Bristol Pier, 6 x 8 oil on linen panel
I am trying to find more interesting abstract patterns in my plein air work. I loved the colors of this old fishing boat on the pier in Briston RI but it was the interesting shapes that initially caught my eye. It is really the underlying value structure of a scene that will make or break a good painting. I really like this one as the idea reminds me a little of Milton Avery, one of my favorite artists. While it definitely does not look anything like an Avery I think I was trying to achieve a similar goal. I found a great quote from Milton Avery on
a terrific blog about art history :
"I always take something out of my pictures, strip the designs to the essentials; the facts do not interest me so much as the essence of nature. I never have any rules to follow. I follow myself. I began painting by myself in the Connecticut countryside, always directly from nature . . . I have long been interested in trying to express on canvas a painting with a few, large, simplified spaces." Milton Avery.
Love it.
