"Misty Morning, Southwest Harbor", plein air, Claremont Hotel, croquet, Southwest Harbor Maine,

"Misty Morning, Southwest Harbor", 9x12, oil on board,  plein air oil sketch

Last week after the Castine Plein Air Festival, my husband and I decided to spend a few days at Southwest Harbor, Maine. Southwest Harbor is a sleepy but lovely little area about 15 minutes south of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. We stayed once again at the lovely olf Claremont Hotel, a grand old hotel that helped put Bar Harbor and Maine on the map as a vacation destination in the late 1800's. The hotel is beautifully situated at the mouth of Somes Sound, the east coast's only fjord.

The hotel looks over the Sound to Mt. Desert Island and it is truly a magical expereince to watch the mist lift from the sound and the land mass appear in the early morning hours.

The week we were there was the week of the annual croquet tournament, and the croquet players were practicing with amazing concentration the morning that I set up to paint on the porch. You can see some of them in my photos below:

The painting came together pretty quickly once there was enough light on the porch for me to see what I was painting!

There are beautiful hanging pots of begonias all over the porch and I would highly recommend this lovely traditional old dame of a hotel over any of the Bed and Breakfasts in Bar Harbor. A full breakfast is included and there is even a gent on the premises who will give you some croquet tips!
 Here is a photo of the back of the Claremont on a misty afternoon. I was standing at the boat house when I took the photo, and you can have lunch or drinks there in front of a roaring fire.

For more info about The Claremont, you can just follow the link. To see another painting of the Claremont croquet lawn that I did  a while back, please go here. And if you are interested in purchasing this plein air oil sketch, just send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

"A Taste of Alsace", 40 x30 oil on canvas, Strasbourg, France, Little Paris, paintings of Strasbourg

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"A Taste of Alsace", 40 x30 oil on canvas

This painting was a commission based upon a smaller painting of the same scene that I did. The client saw the smaller piece in a gallery and commissioned the larger version through the gallery. I'll confess that I've been working on this painting for the past three months!

The reference photo for the painting was a photo that I took during a trip to Strasbourg , France in 2001:

I decided to give the entire scene a rosy glow and so I themed my palette around permanent rose. I do hope the client is happy with it and I am relieved that it is finished!

"View from the Pentagoet Inn", 9x12, oil on panel, Castine plein air festival, Pentagoet Inn, Castine, Maine, scenic towns in Maine

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"View from the Pentagoet Inn", 9x12, oil on panel
(Note: Unfortunately, I do not have a better photo of this painting as it sold before I could take a decent photo)

Just got back from the Castine Plein Air festival, held in Castine, Maine last weekend. It was Castine's first plein air festival and I must say it was one of the best Paint-outs that I've ever attended. The chairpersons, Dan Graziano and Don Tenney, did a fanstastic job in making sure that everything ran smoothly- not an easy task for a one day plein air event!

I arrived a day early in the hopes that I could scout the town for a couple good painting sites. Unfortunately, the rain was torrential the entire day spoiling my plans. The sun finally broke through in the early evening and many artists could be seen walking around the streets of this immensely scenic little town to get a lay of the land and find their favorite spots.

Morning came and the sky still looked a little questionable from my view of Main Street at the Pentagoet Inn where I was staying.

After going to the Village Green and getting my panels stamped, the sun began to break through at last! But I decided to play it safe and paint under the awning just in case there was another downpour! By noon I had finished my painting and the sun was shining brightly!

After lunch I decided to make my way down to Dennet's Wharf for an afternoon painting. I'll post that one tomorrow as well as some photos of Castine's scenic harbor.

The evening art reception and sale was a beautiful event and there must have been at least 500 hundred people who turned out to view the art, meet the artists and purchase paintings!
A resident of Castine bought my painting and I had the opportunity to chat with her and learn a little more about Castine.  Here is my painting at the event with its red dot:

 The event was held at the Maine Maritime Academy and it was a beautiful site for an art event, featuring a wrap around deck that overlooked the beautiful hills and waters of Castine.

I also enjoyed spending time with my friend and fellow artist, Jane Sither and her family, who also traveled from Florida for the Paint-Out.

Overall, it was a wonderful event and I was very happy that I was invited to participate!

Two national shows and three roses!- American Impressionist Society, American Women Artists, Castine Plein air, Maryanne jacobsen art, roses, vase

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 "Pas de Trois", 8x8, oil on board

You know you haven't blogged in  awhile, when some of your readers send you emails asking if you are well!

I apologize for not blogging over these past weeks, but I had good reasons! I'm just getting over an illness that had me under the weather for a few weeks. In spite of not feeling well, I decided to go to the Castine Plein Air event anyway, and I'm glad that I did. I'll be blogging about that later on, but for now I just wanted to say that I'm back and thanks to my readers for their concerns!

I also received really wonderful news this week that I have been juried into the 16th annual American Women Artist's exhibit to be held in November at The Hanna Gallery in Fredericksburg , Texas. Of over 600 entries, only 60 were selected for the exhibit, and I was delighted and honored to have "Pas de Trois" included in this group of  beautiful paintings!

My little vase that I purchased in a health food store has certainly served me well, as I also used it for the painting, "Dancing Queens and a Pear", which was juried into the prestigious American Impressionist Society's 14th annual juried show in Charleston this October.Wow! Two national shows in one month! I am soooo happy and thankful for the blessing!

 Here's a photo of the set-up that  I used for my painting: As you can see, I stuck the vase unceremoniously between the blender and the toaster, and painted it right in my kitchen!

The next day, I carried the roses and vase into the bathroom, added a pear and couple glass bottles and painted "Dancing Queens and a Pear" in the somewhat confining quarters of the bathroom. Well, whatever works and for me the combination of north light from the window and warm overhead light above the mirror, made for an  interesting lighting effect.

I think it is going to be a busy and exciting fall season for this happy artist! Thanks for reading!

"A Degas Moment", 14x11, oil on linen, paintings of dancers, ballet, young dancers, pink, tutus

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"A Degas Moment", 14x11, oil on linen

I painted these dancers awhile back- maybe 8 months ago. Although I was pretty happy with the painting at the time, I also knew it needed some refinement.

Today I took it out and worked on it most of the day. I softened edges, increased contrast in areas that were focal points (the dancers) and simplified the fireplace, which was one of those old world fireplaces with painted tile all around. Beautiful in person, but a dog to paint!

Keeping in mind that's it's better to suggest than to render every detail, I just concentrated on simplifying the fireplace in order to keep it in its place- a background. Overall, I am happy with the painting now and I can honestly say that it looks amazing in person!

This painting is available through Gallery 444, in San Franciso.

"French Blues", 8x10, oil on board, paintings of France, Provence, blue doors, blue shutters

"French Blues", 8x10, oil on board

Well, as you can see, I finally have California out of my system, and now I am on a French kick~!

Oh lala, how I love all those blue doors and shutters that you see throughout Provence. Can you imagine how positively awesome it would be to live on this little winding street in the French Alps?

This was a fun way to spend another rainy afternoon in Florida-imagining that I am somewhere else as I painted!

On a happy note, I rec'd notification today that my painting, "Dancing Queens and a Pear", was juried into the prestigious American Impressionist Society's annual juried show, to be held at the M Gallery in Charleston in the fall.This is only the second time that I have been successful since I started entering the show 4 years ago, and the competition gets tougher each year, so I am honored to have had this painting chosen for the show! Yippee!

"Holiday Villa", 12x16, oil on board, south of france, French villas, paintings of Provence, gardens, French gardens, French holiday

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"Holiday Villa", 12x16, oil on board

I am reading a book called The Paris Wife, by Paula McLain, which chronicles the story of Hadley Richardson, the first wife of Ernest Hemingway. At one point in the book, Hadley makes the fateful decision to bring all of Ernest's work with her on a trip to Switzerland to see her husband. Waiting for a train, she takes a short walk around the platform, only to find out that the small valise containing all of Ernest's writings of the last four years has been stolen.

What ensues afterwards is a dry spell for Ernsest, in which he finds himself unable to write in the wake of finding out that his work is gone.

It happens to me more often than I like to admit, a dry spell when I can't paint- though I certainly can't blame a spouse who has lost or destroyed my paintings!

Today I took a devil-may -care attitude about beginning a painting, refusing to allow the inner voice inside my head to start telling me I couldn't do it.

It worked. The painting came out pretty quickly and effrotlessly, and I am hopeing that that is the end of my current dry spell for  awhile!

If you would like to take a holiday to the south of France, you may purchase this painting and visit this beautiful villa every day of the year. Now how's that for a nice offer?

Visit my website here to view more of my original oil paintings.

"May Grey, Pacific Grove", 12x9, oil on panel, California coastal landscape by Maryanne Jacobsen

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"May Grey, Pacific Grove", 12x9, oil on panel

I tend to avoid painting scenes that do not have strong light patterns in them because they are a little depressing for someone like me that has seasonal affective disorder. On overcast days, the light key is very different from sunny days, with much less contrast and a narrow value range. It also has a tendency to be a light key in which the shadows are warm and the light source is cool.

The photo below depicts a fairly typical May morning  in Pacific Grove, California, in which there is a thick foggy mist in the early morning hours, with gradual clearing throughout the morning- usually turning to bright and beautiful clear sunny skies by mid-day.

Many areas of California and particularly the mid-coast region has what is called a micro-climate, which often features a weather phenomenon known as "June Gloom or May Grey", presenting overcast or foggy skies in the morning at the coast, but sunny skies by noon during the late spring and early summer months. I took this photo around 11:30ish in early May, just as the skies were clearing and the sun was trying to break through.

Although I tend to not enjoy painting a scene like this, I forced myself to do it, because I need the practice! Living in Florida presents fewer opportunities to paint this type of light temperature and so I felt it would be a good study for me.

We also do not have rocks and cliffs and cypress tress and iceplants like this in Florida, so overall, this painting was a challenge for me. I think for my next painting, I'll settle back into my comfort zone!

If you are interested in purchasing this study, please send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

Thanks for visiting my blog today! To see more of my work, please visit my website at Maryanne Jacobsen, Fine Art.

"Dancing Queens and a Pear", 12x12, oil on board, roses, pink roses, dancing queen roses, pear, glass bottles, impressionism

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"Dancing Queens and a Pear", 12x12, oil on board
Note: This painting was juried into the American Impressionist Society's 2013 annual show!

I wanted to take advantage of those three lovely roses that I painted earlier in the week to create one more painting before they were gone. I arranged them with a pear and glass bottles that worked with the color scheme I had in my mind, which was an analogous theme using mostly cools of red, blue and green.

I used a palette knife in the pear and roses and a brush in other areas and so the painting has areas of thick impasto as well as thinner paint.

You can click the image in order to see the impasto better.

"Pas de Trois", 8x8 , oil on board, rose study, pink roses, three roses, roses in glass vase

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"Pas de Trois", 8x8 , oil on board

Set up a few roses in my kitchen and this was the result. See my set-up below.

For those not familiar with the French term, pas de trois usually refers to a dance in ballet between three people. (or roses, lol!)  Typically a Pas de trois in ballet consists of 6 parts.

Yes, this painting did indeed consist of 6 separate parts!

1. Paint in your north lit studio for an hour
2. Realize you can't see a danged thing in your north lit studio including your painting
3. Wipe the whole danged thing out
4. Start over in the kitchen where you are happy to discover that you're not actually blind
5. Find your mojo after another hour of frustration and continue painting for another hour
6. Sign the finished painting and sigh!

Lots of thick paint in this one!

"Pink Ice Paradise, Pacific Grove", 12x16, oil on board

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 "Pink Ice Paradise, Pacific Grove", 12x16, oil on board

One of the things that I enjoyed most about our recent trip to California, was painting the pink ice plants at Pacific Grove. So today and yesterday I set about to paint them again!

It was a cold and brutally windy April day, and as I set up I wondered if the wind would blow both me and my easel over the ledge and to the rocks below! In spite of the wind, I was totally enamoured with the idea of capturing these vivid pink carpets of spreading flowers, and set about to do so.

That's me in the distance painting away happily, as my hubby walked around taking photos of all the beauty:

In the end, I was really happy with my plein air sketch, and have already wrote about it on my blog here, but in case you missed it, here's the way my plein air painting came out:

I suspect that the plein air painting is closer to the local color than I depicted above, but I couldn't help myself in making a decision to push the color in the studio painting that I did today!

Here was the reference photo that I used. I decided to omit the sea wall and concentrate more on the pink carpet effect:

I really enjoyed painting this, and I hope that you enjoy it , too!

"Cap'n Jake's Crab Boat", plein air, 12x12, oil on board

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"Cap'n Jake's Crab Boat", plein air, 12x12, oil on board

Yesterday was one of those rare May days in Florida without much humidity so I decided to go back to Blackburn Point and see if the old crab boat was there. Surprisingly, it hadn't budged an inch since I was there back in March.

So I set up and started painting. The sun was bright when I started but then turned very cloudy. I managed to get enough info down before becoming distracted by the changed light, and decided to call it a day.

The first time that I painted this scene I used a 9x12. I must admit that I like the rectangular format better than the square. The light was much brighter that day as well, and it definitely influenced the light temperature I depicted in the painting.

 "No Crabs Today!", plein air, 9x12

So much about painting is trial and error. Why did the first painting come together more easily than the second, I wondered? Did the clouds affect my mood yesterday? Did I give myself too many color choices by not limiting my palette? The questions that go through my mind after a painting session are usually endless, and I often lay awake for hours trying to figure out what went wrong with a painting.

But I guess the most important question of the day is this? Where are the crabs? Poor Captain Jake is surely gonna go out of business soon if the crabs don't come back! And yes, there has been a dearth of them on the menus in area restaurants as well. Good luck Captain Jake. If you need cash maybe you should charge a modeling fee. I really do enjoy painting this old boat!!!!!!

This painting is available through Galerie du Soleil.

"5th Hole- Pebble Beach Golf Links"-8x10, Pebble Beach Golf Course, paintings of pebble beach, leaning cypress, ice plants, pacific coastal art, golf pro art

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"5th Hole- Pebble Beach Golf Links"-8x10

Pebble Beach Golf Course is world-renowned. The best golfers the world over have played this course, including Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods!  I could understand why after taking a drive along the famous 17 mile drive that stretches from Carmel to Monterrey and along the beautiful Pacific Coast that the Pebble Beach Golf Course calls home. As we passed the course, we ran into a couple deer that were taking their time sauntering among the holes along with the golfers!

There was an abundance of gorgeous objects for an artist like myself to feast my eyes on, in addition to the deer, which included the wind-blown cypress tress, the spreading pink ice plants and golden poppies as well. Overall, the Pebble Beach area is not just a golfer's paradise, It is an artist's paradise as well!

PS: I'm now thinking of taking up golf!

If you have a dad or hubby who is a golf enthusiast, this painting would make a great Father's Day Gift! If he can't play at Pebble Beach, he can at least imagine it! Right?  (Sigh.)

If you are interested in purchasing this painting, please send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com, and please check out my website here.

"Eventide" 12x24, oil on panel, eucalyptus trees, California impressionist art, California art, sunsets, colorist art

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"Eventide" 12x24, oil on panel

I definitely left my heart in California- among the ice plants and cypress groves and majestic parades of towering eucalyptus trees! I can't wait to go back!

In the meantime, I'll have to be satisfied with painting from photos of our vacation.

"Sarasota Bay View", plein air, 9x12, oil on panel

"Sarasota Bay View", plein air, 9x12, oil on panel

I painted this a couple months ago during the Morgan Samuel Price workshop but never posted it. I recall that during the critique Morgan said the painting had good depth.

This was what I was looking at that day, from the grounds of the Ringling Museum:

Must be nice to have views like that to look at every day!

Please email me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com if you wish to purchase this plein air study.