Summer Mosaic 2017 Recap: Days 43-50

We’ve reached the end of the recap for Summer Mosaic 2017.  I’ve already started on this year’s project.  So far I’ve sealed all 50 wooden tiles with matte medium and applied two layers of gesso to the front and sides of each.  I also went on a quick fieldtrip on Friday to take some reference pictures.  I was able to see Ithaca Falls and visited Ludlowville Falls for the first time!

Ithaca Falls

Ludlowville Falls

There is of course more updates and fieldtrips to come in the next two months of the project.

Looking back at 2017, here’s the inside scoop on how I arranged the paintings for the show.  You probably thought they were all random​ly placed, but there was a method to my madness (truly madness, because who agrees to painting 50 paintings in 45 days).

Key, looking diagonally: 1 – Aviation 2 – Country roads 3 – Corning, NY 4 – Scenic overlooks 5 – River views 6 – Waterfalls 7 – Elmira architecture 8 – Seneca Lake 9 – Farmland 10 – Memorials/parks 11 – Country fields 12 – Misc, this looks good here 13 – Springtime ​14 – First painting spotlight

Now that you know the order that they were put up in the show, let’s finish out paintings 43 through 50 of the recap.

Painting 43 – Rock Stream Barn

Have I mentioned that weathered old barns are one of my favorite things to look at?  This is a barn that I came across while driving around in the Watkins Glen/Penn Yan area.  I also liked the way that the cornstalks in the foreground framed the scene.

Painting 44 – Burdett Farm

When you drive up near the Finger Lakes you can see fields of corn and farms dotted along the skyline.  Somehow they kind of look like little puzzle pieces put together from the distance.  This farm is one of those types of scenes that you can see across Seneca Lake from Watkins Glen.

One additional thing that I find kind of neat about this picture of the painting is that you can really see the texture of the surface.  In order to prep the surface I used multiple layers of gesso that I applied with a small roller.  The gesso helps the paint to stay on the surface and not be absorbed into the wood.  Many times artists will sand the surface to make it smooth, however I found the texture that was created interesting so I left it.

Painting 45 – Seneca Lake

Towards the end of the Summer Mosaic project I had started to run out of places that I wanted to paint so I decided to take a drive.  I drove up towards Seneca Lake and explored the country roads for inspiration.  When the paintings were put up for the show, they were displayed in a different order (see above) so it wasn’t as evident.  However, as I posted them in the order that they were painted, I feel it may be more recognizable that a pattern is starting to develop this week.

How lucky I was that the day I went exploring, there were sailboats on Seneca Lake.  It was one of those warm breezy days, not so different than the current weather the last couple of days if you’re also in New York.
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The more I look at this painting, the more it is starting to become one of my favorites. The way that it’s painted it feels like it could also be the lake that I grew up going to (or any other day at the lake anywhere too).

Painting 46 – Seneca Lake Dock

​Another scene from the lake.  There were two chairs just perfectly positioned on the dock.  Somehow it was the perfect representation of summer vacations.  It was such an inviting scene that I had to take a picture and later paint it.   However when I painted it, I left out the chairs.  It looks like another painting may be in my future!  (Specifically one similar with the chairs.  We already know that 52 paintings are already in my near future.)

Painting 47 – Overlooking Seneca

 

​This was a new spot that I found while I was wandering the countryside up near Watkins Glen looking for painting inspiration.  I was driving up random roads, winding and curving, and then the road opened up to this beautiful view overlooking Seneca Lake.  I imagine this would be the perfect spot to watch a sunrise – I’ll have to try that sometime.

Painting 48 – Hector Falls

I almost went to this waterfall the other day during my waterfall fieldtrip, until I remembered it was on the edge of Seneca Lake, not Cayuga Lake.  Does anyone else out there confuse the two?

This waterfall is right along the road as you drive on the east side of Seneca Lake from Watkins Glen towards Hector.  It’s a pretty one to see during any time of year because it’s easy to access.  My favorite time to visit it is during the evening when the sun is starting to lower and the light just gleams off of the water.
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I think this was the first painting of the Summer Mosaic pieces to sell.  I would have to a little researching to be sure, but it definitely was bought during the event and is one of my overall favorites from this series.

Painting 49 – Seneca Lake Pier

​Seneca Lake Pier is one of the most iconic sights in Watkins Glen. It was built in the mid-eighties to help with tourism in the area. It’s a beautiful place to watch the boats launch from the harbor or walk along the lakeside.

Seneca Lake is the second longest of the finger lakes and is almost 3 miles at its widest point. It’s the deepest lake of the finger lakes at 618 feet and the second deepest in the country. The shores of Seneca Lake are home to over 30 wineries due to its unique climate created by its large size and deep depth.

This painting was also one of the first pieces to sell from this series. The day I visited it was calm and slightly overcast but a very warm perfect summer day.

Painting 50 – Elmira Courthouse

The Chemung County Courthouse is such an interesting building to look at.  It was built in 1861 and designed by a Syracuse architect named Horatio Nelson White.  The entire court complex was built between 1936 and 1899 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
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What attracted me to paint this building was all of the different types of edges on the building.  The combination of sharp square edges and smooth round arches made it an interesting subject to paint.

Thank you for joining me with the recap of the Summer Mosaic 2017 project!  Did you have any favorites or a specific theme that you enjoyed most?

If you missed any of the posts here is a link to all of the blog recaps or you can view just the paintings without the backstory here.  (Please excuse the less than polished appearance as I’m slowly learning wordpress and transferring everything over to the new site.)

If you’re interested in purchasing any of the pieces from the Around the Finger Lakes 2017 Mosaic Collection please feel free to contact me directly or browse the listings in my shop.

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