Q. Since you participate in a number of plein air festivals, how to you decide where to set up and paint? Do you have favorite subjects (buildings, water, vistas, etc), or do you look for the most characteristic scene, the most interesting pattern of light and shadow?

A. People ask me this all the time. What do you want to paint? Where are you going to paint today? I’m totally sincere when I say I do not know until I look around. My decision seldom has to do with a particular subject. No matter where I go or what motif is before me, I can usually find some design elements, light/dark relationships, patterns, shapes, or something that just catches my eye. I love to paint it all from buildings and street scenes to cows, hillsides, and marshes, to portraits and still lifes. More often, I’m intrigued by the way interesting shapes connect. I like to say that I do not paint ‘nouns.’  I prefer to paint ‘adjectives,‘  such as the mood of a particular setting or the feel of a place or the character of a person. To me that is more important than a replica of a ‘thing.’

“Splish Splash,” oil, 11 x 14

Q. You mentioned that you haven't painted many waterfalls. How did you decide to tackle that new subject? Did you just break it down into shapes as you would any subject, or did you use different painting techniques to capture the sense of rapid movement as well as the contrast between white rushing water and dark wet rocks?

A. Initially, it was all about how simply I could distinguish between shapes that connected and shapes with hard edges between them. One thing that was intriguing to me was the way my brain wanted to see the dark water as REALLY dark. But compared to the values of the surrounding leaves and darkest parts of the rocks, the water was several values lighter even at in its darkest shapes. I had to ‘really believe’ that no matter what my brain wanted me to think. I was attracted to the way the middle value of that dark water sat in relationship to the light shapes in the scene. Getting that relationship correct was a lot more important than technique.


Q. Do you make preliminary sketches, look at potential subjects through a viewer (or your fingers), or do any other preparatory work to decide on the scale and composition of the elements in a scene?

A. I’m a planner in every sense of the word. But I’m also flexible once I have a plan in place. The more successful paintings for me are the ones where I take the time to experiment with more than one design or idea. I typically use a viewer to scan a scene followed by several preliminary thumbnail sketches. It makes the painting part more joyful if I do not have to struggle with those kinds of decisions all the way through. I also have an app for my phone that I use sometimes to help me see possible Notan patterns I may not have considered.

“Baby Falls,” 10 x 8

Q. You seem to like thick applications of paint. Do you build up the surface quickly or start with thin layers of color and then gradually build up the surface? Do you keep the dark passage thin and the lighter passages thick?

A. First I stain the canvas with an underlying color in the scene. That is why I do not pre-stain my canvases. I want the freedom of choosing the particular stain to fit the colors before me in nature. Next, if the design is predominately light, I use the stain as the light and add the dark masses, keeping them thin.  If the design is predominately dark, I use a paper towel with odorless mineral spirits (OMS) to wipe out the lights. I plan to leave some of this stain showing through in the final work. So, for instance, if I am painting a field of violet flowers, some of those flower masses may just be the initial stain I used. However, it works really well for me if the darks are the stain. I can put them in dark and thin and leave them alone, getting thicker with the paint as I move toward the mid values and finally the lights. Thick paint just feels good to me. But juicy technique does not stand by itself. I do not want my technique to upstage the bigger principles of a great painting.


Q. Do you modify your paints with a medium? If so, which ones and at what point in the painting process?

A. In the controlled environment of my studio, I typically use no additional medium (other than OMS during the early stages). However, when traveling, I will sometimes add a medium that speeds drying time. These mediums also help keep the colors from “sinking.” If a painting is going to be framed for sale before it can be varnished, the colors need some additive to help them look alive. I have also painted in locations that were particularly dry so I added walnut oil to extend the time I needed to manipulate the paint on the canvas. The paint just needs to feel the right consistency when I’m working with it so there is no set formula for me.

“Meander,” 8 x 10

Q. Would you have students in your workshop start with less complicated subjects than the ones you painted in the Adirondack Mountains?

A. Shapes are shapes, so not necessarily. I will say that if I have a true beginning painter in a workshop, my first job is fostering a passion for learning. Sometimes, providing a place or situation to paint that is relatively simple will allow students to have a few early successes. That means they are more likely to keep working at it and not feel defeated. But if I depend on ‘subject matter’ to make the decision about what I might perceive as simple, I will always be missing the mark. Some people feel more ‘comfortable’ painting trees while others feel safer painting structures.  My brain cannot possibly even go there [subject matter]. I want to teach my students how to see and paint ‘intention.’

It is interesting to me that the first thing most of us learned about painting outdoors was how to paint light and shadow, yet painting on an overcast day where the light stays consistent is a lot less pressure for artists who paint more slowly. No matter what the setting is or where the student is in his or her development, I work very hard to find just the right lesson for each individual.  


Q. Any thing I didn't ask you about that you want to say?

A. This is the most difficult career I have ever had. I think that is why it will be the one that lasts for the rest of my life. As I said, having started later in life, I do not take for granted how much there is to learn and how short the time is to learn it. It takes a lot of very long hours, both in the studio and out, to keep progressing. Becoming stagnant or thinking I’ve arrived is my worst fear. My husband and I sacrificed a great deal for me to do this. Not many people in their right minds would completely abandon a really nice income and sell everything they owned in order to follow a passion. People have actually asked me, ‘What makes you think you can make this work?’  My response is, ‘What makes you think I have any other option?’

For more information, visit Lori Putnam’s website at www.loriputnam.com.