Fair Oaks Mini Residency- September 29, 2013

Study for a Commissioned Painting

Florida Landscape Art

 

Notes From My Residency Journal

 

 

Today was a truly fine day at Fair Oaks with low humidity and temperature in the mid 80's. This marked the beginning of my favorite season, Fall. I am preparing to do a commissioned painting of the back pond, now dry. The client wants the pond to be full of water, so some artistic license will be important. Luckily, I am used to those kinds of requests, and often, the pond really is full of water.

 

 

I set up my paint box in the shade and was immediately attacked by hungry mosquitos, but I fended them off quickly with my new best friend, a product called Bug-X. It is sold in a little wrapper and is a paper cloth like a moist towelette. You rub it on your arms legs and neck. I then stuff it up into my hat. Within a minute, the bugs were gone and I wasn't bothered again for the two hours I painted.

 

 

While painting, I watched dozens of Crows fly around the pond and caw at each other. I've always been quite fond of Crows since I was a child. My parents bought me a series of books written by Thornton Burgess. Each book was a story about woodland animals and birds. Blacky the Crow was one of my favorites. I suspect that those books helped me to form a love for nature and the land.

 

 

The dry pond is turning in wheat to rust colors quickly now. I so love to see it in Fall and Winter. The wild Sunflowers are sprouting up along the roadside and the wild white flowers with yellow centers are growing in the fields at Fair Oaks. The fields are a riot of textures and colors now. I love driving along in the golf cart with the swishing noise it makes through the tall grasses. The smell of fall is intoxicating. Soon the fields will be mowed for the winter season. The staff will soon be working on Fields 1 and 2, so I have been banned from driving there for awhile. I still have plenty of land to paint and explore.This time of year, Fair Oaks begins to be beautiful in a new way, the best way to me.

 

 

Lunch was a real treat with hamburgers and the fixings along with potato salad. Yummy!!! I always enjoy my time with my host and the staff. The conversation takes off in many interesting directions and there is always a little tidbit for me to learn. Today I learned about putting boats onto trailers.

After lunch, I reluctantly made my way home after another day in paradise.



 

Fair Oaks Mini Residency - September 22, 2013

www.lindablondheim.com

Notes From My Residency Journal

I had a swell day at Fair Oaks. It was overcast and cooler. This was the first time I have been able to paint out in the fields since June and I enjoyed it so much.  After my painting was finished, I took a ride around the fields before lunch. I am seeing wonderful color now from hundreds of wild flowers and in the grasses, pink,purple, gold and wheat. The dogweed is taller than I am. It is thrilling to bounce along in my favorite blue golf cart through the tall grasses. The bugs fly by, the seeds and sand spurs ride along with me. I have a marvelous time.  When I get back the golf cart is full of plant chaf and spots of paint. What an adventure! That cart has been my friend for a long time now. 

We had visitors for lunch and I enjoyed spending time with lovely Anna and her charming mother as well as two other guests and Mark and Scotty.

Anna and her mother were the chefs for lunch, and I was in the clean up crew. We enjoyed lunch down at the pavilion by the pond. A thoroughly pleasant was to spend time together. 

I travel to a lot of wonderful places as a painter. None are like Fair Oaks. It is the best place I've ever been. I headed home smiling with happy memories of another day in paradise. 

Preparing for my Next Residency

Marsh Afternoon

Landscape Art

Notes From My Residency

I'm doing the research for my residency at Big Talbot Island in October. I been checking out the other barrier islands, the restaurants and parks. This is a new location for me and I'm very excited.

Fair Oaks Mini Residency September 15, 2013

Today's Beautiful Fair Oaks photo comes from Scotty. He saw this mysterious flower growing in the side yard at Fair Oaks today. He showed it to me from the window of the studio upstairs. I can't wait to paint it. 

It is hot and humid at Fair Oaks. The humidity hangs like a curtain over the fields and trees. My morning tour took me through chest high weeds in some of the fields. It is really fun to plough paths through the weeds and grasses.

I didn't bother to take my paint box out with me in the golf cart. As long as I was moving, the air stirred and the Mosquitos couldn't keep up. If I stopped long enough to take photos, they were immediately buzzing me. I didn't 't dare go back into the deep woods or out to Fish Prairie. They are patiently waiting for me to return in cooler weather.

After my tour I got busy up in the studio. I worked on my painting until 12:45 and then headed for the cottage for lunch. I knew I was going to get smoked chicken. Mark put two chickens in the smoker and the smell on arrival was glorious! He added potato salad, mac and cheese, and fruit salad for a real feast. I  missed Mark so much during the year he was traveling the world. It is wonderful to have him back at Fair Oaks. I don't know how long he will stay this time, but I am delighted to sit down at the table with him again. We enjoyed a lively conversation about world economics. He is a very smart young man.

I headed for home in Leroy with thanks in my heart for the privilege of being a part of Fair Oaks. 

Mini Residency at Kanapaha Gardens This Week

Kanapaha Trees

Kanapaha Palm Arboretum

Landscape Art

 

 

Notes From My Residency Journal

 

 

This week I am painting a couple of days at Kanapaha Botanical Garden in Gainesville, FL. It is still quite hot, so I have been painting early in the day, stopping around 12 PM. There are several other artists involved in this invitational paint out, celebrating the World Wide Paint Out this week.

 

There is to be an opening for the exhibit and part of the sales go to the garden. A very pleasant, small painting event.

 

 

I have been painting at this garden for many years and it is pleasant and lovely. The bamboo garden and the palm arboretum are especially nice. The gardens also rim Kanapaha Prairie, one of the lovely prairies of north Florida.

 

 

If you live in north central Florida, come to the opening on Thursday, September 19th, from 6-9 PM. Some of your favorite painters will be participating. 

Fair Oaks Mini Residency September 1, 2013

I

Notes From My Residency Journal

I was so delighted to be at Fair Oaks again after several weeks away. Between weather issues and obligations, I've had difficulty getting out to Fair Oaks for much of the summer. Today was wonderful. I started out in my favorite golf cart, thoughtfully washed for me. It was hot, humid and heavy as you can imagine this time of year. I look forward to cool dry air to come.  I took some reference photos and tried to outrun the mosquitos. As long as I was moving they weren't a problem but painting would have been miserable. 

It was time to climb the stairs to the cozy studio, air conditioned and bug free. As I signed into the painters log I saw that my friend and extraordinary painter Kate Barnes had been there to paint on the day before. I got the painter's log book a few months ago and I'm glad I did. It is fun to see which other visitors come to paint in the Fair Oaks Studio. 

I settled into the painting above and spent the rest of the morning studying a new palette for the coming winter season. Sorry for the glare on the right side of the painting. Painting well is very hard and the more I know, the more inadequate I feel. After painting for 40 years, I am but a beginner.

I decided to take a break just before lunch, stepping out to see the trail boss hard at work and my canine friend Shane patiently waiting to play ball with me. What a pleasure to watch the world from the front porch of that grand old home. We took a ride in the cart to cool off and look at a downed tree, a victim of a recent storm. 

We headed back to the cottage for a swell lunch of juicy hamburgers, mac and cheese, and baked beans. We teased Scotty by accusing him of eating all the dessert! 

Back to work I wen't after being teased about painting too slow by the trail boss! I've never figured out why people thing painting fast is better. ;-) Reluctantly, I packed up, leaving my painting in the studio to dry until I can get back to beloved Fair Oaks.

Another day in paradise.

 

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