King and Queen (in progress)

   

King and Queen (in progress); 22" x 25"

     So far this summer I've been working intermittently on 2 larger paintings, the 'Front Yard' from the previous post, and this one, King and Queen. I'm painting it downtown, from the roof top of a parking garage, which is literally on the corner of King Street and Queen Street. The view caught my attention because addition to the street names, the 2 churches in the distance look like the King and Queen from a chess set...a little visual pun that made me smirk.
     I was initially attracted to the brick, and how to paint that warm glow of the sun on the side of the building. With the format almost square (I can't stand working on a true 'square'), my vantage point is looking severely down towards the street. The building on the corner is slightly right of center and has become an exercise in 2 point perspective. The light for the painting has proved quite difficult, because the 2 planes of the building (the one in sun and the other in shadow) is only there for a small window during the morning. If I get there by 9am, I have until about 10-10:30 until that left side moves out of shadow. Sometimes things like this can keep me nimble with the painting, working under a time constraint or specific weather condition.

pencil, 18" x 21"

      I did a few preliminary drawings to figure out my vantage point, and took some photos to capture the light. I've gone back a several times to paint on site, but my schedule has been very erratic this summer because of travel and family obligations.

pencil, 11" x 9"

pencil, 6.5" x 9"

     I want to hold back a little with getting overly descriptive painting the architectural details. I obviously enjoy drawing and painting these motifs, but I want to try and evoke the forms and presence of what's there without 'overloading' it. The light and solidity of form is what I'm after here, as well as, creating a sense of space as you move towards the horizon. Most likely I will continue working on this into the fall...