"Summer Reverie", 16x20, oil on panel, Maryanne Jacobsen art, original oil paintings, impressionism, plein air versus studio, gardens, flowers, romantic gardens

"Summer Reverie", 16x20, oil on panel

I did a plein air painting in my back garden a couple weeks ago and enjoyed it so much that I thought I'd try a larger version in my studio. The image above is the result.

It's a weird thing about plein air. You are working against the clock to capture all that you see in front of you, and as a result you don't have time to over-think things. So generally speaking, plein air work has a more spontaneous feel to it.

The benefits of working  in the studio, are that you can study what you did wrong in the plein air piece, and take your time thinking through how you could do it differently, in the hopes that you might improve upon what you did quickly outdoors.

Here are the two paintings side by side:

The funny thing is, I like the plein air painting better! Yes, I was able to soften edges in the larger one, and think more carefully about the background, but somehow, the transparency of the tablecloth, the texture in the flowers, the boldbess of the brushwork,  and the spontaneous way in which I threw in the leg and its shadow underneath the table, appeals to me more.

Anyhow, if you stop by this blog and have a read, please let me know what you think!