Stormy Weather

Stormy Weather

I have always loved this song, "Stormy Weather" made famous by the great singer Ethel Waters at the Cotton Club in New York in 1933. It was before my time but some things are timeless and that song is one of those things.

It played over and over in my head as I painted this.

And, here we go again, into the horizon.

Other examples:

http://followingmyart.blogspot.com/2018/01/where-are-you-going-to.html
http://followingmyart.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-source.html
http://followingmyart.blogspot.com/2017/01/cosmic-sunrise.html

Walker

Sweet Bitterroots - Montana

Continuing my love affair with the Bitterroot Mountains I painted this flight of fancy. I just love color and this painting lights my color candle. The color and shape of the mountains is pure imagination as is the color of the Bitterroot River. This is the beauty of painting. There is no limitation as to how you can apply your imagination.

I recommend everyone take up painting. It's absolutely liberating and I am after all the original Liberated Photographer and now I am the Liberated Painter. If it feels good do it! And this feels mighty fine to me!

Sweet Bitterroots

©Walker Barnard

Tin Cup Trail - Bitterrot Valley Montana

This past fall Molly and I headed down to Hamilton at the south end of the Bitterroot Valley. The prior spring I had fallen in love with the place but the valley is too long to be conveniently located to all the fabulous trails from one end to the other. So, I had to go back.

Unfortunately, some of the trails were closed due to the summer fires. Fires are a real problem in this valley and they leave the trails too dangerous to walk for fear of getting beaned by  falling trees.

Of the trails I was able to hike, the Tin Cup Trail was by far my favorite. The varied fall colors of the ground cover plus the larch trees really lit my candle. I have been fascinated by larch bark ever since I came to Montana, 15 years ago. The red and black designs knock my socks off. I tried to photograph it but nothing came close to capturing what I was seeing. I was determined to try and paint that bark and so I did!

Tin Cup Trail

Photography no longer holds my interest. Painting is so much more creative. Your subject matter is only limited by your imagination. It's so liberating!

©Walker Barnard

Rocky Mountain High

Well, I thought I should start the New Year of with a completed painting.

Once again I just started out with not much in mind but snow-capped mountains and my vision of Montana. I trip myself by not having a plan in mind when I start but what can I say ... I do it my way and sometimes have to pay a price. But, lots of times it just seems to come together.

From my window I can see the Big Mountain ski runs in Whitefish and I think that may have been what got this painting rolling.

Big Mountain - Whitefish

But then, of course, my imagination started wandering and the next thing I knew there was a river running through it. So, my basic concept kind of turned out to be blocked out like this.

Painting in Progress

And, from there I just messed around until I came up with another primitive impression of a Montana landscape. And, as usual, I really like it. It just captures my childlike, and joyful  love for Montana.

Rocky Mountain High

I'm sure no art critic would find merit in what I paint. But, frankly I could care less. A painting like this gives me nothing but joy and an appreciation for the place I am blessed to live. It quite simply makes me happy.

My New Year's wish for everyone is that you find that which gives you joy and do it no matter what anyone else thinks!

©Walker Barnard

My Montana

I just finished this painting and it is without a doubt my all time favorite.

The painting is on canvas paper because it started out as a self designed training exercise. Thing is, I should know better because once I get started things just take on a life o their own. What I was about was experimenting with different brush strokes.

The other challenge; I was wanting to try using just the three primary colors, plus titanium to mix them with. I had read some artists do this exclusively and I wanted to give it a go. Seemed impossible to me before I tried. I cannot believe I was able to mix up such beautiful colors just from those three. It's totally amazing.

MY MONTANA

I can't begin to tell you how much I love this painting. The colors. The brush stokes. The subject. This painting truly is My Montana in my childlike heart. What a blessing and gift it is to be able to create something like this for yourself.

It matters not what anyone else thinks. It's all about my joy. And, this painting fills me with nothing but. Oh, how I love my Montana!


©Walker Barnard