The Evolution of a Painting : in more pictures than words

As I was preparing to write this post it occurred to me that it would be good to have James contribute or write this post about how a painting comes to life.
After some discussion we came to the conclusion that I would post images and write briefly about them here and that James would return to blog Aponovich52 and tell the more complete story of the Evolution of a Painting.

The concept sketch is the seeing, thinking and drawing all coming together on paper.

 The Underpainting
was created by James in one sitting, a very long day! It was vital for him to capture the energy of the moment. The warmth of the Burnt Sienna offers a balance to all the greens and cool colors that James used to paint the landscape and Agapanthus.
The Burnt Sienna will dry quickly allowing him to paint over it in a day or so. Time is of the essence!

Adding color
 James began with painting the flowers ( he complained a lot about them) since there is no telling how long the blooms will last. As he paints the blue of the flowers, he begins to paint the distant fogged in landscape of the island in order for him to balance value and color while creating the atmosphere he is seeking.

He begins to see the entire painting.

Almost there.
The painting is coming together. James lightens, darkens to push the distant landscape back and pull the terra cotta pot with agapanthus and the ivy covered wall  forward.                

 Agapanthus, Appledore
oil on canvas, 40" x 50", 2013
James Aponovich

voila!

complete



To read about the Evolution of a Painting in James' words click on Aponovich52.

The painting is complete and will be included in James's upcoming exhibition at
Hirschl and Adler Modern
730 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY




all images copyright James Aponovich 2013
and cannot be printed or used in any manner without permission of the artist, James Aponovich

The Essence of Summer

Nasturtiums and Cherries, Sebasco, Maine

James Aponovich

oil on canvas, 2011

*week # 27

Nasturtiums, cherries, and moist ocean breezes speak of summer. The painting, Nasturtiums and Cherries, was painted by James last summer on a trip to Maine to visit friends in Sebasco. Today feels much the same as I remember that day a year ago.

The Mid-Coast area of Maine is remarkable and has enchanted artists for decades. Countless artists like John Marin, Edward Hopper, Marsden Hartley have found their way up the coast of Maine to capture the raw beauty and life on these rocky peninsulas that into the sea. James found the same thrilling visual attraction to this stunningly rugged place.

James and I spent many summers on the coast of Maine what remains from our experience is a strong connection between time and place. This is where that memory thing 'mnemonics' comes forth connects summer to Maine.

When I look at this painting done at Sebasco it is the sound of the gong buoy I remember.The clarity of blue sky and flowers swaying in the salty breeze and nasturtiums stretched out across the stone walkway with their orange flowers held proud,the smell lobsters steaming and a neighbor appearing a huge bucket of peonies for our table are all vivid images I keep.

Summer memories are found here in our garden where certain flowers whether by color or fragrance, tell us it is summer. Pansies shout out when spring has arrived. Nasturtiums appear as we roll into mid summer and will stay until they have all been cut for vases, salads, as objects for paintings... or until the first frost claims them.

We have tall phlox in our garden that came from our decade ago garden in Maine. The phlox came to our New Hampshire garden, by way of Maine, a gift from my gardening mentor Julia Martin. There are several plants in our garden that were gifts from friends or in some cases that came from a special place, each recalls that place or person as they hold a unique spot in our garden.

The Tomato, an icon of summer.

Garden tomatoes and fresh basil with olive oil from Panicale.

Believe me, nothing is better! One worry though, our can of Panicale olive oil is nearly empty....could that mean it is time to go back to replenish our supply?

There are always tomatoes in the garden, Red Brandywine, Yellow Brandywine, San Marzano, and Sun Gold are just some of the varieties we grow. By the middle of August we are gathering tomatoes daily. The routine of making tomato sandwiches, BLT's, panzanella salad, and tomato bisque is well under way.

There are pots tomato sauce on the stove as the kitchen fills with wafting aroma of tomatoes simmering.

Our year round friend and summer neighbor Judith makes a knockout tomato salad which we adore. It is heaped full with chunks of avocado, blue cheese, scallions and wedges of ripe tomatoes in a perfect classic vinaigrette. It is all about the quality and balance of ingredients.

A salad that says, " it must be August," in a big and flavorful way!

James is in the kitchen right now.... he should be at his easel......but the lure of ripe Roma tomatoes and a bounty of fresh herbs has taken him into the kitchen to roast .

There are times during our short New England summer when it is difficult to sit still; there are the flowers in need of attention, the tomatoes calling to be brought into the kitchen, and the sunlight that beckons us out the door.

Road trips for seaside lunches are a must. Then there are the visits to farmer's markets, we went to one last weekend that sells heirloom Berkshire pork as well guinea hens

(a reminder of what we cook in Italy). I can't forget the frequent trips to Lull Farm to fill bags with sweet corn, cherries, peaches and to eat a freshly picked plum, immediately!

The season's finest combined in all the images, aromas, tastes, people and places

that get stored in our memories as

SUMMER.

Right now....the aroma of roasting tomatoes and herbs has made it's way out of the kitchen and into my studio. Now my only thought is "what's for dinner?"

*The painting, Nasturtiums and Cherries, Sebasco, Maine, by James Aponovich

was done as part of his year long project Aponovich 52.

It was painted for week #27.

Coast of Maine: SEGUINLAND...a place of extraordinary beauty where artists gathered.

Small Point

A recent invitation by friends took us to Phippsburg, Maine. During our visit they took us to several of their favorite places showing us many aspects of this enchanting place.

A stop at Small Point found us on the porch of a grand and charming shingled style building the likes of an old hotel. The porch, with wicker and rockers, faced the sea. Visible from the porch is an island with a lighthouse, Seguin Island Light.

By the way, this lighthouse where the Kennebec River meets the sea,was commissioned by George Washington in 1795

Etnier House

The house on the distant shore belonged to an artist Stephen Etnier (1903-1984).

He was only vaguely familiar to both myself and James, so it was interesting to find out more about him. Our friends and hosts had a book about Etnier, so we recognized the house and the interesting boat launch from paintings and photos. I later read that Etnier originally arrived in Maine in 1928 to study with Rockwell Kent.

It is no wonder that artists have been attracted to this area.

This place, "Seguinland", encompasses both the Phippsburg and Georgetown Peninsulas, flanking the Kennebec River.

Georgetown and Phippsburg attracted a group of artists, Modernists, during the first half of the 20th Century.

During the mid 1920's into the 1930's many renowned artists left their NY studios for the summer seeking a cooler climate and beauty of Maine. Here in Seguinland the likes of artists such as Gaston Lachaise, Marsden Hartley,

John Marin, Marguerite and William Zorach worked, gardened and gathered to savour life here.

Photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Paul Strand also found themselves drawn to these breathtaking Maine peninsulas.

Low tide, Phippsburg

We found this place to be a visual symphony of water, sand, rocky shore, dark pines and clear light. Water creating patterns in the sand, water carving out granite, water shimmering in the sunlight. The sound of gulls and the surprise of a Bald Eagle exiting a nearby, very nearby tree and soaring out across the cove.

A day of exploring followed by a perfectly clear evening on the porch enjoying lobster and champagne.

Our evenings entertainment....The Milky Way and shooting stars.

The next morning the fog rolls in, yet another Maine experience.

It is lovely, soft and atmospheric.

It is clear why so many artists have spent time in this special place.

We had a splendid time.

For more on "Seguinland" visit the Portland Museum of Art to see two

current exhibitions:

Maine Moderns: Art in Seguinland, 1900-1940

June 4- September 11, 2011

John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury

June 23- October 10, 2011

Another exhibit on painting in Maine can be seen at Bowdoin College Museum of Art.

Edward Hopper spent several summers painting and drawing

in Ogunquit and on Monhegan Island, this show is a collection of those works.

Edward Hopper's Maine

July 15 - October 16, 2011

A MAINE ISLAND

With the boat moored and all passengers and provisions delivered to the island by multiple dinghy trips, our island adventure begins. We land on the rocky north shore of the island.

Baker Island, now part of Acadia National Park is in Frenchman's Bay and is one of the Cranberry Islands. Stepping out of the dinghy into the water we find the water cold , but not chilling. The dinghy is tied to a rock. We all gather our bags and make our way up a mowed path through a vast meadow, probably once a meadow for grazing cows.

Every few yards everyone stops to look in awe at the utter beauty of this place.

It was in 1806 when the first settlers, the Gilley family, came to the island. They came here to farm, a labor intensive endeavor. The idea of transporting animals and crops to and from the island to the main land for marketing is daunting. They were certainly a hearty and determined group and must have cherished island life to withstand the hardships of daily tasks. It must have been love or being overcome by beauty that kept them here.

The view over the Gilley house out across the field and bay is so quintessentially Maine.

Images painted by Fairfield Porter, N.C. Wyeth, and John Marin fill my head.

It's spectacular here.

Time to continue on. Trees begin to line the path, tall fir trees, and spruce. A lighthouse becomes visible, sort of, as it is now overcome by the surrounding woods. The wooded path across the center or the island is cool and moss filled, it is magical and lovely.

The sound of the ocean can be heard.

The shadowy wooded path opens to huge rocks, open sky and an ocean that goes on forever, or at least to the Canary Islands!

The Dance Floor

Gigantic flat granite boulders became known as "The Dance Floor". The name originating when in the past island settler's would hold dances here on these pink granite dance floors. It is quite an amazing structure that the sea and nature have created.

Beyond dancing this makes a great site for a picnic, followed by some sketching!

For a look at a sketch that James drew from here, and then took back to the studio where he made a painting

click on Aponovich 52, week # 19

Timing is everything. Our "Dance Floor" picnic was delicious and some sketches made, the weather's turning..... time to head back to the boat. Retracing our steps back, the island is again breathtakingly beautiful and even more dramatic with the

weather over Mount Desert .

Tide going out, weather changing, it is time to board to boat and return to Northeast Harbor.

This has been one of those "days of wonder".

This day will make for memories of a day spent with special friends on a classic Maine Island. I am certain more than one painting will be created from this group to remember our island adventure.

The excerpt below is from a letter written by artist John Marin, to photographer Alfred Stieglitz (1932), might just reflect the thoughts of the Gilley family and early island settler's of Maine's islands.

"OLD MISTRESS - MAINE - SHE MAKES YOU TO - LUG - LUG - LUG -

she makes you to - pull - pull - pull - she makes you to - haul - haul - haul -

and when she's thrashed you a plenty - between those thrashings

she's lovely

she smiles

she's beautiful

with an unforgettable loveliness - an unforgettable beauty

turns masculine - borders big and mighty - against - the big and mighty Atlantic."

ON OUR WAY TO AN ISLAND IN MAINE

We were invited to join a group of friends to visit their favorite place on the Maine Coast. This place just happens to be an island and they just happen to have a boat. So our adventure begins in Northeast Harbor as we climb aboard and set off with a picnic basket full of food. The journey across the bay, past the Cranberry Islands is stunning with the mountains of Mount Desert Island spanning the view towards land. This must be what Champlain first saw as he approached from the sea in 1604.

Bear Island Light

The Bear Island Light is quite a sight from the water. It brings to mind the painting Bear Island, Northeast Harbor, 1855, by Fitz Henry Lane. In Lane's painting the lighthouse stands on cleared cliff top, without trees, a change from how it is seen today.

The marker (seen below) was painted by Frederic Church 1851. This is how it looks today.

It is quite amazing almost startling to see places that were painted by the likes of Church, Fitz Henry Lane, John Kensett, John Marin and Marsden Hartley, here along Maine's coast. It all feels so familiar and is an artist's paradise.

Frederic E. Church

Beacon off Mount Desert Island, 1851

Passing the red gong buoy we continue to our island destination. Our experienced Captain and First Mate making way across the bay.

The island approaches and we head for a mooring.

See you on the island. We hear it is magical.

BLUE HILL, MAINE....A Garden on the Bay

Blue Hill, Maine

James & I were invited by friends to join them for a few days at their house in Blue Hill. We happily accepted.

James and I ( as well as our daughter Ana) spent many summers in the tiny hamlet of Sargentville, Maine. Sargentville is just to the south of of Blue Hill, on the shore of Eggemoggin Reach. It was here that I learned to garden. My mentor, Julia, was an elegant and gracious gardener from Atlanta that kept a summer home and garden here in Maine. For me, her garden defined a Maine perennial garden. Julia's garden was filled with tall phlox of white and pinks, blue dephiniums, pale yellow yarrow, white astilbe, lavender & pink somniferum poppies and perennial yellow foxglove .The flowers were always swaying in the cooling breeze.

So, with that bit of nostalgia it's time to move on to a garden that was part of the recent Blue Hill Garden Tour.

The gardens began at the front of the house, in an area surrounding the front porch. There were lovely perennials including delphiniums, roses, and campanulas. Very lovely against the simple white columns of the porch.

But around the back of the house was the real show. The narrow path along the side of the house opened up the a garden on the bay.

Sun dappled ferns and astilbes line a path leading to stairs that descend to the rocky shore.

Japanese Iris add color and grace with a beacon of chartreuse Lady's Mantle below.

This garden makes the most of it's place at water's edge by using the bay a garden element. Maine has no shortage of rocks. This garden had both rocks left by nature and beautifully constructed stone walls.

One of the things I loved about this garden was the rhythm and structure the trees played. It's the old "reveal and conceal" concept. Trees limbed up to allow us to look through, yet in the distance a lower tree left as specimen at the shore. It's a brave gardener to do this and not give way to cutting clear the entire shore. This garden extends out to a small peninsula where there is plenty of water to see all around and those two sculptural trees to give scale to that stunning view.

When we began a garden here in NH, we found it rather different than gardening on the Maine coast. The season in Maine in condensed, so plants that flower over 5 months in NH, flower over 3 months there. In our NH garden we have plants that started in Julia's garden, were divided to begin our Maine garden, now continue in our current garden. The plants love the moist often foggy air sea air followed by north wind clearing. Who's to blame them.

***********************************

It is worth a visit to a Downeast Maine garden, whether in Blue Hill, Mount Dessert area.

Garden tours provide a great opportunity to see private gardens.

While the Blue Hill Peninsula is very beautiful I cannot think of a public garden . There are a few public gardens on Mount Desert Island:

The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden , designed by Beatrix Farrand

The Asticou Azalea Garden and Thuya Garden, both designed by Charles Savage

For more on our trip to Blue Hill, Maine from the painter's point of view, click on:

APONOVICH 52

(week #17)

A GET AWAY TO MAINE

Destination: Kennebunkport, Maine

Recently we had to be in Kennebunk, Maine for business and it was necessary to spend the night. Oh my, how unfortunate to be on the cool Maine coast during this steamy July!!!

Late in the afternoon we made our way to the beautiful Cape Arundel Inn.

This arbor leads into the small seaside garden.

The adirondack chairs are a welcomed focal point as well as quiet sitting place after a long day.

The garden is lush. The texture and color of the pine with it's cones becomes a perfect companion to the orange daylilies.

The seaside loves blue hydrangeas and the placement of this lace cap variety with the fern is lovely.

The front porch is that of a classic shingle style cottage with wicker chairs, flags and flowers. Can you imagine a better place to sip a drink on a July evening before dinner? This is true romance, might I say even a bit old fashioned in it's charm. This place is a favorite destination of ours on the Maine coast.

As you can see, this truly is right on the coast! The fog was rolling in and out all day creating a very atmospheric landscape and refreshing air.

Our dinner reservation was at 7:30 in the Cape Arundel Inn dining room. The ocean views from the dining room are spectacular. We had a meal that began with a cold seafood plate, cooked and chilled perfectly. Our entrees, one of rack of lamb, the other beef with seared scallops were eaten with pleasure. Dessert was a classic creme brulee. An Italian wine from Berardenga topped off the fabulous evening.

From our room we could watch the tides change and the schooners sail by .

A business trip, yes, but what a way to spend the late afternoon and evening.

The ocean, a classic inn, a garden, a porch and fine dining all wrapped into a night over in Maine.

www.capearundelinn.com

Other places to eat/dine in the Kennebunkport area:

White Barn Inn (fine dining)

Grissini (pizza & pasta)

Cape Porpoise Kitchen (cafe and take out, great for a picnic)

The Wayfarer (Cape Porpoise/breakfast)