"La Gelateria" 24" X 18" fluid acrylic

In Situ Image includes: La Gelateria,
Percussion: A Serious Business, and A Better View

"I always think of shade as being full of light. That is why I like to use the word shade rather than light and shadow. Shade seems to play over the thing, envelop it, better define it, while shadow seems to fall on the thing and stain the surface with darks." -John Sloan

La Gelateria by April M Rimpo

La Gelateria
24" X 18" fluid acrylic
Varnished and Framed
in a Silver Wooden Frame 
$1700


Click here to Contact April if you are interested in purchasing this painting.

Exhibited in a Baltimore Watercolor Society Member Show at Quiet Waters Park, receiving a Signature Member Honorable Mention Award.

La Gelatoria celebrates New Orleans and all the great hidden away spots throughout the French Quarter. It is a study of light from bright direct light to subtle variations in the shade. It was interesting to see how the people walking down the bright street had their heads down, trying to keep the sun out of their eyes, which those in the shade sat quietly enjoying a cup or gelato from the local shop. 

I particularly love the cast shadows from the stairs above, plus the bits of shine on the French Quarter's cast iron railings that pick up pale reflected color from their surroundings.

Learn more about the other paintings shown in the inset:

• Percussions: A Serious Business
• A Better View

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.

"Illumination" 36" X 20" Watercolor and Fluid Acrylic

The development of a painting can take a variety of paths. I generally have a mood I want to communicate which leads me to how I approach the work. However, many things can influence the approach you take to create a piece:

• A workshop you have taken may affect color choices, 
• An experimental painting you've finished gives you new ideas, or 
• A painting video you watched provides a new interesting way to create textures in the background and sparks an idea

Any of these can impact how you tackle a painting you've been planning for a long time but didn't know where to start. 

After Steps 1 and 2

I think all of these events initially impacted how I approached Illumination. With so many different ideas floating in my head I decided to put off the painting for a short time to see what bubbled up as the most important of these inspirations. I have to admit that I decided to discard the video idea for now until I try the approach on a few smaller works. However, some new color possibilities and recent experiments definitely came out to play while I created this painting.

At left is the result of the first two steps of the painting. Step 1 was applying mask over some highlight areas and the background wash.  I applied the colors in a swirly motion so they could create their own fantastic blends and resulted in color "stripes" in the shapes of the structure in which the woman is standing. I worked on her face and some clothing shadows during Step 2. My goal was to establish the focal point and work out the value range for the figure. 
                                                                        

Step 3 of Illumination

Step 4 of Illumination

In Step 3 I developed the lower shaded areas using a color combination I experimented with recently. The color triad for the darks is three grayed mixtures of Alizarin Crimson Permanent, Indigo, and Raw Sienna. Each gray uses one of these colors as the dominant color and the other two were used in small portions to just calm down the blend.

In Step 4, the mass of branches on the right side were fully developed by layering more of the gray blends and a nearly black blend.

Step 5 of Illumination

Although it was another hour and a half of work, Step 5 might look very much like Step 4. In it I added shadows under all the highly lit branches  and more dark shadows in the upper left and upper right. Also completed in Step 5 were the hands of the figure and some more darks on her face. 

Step 6 of Illumination

Step 6 is shown at right.
The painting is nearly complete, except for the branches across the bottom. They need soft transitions between the highlights and the shadows under the branches.

Below is the completed painting, Illumination.  Please share your feedback in the comments below.

Illumination by April M Rimpo

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.

A Better View 16" X 20 " Fluid Acrylic

A Better View by April M Rimpo

A Better View

Fluid Acrylic

16" X 20"

Available for Purchase - learn more

While in New Orleans for the Jazz Fest we watched the opening parade. We arrived early so we could find a good spot to watch. When we first arrived only a few people were there ahead of us. Some of the parade participants were still getting ready and walking toward the beginning of the parade route.  

It didn't take long before the crowds began to gather and people began jockeying for a good spot the see.  The parade ran down Bourbon Street before turning toward Jackson Square. Trucks were there delivering food and alcohol for the coming day so people kept changing their location worried the trucks would not leave before the parade started.  

I noticed that as people crossed and the light coming down Ursuline Street hit them they would light up. I immediately started to take photos in hopes of capturing the flashes of light as they glanced across their shoulders and long shadows stretched out in front of them. 

I had only been to New Orleans once before for one day, so this was like a first visit for me. We missed the Tutu Parade the day before, but the street was still filled with Tutus in shop windows, balloons were out, and of course beads from small to enormous were hanging from balconies, stores, and even electric wires along the streets.  

So much to take in, you know I just had to paint it. It's not surprising that this was one of the first few paintings of New Orleans that I created. And yes, there will certainly be more.

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.