"Tenement" 14" X 29" watercolor

Tenement by April M Rimpo

Tenement

watercolor

14" X 29" image

20" X 35" brushed silver frame

$975 within the United States*

Available in Touchstone Gallery's Online Store

In Tenement I played with darks and lights making what was shadow areas in my photograph light and bright areas dark.  I call this an "inverse" painting. I also played with colors using vibrant colors in the now lit areas of the brick wall and rich, dark blues and purples for the now dark areas.  The fire-escape stairs and railings were done in light neutral colors to separate them from the wall. When I compare this with the original photograph I feel looking at this painting is much more exciting.  See my source photo below.

At left is the Analog color scheme I selected for the painting. The color charts from Color Scheme Designer provide various strengths of each color and some blends of the colors.  I use two blues, burnt orange, and a purple to create this painting, so I stayed fairly true to the plan, shifting the rose color more to the purple end of the spectrum and adding some a lighter blue.

My source photo

I think my inverse approach has led to interesting paintings that is fun for the viewer to take in and figure out.  One of my other paintings done using the same approach is described in my blog post Fire Escape.

I'd love to hear whether you find this approach draws you into the painting or if something closer to the source photo would have been closer to what you like.  

* Contact April regarding purchase outside the United States

"Freight Yard", 24" X 45" gallery wrapped acrylic and watercolor

Freight Yard by April M Rimpo

Freight Yard

acrylic and watercolor
24" X 45" varnished gallery wrapped paper
$2595

AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE HERE

I am not sure what draws me to industrial scenes,  but it is probably the colors and the structure of the equipment.  I didn't want the blue crane to blend in with the sky so I decided to use a golden, gray colored sky.  I love to use red and orange with blue to create tension with this red based analog color scheme. By using very dark values I accentuated the structure of the equipment and the train rail. Contrasting the geometric shapes of the freight yard with the soft sky and wet runs at the bottom of the painting provided an interesting balance between industrial and organic.

Freight Yard is included in North Light Books' AcrylicWorks 4: Captivating Color, best of acrylics. Read the press release for the book here. Below is an image of the cover and page 31, where my painting is included.

April's other industrial paintings include:

• Shipping Port
• Port of Call - NYC
• Streetcar

To see a sample of my prints check my store.

"Chinatown Gateway" 16" X 20" fluid acrylic

Chinatown Gateway by April M Rimpo

Chinatown Gateway

Fluid Acrylic

16" X 20"

Mounted on 2" deep wood cradle
$800

Available for purchase here

I just love the structure and colors of these gateways that you see when entering Chinatown in cities across the United States. The Chinese term for these are paifang, which refers to a traditional style of a Chinese architectural arch or gateway structure.  You can see this multi-tiered structure in buildings as well as the gates into regions of ancient Chinese cities. 

I am fascinated by this gateway in DC and have taken photographs of it nearly every time I travel to this area of the city. It is difficult to get a good angle on the beautiful arch, but I persisted until I had enough images to understand the architecture and create this image.  

I wanted to emphasize not only the great shapes but also the delicious color combination of orange and teal that runs through this structure.  The nearby Calvary Baptist Church with its dark burnt orange exterior allowed me to provide a beautiful dark foil, which I chose to push toward a dark purple/orange tone. I chose a double complementary color scheme: orange/teal with yellow/purple to create this dynamic tribute to the beautiful traditional Chinatown gate.

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.