On the Rocks

On the Rocks, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

One of the things I love the most about traveling in Texas is the wonderful variety of landscapes. Where else can you go from beaches to pine forests to rolling hills and desert canyons without crossing state lines?  Often a single location offers a multitude of landforms. In the last year I've painted lots of pictures of Lake Mineral Wells. Most have focused on the wooded shores with their rhythmic grasses growing out of the water, but there's much more to see at this state park. One side of the lake is a rock climbers dream. There are caves and cliffs to explore that are an easy to moderate climb. My kids have a wonderful time acting like mountain explorers, and for the skilled climbers there are even permanent anchor spots for ropes at the top of the scenic outlook for repelling. There are many hiking trails that explore this side of the lake, and the shoreline of Lake Mineral Wells is dotted with these wonderful boulder outcrops that make perfect resting places when you're tired or just want to relax and contemplate the view. The inspiration for this painting was an early morning hike when the lake was calm and the sky was just starting to take on a soft glow. At one time I was very into square paintings, and every once in awhile I still enjoy returning to this format. This painting measures 12" x 12" and is an oil painting on canvas. If nothing else, I hope my artwork inspires you to look to the wonderful beauty of Texas and consider exploring some of our state parks for your next vacation.

Dusk

Dusk, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

This is a 16" x 20" oil on canvas painting of night fall on Lake Mineral Wells. It was completed in two long sessions of painting (early morning and late at night) on the same day. I was just having so much fun I couldn't stop, so it's a little more impasto than most of my recent paintings. It's a view I very much enjoy with the contrast between the dark masses of the shore and the cloud line above, and I'm thinking of making another version (perhaps larger next time.)

Through the Reeds

Through the Reeds, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

This is another view though the tall reeds along the shore at Lake Mineral Wells State Park in Texas. This is an oil on canvas and measures 8" x 10". I tried to capture the softer light of mid morning in this painting, with slightly subdued hues.

Too Real/Not Real Enough

Rocky Shore, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

One of the key questions that all representational artists have to face is how "realistic" we want our paintings to be. Most people equate realism with a photograph, and the general viewing public often uses the phrase "it looks just like a photograph" as a compliment. Many painters take it as an insult. I think answering the question of realism is one of the defining aspects of an artists' style, and it's a question that all of us must answer on our own. My own work often hovers the fine line of realism, but I am not interested in description alone.

Take this painting for instance, arguably one of my more realistic oil paintings. When you actually take the time to examine the picture you find there's really very little in the way of details. The foliage of the tree is rendered in two or three large masses of color, the ripples of the waves are freely handled brushstrokes. I don't try to indicate a leaf or a blade of grass. There's really very little need to. Our vision is not merely a function of our eyes. When we view something our mind acts as a filter, interpolating and extracting much more (or less depending on the needs of the situation) than our eyes can see. We bring a whole history or prior experiences and knowledge to everything we view.

Rather than getting caught up in the quest for realism, I seek to express my experience of a place. I try to filter through my memories and observations and seize on the features that made the deepest impression on me. I encourage everyone I meet, artists and non-artists alike, to try to view the world around us with more than just our eyes. I think there's much more beauty to be found when we look with our hearts and our minds.

Hot Day at the Lake

Hot Day at the Lake, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

A view through the reeds on a hot day at Lake Mineral Wells State Park.

The Question of Style

Approaching Storm, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

One of the most common questions among artists is how to develop their own style (and how we even know it's our style when we find it.) I've been reading a few posts about style online, and there's lots of different definitions being tossed about, so I thought I'd throw my two cents in as well. The general consensus seems to be that style is the accumulated choices about art making that an artist makes on a recurring basis, including decisions about subject matter, composition, color palette, medium, technique, etc. I think this is a fair definition, and certainly covers the technique end of the spectrum, but I think there's more to it than just the technical issues we resolve about our art. I think we also have to include the decisions we've made in our lives, and all of the life experiences that we carry around as baggage. For most of us, it's virtually impossible to separate our emotional self from the art we're making. Our daily mood swings and the highs and lows of life as we know it filters through, whether consciously or unconsciously, into everything we're involved in.

"Approaching Storm" started out as a fairly gentle painting of a still evening on Lake Mineral Wells. After I had drawn the basic composition and layed in my initial colors, my wife came next door to my studio and told me my aunt had passed away. She'd been in the hospital all day, but when I'd spoken with my cousin earlier that afternoon it sounded like she was improving a little. When I finally returned to my painting later that night, my mood had certainly changed, and that change is reflected in my painting. My brush strokes became bolder, more aggresive, and the colors took on a slightly more somber tone. It's not a violent painting by any means, but by letting my mood and emotions flow through me and onto the canvas, it reveals a little piece of my grief, and in the process, a little of my style.

Visual Rhythm

Morning at Lake Mineral Wells, originally uploaded by Mark Nesmith.

The musician in me has always been in love with rhythm, and the artist in me always finds a way to tap along. I've been entranced by the visual rhythm of light bouncing through tree branches or tall grasses my whole life. My design and sculpture professor in college first pointed out to me that all of my work seems to have alot of interplay of musical ideas (I hadn't really thought of it back then.) One of my favorite spots at Lake Mineral Wells is the sidewalk along the causeway at the dam. There's a concrete barrier beside the sidewalk that holds back the water (which is over your head in the middle of the walk). I like to climb up on the retaining wall and get eye level and closeup views of the tall reeds that grow in thick bunches there. These reeds grow all along the shores of the lake, and this particular painting is a view through some of the tall grasses and across the water to the distant shore. I often like to balance the busy rhythms of the grasses with calmer stretches of silence (what would be a rest in music) like the sky and tree bank in the distance. Too much rhythm, like too much of anything, can overwhelm a composition in a hurry. A little contrast and balance can go a long way.