#102 Curvy hayfield

Mowing lines from the tractor are great for contrasting color and for creating movement.

#101Playful putto

Another from a day at Belmont, (Gari Melcher's estate in Fredericksburg, VA),  when the weather was perfect for creating luminosity.

#100 Grounded eagle

I made it to 100 posts before the end of the year--and there's still some time left! Daily paintworks has been a good experience for me.  If nothing else,  it has brought awareness of how to improve my work. For example, getting the big shapes and having an idea driving each painting does yield better results.

#99 Autumn afternoon 1

A golden time of the year when all surfaces seem to be touched with a yellow light.

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#98 Autumn view 2

#97 Bright barn 1

When the trees turn into yellows, oranges and reds, they are a natural place for a focal point in an otherwise low color scene.

#96 Looping lines

Well, it has been a while since I have posted a new painting. It certainly takes time to do all that it takes to get the work ready for viewing. This is one that I did at a place where I thought I would be looking at the inspiring mountain scene, but instead this road with loopy lines is what got my attention. 

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#96 Waiting bales

A fun painting to do when the elements take you right into the distance. This large shed for bales is on a 300 acre lot that is for sale. I hope it doesn't sell any time soon!
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#95 Stony Point Pass view

I can always find gentle curves in the landscape in my neighborhood. They seem to suggest taking the time for an outdoor meditation in a quiet, easy atmosphere.
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#94 Morning by the fence

This composition had a lot of converging lines to play with. The warm morning light created long shadows and provided contrast
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#93 Do YOU know how to drive this thing?

These guys gathered around this old tractor like they wanted to take a ride. I couldn't help them with that...

#92 Rolling into evening

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#91Leavingforwork

A view of what my neighbor sees as she leaves for work.  The shady and non colorful sections made a great surround for the red tricycle with the flowerpots, and the path was a  natural lead-in.

#90 Last blast

It was great having a neutral colored deck behind these still colorful gerber daisies. For how little care they demand, they sure give a lot of pleasure.
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#89 White fence, sun and shadow

I don't know if anyone else feels this way, but when I see white things in full sun falling into shadow, it appeals to me.  This fence went into shadow as it turned into the area of trees. I'll be looking for more white things to paint this week.
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#88 House on a hill

I wondered how light I would have to go to even come close to expressing the afternoon sun on this white house.  Maybe having two thirds of the surface bright yellow would help...

#87 Over the top

I've been experimenting with the light and shadow patterns, keeping them as connected as I can. It was fun to use the small shapes of light in this one to connect to the light in the distance.

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#86 into the woods

The light in the fall is great for plain air painting. And relief from summer temperatures--yay! In this small painting I hoped to get the impression of a dappled path in the woods.

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#85 to the wetlands

I like trying different surfaces to paint on so I gessoed some heavy duty watercolor paper  and made some 6 x 8 panels.  It's got a bumpy texture that makes it easy to get a dry brush effect.

#84 Warm bale

Lots of V shapes in this small painting. Warm is an understatement--it was so hot and buggy that it was a relief to leave!

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#83 Welcome to Washington

Every time I drive up to the District,  I get caught up in the hustle bustle.  I tried to use the brushwork and design to express the contagious energy there.

#82 On the way to Montpelier

The grounds of the Montpelier estate, (James Madison's former home), are open to the public. There are some great spots, including gardens, stables and numerous barns and outbuildings to explore.

I didn't have to go very far to find a place to paint--the entrance provided an attractive light and dark pattern. 

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#81 Late afternoon,, Montpelier

It was a warm sunny afternoon at James Madison's estate, Montpelier when I painted this using a limited palette.
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#79 Surrounded by shadows

A figure on a warm sunny day, yet the shadows dominate. It's a street in the District of Columbia, where it is easy to feel hemmed in.

#78 Skuffletownroad1

I liked the contrast between the road going straight back and the curves taking their time going up and down the hills.
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#77 Flowers front and back

Even though these flowers are backlit and somewhat of a silhouette, their bright colors attract the eye, especially the white one.  This summer I have them growing in the garden, and they make a set up come alive.
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#76 riverside rocks

Really enjoyed the colors in these rocks, and the way they moved from the sand into the water.
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#75 hot rocks

I was attracted to the contrasty light pattern on this bank of sand. The movement of the rocks provided a way to point back into the center of interest. Done with 2 yellows, burnt sienna for red and black for the cooler tones.
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#74 Peaceful stream

I did this one with a full palette of colors right down by the water.  The sun was briefly on the top of the rushing water which made a nice contrast against the rock.

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#73 Cooling the rocks

What a great place to paint on a hot day. For this painting I used lemon yellow, yellow ochre, burnt sienna  and  black and white.
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#72 Flowery field

This long view of the field allowed me to use groups of  flowers to show distance which helps to convey just how plentiful these flowers are this year.
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#71 Field textures

This field painting presented an opportunity to make definite shapes, but the way the  texture and quality of the shapes fit together was what interested me about it. Seems like every weed, flower and blade of grass is in full throttle this July.
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#70 Long days of summer

I used the tall flowers to connect with the light on the barn roof in this field painting. They were waving in even a light breeze which contributed to the overall movement and texture.
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#69 Field glow

Very late in the afternoon when the sun creeps over the field there is an enticing shadow pattern. I had to use a 9 x 12, and get it down asap before it was gone.
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#68 Queen anne climbing

A cloudy day provides a steady light; however the sun kept peeking out of the clouds changing everything! At some point I had to decide what light effect I wanted. Hopefully, this looks like a cloudy day.

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#67 Through the gerber daisies

These flowers pack a punch with their vivid colors and tall stalks. Everything else in the scene looked dull in comparison, which only helps to show them off.
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#66 Light on white

As much as these objects are connected by their local color, (white), the light is what sews it all together into a group.

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#65 Aglow in the row

I've been looking at fields lately, and finding so much color variation in what looks like just a green field. These grasses became luminous in the late afternoon sun.

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#64 4th of July

It was a pleasure painting these cool white objects against the hot sunny grass.  Used a lot of white paint!

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/nancy-wallace/64-4th-of-july/396258

63 Albemarle wildflowers

Keeping things simple in this one using only four colors: titanium white, windsor yellow, yellow ochre, permanent rose and ultramarine blue--oops, that's 5 if you call white a color.

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#62 Poppy pathway

#63 Sidewalk garden

Well, I'm back! Just had a very busy few weeks getting paintings out to the galleries, and also doing a fair amount of outdoor painting. Here's one from an organized paint out that took place in Stanardsville, Virginia, a charming small town in the mountains.
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#62 Summer canoe

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#61 Beach conversation

There was so much action in this scene that said, "summer is fun" that I wanted to get that feeling in the painting. The gestures of each of these figures combined to make an oval shape from the sand into the water and back again with the tall figure serving as a sort of anchor.

#60 red crown

Enjoyed using a limited palette for this one, in order to highlight the red crown in this handsome guy's head.  The stones in the back gave the painting some movement, though they are painted in subdued tones and colors.

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#59 Poppy power

I enjoyed trying a larger format out in the field. Seems like the larger canvas allowed for more distance in my composition.

#58 Poppies going home

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#57 Poppies by the edge

The poppies are about over, but they certainly gave me a lot of material to work with! Found out that they're kind of changeable; I never knew whether they would be closing down or waving their color wildly when I arrived to paint. It was fun--I'll be there next year too.

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#56 Somerset highway

I have heard of using gray to create harmony in the color palette but this is first time that I actually tried it. There is a bit of gray mixed from cad yellow, cad red and ultramarine blue in all the colors in this painting.

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#55 Sitting in poppies

Really pushing the color and the receding shapes in this one  to create distance.