"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.

Looking Back - Watercolor on 10" X 10" Aquabord

Looking Back a 10" X 10" Watercolor on Aquabord
by April M Rimpo

Looking Back

Watercolor on Aquabord

10" X 10"

Varnished and in a Black Wood Floater Frame

Looking Back is inspired by the Arizona Living Pioneer Museum in Pioneer, AZ. The museum has changed drastically since I took this photo. We were there in the 1980s when I remember only a single museum building with no one dressed in historic clothing.  I'm not sure if all of this equipment is still scattered behind what was the main museum building. Nothing like capturing the history of a history museum. You know I love capturing light in my photos. We must have been there mid-day and the intense Arizona sun poured down on this old equipment creating a great contrast between the tops of things, such as the seats and wheels, with dark shadow essentially everywhere else.  Of course, rust also turns quite dark over time, looking nearly black, but you can still see here and there the burnt orange color of rust.

I was particularly enthralled with the small distant building and had to include that since it was so vivid in my memory. We never knew the story behind that building.

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.

"Nature's Paintbrush" watercolor on Aquabord by Ampersand, 12" X 12"

Nature's Paintbrush, watercolor by April M Rimpo

Nature's Paintbrush

Watercolor on Aquabord™

Varnished and Framed in Black Wood Floater Frame

Available through 

HorseSpirit Ars Gallery's Online Shop

I love the effects of nature and time on things around us. They take items made by man and turn them into beautiful glistening objects. Perhaps no longer functional for their original purpose, but they tell a story of their time in the world. I captured this moment in the journey of the bucket and can of nails, but no doubt not the end of their life; nature isn't finished with them.

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.

How Long Did It Take? - Answers to Consider

Metal Flashing Detail from By the Old Mill © 2019 April M Rimpo

Artists are often asked "How long did it take you to paint this?" Granted some take longer than others depending on a myriad of factors:

• Even if you are working from your own source photos, there is often research needed about your subject to be able to create a good design.
• Deciding on a color scheme - Color could be driven by the emotion you want to portray or could be influenced by a client's preferences. 
• The amount of detail in the painting - applies to both realistic and non-objective work where details may be more in the realm of textures needed to communicate the thoughts and feelings behind the work.
• In representational painting - the variety of materials you're simulating in your painting - such as metal, brick, cement, wood, glass, undergrowth in woods, rusted tools, a snarl of fallen trees, water, vines, a sprinkling of fallen leaves, pottery, delicate crystal, various types of fruit, clothes, crocheted items, intricate fabrics. The list is endless all requiring different approaches to creating them. 
• How you plan to present the work - framed, gallery wrapped, varnished all require different considerations even before you start the painting.

Detail - Vines growing on brick,
and reflections in windows
© 2019 April M Rimpo

As a result, when asked this question, I may answer with a little bit about the process I used to create the painting, since I suspect that might be more what the person is curious about.  I don't mean a technical description full of words that are understood only by artists, but a more general description.  

I may also talk about the inspiration and what I had to do to be sure the story or emotion of the moment was captured in the painting.

I recently finished a painting with many details and a variety of materials simulated in the painting. As a result, this painting took much longer than many of my paintings, but is that really want you want to learn about the painting?  I don't think so. Much of the time was spent figuring out how to represent each of the materials. 

I've included some detail images of my painting, By the Old Mill, to let you see up close how different each of these sections are. Perhaps less obvious is how different the painting application is to create the look of metal versus brick and vines, water, detailed branches and the illusion of distant undergrowth in the wood.

Detail from By the Old Mill - A Snarl of Branches and Water © 2019 April M Rimpo

Detail - The Illusion of undergrowth in the woods 
© 2019 April M Rimpo

Those who read my newsletter got a sneak peek at the whole painting, but I'm not sharing it widely since I plan to include this painting in an upcoming feature of my work.

If you'd like to learn more, just ask.  

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.