Frank- it's lovely to see the sources of your inspired canvases and try to imagine the translation that takes place in your head when you begin to paint.
Seeing those haystacks, immediately I knew it was the background for Quiet Passing.
By changing from dry to lush, the landscape provides you with a variety that you'd otherwise not have.
Sweet shot there with Erin, and I'm betting your fans are seeing what I'm seeing: another painting in the hopper.
Frank--very green and I'll bet the wildflowers are everywhere. I'll be down there in a bit more than three weeks and am really looking forward to being there when things are lush. The last couple of times it was in Feb/Mar--very sere and dry--though still beautiful. That multiple profile just adds to the area's attractiveness.
Hi Bonnie. Aren't those stacks of corn stalks great? I love the shape and all of the color you get in them. They also stack hay and flowers from the fields here, and each in a different form. Lots to paint. Yes, I love the variety of seasons even though they might be a bit more subtle here than in other places.
Hi Jack, There are a few small wildflowers out, but they have yet to come out in force. You should be getting here at just about the right time. We have more rain forecast for this month. You have been here in October before I think, but as I remember it was after a dry summer and things were pretty brown already. See you soon.
September 3, 2008 at 10:19 AM
Anonymous said...
That red and stone church and the round structure beside it are intriguing - any comments???
solveg
p.s. that landscape w/corn could be Minnesota right now! Morocco, Minnesota, Mexico - no difference, right? ha ha ha
I suppose that corn COULD be anywhere Solveg. It was just such a nice afternoon to to go out for a ride yesterday that I thought I'd share.
I am not sure which round structure you mean? There is a small red building to the right of the church with a rounded roof. That one? It is a small altar that is covered over.
Love the Mexican architecture. The beautiful colors. Since the seasons are so sharply defined in NE, the subtle change in tropical settings is less apparent until you see pictures.
I always wondered what SM is like in the Summer. I've only been in Feb. and March. Beautiful. Makes me want to go there (again)!
September 3, 2008 at 1:45 PM
Anonymous said...
tongue was in cheek regarding Minnesota and Morocco - picking up on the Moroccan woman's comment that your painting looked like her local landscape................guess i didn't convey that very well. it doesn't really look like Minnesota, actually. but it's nice to see Mexico looking so green - people DO think of it as arrid and parched, generally. So, i appreciated your photos.
that church - is it in use? the stones almost look like it's a ruin.....and is it painted red? seems like an unusual structure - or at least very different from things i've seen. just curious - it grabbed my eye. s
Hi Mary. Yeah, being from the North East, I first thought that there were no seasons here, just eternal spring. After a few years I caught on to the Mexican seasons. They are very pronounced once you get used to them.
Hi again Solveg. I think there ARE parts of morocco that are pretty similar to this area. E. has always pointed to that on her Morocco blog and I have seen a lot of pretty green places. Kind of like here. People think it is all dry, but there is a lot of green at times.
The church is in use. It is pretty old and built near the first Spanish settlement in this area. It is painted red. I should post some closer pics one day. I have some info about it, but can't post it word for word here because of copyright issues. : )
Those pictures are amazing! It's like you live in 2 completely different places, depending on which time of year it is! What a great difference some rain makes... I love the light in your last painting. Really beautiful!
Your stories and your art continue to inspire me. Yesterday I blogged about you (and your little girl)... Luckily for us, my little guy loved his first day of school too! Be well
wow, i am really shocked at the drastic difference between the photos...i had to look back and forth to be sure it was really the same place. erin looks so tiny next to that corn, how tall are those stalks?? love that church!
Hi Christine. I think it is fun scrolling back and forth between those top two also. I tried to find two that were taken from pretty much the same spot so you could line up those trees as reference.
Hah, she does look pretty small next to those stalks huh? Shows you how adding a little something for scale can help out.. I'd say they are about 9 or ten feet tall. I am 6'1" and they were over my head by several feet. It is one of my favorite churches around too. I am so glad it is red, because that really helps out in my landscape paintings. : ) Lots of churches around here are white and dont stand out as well.
Hi Jennifer. I actually was painting a plein air piece of that Jan. field and church shot. I should find that and post it too so you can see the pic with the painting.
that is some serious corn!!! i really do like that church, it has a lot of character, I can see why you would enjoy painting it. btw, Erin is just too cute!! shelby's current fav saying is 'mommy waaaiiiiitttt', with dramatic hand gestures...showing me everything from stones to bugs!
Yeah, in that area it has gotten pretty big this year. It is not always like that and in other parts it is only about half that high.
A lot of these fields rely just on rain, so if the rain passes off to the side, they are out o luck.
That is funny about Shelby. It is a great age for both kids and parents. They just want to show us everything and every little thing is very cool and interesting to them.
I appreciate all of your visits and comments Paz. Thanks!
September 7, 2008 at 9:21 PM
We have been getting a lot of rain this summer, so I wanted to share a few photos of how this place looks in the summer. Just in case anyone thinks that it is always dry here. This top one is the same location as the recent painting "Quiet Passing". The tree in the painting is the tree you see on the left. Same road. Now look at the trees behind the corn and scroll down to the next image of the same view in January.
Now, this is the church from the other side. In Feb. Different angle, but this field is where the man and burro are walking in "Day's End". Below is that field this afternoon.
"Contrast of Seasons"
26 Comments -
Frank- it's lovely to see the sources of your inspired canvases and try to imagine the translation that takes place in your head when you begin to paint.
Seeing those haystacks, immediately I knew it was the background for Quiet Passing.
By changing from dry to lush, the landscape provides you with a variety that you'd otherwise not have.
Sweet shot there with Erin, and I'm betting your fans are seeing what I'm seeing: another painting in the hopper.
September 3, 2008 at 7:38 AM
Frank--very green and I'll bet the wildflowers are everywhere. I'll be down there in a bit more than three weeks and am really looking forward to being there when things are lush. The last couple of times it was in Feb/Mar--very sere and dry--though still beautiful. That multiple profile just adds to the area's attractiveness.
September 3, 2008 at 10:16 AM
Hi Bonnie.
Aren't those stacks of corn stalks great? I love the shape and all of the color you get in them. They also stack hay and flowers from the fields here, and each in a different form. Lots to paint.
Yes, I love the variety of seasons even though they might be a bit more subtle here than in other places.
Thanks for commenting.
September 3, 2008 at 10:16 AM
Hi Jack, There are a few small wildflowers out, but they have yet to come out in force. You should be getting here at just about the right time. We have more rain forecast for this month. You have been here in October before I think, but as I remember it was after a dry summer and things were pretty brown already.
See you soon.
September 3, 2008 at 10:19 AM
That red and stone church and the round structure beside it are intriguing - any comments???
solveg
p.s. that landscape w/corn could be Minnesota right now! Morocco, Minnesota, Mexico - no difference, right? ha ha ha
September 3, 2008 at 10:58 AM
I suppose that corn COULD be anywhere Solveg. It was just such a nice afternoon to to go out for a ride yesterday that I thought I'd share.
I am not sure which round structure you mean? There is a small red building to the right of the church with a rounded roof. That one? It is a small altar that is covered over.
September 3, 2008 at 11:06 AM
Love the Mexican architecture. The beautiful colors.
Since the seasons are so sharply defined in NE, the subtle change in tropical settings is less apparent until you see pictures.
September 3, 2008 at 1:38 PM
I always wondered what SM is like in the Summer. I've only been in Feb. and March. Beautiful. Makes me want to go there (again)!
September 3, 2008 at 1:45 PM
tongue was in cheek regarding Minnesota and Morocco - picking up on the Moroccan woman's comment that your painting looked like her local landscape................guess i didn't convey that very well. it doesn't really look like Minnesota, actually. but it's nice to see Mexico looking so green - people DO think of it as arrid and parched, generally. So, i appreciated your photos.
that church - is it in use? the stones almost look like it's a ruin.....and is it painted red? seems like an unusual structure - or at least very different from things i've seen. just curious - it grabbed my eye.
s
September 3, 2008 at 1:56 PM
Hi Mary. Yeah, being from the North East, I first thought that there were no seasons here, just eternal spring. After a few years I caught on to the Mexican seasons. They are very pronounced once you get used to them.
September 3, 2008 at 9:33 PM
Hi Kelly. This is such a different time of year than Feb. Mar.
September 3, 2008 at 9:35 PM
Hi again Solveg. I think there ARE parts of morocco that are pretty similar to this area. E. has always pointed to that on her Morocco blog and I have seen a lot of pretty green places. Kind of like here. People think it is all dry, but there is a lot of green at times.
The church is in use. It is pretty old and built near the first Spanish settlement in this area. It is painted red. I should post some closer pics one day.
I have some info about it, but can't post it word for word here because of copyright issues. : )
September 3, 2008 at 9:41 PM
Hey Frank,
Those pictures are amazing! It's like you live in 2 completely different places, depending on which time of year it is! What a great difference some rain makes...
I love the light in your last painting. Really beautiful!
September 4, 2008 at 5:25 PM
Your stories and your art continue to inspire me.
Yesterday I blogged about you (and your little girl)... Luckily for us, my little guy loved his first day of school too!
Be well
September 4, 2008 at 8:11 PM
wow, i am really shocked at the drastic difference between the photos...i had to look back and forth to be sure it was really the same place. erin looks so tiny next to that corn, how tall are those stalks?? love that church!
September 4, 2008 at 11:40 PM
You certainly know how to capture a scene.....in a painting and a photo, Frank.
September 5, 2008 at 7:09 AM
Joanne. Well the contrast is not quite as great as you get between sun and snow, but it does change more than some might think.
Thanks for visiting.
September 5, 2008 at 10:31 AM
Thanks Marian. I'm so glad to hear that your son had a great first day too. It is so much easier that way.
Thanks for mentioning me in your blog inspiration.
September 5, 2008 at 10:32 AM
Hi Christine. I think it is fun scrolling back and forth between those top two also. I tried to find two that were taken from pretty much the same spot so you could line up those trees as reference.
Hah, she does look pretty small next to those stalks huh? Shows you how adding a little something for scale can help out.. I'd say they are about 9 or ten feet tall. I am 6'1" and they were over my head by several feet.
It is one of my favorite churches around too. I am so glad it is red, because that really helps out in my landscape paintings. : )
Lots of churches around here are white and dont stand out as well.
September 5, 2008 at 10:37 AM
Thanks Karen!
September 5, 2008 at 10:38 AM
How interesting to see these photos, Frank! And to compare them to your paintings. Thanks for posting. :-)
September 5, 2008 at 10:41 AM
Hi Jennifer. I actually was painting a plein air piece of that Jan. field and church shot. I should find that and post it too so you can see the pic with the painting.
September 5, 2008 at 10:43 AM
that is some serious corn!!! i really do like that church, it has a lot of character, I can see why you would enjoy painting it. btw, Erin is just too cute!! shelby's current fav saying is 'mommy waaaiiiiitttt', with dramatic hand gestures...showing me everything from stones to bugs!
September 5, 2008 at 12:54 PM
Yeah, in that area it has gotten pretty big this year. It is not always like that and in other parts it is only about half that high.
A lot of these fields rely just on rain, so if the rain passes off to the side, they are out o luck.
That is funny about Shelby. It is a great age for both kids and parents. They just want to show us everything and every little thing is very cool and interesting to them.
sorry to hear about your dent.
September 5, 2008 at 1:01 PM
Very, very interesting!
Paz
September 7, 2008 at 11:02 AM
I appreciate all of your visits and comments Paz.
Thanks!
September 7, 2008 at 9:21 PM