Category Archives: Art of the American South

Winter Solstice reception Friday at Glave Kocen Gallery

Posted on November 10, 2010 by jennifereyoung| 3 Comments

winter plein air painting by Jennifer YoungThis is a cross-posting with my newsletter so I hope that the readers of both will forgive the repetition. If you are in the Richmond area, I will be participating in a group invitational this Friday night at Glave Kocen Gallery. I will be one of ten artists featured for this one night event exhibiting winter themed art.

But this is not just an art show. It’s also a fundraiser for a great cause. Spearheaded by The 1000 Strong Project, proceeds from the sale of the show will benefit Comfort Zone Camp (CZC). CZC offers free camps for kids nationwide who have experienced the death of a parent, sibling or primary caregiver. The 1000 Strong Project has also produced some great art calendars (in which my art will also be featured) that will be sold at the reception to benefit the charity. james river plein air painting by Jennifer YoungSo if you are in Richmond, come out for some fun, see some great winter-themed art, pick up some calendars for holiday gifts, and support a great cause. Here are the details:

What: “Winter Solstice” Art Reception for The 1000 Strong Project and Comfort Zone Camp
Where: Glave Kocen Gallery, 1620 W. Main Street, Richmond, VA 23220
When: Friday, November 12, 2010, 6-9 PM
Hope to see you there!





Jennifer Young; Vibrant Landscapes
Oil Paintings and Art Prints Online
My Website
Subscribe to my newsletter
Subscribe to my blog
Contact Me!

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Art of the American South, Plein Air Painting, Promotions, Shows, Southern Landscapes

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October Maples

Posted on October 23, 2009 by jennifereyoung| 4 Comments

When I woke up the other morning it was so stunning outside that I decided to leave the studio for a bit and do some plein air painting in my Bellevue neighborhood. Dave and I passed these gorgeous maples on Newport Drive during our walk in the ‘hood the previous evening and I made a mental note to check them out again in the morning :

autumn plein air painting Richmond VA by Jennifer Young

“October Maples”
Oil on Linen, 9×12″
For more information, contact me!

This is not the greatest of photos, so I will try and re-shoot this tomorrow morning when the lighting is better.  There are some areas where I might’ve wanted more refinement, but I am going to sit with this a bit and see how I feel about it when I can look at it with fresh eyes.

One thing I realized from the timed exercise I mentioned in my previous post was just how long my plein air paintings look like absolutely nothing. In fact, a common occurrence with me lately is the feeling of a sinking heart as I look at the confusing mess that is my painting and wonder if I might be better off just scrapping the whole thing. Bleh!

But then I’ll think something like, “Just work on it a little more and then you can quit if you want to.” Only a few strokes later (if they are good strokes) I find myself excited again and some logic begins to emerge.  It’s almost as if something switches in my brain (on or off? I don’t know.)  Maybe I just let go of the outcome and relax enough that somehow I can see the scene before me not as an overload of “things”, but as a rhythmic pattern of lights and darks, colors and shapes.

This is not to say that there aren’t areas for inprovement in this painting. But at least I managed to get the impression of place down, which, based on how the painting progressed in the earlier stage, was quite a surpise to me.  I guess the moral of that story is not to give up too soon. Some paintings are indeed “false starts” and probably just doomed to fail. But then there are those that have potential and a solid start and just require more patience and relaxed focus.  Bargain with yourself to just stick it out a little longer and see what happens. By doing so, you often have little to lose and much to gain.





Jennifer Young; Vibrant Landscapes
Oil Paintings and Art Prints Online
My Website
Subscribe to my newsletter
Subscribe to my blog
Contact Me!

→ 4 Comments

Posted in Art of the American South, Plein Air Painting, Southern Landscapes, The artist's life

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Small works invitational

Posted on October 8, 2009 by jennifereyoung| 3 Comments

There’s been a lot happening around here so unfortunately the blog neglect has continued! I do hope to ramp up to more regular posting (and painting!) by early next week. Meanwhile, here are two new little Key West pieces I’ve done for a small works holiday invitational that opens at the Miller Gallery on November 20th in Cincinnati.

key west oil painting by Jennifer Young

“The Shady Side”
Oil on Canvas, 6×8″

Key West oil painting by Jennifer Young

“Towering Bougainvilla”
Oil on Canvas, 6×8″

I am so honored to show my work in such a lovely looking gallery alongside artists of such fine caliber. Check them out!





Jennifer Young; Vibrant Landscapes
Oil Paintings and Art Prints Online
My Website
Subscribe to my newsletter
Subscribe to my blog
Contact Me!

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Art of the American South, blogging, Garden paintings, Key West Paintings, Promotions, Shows, Southern Landscapes

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Silent Refuge

Posted on September 4, 2009 by jennifereyoung| 3 Comments

I can always find something to paint in my own Bellevue neighborhood.  This is a lovely back yard garden down the street from us. I painted this from across the street so as not to be too voyuristic. ;-) :

plein air painting of a garden by Jennifer Young

“Silent Refuge”
 Oil on Board, 10×8″
Contact me for purchasing info!

There may be few homes in Bellevue proper that would qualify as sprawling mansions. But what it lacks in that department, it makes up for in beautiful gardens and loads of charm. When my husband and I walk through our ‘hood, we always note how lovingly the yards are tended. More often than not, even the smallest bungalow and the most modest yard tends to have some touch of personality to it. It’s a special place.





Jennifer Young; Vibrant Landscapes
Oil Paintings and Art Prints Online
My Website
Subscribe to my newsletter
Subscribe to my blog
Contact Me!

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Art of the American South, Garden paintings, Plein Air Painting, Southern Landscapes, The artist's life

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Coexistence

Posted on September 3, 2009 by jennifereyoung| 1 Comment

I’ll be traveling the next couple of weeks and I have a million things to do to get ready. But the weather has been so beautiful that in spite of my chores, I can’t resist going outside. I returned to the James River site near Tredegar to do another piece under the railroad bridge, this time in early morning:

plein air painting of the James River Richmond by Jennifer Young 

“Coexistence”
Oil on Linen, 12×12″
Contact me for more purchasing info!

Unlike the painting posted the other day, there were no “bathers” this time (none of the human variety, at least). But there’s still something about this place that really appeals to me. I think it’s the contrast I enjoy –this juxtaposition of the urban structures and natural forms, coexisting, at least for that moment, peacefully and rather beautifully.

I’ll be leaving this weekend for our annual beach trip to the OBX (Hatteras Island) then home for a couple of days, and off again to Paint Annapolis. I’ll bring my laptop with me and certainly I plan to paint throughout that time. I do hope to keep posting here and there, at least during the beach portion. With travel, I never know what kind of resources I’ll be dealing with though, so we will see. Oh, and there is this thing called “relaxing”, which I’ve heard is a rather nice past-time. I just might give that a try at the beach too!





Jennifer Young; Vibrant Landscapes
Oil Paintings and Art Prints Online
My Website
Subscribe to my newsletter
Subscribe to my blog
Contact Me!

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Art of the American South, Art Travels, blogging, Plein Air Painting, Southern Landscapes, The artist's life

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,