Open for Business: Marrakech

I can't resist another painting share from Marrakech  

where I enjoyed the vibrant colors as well as the cultural

differences.  Outside the Medina (the old city) stores looked

very European, but it was the shops inside the walls that

caught my painter's eye.

I had plenty of time waiting in airports to play with some sketches and was anxious to try them out first in watercolor when I got home.  This was a daily scene on the way back to our riad and I loved that the weavings exposure to the elements seemed not to bother anyone (except maybe me).

I then took a 12 x 9 canvas and laid down a first pass keeping the paint very thin and drip-y.  I wanted to see if the drips left to dry added something of interest to this vignette.  I played around with the walls and shadows for quite a bit...I think I was anxious to get into the colors and patterns but afraid I would abandon the hard work around them if I jumped in too soon. Like waiting for desert.

I decided to preserve most of the drips, there was no other way to let you know that the street was pitted and uneven without distracting from the blankets.  And I wanted you to be more intrigued by the shadow of the person coming down the street than interested in the road.

When I finally did get into the weavings I enjoyed them like a bowl of ice cream, slowly working my way around the light and shadow and trying to get just enough suggestive pattern that you would know they were all unique.

"Open for Business," 12 x 9, oil on canvas

available

I like this piece.  I like the lines and minimal composition as well as the limited color.  I think it also

captures a feel for shopping outside the darker souks.  I was sorry to be done when I finished.

If you have been to this fascinating city and are interested in the art send me an e-mail (art@cindymichaud.com) as I will soon deliver them to the Crossnore Fine Arts Gallery, in Crossnore, NC.  

Traveling in Living COLOR,

Cindy

Souks & Shadows in Marrakech

Many artists profess to "paint the light."

But to show the light one must also paint shadow.  

For some reason, I have always found the shadows

 more intriguing to paint as a subject than light.  There's

a mystery in the shadow...and opportunity for a lot of color.

The markets of Marrakech are a labyrinth of dark passages, twists and turns with occasional bursts of sunlight either from the roof openings or from the arched exits leading to the streets.  The lights bounce around giving shape to the shadows and changing the colors from bright to burnished along the way.

I began the painting above from a photo taken on a Friday morning when traffic in the souks is slow due to the holy day.  Can you find the faint beginnings of two people in this vignette?

I actually started this piece as an abstract...I so badly wanted to leave it that way but something in me keeps pushing for the detail, perhaps a fear that you won't know what I am portraying if I don't give you enough information?  This was going to be a challenge to bring the viewer right into the souk, let them look around and then follow the passage way out.

"Called to Prayer"

14 x 11, oil on canvas, framed

available

Now enjoy the colors of the shadows...grey, brown, dark greens, reds and every other shade.  The "light" patches would not be so interesting without the tremendous support of the shadow. And in this piece there is very little of what we artists refer to as "mid tones."

Now can you find the two figures?  Look closely.  There is a sole man behind the stack of twine balls.  The second?  It could be you: examine the shadow in the lower middle section just left of the basket base.  

Mysterious Marrakech.

In the Shadows,

Cindy

Holy Communion Lutheran Church - Foscoe, NC

A friend passes this little stone church everyday and asked me if I would paint it.  Here's how I approached the challenge:

I began with acrylics since I love to get color on fast and furious with no fear of perfection.  Next I analyze the composition and formulate ideas for further refinement.  This stage ends up looking either like "paint by number" or a child's cartoon.

Now I mix up my oils and adjust the subject matter, in this case the portal to the church and the stone.  I'm not worried about the background at this point other than for color harmony.

These photos were taken over several days so the lighting differs slightly altering your the color.  But notice that I already thought it might be finished so I popped it in a frame. I also took a photo for a closer look.  What I don't like about this piece is the busy foreground left.  The choppy colors are pretty by themselves but I think they distract from the church.  I also see that the dark areas of the landline on the right are waaaay too dark.  Both of these observations are things to be careful of when painting from a photograph...it may be correct as far as the camera recorded it but it just doesn't make sense when trying to transition into art.

Holy Communion Lutheran Church, Clark's Creek Rd., Foscoe, NC

11 x 14, oil, 

"Cool lights = warm shadows."  This old rule came to me as I was trying to find some balance. So I warmed up the tree shadows/leaves on the foreground left.  Now there is less distraction from the focus of the church door.  Note the improved perspective of middle ground right.  Seems further away now, right?

Thus it sits for a bit as I contemplate "doneness."  I have no idea (yet) if this meets my friend's vision....and I'm thinking I want to try this same composition in a looser, vaguer approach. I can already see that the bright light to the church left needs toning down.  And...

Now you know why it takes two artists to finish a painting: one to apply the color and the other to yell "stop!"

COLOR FULLY REVISING,
Cindy

VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE

PURCHASE HERE
This pastel started with a photograph taken late in the afternoon...it was one of those "stop the car" moments when I knew the sun was making gorgeous shadows on the snow and in the river.  Lucky for me I have a patient husband who took a nap while I snapped many photos of the area.  Back in the studio I became interested in the shadows cast by the bridge itself....can you spot yours truely?  Actually this could be any viewer putting himself right into the painting.  Can't you just smell the cold air?  Anyway, this is  8 x 8 on yellow-gold paper and is in a square, white mat sized 14 x 14.  It was on its way to a gallery in NC but missed the size of the box by a mere 2"....thus I get to enjoy it here at home a bit longer...or sell it!