"Busy Night Out", a 32 X 16" Watercolor

Busy Night Out  © April M Rimpo

Busy Night Out

Watercolor, Varnished
32" X 16"

Mounted, Varnished and Framed in a 35" X 19" Brushed Silver Frame

SOLD through HorseSpirit Arts Gallery's

In Busy Night Out a place is shown where people are arriving for a night out. My goal is for you to define the stories about where these families and solo explorers are going and what they might do.  I'd love to hear your stories.

Varnished watercolor paintings are protected from the elements, so no glazing is used with this painting.  I think you'll find varnished paintings are more approachable and enticing.

Here are additional nighttime paintings by April:

• Night Reflections (12" X 18") - Moon over the water
• Distant Glow (16" X 44") - early sunset 
• Nighttime Stroll (30" X 24")and Quiet Times (11" X 14")
• Nighttime Glitter - 5" X 7" painting of the Eiffel Tower

You can see the student paintings from one of my Nighttime painting workshops here.

Interested in April's artwork or taking one of her classes? Consider becoming a Studio Friend by signing up for her twice-monthly email. April segments her newsletter so you can select topics you'd like to hear about when you sign up. For those who Select the General Interest topic you will receive emails about twice-monthly. If you are only interested in classes, then the emails will be much less frequent discussing upcoming classes and how to register. Select as many topics as sound of interest. Thank you for your support of April M Rimpo Art.

Contact April and see more of her art on her website

Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

"By the Old Mill" 30" X 20" Watercolor

By the Old Mill by April M Rimpo

By the Old Mill

Watercolor

30" X 20" painting
in a 35 X 25" white mat and brushed silver metal frame, with Plexiglas™

SOLD through HorseSpirit Arts Gallery's Online Shop

By the Old Mill reveals a perfect place to fish in the quiet of an old abandoned building. I always enjoy seeing places that have started to decay and collapse. I think I find them fascinating because their history is revealed. This building challenged me in countless ways with so many different materials (brick, reflections on glass, rusted metal, tree brambles and vines, water reflection, and the undergrowth of the distant woods.) Although I loved figuring out how to portray these textures it is the story of the place and the lone fisherman that drew me to paint it.

You can read more about creating this painting in a post titled

• How Long Did It Take? Answers to Consider

Interested in April's artwork or taking one of her classes? Consider becoming a Studio Friend by signing up for her twice-monthly email. April segments her newsletter so you can select topics you'd like to hear about when you sign up. For those who Select the General Interest topic you will receive emails about twice-monthly. If you are only interested in classes, then the emails will be much less frequent discussing upcoming classes and how to register. Thank you for your support of April M Rimpo Art.

Contact April and see more of her art on her website

Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

Amazing Transformation Is Well Underway at HorseSpirit Arts Gallery

Many of the artists at HorseSpirit Arts Gallery and their family members have been helping Robin Holliday and her husband Max Crownover clean and paint HorseSpirit Art Gallery's new location at Savage Mills in the Cotton Shed Building. What a great way to build comradery while helping transform this wonderful building into a gorgeous gallery.

Here I wanted to share several before and after photographs of HorseSpirit Arts Gallery's new home. The work isn't done, but what has been accomplished in one week is astonishing to me. Next up floors.

One of the changes I love, other than the overall increase of light in the space, is how the neutral walls that replaced the red walls really make the brick accents sing. In the after pictures you will see a lot of furniture that also got a fresh coat of painting. Once arranged with the loving skill of Robin Holliday this place will sing right along with the brick walls.

BEFORE	AFTER
	Our Champion Gallerist, Robin Holliday, Keeping the Enthusiasm Going for All of Us.

Contact April and see more of her art on her website

Interested in learning more about April's art inspirations, tips about her painting process, or art business tidbits? Want to know when her art is in exhibits? Interested in her classes? Consider becoming a Studio Friend by signing up for her twice-monthly email.

Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

"The Firehouse" 14" X 11" Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

The Firehouse by April M Rimpo

The coming of fall is always a time to celebrate in paintings. Fall colors complement the brick and natural stone in Ellicott City.  The yellow building of The Firehouse Museum stands proud in this historic town.

When I decided to paint scenes from Ellicott City there was a wealth of material begging for attention.  The hard part was deciding what to paint first.

You can tell the people of Ellicott City love their town. The old town center is beautifully maintained and, as you can see in The Firehouse, American flags fly out front of several shops. 

Now a museum, the firehouse was first built in 1889 and was the first firehouse in Howard County. According to the Howard County website is was used after 1923 as a meeting hall, county office space, and a library. It is located at the intersection of Main Street and Church Road.

The Firehouse

Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

14" X 11"

$375

Original painting SOLD
Prints available through HorseSpirit Arts Gallery

Other paintings of Ellicott City can be found here:

• B and O Caboose
• Ellicott City II
• Welcome Since 1772

Aquabord is a trademark of Ampersand

"Country II" 12" X 14" fluid acrylic

Country II by April M Rimpo

Country II

12" X 14" fluid acrylic

$395

Available for Purchase Now

I live in an area with a few farms and some new housing developments. Before the developments take over the remaining farms, I periodically take photographs of the farms. They are so tied to nature and the environment I hope they don't all disappear. These farms definitely are part of what drew my husband and I to live in this area. 

Often I spend a lot of time planning out a painting and deciding on the color scheme that will convey what I feel about a place. However, this painting was spur of the moment. I had printed out the photograph some time ago.  I found it when rummaging through a pile of similar photos on my studio desk. I happened to also have one of my "paper gallery wrapped canvases"* sitting on my desk so I decided to go with the flow, grabbed the "canvas", and started to paint.  I really had no plan when I started.

I put some random patterning on the tree and grass areas to get some texture on the paper.  The patterns are done using household items with interesting raised areas and soft acrylic paint.  Once the patterning was almost dry, I started with my fluid acrylics. Because they were a little damp, the color from the soft acrylic bled slightly, integrating the colors. 

I was feeling inspired by some oil paintings I had seen recently and decided to start with blues on the barn, coming back in with the reds once the blues had dried.  I'm a bit impatient and spontaneous once I start painting, so although my initial thought was to let the blue dry thoroughly, I didn't.  Much like the background patterns, a little color blending occurred. This means the edges are NOT all hard and I ended up with a touch of purple on a barn that still appears weathered red. My spontaneity paid off.  

The trees were also painted quickly by applying the lighter yellows and leaf green and then adding in phthalo blue here and there while the paint was wet in order to create shadows and shape to the trees. By this point I wasn't really paying much attention to the photograph, just adding tree shapes and colors that I felt created a vibrant interesting scene. 

I had masked off parts of the horse to remind me not to paint over him with the trees. I have to do little tricks like this because when I am "in the painting zone" I can easily forget important things like the horse and before I know it the horse is gone.

* I stretch watercolor paper, generally Arches 140 lb cold press paper, over a stretcher bar and staple it to the back.  To stretch the paper I wet the paper first, just like you would do when stretching a sheet and stapling it to a painting board.  You let it dry thoroughly before painting. (Note: I usually create the painting first and then stretch it over the stretcher bars, but occasionally I stretch the paper first.)

Other rural landscape paintings by April can be seen at the links below.

• Floral Wonderland - SOLD
• Simple Life
• Rolling Hills - SOLD
• Looking Up - SOLD
• Springtime - Lost in Flood
• Relaxing on Top
• Historic Train Station
• Under the Canopy
• Spring by the River - SOLD

Interested in learning more about April's art inspirations, tips about her painting process, or art business tidbits? Want to know when her art is in exhibits? Consider joining her friends and collectors by signing up for her twice-monthly email.

Copyright April M Rimpo 2016 All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

Art Fundraiser for Ellicott City

Welcome .. Since 1772 by April M Rimpo

Purchase my art to help me increase my donation to help rebuild Ellicott City. Fundraiser ends October 31st.

I will be donating 50% of the value of my sales from my Spreesy Store between now and the end of October to the Ellicott City Partnership. They are a 501(c)3 non-profit organization raising funds to rebuild Ellicott City. 

The power of water is unbelievable and the destruction in Ellicott City devastating to see in all the videos and images we've seen on TV and the internet. The only uplifting thing has been seeing all the volunteers reaching out in so many different ways to help those who live, work, and own businesses in Old Town Ellicott City. 

B & O Caboose by April M Rimpo

Church Road by April M Rimpo

Ellicott City II by April M Rimpo

Historic Train Station by April M Rimpo

Fire House by April M Rimpo

I've included images here of several of my Ellicott City paintings that are available as prints in my Spreesy store. But I will be donating any sales through the end of October, not just the Ellicott City paintings and prints. 

If you are interested in different size prints these can be increased in size up to about 3 to 4 times the original sizes.

For example, the following paintings are all 11' X 14" and could be printed at any size with the same aspect ration: 24" X 30", 28" X 36, or up to 40" X 51". 

• Welcome Since 1772
• B&O Caboose
• Ellicott City II
• Fire House

The original painting of Historic Train Station is 16" X 20 and could be scaled to 24" X 30", 32" X 40" or up to 58" X 72". (The largest size is based on what I could fit in my car to deliver, so at this time I could only sell a print this large to someone who lives in the Baltimore-Washington area.)

The original painting of Church Road is 24" X 18" could be printed at 36" X 27" up to 72" X 54". (Same constraint on the largest size listed here as mentioned unter Historic Train Station.)

If you are interested in a print of a different size than the ones in my Spreesy store contact me through Facebook (April M Rimpo) or by email through my inquiry site.

 #ECStrong

Interested in learning more about April's art inspirations, tips about her painting process, or art business tidbits? Want to know when her art is in exhibits? Consider joining her friends and collectors by signing up for her twice-monthly email.

Rimpo 2016 All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

"Catching Up" 10" X 24" acrylic gallery wrapped

Catching Up by April M Rimpo

In Catching Up the cyclists pop from a landscape of geometric shapes. The trees, grass, and street were each simplified to an elongated rhombus. The masses of leaves became simple circles and even the texture in the grass is based on tiny hexagons. This abstracted background acts as a foil to the cyclists who speed by during a bicycle race.

Catching Up

Fluid Acrylic

$575 - SOLD

Interested in learning more about April's art inspirations, tips about her painting process, or art business tidbits? Want to know when her art is in exhibits? Consider joining her friends and collectors by signing up for her twice-monthly email.

Copyright April M Rimpo 2015 All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

#HoCoArt

#aprilmrimpoart

#Maryland

"Historic Train Station" a 16" x 20" fluid acrylic

Historic Train Station by April M. Rimpo

Historic Train Station

16" X 20" Fluid Acrylic on Watercolor Paper

Mounted on a 2" Deep-Cradle Wood Panel

$775

Original Available in April's Spreesy Store

Prints available through HorseSpirit Arts Gallery

I've been wanting to paint this train station, now museum, for a while. However I've struggled with how to make it look interesting since the building and cobblestone were all similar in color. The front "courtyard" is a large expanse that seemed empty in my photographs.

My first design concept was to transform the scene back to the late 1800s when the station was still in operation. This resulted in the addition of the horse drawn carriages in the distance and the woman in 1880s clothing, but it still needed more color and something to fill that courtyard area.

Recently I decided I could add some potted flowers to the foreground, which not only adds some needed white, but also adds some brighter yellows and a place to repeat and emphasize the reds from the roof and distant building. I placed the flowers so they introduced an interesting curved shape, breaking up the large expanse in front of the building.

I'm so glad I took my time thinking about the design of this painting. I believe the result is far better than my original plan. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

"Spring by the River" a 24" X 36" fluid acrylic

Spring by the River by April M Rimpo

Spring by the River

24" X 36"

Fluid Acrylic on Paper

Mounted on 2" Deep-cradled, Wood Panel  

Original SOLD

12" X 18" giclee print on watercolor paper - coming soon

To purchase archival prints on watercolor paper or on canvas contact April

Most years the Azaleas are in full bloom by Mother's Day in Maryland. I know that is two months from now, but I am ready. The Azaleas stand proud in my new painting Spring by the River. The white Azaleas are shaded with pale pastel shades of blue, violet, and pink, while the red blossoms vary from orange to hot pink and magenta. I have a bit of a weakness for the white blooms with pink centers.

A fellow artist in our area has a show opening this weekend and I know she has paintings that include scenes from a local Azalea garden. We have not had an awful lot of snow this year, probably a little less than normal, but the cold has everyone I know extremely ready for winter to end. Well I do know a few friends who wish they lived in Maine, you know who you are, and are probably walking around in the 0 - 20 degree Fahrenheit days without a jacket.  

I have Spring fever, as you have noticed in my last several blog posts, so enjoy Spring through my paintings until it finally finds it way to our doorsteps.

"Enjoying Tongue Row" a 20" X 16" fluid acrylic

Enjoying Tongue Row by April M Rimpo

Enjoying Tongue Row

Fluid Acrylic

Mounted on 20" X 16" X 2" deep

cradled wood panel
$775

Not far from my home is an old mill town called Ellicott City. The town was established by the Ellicott family, thus the name.  Tongue Row is a section of stone granite houses originally rented to mill workers by the owner Ann Tongue. Now these houses are a set of boutiques including a cafe and a silversmith.

A Farmer's Market is held by Tongue Row once a month seasonally. In addition to fresh produce, musicians serenade the event, and artisans sell their wares.

It's a lovely spot to stop and relax on the benches. 

 

#HoCoArts

"Church Road" 24" X 18" fluid acrylic on gallery wrapped paper

Church Road by April M Rimpo

Church Road is likely my last snow scene for the season.  I snapped the photo last fall, which means I had to figure out the snow on my own.  It was fun to determine where it might collect on the roofs and where it might pile up as the neighbors cleared their sidewalks and paths to their homes.

Church Road

Fluid Acrylic on Varnished Gallery Wrapped Paper

$995 for Original Painting

Available for purchase here

#HoCoArts

"Lit by the Moon" 24" X 18" gallery wrapped fluid acrylic on paper

Lit by the Moon by April M Rimpo

Since night scenes are not something I’ve done a lot of, I wanted to be sure to capture the colors I used in Lit by the Moon.

Lit by the Moon

Fluid Acrylic

24" X 18" gallery wrapped and varnished paper

$995 for Original Painting

Options:

Original 24"X18" $995.00 USD  Print 14"X11" on watercolor paper $85.00 USD

 

Prices includes shipping within the United States*

* Contact April regarding shipments outside the United States

All are fluid acrylic except for:

Indigo blue – which is a Da Vinci watercolor pigment - and Coral, which is a Daniel Smith watercolor paint.  Both I mixed with Golden “Fluid Matte Medium” to make my own fluid acrylic.  Daniel Smith Coral is my go to color these days.  It makes wonderful shades of lavender when mixed with just about any blue.  When mixed with blue and yellow, you get great grays.

The Da Vinci fluid acrylics used are:

·        Transparent Raw Sienna

·        Quinacridone Gold (very sparingly)

·        Quinacridone Burnt Orange

·        Pthalo Blue

·        French Ultra Marine Blue (adding some Daniel Smith French Ultra Blue watercolor when I mix with Quinacridone Burnt Orange to create the nearly black darks

·        Titanium White (used mixed with the yellow pigments in the last layer of darks to recover a few of the illusion of clouds when I neglected to leave some of these open.)

I started with masking fluid “sprayed” on the white paper, which becomes the falling snow.  After an initial pale wash I added tiny wisps of tree branches and bits of snow that had stuck to the yet to be painted trees. I also added some masking fluid where I wanted the lit side of evergreens and bushes in the foreground.  And let’s not forget the moon was added in mask at this point so the yellow glow is retained.  I left some openings in the mask on the moon to allow darker hues to create the craters on the moon. Some kosher salt was applied to the bushes in the front in hopes of adding some texture to the snow as a foreground detail. I say "in hopes" because normally I test pigments with salt to be sure the desired granulation will occur, but the salt was a quick decision and timing the addition of salt is critical.

A second medium intensity wash was added to further vary the colors across the painting and to begin to make darker areas in the sky.  I left some of the yellow shining through, especially around the moon since I wanted the moon to glow. When dry this layer was followed by more masking of branches to give the illusion that different branched catch different amounts of the moon light. I added a small amount of dark on top of the dry salt in the foreground bushes to add some variety.  I actually had forgotten to remove the salt and knew I likely lost any subtle granulation in the snow.  These things happen.

Darker combinations of the blues were added in the third layer.  This is also where I used the pale mixture of white and yellow to retain some lighter cloud areas here in there behind the trees. There is a church steeple in the distance and I used some of the light yellow mix around the steeple so it wouldn’t be totally lost.  The steeple was inspired by St Paul’s Church and has the characteristic lighter stripes used to accent the architecture on the steeple, but I intentionally muted these at a later stage so the painting is about the falling snow and the steeple is there for those who really examine the painting in detail.

The trees were adding in dark and medium dark hues while most of the masking was still in place so the limbs catching the light were preserved.  At the end the mask was removed and just a few spots required a dab of darker paint here and there to integrate the branches.
#HoCoArts

"B&O Caboose" 11" X 14" Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

B&O Caboose by April M Rimpo

B and O Caboose

Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

11" X 14"

$375

Original SOLD 

Prints on watercolor paper available at 

HorseSpirit Arts Gallery
8090 Main Street
Ellicott City, MD 
Phone: 410-461- 4505

HorseSpirit Arts Gallery

info@horsespiritartsgallery.com

410-461-3505  

You won't really find this 1927 "I-5" Caboose on the rails since the Ellicott City Railroad Station no longer operates train rides, but you will find it on display on Maryland Avenue in Ellicott City, Maryland.  That is one great thing about being an artist, you can jump back in time and sudden turn history into the present. 

Other paintings of Ellicott City can be found here:

• The Firehouse
• Ellicott City II
• Welcome Since 1772

Aquabord is a trademark of Ampersand

"Ellicott City II" "11" X 14" Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

Ellicott City II

Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord

11" X 14"

$375

Original SOLD 

PRINT NOW AVAILABLE AT HORSESPIRIT ARTS GALLERY 

410.461.3505 
info@horsespiritartsgallery.com 

Entering through the Ellicott City sign on the B&O railroad track you find the former Patapsco Hotel, which was rebuilt in 1925.  At one time the second floor of the hotel served as a passenger waiting room of the B&O Railroad.

Other paintings of Ellicott City can be found here:

• The Firehouse
• B and O Caboose
• Welcome Since 1772

Aquabord is a trademark of Ampersand

"Ellicott City...Welcome Since 1772", 11"X14" Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord™

Welcome Since 1772 by April M Rimpo

Ellicott City is a charming town not far from where I live. It is full of art and antique shops that draw people from far and wide.  It is a favorite place for artists to paint.  In fact, each year Ellicott City holds a paint out that brings artists to town to spend a weekend painting. The result is an exhibition, held in one of the Howard Country Arts Council's Galleries.  There are so many paintings they often spill out into the hallways.

I have never taken part is this paint out, but recently decided that, since I paint places from across the United States, Provence France, and Guatemala, why not share a bit of home as well. 

Welcome Since 1772 is, I expect, the first of several paintings of Ellicott City.  The title derives from the little ribbons painted in the upper left and lower right of the Ellicott City sign, that decorates the old train bridge you pass under on the way into town.  One ribbon says, "Welcome", while the other proclaims the heritage of the town "Since 1772." 

Welcome Since 1772

Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord

11" X 14"

$375

Original SOLD - Prints available at Still Life Fine Art Gallery

This painting is done using fluid acrylic on a deep cradle Aquabord™, a trademark of Ampersand.  Ampersand describes Aquabord™ as "an acid-free textured clay surface that absorbs watercolor like a fine paper."  I used a version of Aquabord™ that has a 2" deep cradle that eliminates the need for framing.   I varnished the finished piece to protect it from dirt, moisture, and discoloration. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this painting and I'd be happy to answer questions about my experience using fluid acrylic and watercolor on this painting surface.

Here are a couple watercolor paintings I did on Aquabord:

• Guatemalan Girl
• Flowers to Remember

Other paintings of Ellicott City can be found here:

• The Firehouse
• Ellicott City II
• B&O Caboose