Observation #15- the resurrected Sleigh

During this prolonged winter of my prolonging new work,(aka procrastination) this 'older work of a little sleigh in the weeds seemed to be worth trying to save. It was one that just barely past the cut when we moved to Owen Sound.
When we moved I tossed out a few works and gave away a few more-this one I was unsure of...
     The canvas had already been part of a salvage process-that is my having taken a large 'magnificent failure'
and cutting it up to make what might be 2 or 3 works worth keeping.(OK maybe it wasn't magnificent -I just like the expression) -it WAS big- 5 feet by 7 feet
  The Three Crows was the lower left side of the large original

The Crows Flying up the Valley was the upper section

This was inspired by a real experience of surprising a murder of crows(something I have seldom done)-I guess their watchman was asleep- they flew up that break between the trees into the setting sun.

The remaining area of the original(the bottom right) is the one I have been  reworking  and have now after only a week have concluded is worth keeping

The fence the crow is sitting on above is continued to the left in this, the final one with the Redeemed Sleigh.

After a few days of working mostly balancing the shapes and increasing the contrast, this is  what turned out

This is fairly close to the final colour but the rusted reddish metal parts are not so

warm and the upper right corner is not so hazy 

The weather has not  been favorable for taking photographs of paintings -either too cold to take outside and my light in this studio room is too uneven and today it is raining.

by sheer luck I found this photograph from July 2010-the source of the above three canvases-

it was so big I had to construct a folding stretcher to transport it  that explains the curve in the edges

I'm rather glad this does not exist any longer...

...makes me remember Al Purdy's Poem  on admitting he has written some bad Poems.

Observation #14 Followup to Old Joe's Barn

March 23-spring ? still winter here                                                                                                             

This 'should ' conclude the painting- of Old Joe's Barns. It has taken longer than I thought -and although the photograph of the finished work may not look a lot different than the original, I assure you it is ....

This shows the first step in eliminating  that fuzzy edge and the first step in reducing the size  of the bit of                                                                              hanging red vine.

this may be the solution but it still seems too large....

....so....

                                          paint it out and put in something smaller Other changes

                                         may be seen but It would take too long to mention them all.
                        Its been so long since I did this I have the feeling that I have already included this one.

...if so here it is again....

with more shape changes....the rail brought in from the edge of the canvas

adjustments to the green were next

there has been changes to both roof areas and the sky

During these long cold winter days Ruth and I have had a few games of scrabble/

 I have only used all the letters a few times in the 47 years we have been playing the game so this game was an unusual one with two occasions to use all 7 letters-in one game!

To be fair  on the same day in another round,  Ruth used all her 7 letters -but only one time !!

-she won that game handily.....

back to what is close to the end. When I was thinking about lightening up the foreground and adding more contrast I painted some not quite opaque white over parts I thought could be lighter.

at this stage I lost the edges of the rails on the ground so...notice at the end they weren't quite so obvious.

Finished (for now). Ruth says she thinks this one 'could sell' (a rare compliment) she likes it !

a sense of the scale (size) 3 ft. X 4 ft.

a look at Tonal Values

There have been lots of changes since I started to work with the camera beside me but they didn't seem to be worth mentioning .That's it for now. As usual I feel like I have had enough of whatever the subject was-

-more than enough in fact-but knowing as I do, that that feeling is only temporary, I now just wait for the

dust to settle, -the dust of my realizing how far short of my goals I fall. So far some friendly Muse 

has always come along and landed on my shoulder. After 6 weeks of this I don't know what's next.

Maybe more landscapes , maybe Inglis Falls, maybe something from Leith, maybe some straight Drawing-

It would be a treat not to have to struggle with colour  ...I'm looking forward to seeing new work by an old friend Barry McCarthy April 26. If it's not snowing I plan a trip with my son Dennis to Barry's exhibition at the Loch gallery in Toronto. His work has always inspired me- google his name...

...maybe Spring .