Painting the Rain

"Stormy Weather," oil, 14"h x 11'w, ©Jill Banks 2014

This one's from last week when I set my easel up in the new garage and "painted up a storm." A few neighbors stopped by ... I appeared a quite curious sight.

Lightning and thunder filled the night and it poured. Amazing just to watch the rain. The townhouses at the end of the lane all but disappeared at one point in the mist and downpour. That was for just a few minutes. I'll capture that another time.  Also, not in this painting but now in my head ... was the view of a car turning my way. Beautiful reflections of he headlights on the soaking wet pavement. 

It's highly unlikely you'll see this one at this weekend's Studio Tour (October 17-19, 10am to 5pm -- visit me at the Artists' Atelier, 1144 Walker Road, Suite G, Great Falls, VA to kick off your self-guided tour of home and group studios held open throughout Great Falls), but there are some other nocturnes and plenty of plein air pieces, works from two trips to Italy, still lifes, animals and more...

Come for a visit.

I'm posting this since time is running out ... but I have additional news and a painting to follow to check out at jillbanks.blogspot.com.

This morning I ordered two new art books ... one on Joaquin Sorolla and another on Anders Zorn. (Can't wait 'til they arrive!) A review to follow. Those two will definitely make travel time to Chastain Park (in Atlanta, GA) a whole lot more inspirational.  Sorolla (Spain) and Zorn (Sweden) are two of my favorite artists. Randy and I visited a Zorn retrospective show not too long ago in NYC and Zorn's work is still haunting me. Amazing!

A good bit of the afternoon was spent putting up tags in the Atelier Gallery and my studio space there ... ready for your arrival.  There are stories that go with pretty much all of my art ... thus the tags.

The reason "Stormy Weather" probably won't make it in is that art is already hung floor to ceiling.

"Hampton Fourth of July," oil, 12"h x 16"w, ©Jill Banks 2014

Another gem, "Hampton Fourth of July" has caught my eye. It was painted during the Amagansett Fine Art Festival I participated in over the Fourth of July weekend in the Hamptons, New York. Actually, on the 4th ... it poured. This was the scene across the street from our field of tents: a gorgeous nursery full of plants, decked out also with outdoor sculpture (a cement lion controlling a globe) and plenty of patriotic decorations.  The painting will come out to play sometime soon ... once it gets donned with a frame and space opens up on a wall.


Three Views of My Space at the Atelier ... Getting Ready for Studio Tour

Paintings hung with care for the Great Falls Art Studio Tour, October17-19, 2014

Here are pictures ... not perfect but hopefully helpful from today's tag and painting hanging.  More sprucing to come. Plus today I bought very nice sunflowers that just might get added to "Italian Time."

Gradually this year, I've become more difficult to please.  Paintings take longer to make it to display, or up on the blog ... and some just stay in hiding until/unless some brilliant solution or inspiration helps them along. Others I'm thrilled about ... those are the ones you can collect and hang on your walls. (If you see them in my tent, or on the Atelier walls ... with a tag,

The Still Life wall on left. If I'm lucky, "Italian Time" will hang over the window.

they've gotten my hard-won stamp of approval.)

I really hope to see you this coming weekend. It's a great event and well worth the visit. I will be demo'ing each day, Friday through Sunday from noon to 1pm. The rest of the time you'll see me in my studio.

For more information on the Great Falls Art Studio Tour event, go to www.GreatFallsStudios.com.

Events and Exhibits

• Oct. 17-19: Great Falls Annual Studio Tour, Artists’ Atelier, 1144 Walker Road, Suite G, Great Falls, VA
• November 1&2: Chastain Park Arts Festival, Atlanta GA
• Ongoing: Visit the studio I share with 14 other artists at the Artists’ Atelier, Great Falls, VA open Wed. and Sat., 12- 4pm
• Jan.-Feb. 2015: Solo Exhibit, ArtSpace Herndon, Herndon, VA
• See the Events page for more info/updates

"Warm Studio," oil, 20"h x 16"w, ©Jill Banks 2014

Thanks for reading!

Jill

Phone: 703.403.7435
Email: jill@jillbanks.com
Web: www.JillBanks.com
Blog: jillbanks.blogspot.com

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