Upcoming Solo Exhibition: North Yorkshire England

When most people here in the States think of England they think of London. When I think of England, I think of  rich, green rolling hills, sheep grazing in the pastures, the River Nidd, and miles of idyllic walking paths leading to quaint, picturesque villages. My love for North Yorkshire England and its timeless beauty was the inspiration for my first series of landscape paintings.

 And now, this series is framed and ready to exhibit!

It is my pleasure to invite you to G44 Gallery, 1785 S. 8th Street, Ste A, here in Colorado Springs for the opening reception and solo exhibition of this new series. Please join me if you can, Friday, August 9, 6 - 9 p.m. The show runs through October 10th.

Portrait Of A Little Girl: In Valley Gardens, Harrogate

Stage 3: Painting the face.

My inspiration for painting images of Northern England has not left me yet. This image of Elena in the Valley Gardens of Harrogate has been on my mind for at least a year now. Throughout the past year of painting landscapes and lambs of North Yorkshire the desire to paint this portrait has stayed with me and was growing stronger. Suddenly, I knew it was time. 

The Valley Gardens are peaceful and beautiful year round. Adding Elena to the setting was ideal.

Stage 2: Blocking in the shapes with color.

Stage 1: With a loose wash of paint thinned with mineral spirits I painted her figure and shape of the fence.

Visiting Northern England: Guise Cliff

Detail Portion of the Sky
"Guise Cliff"
Rita Salazar Dickerson

I painted the sky today. After taking a necessary painting break to help my husband, Robert, recover from surgery, it felt good to get back to my easel.

I am reminded of what a privilege it is to be an artist.

 

 



Stage 1: Brushing in the composition of the landscape with a wash of Burnt Sienna.



Stage 2: Painting the sky with a palette knife.






 

 

Visiting Northern England: Final Painting #4

Beckoning
oil on canvas, 24x18"
Rita Salazar Dickerson

This is the fourth painting in my Visiting Northern England series. After doing twenty-one small studies I am now choosing my favorites from those and painting larger versions. Here is the step by step sequence of how this painting was completed.

Stage 1: Painting in the loose lines of the landscape.

Stages 2: Blocking in the darkest value.

                                                                    Stage 3: Blocking in the purples and blues.

Stage 4: Adding the green to the trees.

Stage 5: Completing the blocking in of the green in the trees.

Stage 6: Painting in the tree trunks and branches.

Stage 7: Adding detail to the trees using a palette knife. I painted wet-on-wet.

Stage 8: Completing the detail in the trees with a palette knife.

Stage 9: Painting in the fence.

Stage 10: Using a palette knife I completed the detail of the wood and stone fence.

Stage 11: I completed the painting by blocking in the foreground and then finishing it with a palette knife. And then my favorite part,  comparing the final painting with the 10x8" study. I used more color and texture throughout the final painting.

Visiting Northern England: Landscape Painting #6

This study depicts a portion of Nidderdale looking out from an upstairs bedroom window. The sky was overcast and the air was cold. It felt good to be inside.

I first painted this on a 8 3/4 x 5 3/4 inch panel that slips into the frame of my small box easel. The easel is such a convenient size (9 1/4 x 7 1/4"), I was able to set it on a window sill. I worked in acrylic for this initial study. My main concern was capturing the colors accurately.

Back here in my studio I used my little color study for reference and then also used a reference photo taken from that same window to repaint this scene on a 10 x 8" canvas. The colors that I applied on the small panel were so much more vivid that the colors in my reference photo; a good reminder of how much nicer (and more accurate) it is to paint from life.

One of my favorite parts of this late winter scene of the dale is the color of the grove of trees which contrast so well with the rich green of the hills.

The Farm In The Dale
10x8", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

I really had fun with my palette knife on this final layer. I switched off between the palette knife and paint brush to apply thick paint and soften the edges.

Visiting Northern England: Landscape Painting #5

It was early morning. Everyone else in the house was still asleep.

I could hear a rooster crow; the sun was about to rise.

Grabbing my camera I headed to the empty bedroom that overlooks this scene behind the house. I opened the window and began taking shots of the beautiful Nidderdale morning unfolding before me.

Nidderdale Sunrise
10x8", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

As the sunlight touched the trees and buildings everything turned golden.

Painting this little study was a fun change for me. I worked quickly challenging myself to spend only the amount of time necessary to tell the story. When working from a photograph, I must remind myself to paint the colors the way I remember them, not necessarily the exact colors that are in the photograph. Once again I used a #4 filbert brush to block in the shapes of colors and then a #2 filbert to work in the details.