Blueberry fields

The first time I came to Maine was in 2006..I drove from Bangor to Machias for an interview with the hospital. I couldn't understand why those fields were red..I had never seen anything like it before. Then they told me: Blueberry fields..Since then, I have been all over Down East Maine, and I fell in love with them..I always wanted to paint them, but honestly, they are very hard to paint..I used to go up to the barrens in Harrington and get lost in the desert of red. If you ever been there, you'd know what I mean..

This is from a photo of one of my facebook friends. I liked the islands in the distance..I started with a quiet and calm sky. The islands recede peacefully into the distance. However, as I started working on the foreground, I went wild..The grass, the hints of bushes, and the reds all express anxiety, impatience, anger, but most of all a sense of being alive and ready to burst into action.....

This is from a photo of a friend's Grandfather..Something about the man inspired me, not sure what it is. Again I did this very quickly and loosely..I tried to use muted colors to represent old age, but I felt some brightness and youth in his soul, so I threw in some bright greens..I hope you like it..Forgive me Wissam, the resemblence is only slight, but it was the spirit I was trying to convey...

East Machias House

I took the photo for this picture in 2008. I was on my way to Cutler for a hiking trip..I stopped to get some gas in East Machias..I was struck by this weathered house and the overgrown grass and bushes. It was a nice summer day, and I am trying to convey all of this in this painting. I did exagerate some of the proportions and distorted the perspective a bit..I did not spend more than 2 hours on this painting, as I wanted to finish it, and I also wanted to be free and impulsive.. I like it..

Rte 182?

My new year resolution is to do at least 52 paintings this year, regardless if they are good or bad. I am going to paint for fun and exercise. I will chose different subjects randomly and do them. This is from a picture I took this summer heading towards Paula's House on Black Woods road, or Rte 182..The drawing took me 2 minutes, the painting took less than an hour. I tried to convey a sense of summer with bright greens and dark shadows. I used mainly 4 or 5 colors..51 more paintings to go....