Paint Historic Waxahachie 2024

Overall

I was so pleased to jury into a relatively local pleinair competition and event at Waxahachie this year. 60 artists working in oils, acrylics and watercolors created their impressions of “Historic Waxahachie” in either or both of two different weeks in early or late May. I was traveling during both sessions, but was able to enjoy getting out and painting in both sessions! The weather cooperated more fully in the early session, with rolling sets of thunderstorms all during the 2nd session. You’ll see blue skies for session 1 and grey ones for session 2.

My “wall” is pictured here, and while no awards were earned this event, I did enjoy the process, challenge of architecture, and meeting new painter friends…..as well as being amazed at the quality of the work that was created by the other artists during those sessions. Those who won awards earned them, and so many more could have won awards with their beautiful work. Truly amazing.

Autopsy

My goal for this event was to acquire and expand skills in architectural elements, remaining loose and free while yet capturing the “thing” that made the subject interesting to me in the first place. In some of the works I achieved my goal (“Fifteen”, “Act Justly”, “Love Mercy”). In other works I struggled to get there (“Walk Humbly”, “Prime Corner”, “Wisdom Calls”).

Where I felt success, the process included a rough sketch on paper, then on the canvas, followed by larger brushes paying attention to clean color and loose strokes. Where I didn’t, I got bogged down in details too soon, smaller brushes, tighter constricted mental space, and lost sense of light flow. Of course in pleinair work there is a “shot clock” of the sun moving and rain coming, so I can attribute some of this to that “stress”, but the lesson remains.

Treatment

I got home from the event and dove into a 24”x36” large loose flowing coastal work I call “SoCalSun”. Ah…..so back into the comfort zone!