One of the most important factors affecting a painter’s growth is to work on-site and out side~Lynn Burton

Our founder’s brother, Lynn Burton, says he can’t wait for spring to arrive each year. “That’s when the bluebonnets bloom,” he says. “On Sunday afternoons, I like to grab my art equipment and head out exploring for that perfect picture…don’t know how many hundreds of bluebonnet landscapes I’ve done over the years. What a solace…almost like visiting God”

Actually, Lynn likes to keep paint sketching equipment with him in his work truck all the time. “Don’t know when a quick sketch with my water color or acrylic pack presents itself. It’s a must, an artist must be prepared, even if they have a “real” job other than being an artist. Most of the time, if the scene in front of me looks like it can make a decent composition, and I don’t have the time to do a complete painting, I’ll not only try to mix the colors I’m seeing, but I’ll also take photographs. Everything can be worked out later in the studio. I just want to make sure I capture all the proper values and hues that I’m seeing.”

Lynn feels the reality of being present in a place where people and objects make a particular impression worthy of an artist’s capture is the ultimate experience. “It’s hard to explain the excitement you feel as an artist when you capture the reality of a scene. I’m not talking about a realistic painting~I’m talking about the reality of the scene.” He said. “For example, the painting I did that my brother named, The Red Sunset, is an example of what I mean.”

“Sometime back, I was out in west Texas painting a sign. There were a group of horses running around in a fenced field past where the sign platform was placed off the highway. The horses seemed so joyful and were playful, and all throughout the day I kept thinking, ‘there’s gotta be painting here, somewhere’.

As I was putting my sign equipment away, the sun was just beginning to set, and the sky turned to that beautiful red that only happens in west Texas. Suddenly the horses really became exuberant, running and bucking around. This was such in exciting scene, it had to be captured! My art equipment had already been set up earlier, because I knew at some point the desire to paint would strike. I snapped some quick photographs of the horses, and instantly began mixing colors so I could capture the scene.”

Tip: An artist can work both ways, directly and indirectly (on-site and in the studio), so why not take advantage of it. The benefits of experiencing painting outdoors far outweigh any disadvantages, even if all that is accomplished is to capture certain values and hues or ideas for composition. Most anything an artist does to capture the reality of a scene and create an impression on the viewer is a benefit.