and dockside environments wherever we travel.
The shapes and colors and the “feel” of old buildings on the water is a subject made for artists who have a need to find originality and grit in the places that inspire them. Over the years authentic waterfronts have been replaced with gentrified shores. One old timer lamented ( in the 1940s ) that if they keep cleaning things up they’ll be nothing for artists to paint! Obviously, that lament is untrue because nature will always provide. It is man’s need to modernize, build up and tear down that we have to keep a watch for. In many ways artists are historians, for what’s here today is often gone tomorrow.
This small painting is available on DailyPaintworks
www.bonnieparuch

Newport Fog

Newport Fog. 8 x 8 acrylic on a cradled gessoed board

It seems that our weather patterns have gotten stuck this September. Here in northeast Wisconsin we are approaching an all time record for rainfall and we have months to go!  The rainy days, foggy days and damp chilly days have given rise to more studio time. Gazing out of my studio window the soft, yet colorful grays led me to this memory of a walk along the trails at Newport State Park. It really isn’t a particular place there but holds the feeling and influence of an early fall snowfall, the lakeshore and the weather.
Frequently, my  goal is to eliminate, to pare down a subject to it’s bare bones.
That is the place where I hope abstraction and realism meet.
You can find this painting on DailyPaintWorks
www.bonnieparuch.com

Red and green onions

Red and Green Onions 8 x8 acrylic on a cradled archival panels

I enjoy cooking almost as much as I enjoy painting. Onions , peppers, garlic, & a multitude of spices are among the many “ colors” that touch our meals. I feel that farmers markets are a scrumptious palette for my eyes and often my brush. This little celebration of onions reflects a sense of home for me. The heart of our home is the kitchen - so welcome in. Pull up a chair. Let’s raise the humblest of vegetables to its’ rightful place. Often we neglect the small things that hold wonder inside.

Summer Day

Summer Day 8x8 acrylic on a cradled archival panel

One brilliant, late summer day I took a group of students out to paint in the quaint town of Grand Marais, MN. We picked a spot near a small white cottage, it was dressed up with picket fences and colorful with a front yard garden. I did a fast pastel demonstration. My  memory and a small study of that  plein air experience influenced this painting.
Late summer is such a sweet time. The bold colors of the summer garden are often at their peak and prime: Sunflowers have a big impact in any garden and seem to be especially suited to the edges of buildings and fences. There they stand like exclamation points saying “ look at me” !
This painting is available at auction on DailyPaintworks, www.bonnieparuch.com

Evening at the Farm

Evening At the Farm 6 x9 pastel on watercolor paper

I recently put together a smaller set of soft pastels to use on a short trip to our cottage up north. The weather had been rainy and cool and my color selections reflected the warm shadows and cool lights of  these gray days.  This little pastel painting is a memory piece. A collection of old farm buildings clustered against the sky served as inspiration. The color harmonies are pure invention. Soft grays and warm saturated shadows can help create a moody painting. “Evening at the farm”  is one of those. These are the pastel sticks I used - I’ll be needing some more yellows, reds and cool blues and purples for the sunny days ahead! By using a watercolor under-painting  I can “stretch the colors to fit the day.

Autumn Rain

Autumn Rain 10 x 10 pastel over watercolor on sanded paper

Pastel, impressionist, rural, nature

My favorite medium has always been soft pastel. It has an expressive quality that suits both my temperament and my interest in honoring a mark on the paper. I use a watercolor underpainting  on an archival sanded paper or board which allows me the freedom to manipulate the pastel in a painterly manner. I recently had carpal tunnel surgery and I am delighted to once again add pastel back to my methods.
This small study was influenced by the rain that has softened my view of the rural landscape that is near our cottage up north. Small homesteads like this one remind me of growing up near pastures and corn fields. It reminds me of the farm my mother grew up on. It reminds me of our time midst the small farms and orchards in Door County too.
Autumn always seems to breath a little easier than summer. It is a time to savor before winter arrives, a time to exhale.

Pink Sunset

Pink Sunset watercolor on 140 lb acid free watercolor paper 6 x9

When I first began to paint, my medium of choice was watercolor. In the early years I had small children and limited space ( and time ) and works on paper that dried quickly fit well into our busy lives. I have continued to use watercolor as an under painting for most of my pastels. Lately, I’ve had an “itch” to work in pure watercolor again. It is definitely a big change from my work in the opaque mediums. I enjoy using watercolors for small studies and sketches. They are immediate, fluid and at times very challenging.
One creative venture always leads me to another. Participating in a variety of mediums often enhances my work in ways I don’t immediately grasp. This little painting is available matted and simply framed. The subject is a memory of a little town above the bay in Door County.
www.BonnieParuch.com
DailyPaintworks.com

A Bridge too Far

A Bridge too Far 6 x 6 acrylic

Pathways, reflections,  and simple patterns of light and dark values have always appealed to me. One theme that has made an appearance since I began painting professionally has been imagery depicting a bridge. For  years I’ve explored the idea of movement from here to there in many semi-abstracted works.
Occasionally, someone will say, “You’ve moved in a new direction”. I often find myself holding back the information that the fundamentals of abstraction have always been with me.
Early in my professional career, I submitted three abstracted paintings ( that included a bridge themed  piece) for a major show at a midwestern gallery. They refused to hang those three along with my more tradition work with the words, “we’ll never sell abstract art.” Guess what’s hanging there now?
That experience was  a serious blow to my confidence and for many years I painted abstracted works just for me. When I began to confront my fear of exposing too much with abstract work, I found that my collectors readily accepted both my representational works and what I have come to call work of abstracted realism.
A Bridge too Far  harkens back to those early days -it marks a journey that is both personal and artistic. Perhaps it says, come, travel with me.

The Copper Dome

The Copper Dome 6x6 acrylic

I treasure our nightly walks. Each and every evening seems to lead us to a new discovery or , at the very least , to a new point of view. The copper dome of the Court  House has lost much of it’s original patina due to an unfortunate restoration. The beautiful green, gold and copper tones of old are now modified to a more simple harmony. As a society, we often seem to see new as better than old. Patina as tarnish, and shabby,  as less than aesthetically pleasing. I once read a quote from an old timer and well known artist of the 1950’s who said , “ ...if they keep fixing things up artists won’t have anything to paint!” . I can relate to that.
Even tho the old dome has been fixed up, it is still a grand structure, full of character as it rises above the court house square.
My muse on this evening’s  walk was the idea of the dome, it’s place in history and in the fabric of the community it serves.

One Night The Moon

One Night the Moon  6x8 acrylic

Trees have taken on a special importance for me this summer. Several weeks ago our cottage up-north in Oconto county was visited by a tornado. Huge old growth trees; oaks,maples, ironwood, birch, beech and pine snapped or toppled like  dominoes in the woods surrounding us. Amazingly, our small house was mostly unscathed. But our propane tank, the drive to the house, the ravine and the forest roads nearby were severely impacted by the fallen trees. It is as if dear friends have died. This is not to say that a tree is like a Human being. It is as if a spirit , the spirit of the woods has been damaged beyond belief. We and our neighbors are in mourning. Like most intense experiences in life, this one has brought dismay and gratitude, hope and fear , and a very real sense of the beauty and fragility of life.
Buying our small bit of woods was a return to my roots. As a child, my safe place was a small park near our house and the Great Lake and forest country Up North where we rented a cabin each summer. We came out of the storm in far better shape than many. The fifty or sixty trees that went down did not take a life or destroy our house. The storm has redefined my feelings about the forest, but it did not take away my joy and awe of it.
Close to one corner of the house nine large trees went down in a tangle of trunks and branches. As we cleared most of the debris, we discovered a little stand of very small pine trees right behind the mess. They were previously hidden from us and now stand ready to reach for the new light that now can reach them. I understand that adversity can make a place even more precious. Once, I thought,  why would someone rebuild in the aftermath of a storm? The answer is clear now, somethings are worth more than they seem.
One Night the Moon is about light in the darkness of night. It is a celebration of trees.

A Window to the Past

A Window to the Past 8 x 8 acrylic on a Raymar panel

Architecture, Building, Impressionist, Historic

We took a trip back in time when we visited an old logging camp in Northeastern Wisconsin. Log buildings and rusting equipment marked by time caught my eye and inspired this painting. I have always been intrigued by windows. This one was especially mysterious and inviting. The roughly hewn logs and random lines presented me with an almost abstract study. The gray tones, warm and cool, in a very close value range made for a challenging composition and color harmony.
One “color” I try to avoid using is black. Right out of the tube it shouts it’s presence and disrupts the true dark tones nature and natural light provides. For that reason I mix my grays and dark tones with deep transparent colors. If I use black it will be just a “ touch” modified by red or green or blue.
Two mixtures that use the color black to an advantage are: white black and cadmium red ( which makes a lovely violet) and white, black and cadmium yellow ( a wonderful forest green  results). The white is just a bit!
Finding and enjoying the beauty of gray tones or  “mouse colors” will give an artist a powerful tool to add a supportive cast of players to lift the brighter tones.

Prairie Skyscrapers

Prairie Skyscrapers 8  x 8 oil on a Raymar panel

Impressionist, semi-abstraction, abstract, landscape

Where does inspiration come from? What is an artist’s point of view? How does reality play with invention? I’m not sure that I can answer each of these questions. I can share a small part of my own process toward the creation of a painted idea.
There are times when I snap photographs to remind me of a moment, a shape, or a detail that I feel might escape my memory. I rarely use photographic references to paint the photo.
I have a long history of traveling the backroads in Northeast Wisconsin. Often, I find myself  studying the old and worn structures that have a story to tell me. Growing  up in the Midwest I have always felt that it’s agricultural heritage is close at hand. Often, the tallest and most prominent architectural elements  of a community were found in it’s taverns, barns, church steeples and grain elevators. They rose like prairie “skyscrapers” across the plains and throughout the state.
The structures below caught my eye one winter day. We had been driving around the small towns of  Algoma and Kewaunee , out hunting for images and ideas.
This past week I pulled up this photograph and I let my imagination and emotions guide me to the finished painting you see here. The road to art from idea is often a bumpy one. It is a process of trial and error that always creates both discomfort and excitement.
I find that if I can let go of what I see and strive to paint what is true for me, then I have a painting that has something to say.