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Fall is here, the waterfowl are almost gone, leaves are falling and the Niebrugge Studio art garage is nearly finished.  Weather permitting the exterior may get painted before winter, otherwise it will happen next summer with everything else that didn’t get finished this year.

That’s the way it is here in Alaska, each season dominates and when it is over there is no looking back.  Any day now we will have freezing temperatures and anything subject to frost damage should be drained, moved and put inside.  It is especially important that we tidy up the yard now because we will be hosting our annual Open House here in three weeks!

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist

Color guide and chart

Close up of color guide and chart
Here are the battered remains of the Seward Mural color chart and the color composition that were used as guides during the painting of the mural. The color comp sheet is made up of multiple pieces of paper attached with scotch tape. The color chart was used to match color paint chips at the local Spenard Builders Supply where cans of paint were mixed to match. Both of these charts were put to heavy use during the Mural-in-a-Day marathon last weekend.

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist

The nearly finished mural waiting for pointillism.  Photo by Ron Niebrugge.

We agreed to meet at the terminal Monday morning at 8:30 AM to put some pointillism in the mural.  I couldn’t stay long, for we had appointments in Anchorage and planned to be back in Palmer by mid afternoon.  All night I wrestled with the question of how to incorporate pointillism in this highly stylized, hard edged image.  It finally occurred to me to leave the image alone, and fill the white negative space around the image with dots.  Pale, multicolored dots that would read as a non color, a pale gray from a distance. (more…)

Gail with color #6.  Photo by Ron Niebrugge
Doped up with Advil for back and neck pain, I was the first to arrive on Sunday morning. In the total quiet of the big terminal I was able to paint without interruption and a feeling of calm came over me. It was a Zen like experience. Unfortunately it turned out to be the calm before the storm. Unlike Saturday, people started showing up early and they were an entirely different kind of crew. They immediately grasped the enormity of the task, rolled up their sleeves and painted with confidence! It finally dawned on me that I had a crew of experienced artists! My heart sang. (more…)

My daughter-in-law Janine, helping to paint.

I was the first person at the mural painting area Saturday morning, and found myself nervously pacing up and down looking for missed details. Sure enough, I found more unnumbered spots! Jennifer, the founder of the Seward Mural Society, explained that one of the rules for being accepted as a muralist for this event was to commit to paint for a whole day, painting for a few hours was discouraged. This way everyone was briefed at once, and eliminated interruptions. I liked this rule, it sounded like good planning. (more…)

All panels color numbered and ready to paint.  Photo by Ron Niebrugge.

Once the enlargement was complete, I spent the better part of the day assigning the thirty one color numbers to the blank spaces in the drawing.  Every time I thought the job was done, I found more blank spaces.  It was incredible how complicated this part of the job became, I was still finding unnumbered spaces well into the first painting day!  I felt that this part of the planning was essential to complete carefully, for an unknown number of strangers with paint and brushes were going to converge on the mural on Saturday.  Without a careful plan, chaos would reign. (more…)

Gail, and Dot Bardarson sketching the enlargement with help from Betsy Smith.

Even in the rain the drive to Seward Thursday, September 22, was beautiful. I always marvel at the magnificent scenery along Turnagin Arm and enjoyed the change from coastal green to brilliant fall as we drove over the mountains to the gorgeous alpine valleys. On our arrival we found the small coastal town of Seward ready and waiting for the anticipated influx of Art and Music Festival visitors. (more…)

I am busy preparing for my trip to Seward, Alaska, next week where the Seward Mural Society will paint my mural design on panels that will eventually be mounted on the outside of a building downtown. My husband and I considered many choices for lodging for our four day trip, and until yesterday were planning to camp along the waterfront in our truck and camper. But, a better offer changed our minds. We will be the guests of Bay Vista Bed and Breakfast, a fabulous home with warm hospitality nestled high on the hillside above the town. This arrangement will be perfect! We can drive our SUV and be free to roam around the town on during our visit. (more…)

Rika’s Roadhouse pen and ink drawing ©Niebrugge
During the early 1960’s when I studied commercial art, the process used to create black and white artwork for publication involved producing ink drawings by hand using multiple techniques with pen and ink to create various shades of gray. Cross hatch, parallel lines, stipple, curves, squiggle, and any other method an artist could devise were employed using different pen points of varying thickness. One way to distinguish between mediocre ink drawing and excellent work was to evaluate the quality of the ink line. (more…)

I love this time of the year in Alaska. With less daylight and nighttime temperatures cool and frosty we are experiencing a lovely phenomenon called an “Indian Summer” where the days are warm, clear and sunny. Fall colors are slowly appearing, a bright yellow tree here and there randomly sprinkled among trees turning yellow green and the ground is carpeted in a maze of gold, orange and rust colored foliage. Fireweed dominates with blaze red leaves topped by fluffy white clouds of seed. The best part of the day are the spectacular, dazzling sunsets with migrating birds often silhouetted against the brilliant sky. Oh yes, how I love this time of the year in Alaska!

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist

Evelyn at the Niebrugge Studio Art Booth

We are busy ramping down from attending our booth for 12 days during the 2006 Alaska State Fair. We owe many thanks to our wonderful friend, Evelyn Bunch, who helped every day during the evening hours. Even though the hours are long, the fair provides a terrific opportunity to visit with collectors and display new prints and original paintings. (more…)