"A Heavy Load" 24" X 45" Fluid Acrylic © April M Rimpo

A Heavy Load  24" X 45" acrylic painting © April M Rimpo

A Heavy Load

Acrylic

24" X 45" painting
in a 27” X 48” silver frame

Visiting a farm to purchase some fresh food can also be inspiring as an artist.  I was there during apple picking time and the trees were loaded with fruit. This tree leaned heavily under the weight of the fruit but was strong and looked like it had withstood years of producing food.  The hard work done by farmers to continually work for the betterment of all.  Like this tree they have taken on a heavy load of their own. This painting acknowledges their pledge to us and to the earth. We have a lot to be thankful for.

Here you can see April painting two parts of this painting

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.

Collaboration with Musicians: Part II Gerald Richard Ingley

Part II  of April M Rimpo and Elaine Weiner-Reed's 
Collaboration with Musicians on May 22.

I know I keep saying this, but I am so grateful to Elaine Weiner-Reed for suggesting we continue her "Every Painting is a Song" initiative as part of our two-person exhibition, "Portraits of Life: The Art of Storytelling" at Bernice Kish Gallery in Slayton House. Having musicians improvise pieces to our work, create structured improvisations by a trio of classical musicians, or write lyrics and song was a mind blowing experience. 

Gerald (Jerry) Richard Ingley brought me to tears with his lyrics for Ruby and Bernie to my painting Venus & Mars. I didn't expect him to have time to also write the music, but he did do just that. I got to cry all over again when he sent us a recording of the song along with his thoughts on the piece.

Venus & Mars © April M Rimpo

Venus and Mars © April M Rimpo

CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE SONG

Ruby and Bernie  Gerald Richard Ingley © 2019 Music, Lyrics and Vocals

About my painting Jerry said, "I used a personal experience as a basis for the lyrics after I'd studied the four people, the old guy with the ball cap and sandals standing near to but slightly apart from the woman with … a sweater … tied around her waist. The personal experience is evident in the lyrics, but the outcome of the real experience is … different from the storyline in the lyrics.”

Ruby and Bernie    Gerald Richard Ingley © 2019 Music and Lyrics

            Ruby and Bernie they’d not known each other ‘til the day that Fate played its hand,

Gentile and Jew they were soon to discover a future they’d not understand.

 

Bernie played saxophone Ruby just danced and she’d smile and she’d laugh and she’d sway,

And when their eyes met they were instantly lovers but never to go all the way.

 

You see, night after night they would weep in the shadows of the Temple Beth-El’s mighty stone

Gentile and Jew they held tight to each other, knowing they’d have to leave it alone.

 

So prayers left unanswered and hearts left broken, they parted and traveled so far

Ruby was married, had three lovely children and Bernie was swept off to war.

 

(brief instrumental riff)

 

Fifty years later their spouses had passed and they came back to where they’d grown

With parents now memories, their children on their ways leaving Ruby and Bernie alone.

 

Then on a warm summer Sunday our Ruby stood waiting on the corner of Second and Dell

When a bearded old fellow in a ball cap and sandals asked “Does this bus stop at Beth El?”

 

Ruby turned slowly and nervously spoke in a whisper “oh, can it be true?”

“I once fell in love with a saxophone player, please God, tell me, Bernie, it’s you.”

 

(brief instrumental riff)

 

So the story goes on and they live there together still in love with each other all the while,

You see once in a blue moon when the stars all align, the Gods that we pray to still smile.

For me Jerry's lyrics added depth to my painting that I makes me love the painting more than I already did.  Learning what others think when they see one of my paintings make the painting for me.  Everyone's different perspectives are joy for me to hear. Getting to also hear how my painting sounds through Jerry's song was a amazing experience that I'll never forget. 

Chance Encounters © Elaine Weiner-Reed

Chance Encounters © Elaine Weiner-Reed

Elaine Weiner-Reed   https://www.elaineweinerreed.com/

Read about Elaine's painting and hear Gerald Richard Ingley's Song 
"I Don't Want to See You Anymore" 
on Elaine's Website.

What do you think about the music and lyrics by Gerald Richard Ingley? Please share in the comments.  

I'm sure I will continue to collaborate with writers or every kind in my future exhibitions.  If one of my paintings every inspires you to create a poem, story, play, music, sculpture or an other form of art, please share it with me. Of course, if a painting brings back memories for you I'd love to hear those too. By sharing our thoughts and creative work we make the world a bit better.


Copyright of Text and Images of April M Rimpo Art held by April M Rimpo All images and content remain the property of the Artist. All Rights Reserved.

Copyright of Elaine Weiner-Reed artwork held by © 2019 Elaine Weiner-Reed (EWR) All images and content remain the property of the Artist.

Original songs by Gerald Richard Ingley (c)2019 Music and Lyrics

You may share these videos and April M Rimpo or Elaine Weiner-Reed's work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.No reproductions or prints are authorized. All rights reserved.

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

You can also stay up to date with April M Rimpo art through Instagram @aprilrimpo -  Please join me.

"Don't Look Back" 8" X 10" Acrylic on Canvas

Don't Look Back by April M Rimpo

I think with this painting I have now painted bicycles sitting at the side of the road, people just out for a ride, commuting to work, in triathlons, and now with Don't Look Back a cycling team on an indoor course.  Perhaps the only cycling activity I have missed is people on mountain bikes.

People often ask if I am a cyclist. I wish I could answer "yes". I haven't ridden regularly since my early 30s when I was trying to get back in shape after the birth of my son.  I am a very clumsy person so the flat terrain around our home in Arizona was perfect for me. During the middle of the morning, before the temperatures rose to their peak, I'd go out to ride. Commuters were off to work and the side streets around our home were fairly empty. There were even wide off-road paths where the clay was baked hard allowing me to travel much like on pavement. I'd often see Roadrunners and occasionally wild animals. We lived near an Indian Reservation that I passed on my ride allowing me to occasionally view a coyote in the distance. It was a lovely time.

For twenty years we've lived in a small East Coast town with narrow winding roads and lots of hills and dales. I haven't ventured out on my bicycle since right after we moved here. I found the constant cars passing me on those narrow roads much too intimidating, knowing how unstable I feel on a bicycle in the first place. My bike sits in the basement awaiting me with the bike helmet poised nearby, tires flat from neglect. But I love to watch cyclists and feel their energy as they fly by, exciting me to paint them and live vicariously through them. 

Don't miss April's other cycling paintings on her website

Click here to Contact April

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

Quite a Run in AcrylicWorks - Best of Acrylic

It never gets old being selected for the Northlight Publications' Best of Acrylic Painting series AcrylicWorks.  Each year when the new Edition arrives I am thrilled to share it with friends and to add it to my bookshelf at home. 

AcrylicWorks3: Creative Textures featured work that used either tactile textural approaches or the illusion of texture in the work.  I had  two paintings included: Moving Up and Struggles in the Southwest.  I've included the images of the two pages for these paintings. 

Since the text for Movement was on the left page, I've included the full page spread.

In each book the artist provides a short writeup about the paintings on inspiration and technique.

At right is the second painting in AcrylicWorks3: Celebrating Textures. I found my southwest paintings were the best subject to show how I create the illusion of texture. Crevices of rocks that provide handholds for the rock climber and the texture of the rocks in the mounds of each grave were perfect subjects. 











AcrylicWorks4: Captivating Color included one of my paintings, Freight Yard, which continues to be a favorite of mine. This was likely the first time I decided to do the sky in a color other than blue. I spent a lot of time considering the color scheme of the painting to really emphasize the cranes and freight cars. A blue sky would have diminished the impact of this painting. I retained the texture of clouds but the pale yellow and brown with tiny hints of blue really makes this painting sing.

Freight Yard, 24" X 45" fluid acrylic by April M Rimpo

AcrylicWorks5: Bold Values is the 2018 Edition of Best of Acrylic Paintings and I am delighted to have two works in this book: Lanterns and Movement.  Lanterns is in the Cityscape/Urban Scene section, while Movement is in Figures/Portraits section. 

Lanterns 24" X 18" Fluid Acrylic by April M Rimpo

Lanterns is available at HorseSpirit Arts Gallery in Ellicott City, Maryland. The colors pop even more in person than they do in the image here. I repeated the colors of the lanterns on the shadowed sides of the building, using purple and other dark colors to build up the middle value and darkers areas. I love how the lanterns reflect in the glass, so I included those reflections in my rendering.

This painting was included in Courtney Jordon's article 25 Acrylic Paintings from 25 Top Artists.

Movement 25" X 18" Acrylic by April M Rimpo

Movement is one of my tributes to the Triathlon that runs through our town each year. I love to photograph the cyclists and then portray them and their energy as they travel through our rural setting. When working on an abstract background, using bold values are essential to emphasize the rider. I so admire these athletes that I love to painting them.

Click here to Contact April

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

"Traffic Jam at the Concert" 24"x18" Acrylic

Traffic Jam at the Concert by April M Rimpo

Traffic Jam at the Concert

Acrylic

24" X 18"

$1700

Traffic jams occur everywhere, on streets, in narrow canals, in bicycle paths, and in stadiums. This painting shares a moment as the crowds arrive for a concert, full of excitement and anticipation just to be held up in a jam waiting for tickets to be taken.  As they break out of the jam they disperse as quickly as possible like being shot out of a tube. They return to their state of excitement and anticipation.

View of "Traffic Jam III" and
"Traffic Jam at the Concert" insitu
Consider the possibilities

You can see more "Traffic Jam" paintings at these links:

• Traffic Jam - Sometimes it doesn't take much
• Rush Hour - Enjoy the view when trying to get home
• Traffic Jam III - Cyclists backed up at a crossing
• Full to the Limit - An overloaded canal
• Thoroughfare - Amsterdam: More bikes and trikes than you can believe
• Traffic Jam II - No spot at the port for the incoming boat
• Country Tour - Cars waiting on a bike race
• Trapped - Traffic congestion in a tunnel

Traffic Jam at the Concert was selected by Kathleen Conover to be included in the Baltimore Watercolor Society's 2018 Mid-Atlantic Regional Exhibition. 

Click here to Contact April

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

SpringFest Ellicott City Art

This year Ellicott City's SpringFest adds art demonstrations, face painting, and an Art Display with selections of artwork by artists and galleries sprinkled throughout Old Ellicott City.  As a member of the Ellicott City Arts Coalition and an artist represented by HorseSpirit Arts Gallery, I will have art both in HorseSpirit Arts Gallery and in an Art Display Tent.

Caboose, Snack Time, and Sunset by April M Rimpo

At left are some of April's artwork that will be available for purchase.

Caboose
Acrylic on Canvas
4" X 6" gallery wrap

Snack Time
Fluid Acrylic
8"X8" in
10"X10" silver wood frame



Sunset
Fluid Acrylic on Aquabord
in 6.5" X 6.5" golden wood frame

It's bound to be a fun day with 7 artists engaging you with art demonstrations, face painting for the children (and young at heart), plus artwork by more than a dozen artists and 6 galleries on display. 

Learn more about SpringFest here

Click here to Contact April

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

Mixed Media Trees

Recently I taught a couple sessions of my workshop, "Fun with Fluid Acrylics." The focus was primarily acrylics that, as the name implies, come in liquid form. These paints can be used much like watercolor.  This workshop explored not only the watercolor-like properties but also how to incorporate mixed media techniques into your paintings. One of the mixed media techniques included the use of Masa rice paper.

The tree paintings shown here started with a loose dripping wash and later included rice paper for the trees and some of the foregrounds.

Family Trees by April M Rimpo

Family Trees

Mixed Media

8" X 10" in wood frame

$200

Available here for purchase

Southwest by April M Rimpo

Southwest

Mixed Media

12" X 12" mounted on 0.75in deep cradle

$375

Available at Touchstone Gallery in December

Southwest Cliffs by April M Rimpo

Southwest Cliffs

Mixed Media

14" X 11" mounted to a 0.75" deep primed board

$400

Available here for purchase

This technique can also be used to create an exciting finish across the entire painting, which you can see in Standing Tall II. 

Standing Tall II by April M Rimpo

Standing Tall II

Mixed Media

14" X 11" mounted to 1.5" deep wood cradled board

$425

Included in the 2018
Celebration of the Arts
Art Silent Auction

If you want to learn more and see how a master uses this approach you might want to check out the book,

The Watercolor World of Cheng-Khee Chee.

More Mixed Media paintings using rice paper:

• City and Country

Click here to Contact April

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

DC City Tour 12" X 12" Acrylic

DC City Tour by April M Rimpo

During a trip to Washington, DC I noticed this group of cyclists waiting near the White House.  It turns out this was a DC tour by bicycle. What an intimate way to get to tour a city.  Cyclists always make me think about energy. Since they were regrouping to prepare for their tour, I still wanted to send a message about high energy and chose to use splashes of paint as a playful method to insert some excitement. 

This somewhat whimsical portrayal is one of the paintings I plan to include in the Touchstone Gallery 12" X 12" gift shopping exhibit to be held in December. 

Click here to Contact April

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

"Traffic Jam II" 12" X 20" acrylic

Traffic Jam II by April M Rimpo

Traffic Jam II
Acrylic
12" X 20" X 1.5" deep gallery wrapped*
$600

Traffic Jam II is a second nod to Flam, Norway, where the ferry boats take travelers from near and far on a beautiful trip through a fjord. This tiny town must survive on tourists since the primary traffic we saw was the ships waiting to take us on a wonderful adventure. What a beautiful place.

The four houses you see along the water's edge are typical of what we saw in Norway. Red houses nestled on green covered mountains, with a few neighbors who chose the second favorite color, golden yellow.

The mountainside was truly the bright yellow green of Spring. I decided to feature that color by using a tertiary triad of color that included leaf green, cobalt aqua, and mauve. The mauve is a mixture of Permanent Alizarin and Phthalo Blue. I started the distant trees using Mat Acrylic Medium Gel to build up some textures then applied several variations of color from the triad to the medium while it was still partially wet.  Once dry, I used fluid acrylics for the balance of the painting, working back over the thicker background to create soft color variations in the shadowed side of the mountain.

I find that this combination of soft acrylic with fluid acrylics creates great depth to a painting, making it fun to visually explore.

* The image is painted around the edge of the canvas, so no frame is required.

You can see more "Traffic Jam" paintings at these links:

• Traffic Jam at the Concert - Concert goes waiting on the ticket takers
• Rush Hour - Enjoy the view when trying to get home
• Traffic Jam III - Cyclists backed up at a crossing
• Full to the Limit - An overloaded canal
• Thoroughfare - Amsterdam: More bikes and trikes than you can believe
• Traffic Jam - Sometimes it doesn't take much
• Country Tour - Cars waiting on a bike race
• Trapped - Traffic congestion in a tunnel

Click here to Contact April

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

Starting a large Triptych Titled, "Worth the Price?"

Early Work In Process - Worth the Price?
- Sky and Water Close to Done 
- Towers and Wharf only light values

Although I plan to display this as a triptych with three segments that will be 24" X 24", I started Worth the Price? as a single 6' long painting so I can make sure the water and sky are cohesive.  This will ensure they are in alignment and the colors are the same in adjacent panels.

The image below was taken at the same point in the painting. I've added the vertical lines to show where the three segments will be cut. 

End Day One - Showing where the painting will be separated to form the Triptych

Day two - I've cut the painting apart and mounted them so I can paint on each 24" X 24" segment individually. I thought it would be much easier to handle each segment while painting the towers and dock. I"ll also be able to move back into my studio with my normal LED lighting that has the same temperature and properties as sunlight. The 6' painting was too large so I did that on a large table in the garage.

Moving into the structure of the buildings and docs

In the image above, a few days have passed and I've been working on each segment to keep them at the same stage as I progress.  Here they have additional mask to protect some of the mid-tones plus I stamped in some dark patterns to begin the structure of the buildings, towers, and dock. I have some texture materials I like to use for stamping. I apply some thicker tube acrylic paint to the texturing material then stamp it in areas where I want the texture. Once this is dry I'll return to a brush to finish the painting.

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

"Reading and Learning" 18" X 12" acrylic

Reading And Learning by April M Rimpo

Reading and Learning is another contribution to my "Tapestry at the Mall" series. I had been looking at some paintings by Kadinsky and discovered some I had not seen before that were based on circular shapes.  I really enjoyed these paintings and decided to take the circles into a new direction and use them as the backdrop for this painting.  I felt they added a playful lift, which I wanted to have with this adorable little girl. She was totally absorbed as she walked through the mall with a man who I assume is her father. She appeared to be “taking it all in”, which inspired the title for this piece.

Reading and Learning 

Fluid Acrylic on Paper

18" X 12" gallery wrapped painting
$520 

Available through HorseSpirit Arts Gallery
410.461.3505 
info@horsespiritartsgallery.com 

Other paintings in the "Tapestry at the Mall" Series:

• Fashion
• Family Day
• Elegance
• Aren't You Coming?
• Happiness

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