Mountain panorama commands a diptych

5 01 2013

There’s something about the Ko‘olau mountains that draws painters to this landscape again and again. Besides their obvious lush and weathered volcanic beauty, they challenge us plein air painters to capture their form in the ever-changing daylight. I spent a lot of time studying the ridges and valleys in my most recent diptych of Lanihuli as viewed from Luluku. Together, the panels measure 60 inches by 22 inches, unframed. Oil on canvas board.

Lanihuli Diptypch, left panel

Lanihuli Diptych, left panel

Lanihuli Diptych, right panel

Lanihuli Diptych, right panel

Diptych by Rebekah Luke

Update 2/2/13: I am please to report that “Lanihuli Diptych” was sold to a buyer at the Punahou Carnival this past weekend. Half of all sales are donated to the student financial aid program at my alma mater. ~RL

Copyright 2013 Rebekah Luke

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A balance of light and energy

20 01 2012

For the past few days I’ve done the things I like to do. There seems to be a balance of energy around me, and I feel well! This is my 200th blog post to you!

A photo panoramic view of Lanihuli peak from Luluku on a sunshiny winter day. I've made several paintings in oil of the vicinity. I like to paint in the landscape as much as I like to blog. Access is from Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden. Please see the painted images below.

I had a Reiki client this morning, too. That is great for my being. Then I was glad to get some nice email from some folks I hadn’t heard from for a while.

The studio is clean, that is, clean enough that I’m not going crazy with clutter, and I’m expecting my cousin Jim this afternoon when we will continue working on a new book about our family, my grandparents’ clan.

I’m on track with writing the lesson plans for the Painting classes I’m teaching starting February.

DH and I are sleeping very well since moving our bed back to the original master bedroom that we vacated to accommodate my aging father (1914-2003) and later Miss Marvelous, while her parents worked and she was not yet in school. Anticipating the kids’ move to Italy in a month or so, we disassembled the crib and moved back in after almost 10 years.

The feng shui is better in the living area, thanks to a simple rearrangement of furniture to allow for a freer flow of energy.

I’m eating more sensibly since the holidays, though enjoying Chinese New Year food, and, at this very moment, the aches and pains of aging are non-existent. I’m listening to soothing harp music and not a ball game on TV.

Yesterday I painted with the Thursday group and got some good critique from Val and Naomi, who paint differently from the way I paint, but they have good eyes and suggestions to improve the canvas I’m working on—a morning scene of Kuilima Cove on the North Shore.

I was sorry I didn’t bring a large blank canvas, for the vog gave way in the morning to clear skies and a spectacular landscape in the top photo that I should have been painting instead. I snapped two pictures with my iPhone. After posting them on Facebook, Kelley commented the mountain scene was so beautiful to her. I agreed. Nature in the right light. Yo posted she almost mistook them for one of my paintings.

In fact, I have painted scenes from this place on other occasions, and surely will paint another now that I can see the mountain up to the top, for there were few clouds, and definite form and cast shadows from a point source—the sun!

"Banyan Shade," 16" x 20"oil on canvas

"Clouds Lifting Over Lanihuli," 16"x 20" oil on canvas

"View of the Koolau Mountains" by Rebekah Luke. Richard Guy Collection.

"Golden Retreat at Ho'omaluhia," 11" x 14" oil on canvas

Reiki blessings to you!

Copyright 2012 Rebekah Luke

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Pampered by a fried egg sandwich

27 09 2011

It’s easy for me to feel pampered down at the fishing pier.

10:30, after my workout in Kāneoʻhe, in the mood for a late breakfast, I stop at He‘eia Pier once again. I’m monitoring my food intake for several reasons, but today, after reading the menu, I feel I can have an egg: Fried Egg Sandwich $4.

But like I said, I’m pampered.

In a few moments Chef Mark calls out: Rebekah, would you like anything else on it? Some cheese?

Me: Um, no, do you have any lettuce?

Chef: Tomato would be good.

Me: Okay!

Chef: A little mayonnaise?

Me: No thanks, and please hold the cheese.

Now why, you might ask, don’t I just fix my own egg sandwich at home?

On a beautiful day in Hawaii like today, I can sit at the outdoor picnic table on the waterfront and be mesmerized by the Ko‘olau Mountains I love to paint and the sound of the sea lapping the shore. I can eavesdrop on the old-time regulars and watch the boats come and go to drop off and pick up polite Japanese tourists. It’s peaceful.

When my order comes out, I see beautiful food art neatly cut in two triangles. I don’t have to step up to the pick-up window for my plate. Chef delivers it personally to the table.

Bread toasted perfectly, just how I like it. Egg fried perfectly, but not greasy, with just the tiniest bit of runny yolk. Tomato slice and sprigs of . . . purslane!

I would have shown two thumbs up when Mark checked back—it seems he always makes it a point to acknowledge the customers—but one hand was putting the sandwich in my mouth. And I’m sorry, I ate everything before I thought of taking a picture.

WHEN YOU GO

• Be willing to park on the far side of the boat ramp and walk if there are no spaces closer. The Deli is open for breakfast and lunch, closed on Monday.

• Have no expectations except to expect to wait for your order. Allow yourself to be surprised. He‘eia Pier Deli is not a fast food joint. It’s the most welcome addition to local cuisine kicked up a couple notches where the chef and crew take care of windward Oahu residents.

• Feel good that you are supporting the local Hawaiian economy.

Copyright 2011 Rebekah Luke

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Remaking an oil painting

11 09 2011

As an oil painter I’m often asked, “How long does it take to finish a painting?” In the same vein artists will remind each other, “You have to know when to stop.” We like to avoid overworking a piece.

My “Clouds Lifting Over Lanihuli” demonstrates these points. First is a photo of the painting mid-way, in the field. On a clear day, there are no waterfalls in the scene, but just after a big rain when the clouds lift, there they are! To paint en plein air I headed to this place to study the scene when it was raining, time after time. I took this snapshot from the trunk of my hatchback where I’d taken shelter.

In the field, in the rain

I wanted so much to finish the painting. Below is what I published, i.e., what I thought was ready for market, a few weeks ago. Oils take a long time to dry—up to six months before they can be varnished. In the meantime I can look at a painting every day. As I kept staring at this piece (it’s staged above the TV cabinet) something bothered me. It wasn’t finished.

Not quite finished

I decided to correct the areas of the painting that were “wrong.” In a representative piece, although it is impressionistic (I label my style as “impressionistic representationalism”) I want to paint a scene so that it looks logical.

To really finish and complete this painting, I did three things:

1) I added pigment to the center clouds area to hide the waterfall behind it.

2) I widened the same center waterfall at the bottom because it is closer to the viewer (and so should appear larger).

3) In addition, by very very carefully scraping with the long edge of a palette knife, I knocked down some objectionable relief areas I originally painted of the mountain ridges at the top and touched up the clouds to make them softer and smoother looking.

“Clouds Lifting Over Lanihuli” looks better now. I hope you agree!

Finished: "Clouds Lifting Over Lanihuli," 16" x 20" oil on canvas

Copyright 2011 Rebekah Luke

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Clouds lifting over Lanihuli

5 08 2011

I wonder if it is true that in olden times the waterfalls of windward Oahu ran all the time. Olden times meaning before water was diverted to the Ewa plain for sugar cane and land development. At the present intersection of Kahekili and Likelike highways, while waiting at a red light, a rain storm typical of our wet season had just stopped and the clouds lifted to reveal a spectacular scene of the Koolau mountains. I was on my way to Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden at Luluku and made up my mind to hold the vision in my memory so I could paint it. For in just a few quarters of an hour the sun came out again and the waterfalls disappeared.

"Clouds Lifting Over Lanihuli" 16" x 20" Oil on Canvas (unfinished)

UPDATE, September 11, 2011: As you will see in my 9/11/2011 post, I have made some changes to this painting, and I think you may like the finished work better. Thanks for visiting Rebekah’s Studio.

Copyright 2011 Rebekah Luke

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A little piece of paradise . . .

8 09 2010

. . . AND SOME HAWAIIAN PLACE NAMES

Not only am I lucky to live in Hawaii, I’m lucky to live in Hawaii to go sailing!

This past Labor Day DH and I spent most of the day on Kaneohe Bay off Oahu with our good friends Ken and Georgia aboard their 38′ sloop Mariah.

We sailed with main alone, and not having a headsail up meant wider unobstructed views of the shore. This is the view from the bow after leaving the yacht club mooring and passing Moku o Loe (aka Coconut Island). Puu Ohulehule is the triangular peak on the left, and the peak and ridge named Kanehoalani is about 10 degrees to port (left) of the bow.

We’re headed toward Ahu o Laka, a 3.1 acre islet off Kahaluu popularly known as “the sandbar” that is awash at high tide. It’s a popular destination for boats and various water craft on weekends and holidays, and last Monday it was a “zoo!” We opted to sail on by to a quieter spot farther north to anchor for lunch and some kayaking before continuing on to Hakipuu and Kualoa.

Passing the sandbar, from left, Georgia, DH, and skipper Ken. The hill beyond the sandbar in the distance on the left is Puu Hawaiiloa.

Kaneohe Bay is full of reef and shallow areas. In addition to spotting the white reef stakes, the red and green channel markers, and noticing landmarks, local knowledge is a must for piloting one’s way to where we were going. No worries, skipper Ken knows the way!

We sailed among a herd of honu (turtles), big ones. Every few minutes we passed another one. Fresh breeze, calm sea. What a lazy afternoon!

Honu enjoying the habitat of Kaneohe Bay

Soon we could make out Mokolii . . .

Mokolii

. . . and some activity at Hakipuu and Kualoa.

The tallest peak and the ridge extending diagonally left to right from the peak down to the flat land are Kanehoalani. The ridge points to Puu Hawaiiloa across the bay. Hakipuu is on the left of the ridge, and Kualoa is on the right.

Sailing in to Hakipuu beneath majestic Puu Ohulehule. Local knowledge required. We're careful to not run aground!

Ken tells us this little piece of paradise in Kaneohe Bay is just like Tahiti. You wouldn’t have known it was Labor Day weekend.

Copyright 2010 Rebekah Luke

For another look at sailing on Kaneohe Bay, view the video on https://rebekahstudio.wordpress.com/2010/02/28/flying-moths-over-kaneohe-bay/


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Seven island artists paint and show works at Ho‘omaluhia

3 08 2010

Our “If it’s Thursday, it must be Ho‘omaluhia!” public exhibit of paintings opens today at Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden visitor center and extends to August 30, 2010. The show displays the works of local artists Alex Weinstein, K.Y. Lum, Naomi Weinstein, Noreen Naughton, Richard Guy, Val Saban, and yours truly Rebekah Luke. The collection looks great!

Photo of me by Noreen Naughton

Every Thursday for the past 10 years, more or less, our group has painted in the peaceful landscape that is Ho‘omaluhia, located at Luluku, at the base of the majestic Ko‘olau mountains in windward Oahu. We come from different backgrounds and for different reasons to enjoy the garden and each other’s friendship.

This the first exhibit of paintings for four of our group. All but one of the 42 works in oil and acrylic may be purchased, with prices ranging from $75 to $2,800. Most prices are reasonable and realistic for original art, so it’s a good opportunity to start or add to your collection. Interested buyers should contact the artists directly (lay away plan of installments considered), as no sales transactions are permitted on the city property.

How we met (excerpt from catalog)

In the 1990s, art professor Noreen Naughton frequented Europe with summer abroad courses. K.Y. Lum, a psychiatrist, and his wife took the “Drawing in Italy” tour, visiting Rome and Tuscany to take in Renaissance art in hill towns and obscure churches. When they went a second time to Italy, Naomi and Alex Weinstein joined Noreen’s group. Alex, an architect, is a good sketcher, and Naomi, a retired educator, was a ceramist.

They all went with Noreen again to paint in France, “Following the Path of the Impressionists” from Amsterdam to Paris.

K. Y. Lum

Naomi Weinstein

Alex Weinstein

Richard Guy

When they returned to Hawai‘i they continued to paint with Noreen in the landscape. Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden became a favorite venue. K.Y. and the Weinsteins are the only ones from Noreen’s original group who continue to paint together on Thursdays.

The others: Val Saban, former international trader and industrialist, lives in the same building as K.Y., and the two swim together.

Rebekah Luke (that’s me) who studied painting with the late Gloria Foss, and K.Y. are first cousins. Richard Guy, retired chief justice of Washington state and a local arbitrator and mediator, joined the group after being introduced by Naomi who is in the same book club as his wife.

Val Saban

Noreen Naughton

If you go (and we hope you will)

The park entrance is located at the end of Luluku Road in Kaneohe, Oahu. The art will be on view every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through August 30, 2010.  Exception: The park is closed on Aug. 6 and 27.

Thursday is the theme. You can meet the artists at a punch-and-cookies reception on Thursday, August 5, from noon to 2 p.m. Most of us will be there on the other Thursdays in August in the mornings only.

Allow time to enjoy the rest of Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden’s plants, trails, picnic areas, lake, camp sites, and overall Hawaiian tropical scenery.

Thanks for visiting!

Copyright 2010 Rebekah Luke

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