New Website with updated images

I have created a website with more updated images, information and demos.

Please visit me at http://randysaffle.jimdo.com/

Lil' Joes BBQ

 

"Lil' Joe's BBQ" 

11" x 14"

This is a plein air painting of a typical Bar-B-Que joint here in Texas. I found this one on an 

antiquing trip to Round Top, TX with my wife who is always kind enough not to complain when 

I pull the car over for a couple of hours. When I'm driving my head is on a constant swivel and 

I'm painting inside my mind at every turn. Sad to say, I finished this before Lil Joe's opened up 

and I didn't get to sample their food.

The red & white checkered table cloth caught my eye, but the fun part of this painting was

all of the details within the shadow side of the entrance. I wanted less detail within this area, but it still needed to read as the objects they are, window air-condition, Pepsi machine etc. 

I'm happy to say this painting and three others found a new home during the Plein Air Southwest Salon. 

Playing with Dioxazine Purple

 

"I'll Give You the Moon" 

9" x 12"

This is a typical vintage Texas house. I was drawn to the telephone poles, silver propane tank and even 

some clothes lines. I found this view in Fredericksburg, TX.  

Painters note~ I added Dioxazine Purple to my palette for this one. 

I included a Google link for the curious to see my exact location.

Google Map of location

I'M BACK! ~ Vintage Model T Plein Air

 

"Model T" 

10"x10" 

Sorry for the delay in new posts, but I've been having a computer problem that prevented me from posting photos. I ended up changing web browsers and that put me back in business.  I will try and catch up.

I was thrilled to see that my neighbor bought this old truck and leaves it outside in front of his home. It had my name all over it. I met the owner and he was very welcoming and has even commissioned me to do another painting of his home. Here is the commission painting in progress below. Unlike the truck painting, I am working on this one inside my studio from my photo resources.

"Work in Progress" 

 

Suprise!

 

"Orange Pumpkin"

10 x 10 oil

 

Painted this a couple months ago for a an artist friend that has owned this van for a long time. I surprise him with it and told him to pass along the good deed by sending some other unsuspecting person a painting.

 

I have done this several times and enjoy it very much. Who knows, someone that leaves me a comment could receive on one day too.   ;?)

 

 

 

Bed of Cactus

 

"Bed of Cactus"

9 x 12 oil

 

A friend of mine spotted this truck and sent it to me knowing I would love it! It's funny that I have so many people that think of me when they see something like this. I've been sent photos from all over, but this one just screams Texas.

A painters note...I alternated with very dry strokes and then would switch brushes to a very turp filled brush that would even drip and run to try and get varied textures going. It was interesting. I used to paint stuff and leave it alone, afraid I would mess it up and now that I have more confidence and experience I try different things. If I don't like it, I just take it off or paint over it.

Feel free to scrape and wipe, but don't try and get everything off. What you leave can look interesting and add unexpected textures when you go back into it.

Honeymoon Present

11 x 14 oil

A good friend of mine recently got married and he told me he was honeymooning in Italy. After fighting through the extreme jealousy, I decided to paint the new couple something that would help them remember the occasion forever. This also gave me an oportunity to paint something a little different. Bonus...I found a fantastic silver frame at an antique store that I knew would work perfect for them too and I even painted the young lovers seated in the gondola.

Someday I hope to be sitting with my wife in the same spot.

Outdoor Painter.com article

 Bob Bahr did a writeup about me over at OutdoorPainters.com the home of Plein Air magazine about my favorite place to paint! I appreciate the press and I'm honored to be mentioned on their site.

"People may know about Randy Saffle's tendency to paint tractors.

But they probably don't know why he does it."

 

  It's fun to see my work collected like this. I get asked some of these same questions Bob asked me all the time. Here was my chance to put it in print. Thank you for the recognition and the chance to share.

Click the link to read.

OutdoorPainter.com | My Favorite Place to Paint: Randy Saffle | Home of Plein Air Magazine

Locally Grown

 

"Locally Grown"

16 x 20

 More palette knife fun. This time from a picture I took of a local farmer that was

giving his time to teach kids how to plant at Nash Farm in Grapevine, TX.

Palette Knife practice

 

"Big Sky"

11 x 14 oil

This was painted from one of my get lost exploring the Texas farm

roads outings that I'm becoming more and more a fan of. The sky looked

exactly like it appears in the picture, with these giant clouds.
I started out painting taking lessons from a instructor that only uses a

palette knife and no brushes. I always use a palette knife for finishing

touches, but it's been a while since I used it as my primary utensil. 

I shared it on Facebook and was surprised at the positive reactions,

considering how quickly this came together.

 

I'm going to make an effort to use the knife more often.

 

Wonderful day!

Winter Blues

 

"Bluebonnet Path"

18" x 24"

 

 

 

This is a studio painting from earlier this summer that I forgot to share. I wanted to

work on my greens and brushwork. You can't live in Texas and not paint some bluebonnets...

 I think it's a law! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cool Blues

 

"Tractor Pull"

10 x 10 oil

Every summer, the time arrived to gather in the hay.

My grandfather mowed and raked the waist high field with his blue Ford tractor,

leaving long golden rows.

Then with a rhythmic clack, clack, clack the baler moved along the rows,

turning them into bales of hay.

Leaving a field dotted with neatly bound parcels.

We walked the field beside an old pickup truck, hoisting bales into the back.

Sweat poured down my face and soaked my shirt.

Hay stuck to my clothes and in my hair and on my skin.

Finally the truck was full.

We climbed atop the hay and rode to the barn relishing every moment in the breeze.

Wishing the barn was miles away.

 

                                                                                             -Larry Farlow

They won't stay still!

 

Painting Willhoites the local biker hangout in Grapevine, but it's not easy when

your subjects keep riding away. I tool a cell phone picture because I anticipated this,

but the final result is probably a mishmash of the real bikes. I will post the final painting asap.

 

I'm not sure what I'm doing with that little brush. I paint most of my work with a

size 6 to 8 flat brush. You can get into trouble picking up the little ones. Your always

better off abstracting the form down to it's essence and minimizing the little stokes.

Paint as much of it as possible with the largest brush you can.

 

cliff notes...

Big brush = good

Small brush = bad

 

 

 

 

Fall Weather and Time to get Working!

 

"Weathered"

9 x 12 oil

  The weather is cooling off in Texas and it's time to get some plein air work done. This is my favorite time of the year. I have to admit that I have done less plein air painting this year than when I started painting about seven years ago, but that doesn't mean I haven't been painting.I have ramped up my studio work and have been painting larger too.

  I am finally in a place in my mind where I want to find more representation. I have been putting this off to get my work up to a consistent level and I think I'm ready. I definitely have been my biggest collector so far and that's not a good thing. Wish me luck! 

This painting is available at a special price from my Etsy Shop... https://www.etsy.com/listing/166268897/weathered-oil-painting-9-x-12?




 

"Been There, Done That"

 

 "Been There, Done That"

9x12 oil 

 

So much is involved in making a painting, good drawing skills, color mixing etc., but most of the time a good painting comes down to your subject matter and finding great subject matter has suddenly moved to the top of my wish list.  I often find myself having to settle because of time restraints and a limited painting window and the need to get something done. I recently bought myself a professional camera and have started to get much better photo reference from it. Now I need to go explore and find these great subjects and that is easier said than done.  

Another way I have found subjects to paint is to ask photographers if they would allow you to paint from their images. So far, I have been extremely lucky and the photographer has been excited to allow me to do that. I still try to crop the image or emphasize what interests me most when I paint from these photos. This painting is one of those shared images and has become my wife's favorite that I've done because it reminds her of her step father that passed away years ago. I have found adding figures adds so much life and welcomes the viewer. I shared this painting on my Facebook account and had comments like

 

"I enjoy paintings that put me there and tell a story"

 

"Reminds me of my youth. That truck looks a lot better than the ones I drove,

but the hood being up was typical!!"

 

and "I really like the people...the rumpled shirts & jeans! It's real. Great work!"

 

I'm not sharing those comments to toot my own horn, but it does make me realize figures can raise a simple painting of a truck into something much more.

 

 

 

 

 

Fill'er Up

"Fill 'er Up"

9 x 12 oil

 Images like this remind me of my childhood. Anybody want to go in and buy me

some Tom's Peanuts and a Grapette?

 

 

 

 

 

Time Yourself Painting

 

"Fish & Chips"

 

This was a very fast sketch. I wanted to get some painting in so I gave myself an hour from start to finish. It was a fun subject. I'm not even sure of the size, since I just taped some cut canvas to a large panel and started painting. It's good to test yourself like this because you never know how long your subject will remain the same painting outside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saddle Up with a Egbert brush

 

"Saddle Up"

12 x 16

 

Painted this using primarily a "Egbert" bristle brush. ( pictured below )

 This brush has really long bristles and no matter how hard you try it's tough to do really tight overly rendered work. I like to start paintings as loose as possible and feel like it helps to add energy to the piece when it works out, but I don't always use this brush. Sometimes, I use a 1" wide flat that has worn bristles to block in my start. I don't have any set method and I love to experiment.

The start of a painting is my favorite part because drawing is fun to me and one of my strong points since I've been drawing far longer than painting.

Finding Beauty Where It's Not

"Boom Truck" 

10" x 20"

I have spent the last twenty-eight years or so designing signs for a living. The truck pictured above has become a very familiar view. I took a picture of this install truck while I walked into work one early morning and I thought it would be a fun to try and simplify all the details and to try and create something pretty out of a subject most people wouldn't find that way. I took my time drawing this out because any drawing issues would be very obvious. I started painting in my darks and linking them together to give weight to my subject. The truck was back lit, so I tried to paint a lot of the reflected light and to soften up the edges in my darks because I didn't want them to overpower the color and become a distraction. I saved the hardest edges and the brightest colors for the areas I wanted you to look. This painting became about the implied details and when viewed up close becomes more abstract in appearance.

Blanco River

 

"Blanco River Crossing"

9 x 12

This is a scene from Fredericksburg, TX . I painted this for a good friend that has been vacationing with her family at this same spot for the last twenty something years. I'm happy to say I will be relaxing in this river with my family this weekend, but I hope I can squeeze in some more painting!