Furrowed Fields

"Furrowed Fields" 8x8 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

This was painted on location looking down the Webber Canyon on a hazy winter day before the fields filled in with lush green. On a clear day you can see both Mt Adams, and Mt Ranier.

We've had haze this summer from the wildfires. With the exception of the lack of green, the scene is quite similar.

Rattlesnake Mountain at Golden Hour (sold)

"Rattlesnake Mountain at Golden Hour" 8x8 oil on board, © Laura Gable, SOLD

As the Autumn day was fading towards evening these lovely peach tones appeared on the horizon and flooded the land with it's luminescence. I was privy to be there painting this scene, and added the golden tones before they faded away. The air was brisk with a slight chill - perfect and lovely Autumn weather. A fabulous afternoon spent painting with a dear friend, was a welcome reprieve from a taxing day.

Pleased to have sold this painting while it was on display at the Anelare Winery in Benton City. A beautiful place to sip wine and enjoy artwork. Visit when you can.

Picking Lavender

A recent outing to the nearby lavender fields garnered a fairly good plein air painting and a stress free, enjoyable day spent painting with a dear friend. While there I observed the many visitors floating through the fields, their legs and feet obscured by these fluffy topped plants. Some with parasols, some in floppy hats, most in light floaty clothing perfect for a very warm day. All were carrying the flat woven baskets provided to pick their own fragrant bundles to take home. The scene has an air of romance to it, intensified by the Parisian music playing in the nearby barn which we caught strains of from time to time. This small group of 3 caught my eye, especially the little boy so exuberant in his black felt fedora. As my niece would say, he was quite "fedorable" ;-) I enjoyed painting this the next day while in the coolness of my studio.

If interested, you may purchase this painting here: https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/laura-gable/picking-lavender/245237

"Picking Lavender" 8x8 oil on card, ©Laura Gable

Duffy's Pond

My plein air friends and I painted this lovely pond scene near Clover island off the Columbia River just to the north of my studio a few years back. I enjoyed the darkness of the shadowy area compared to the brightness of the autumn tree. This has a sketchy quality that I enjoy. Not every leaf or reed is identified. I am offering a summarization of the objects, and a syncopation of color and form. The eye fills in the rest.

"Duffy's Pond" 9x12 oil on canvas board, ©Laura Gable

Coming Home (sold)

"Coming Home" 20x24 oil painting on canvas, ©Laura Gable

I painted this a few years back when I was doing a nesting series. During that time, I had discovered a sweet, private new studio, where I was starting to feather the floors and walls with things that meant a great deal to me -- ephemera, rugs, easels, art and supplies. A lovely heart centered place where I still create. The painting, though it has some apparent inaccuracies, captures a certain feeling deep within the brush strokes. For me it hits a note in the heart -- something not always easy to logically recreate in other paintings.

Don't we often go to places in this world that somehow resonate on a deeper level with us. As though we've been there before--a sense of deja' vu? Our heart strings are stirred by something immeasurable… like the sound of bird call combined with the color of the sky and rustle of the nearby grasses. That kernel of something sweet and light, that just hearkens back to happy times spent with loved ones, family and friends.

One time I gazed with tears in my eyes, at an artist's pastel rendition of soft golden wheat fields under a deep blue sky. Another time I stood in awe at Cezanne's series of small "bathers" paintings, and I was overcome. These feelings can be mysterious, noting the sublime aspect of art.

I'm pleased to send this piece off to a wonderful new home, owned by the new local hospital. My heart is happy.

On another note, I heard recently that my college art teacher, Mr. Dillon, has passed. The last time I saw him, he was hanging art in the lobby of the office building where I worked as an auditor in Lincoln, NE. I know, a far diversion from the current path I am on. He encouraged me to continue with art, but I followed those more practical pathways. Does "practicality" really translate to "fear"? Reluctantly, I wish I had reconnected with this favorite teacher of mine once I had returned to art--wondering if he would remember me? Alas, a bit late now. Ah but my heart does recall his kindness, clarity of teaching, and unflagging support. A very special person, indeed.

Distant View

"Distant View" 8.5" x 2.5" oil on panel, ©Laura Gable

Abstraction of land with hills alive with deep red tones, a distant mountain peeks out from behind.

(This is the painting featured in my masthead on this blog.)

Lavender Bliss (sold)

"Lavender Bliss" 8x10 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

SOLD

The lovely lavender farms keep coming up in my journeys through photos and through these daily studies. There are several located in our dry region of southeast Washington, some even offering plein air opportunities. This one in particular is located outside Walla Walla just east of here off a dirt road named Frog Hollow in Louden, WA. The Blue Ridge Lavender Farms offer beautiful views of the back pastures and blue mountains seen occasionally from higher points of the yard. Out front, this little drying shed was compelling - tucked in next to the tall poplar offering a bit of shade to nearby horses at pasture.

Paper Birch Bouquets (sold)

"Paper Birch Bouquets" 12x12 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

Our snowfall was quite lovely this past week, starting on a very frigid evening. But all together we had a little over 6-8 inches over 3 days, a rarity in this eastern dry shrub-steppe region of Washington state. My attempts to paint out of doors yielded a small study, which I evolved further in the studio. I'd like to say this was painted fully on site, but much studying of the scene was done at later times using my super powers of observation. Well anyway, it was a lovely scene on a overcast day of these soft shadows and paper birch trees clumped together like bouquets.

Cloud Scape

"Cloud Scape" 8x10 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

Painting clouds can be challenging as there are no hard edges. This is an attempt doing so from a photo of a distant horizon and the earth curving away above. I'm not sure I've captured the curving away of the sky, as this was very vast. I do like the feel of it though, and the bits of orange that crept in on the left side of the lower sky.

Today's awareness: I have this wanting to create scenes from memory, yet I find I do much better if I have something to reference in front of me while I paint. Seems like a simple awareness, but it is powerful none-the-less.

Golden Canopy at Zintel Canyon

"Golden Canopy at Zintel Canyon" 11x14 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

An autumn day's sojourn into the thickets and pathways of Kennewick's Zintel Canyon, had me stop awhile before this majestic tree. Painting in the Fall is so enjoyable, with it's mixture of wetness and heat, and the various odors marking evidence of the underbrush's nubile composting process. The occasional rustling and clatters from large golden leaves falling behind me, keeps my awareness sharp as I stand intently painting off the path.

Though painted in the fall, I did do some touch up today to unify things and work out the shadows on the troublesome dirt of the pathway. Today's goal was to work with golds and yellows in a lyrical fashion. Also while working, an awareness came to me about the necessity the artist has to design the scene on canvas -- to alter nature if necessary to make a more pleasing story in paint. This I believe will be a life-long pursuit.

Sage and Gold

"Sage and Gold" 5x7 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

In late September, the cottonwoods and poplars are the first to dress their canopy in brilliant gold. It's as though they catch all the rays from the sun and hold it in every molecule of their being. They add brightness to any overcast day. But once the winds return—making their presence known with howls and gusts—these golden leaves struggle to hang on. Until finally, the last blast of coldness leaves them fluttering from their branches. And skirted about these lofty sentinels is a ruddy field of amber.

Pristine Vista (SOLD)

"Pristine Vista" 5x7 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

A look back in time to a lovely unspoiled vista in the Grand Tetons of Wyoming. I have a hankering to return to these pure and pristine parts of the world that are so close to the natural state they've been in since the dawn of time. This was painted on board, from a photograph I took a few years back when we went to the parks in and around majestic Yellowstone.

Quote of the day:

If you keep a green bough in your heart,

the singing bird will come.

-Chinese Proverb