Sailing lessons

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Optitraining im Mühlenberger Loch, 30×50cm, Oil on linen,
2016 Astrid Volquardsen

1000.- Euro (ohne Rahmung)

I am back to my beloved hometown river, doing a lots os plein air studies. This year we have lots of rain and thunder stormes but they also bring these beautiful cloud formations.

This painting was done after a plein air study back in the studio.

In this past week I have had the feeling that something is happening in my oil paintings and that all the hard work has paid off. This is a message to all those people out there who are trying to reach a next level, no matter in what field.

Persevere, hold on to your goal and always remember: Sometimes it takes time but it will come eventually.

 

Plein Air: View from Op’n Bulln

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My original plan for this year was to travel to the Baltic sea but this year it wasn’t meant to be (nothing serious). Life goes on and I had to change my plans and this means back to the beautiful river of my hometown. It will be the next subject for my upcoming exhibition in November as well.

Today I had some kind of breakthrough. The fundament was laid in the months before and my endlessly going out to paint plein air. But on my last trip to St. Peter Ording it dawned on my that I might be finally able to take the next step and choose a bigger format. Well, what can I say. It’s a challenge, but the format suits the landscape so much better.

Jiha.

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View from  Op’n Bulln, 30×60cm, Oil on canvas, Astrid Volquardsen 2016

 

Plein Air in St. Peter Ording: Cloudscape

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We made a short stop at St. Peter Ording, because we wanted to attend at the open view of two fotographer friends. In the morning I used the extra time to paint the fantastic »cloudscapes«. How much I have missed the smell of salt in the air. And the wind and the sun on this open wide space.
Why do I bring always these short panels?
I attached two of those, took out my big brushes and off it went.
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Cloudscape, 24×60cm, Oil on Canvas, 2016, Astrid Volquardsen

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Foto Astrid Volquardsen, 20116

Joaquin Sorolla in Munic

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Light. So much light and the most beautiful colors.

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Das Nähen des Segels, 1896, Öl auf Leinwand, 222×300cm

Till the third of July  2016 the fantastic exhibition is still on in Munich/Germany and shows 120 paintings.

Like no other, Joaquin Sorolla (1863-1923) was able to capture the Spanish light on canvas. His sun-drenched works left a profound impression, even on contemporaries such as Claude Monet. Sorolla is considered the most important Spanish artist of the turn of the century. First and foremost, his mastery depiction of the sea incited much praise: his rendition of light and the sparkling reflections on the waters surface, as in the scenes of children playing and bathing on the beach, convey a true Mediterranean summer experience.

In Germany Sorolla to this date is mostly unknown. I came across him a couple of years ago in Paris where he is well cherished.
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Valencianische Fisher, 1895, Oil on linen, 65×87cm,
Joaquin Sorolla

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Deatil

I did spent 8 hours in the exhibition and had time to sit at length in front of some paintings. The longer I sat, the more I was captivated.

Sorolla made some 2000 oil sketches one of which was this beautiful study of the girl at the beach.

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At the beach, Oil on linen, 1904, 13x 22,5cm

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Mother, 1895 -1900, Oil on linen, 125×169 cm

One of my favourite paintings. So much depth in the color white. So much love and affection in one painting. You could feel the great love he had for his wife and children.

Norderoogsand

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Astrid auf Norderoog Sand; Foto: Antje, 2016

I have a new favorite spot in the North Sea: Norderoogsand in the Wadden Sea. It is one of the shoals along the coast line of the Northfrisian Islands and belongs to the Wadden National Park.

»The peak heights of the shoals reach about one metre above the average high tide. In summer, the dry sand is sometimes piled to dunes of several meters height. Since 1999 though, an increasingly stable and diverse vegetation has been observed at the northern edge of Norderoogsand. The plant carpet helps to accumulate ever more sand, and so the peak dune of Norderoogsand was recorded with 3.50 metres in 2013. Because of this development, Norderoogsand has been called a new island.«

We were only allowed to go on land at the very end of this big sand, not anywhere near the dunes and »new island«. (It’s about 7km/ 4.3 miles away!)

Still, very impressive. So much light, so white, so much open space.

Unfortunately I wasn’t allowed to paint there but I still had  time for some sketches. It just set free a lot of ideas for a pastel painting and right now I have the so far biggest pastel painting I have ever attempted  on my easel.

On our way back we saw some seals we came close by with the boat. (This photo was taken with a huge tele lens.) I just had the feeling she captured the same feeling I have about life.

 

smiling

GIF/ Marc Volquardsen, 2016

Plein Air at the Brodtener Shore

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Foto Marc Volquardsen

I’m going to focus now on the shore line of the Baltic Sea which is an hours drive away. For this I had to change my gear, because the trolley doesn’t work on a beach with pepples of all different kind of sizes. The really interesting views are about  0,6 to 1 mile away. So I did limit all my stuff and used my old touring back pack.

Why do I do this? Because I am an outdoor kind of girl and I spent my time rather in nature. My Youth I spend entirely outdoors kayaking and now every single vacation is about hiking. I just love being outside and experience all kinds of weather conditions. I always loved oils as well and now I am using them solely outdoors for my paintings. Back in the studio its again pastel. So you still will see some of them.

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Foto Marc Volquardsen

It turned cold again with the occasional hail shower. But this kind of weather has its charm as well. The Baltic sea offers a wide range of beautiful colors.

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At the Brodtener Shore, Oil study,  linen mounted on board., 24×30cm,
2016, Astrid Volquardsen

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