Painting on a windy day...

"The Gristmill", oil, 10x12, 11/2009

On Monday, Patti and I went back to the Village of Cannonsburg. It was sunny, quite cold and very windy. I wanted to paint this challenging subject and since the month of November is often very cloudy, I thought I should sieze the opportunity to paint the Gristmill while the sun was shinning despite the wind. Why didn't I do this in September? The Gristmill is a small cafe, gourmet deli and gas station store. Very charming. Patti and I painted and then thawed out with hot drinks and a very good Rueben for lunch. Painting plein air, from life, is often uncomfortable but observing nature first hand and directly responding with the right colors and brushstrokes is the best way grow as an artist. Nature has much to offer, we just need to "see" it.