"November 5th - the Lake" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas -- 12x16" -- Margie Guyot

This lake is addictive! I went back to Rex Beach again yesterday afternoon to enjoy another moment of painting while the good weather still held. We've had highs up near 70 degrees the past couple days. And there's nothing quite so refreshing as standing on a Lake Michigan beach!


Good thing I had my polartec jacket with me. Sometimes the wind direction would change, blowing in a chilly breeze. Storm clouds were rolling in from the west. The weather forecast is for a high of about 30 degrees this Sunday, so I really wanted to seize the day.

The day before, I'd painted about 100 feet north of here. I'd included the sun's glare on the water. Today I didn't feel like blinding myself again, so I looked more to the north. I loved the pale viridian hue of the water and the shoreline pattern of the rocks. No sand in this view! The rocks all had some kind of crust on them, so hunting for Petoskey stones was out of the question.

This canvas was actually a recycled canvas that I'd coated over with a gold tone. It's larger than I'd normally use for a plein air study, but I managed to complete this painting in about an hour. The sun was dropping fast towards the horizon, so there was no time to dilly-dally.

I loved the little pools of water in between some of the rocks. Maybe if I try repainting another version of this in the studio, using this study as a guide, I might be able to show these pools better. As usual, I painted this whole thing with a single #8 flat brush. And hurridly. So small details couldn't be noted.

Another plus to painting in November: no mosquitoes!

"Red Van in Shade" -- plein air field study -- oil on panel 9x12" -- Margie Guyot

My friend Cal invited me to join him painting on the grounds of Behr Art Gallery, on Route 31, just south of Charlevoix. It's the 4th of July weekend and the gallery owner wanted some potters and painters on-site, doing their thing. As soon as I walked onto the property, I saw this bright red van sitting in the shade. Aha! I loved the look of the bits of sunlight on the hood and the reflected lights on the side. In the distance is a slice of Lake Michigan. Give me something big, colorful and reflective and that's what I'll choose every time, as opposed to a grand vista.

The good thing was that I could stand in the shade and paint. The bad thing was that I stood in the shade and painted. It was home to hundreds of ravenous mosquitoes! I'd look down on my arm and see 5 or 6 of those buggers at a time, sucking away. I was more than halfway through the painting before I noticed them and I didn't want to just quit and walk away. Thought I'd go mad. Even slapping turpentine on my arms didn't faze them. Finally Cal came by and said he had some bug spray in his SUV. Thank goodness. I was on the verge of screaming and running hither & yon. Need to write on my next shopping list: bug spray.....