Mustard Fields and Summer Art Market

Mustard Field, 8x8, oil on linen

Here is another little square painting, although this time a bit bigger than the 6x6 I have been doing. This piece seemed to need the extra room since there is more going on in it though I did try to keep it simple. It was an overcast wet day at my in-laws who live near Sacramento, and we were out walking around the property. This field was an orchard the last time we visited, and though I miss the fruit trees, the field of mustard has a certain charm to it. Lots of spring green-gotta love it.
I was attracted to this scene because of the way the mustard gave me that nice slant from left to right which then leads you to the house, right dab in the middle (a no-no!) but the rolling hills bring your eye back down. 

Went to the Art Student's League of Denver's Summer Art Market Sunday mid-day. It was a great day for it after Saturday's scorching 98 degrees. I did not see any art being carried off which was disheartening. I had not been to SAM since it has been opened up to fiber artists, and the change in in having the tents only on one side of the street. It makes for a longer walk, but it was much nicer. You could actually see into the tents and get a long view on some of the art instead of being squished, pushed and shoved. The quality of the art seemed overall improved as well. Fair prices, but I fear the buying crowd that goes to SAM wants bargain basement prices. That is especially hard on the artists now as the cost of the booth and space has doubled since I last did the market in 2010. I did see what I would call mass produced tiles and other small objects that can be sold relatively inexpensive, which also undercuts what a painter can do. The whole point of this art market is to support the visual arts and when you are competing with "art" that is mass produced, it is not a level playing field.