I have been freakin hard at work lately. My day job, of course, is usually manic in some form, but, in the middle of all the chaos, I've managed to produce these three beauties:
We have, from left to right: "Purple Turbine," "Night Turbine," and "Blue Turbine."
Yes, folks, I went back to the windmills, this time in watercolor. Again, these are "Illinois" windmills, located off of Highway 40, north of Peoria, basically. I took a different route home for Thanksgiving, given that I had to report directly to my grampa's home in Neponset, Illinois. I don't know for sure if that route was actually any shorter than how I normally go, but it was quite scenic! I mean, the first one, "Purple Turbine," is a based off a pic I took pretty much pulled over on the highway, leaning out my window, and puzzling a passing minivan of locals. I was RIGHT UNDER them--They were amazing! So lazily spinning out there and they were everywhere! Yeah, I'm a bit mesmerized.
Coloring wise, it was a cloudy day, so I figured I'd play off of that and make my clouds various colors (they were very very grey that day). I also liked how they were in silhouette, contrasting my earlier windmills, all nice and white against a blue sky. In "Purple Turbine," theres' actually a nice purple stripe/highlight down the side, like the blue feature in "Blue Turbine," but it didn't really want to show up when I was photographing/processing it for the web. Even more incentive to see it in person, right?
"Night Turbine" is the only one made up, with no photograph in mind. I was reading up on these wonderful creations (hence the name change from 'windmills' to 'turbines'--that's what they're scientifically called). I saw many references to seeing them at night. I haven't had the opportunity to do so, always travelling in the day, but I've been told its an eerie sight, will all of them blinking red in unison, to ward away airplanes (or land UFOs). I just decided to set up a bunch with my swirly representation of glowing and see how it works out. I'm pretty pleased. This one, in real life, is a bit darker than how it photographed, further proof that you can't win every time.
I found out alot in my research: North Central Illinois's past as basically an immigration mecca for Flemish folks, their use of windmill tech brought from their homeland (actually had Kewanee, Moline, Annawan and Atkinson mentioned on a Dutch website!). Illinois's windpatterns allow for expansive use of turbine tech, and some schools have even begun to build them on their property as a power/income source. One school mentioned, was of course, Bureau Valley (located in Bureau County, home of my windmill muses), home of, that's right, the sports teams: The Bureau Valley Storm. I know there's naysayers in the area, people upset that their country quiet has been upset, but you know what? I'm a Star Trek fan, and eventually people will just have to get used to flying cars and space travel and all that future imagery, and these turbines, to me, represent the first, small, step. (Or really really tall step--I've been told the next time I see the turbines has to be from above, via plane).
I'm prepping for my March show at the Artist Within in Muncie. I'll have 6 new ones, and possibly these 3 Turbines, if I decide they fit the show. Two of the new ones will be the half-painted acrylics looking at me while I type, two watercolors and possibly a pastel (if I don't decide last second to make it a watercolor). I'm excited, aaaaand I just need to buckle down and paint. But I wanted to share this post and two more and get back into the habit of NOT neglecting the art blog, so there.
Coloring wise, it was a cloudy day, so I figured I'd play off of that and make my clouds various colors (they were very very grey that day). I also liked how they were in silhouette, contrasting my earlier windmills, all nice and white against a blue sky. In "Purple Turbine," theres' actually a nice purple stripe/highlight down the side, like the blue feature in "Blue Turbine," but it didn't really want to show up when I was photographing/processing it for the web. Even more incentive to see it in person, right?
"Night Turbine" is the only one made up, with no photograph in mind. I was reading up on these wonderful creations (hence the name change from 'windmills' to 'turbines'--that's what they're scientifically called). I saw many references to seeing them at night. I haven't had the opportunity to do so, always travelling in the day, but I've been told its an eerie sight, will all of them blinking red in unison, to ward away airplanes (or land UFOs). I just decided to set up a bunch with my swirly representation of glowing and see how it works out. I'm pretty pleased. This one, in real life, is a bit darker than how it photographed, further proof that you can't win every time.
I found out alot in my research: North Central Illinois's past as basically an immigration mecca for Flemish folks, their use of windmill tech brought from their homeland (actually had Kewanee, Moline, Annawan and Atkinson mentioned on a Dutch website!). Illinois's windpatterns allow for expansive use of turbine tech, and some schools have even begun to build them on their property as a power/income source. One school mentioned, was of course, Bureau Valley (located in Bureau County, home of my windmill muses), home of, that's right, the sports teams: The Bureau Valley Storm. I know there's naysayers in the area, people upset that their country quiet has been upset, but you know what? I'm a Star Trek fan, and eventually people will just have to get used to flying cars and space travel and all that future imagery, and these turbines, to me, represent the first, small, step. (Or really really tall step--I've been told the next time I see the turbines has to be from above, via plane).
I'm prepping for my March show at the Artist Within in Muncie. I'll have 6 new ones, and possibly these 3 Turbines, if I decide they fit the show. Two of the new ones will be the half-painted acrylics looking at me while I type, two watercolors and possibly a pastel (if I don't decide last second to make it a watercolor). I'm excited, aaaaand I just need to buckle down and paint. But I wanted to share this post and two more and get back into the habit of NOT neglecting the art blog, so there.
Next time: First Friday, The Art Bank, and why I'm so excited about a Better Homes and Gardens magazine.
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