Kyle Martin: Paintings From The First Half of Summer

I hope your summer is going well, what a dramatic time of year!

I love painting the special quality of light that is present in Mid-July. During this humid time of year, there are particles of moisture in the air that create a prismatic effect of light falling on the landscape. To me, nothing is better to me than painting the summer light. It often seems that painting was made for July.

These were painted in June and July 2020. For more info, please view my online store.

Rock Springs Tractor 12 x 16" $350

Grazing 20 x 24" $750

Hwy DD Fields 9 x 12" $200
When it gets hot out, you can almost see the corn growing. On this humid day, I was drawn to the linear fields of corn and the atmospheric perspective in the Baraboo Bluffs.

The Square 16 x 20" $450

Moms Iris 12 x 9" $200

Plain Hills 8 x 10" $200

The Spring Green hills can look dramatically different from day-to-day, and even hour-to-hour. On this afternoon, one of the first 90 degree days, the moisture particles in the air created a quality of atmospheric perspective that I had to set up and paint. The wildflowers blow in the breeze int he foreground while some young crops soak up the afternoon sun.

Plain Hills 16 x 20" $500

BP Farm 8 x 8" $150

Wild Iris 12 x 16" $350

Corn Crib 8 x 10" $200


Loganville Hills 16 x 20" $550

Even though I try to drive down every back road in my area, I can still find new places to paint. I was curious what I would find in the hills East of Loganville, and this scene made me pull the car over and paint immediately, it was very inspiring. I was drawn to the pattern and shape of the treelines and hills in the background, the long shadows being cast over the foreground, and of course the old red barn. The evening light is poetic to paint, and it was a joy to paint all the while keeping the shapes simple and the color fresh.

Farm Shapes, Backlit 8 x 10" $200

Summer Still Life 16 x 12" $350

Terrytown Barn 8 x 10" $200
The crops are growing in the fields, and the grasses are changing colors. This barn observes all of the changes during the growing season.

Golden Hour Bales 8 x 10" $200

This was painted during the first crop of hay, during the golden hour. I noticed this field of round bales one afternoon, while driving to Sauk City to have dinner for my Mom's birthday. The bales were still in the field when I got home late in the evening, so I loaded up my palette and worked quickly to capture the warm effect of light contrasting the cool shadows. This was also the first day that the mosquito's were noticable, and between them, the smell of fresh cut hay, and the golden light, it felt like summer.

Painting on Campus 16 x 20" $550

Paint-A-Long 8 x 10" $200

Door County Ice Cream Factory 8 x 10" $200
This is the old delivery vehicle that is parked outside of the ice cream factory in Sister Bay. I painted, on this day, during a light rain, and stopped in for lunch afterwards.

Golden Light on the Cornerstone 8 x 10" $200


Down By The Tracks 8 x 10" $200

The 400 trail was built to take passengers between Chicago and Minneapolis in 400 minutes. Reedsburg was one of the stops between the two cities, and there is a beautiful Depot that still stands along side several old commercial warehouses.

In this painting, the side of the old feed-mill that faces the tracks is illuminated by intense sunlight. The sun is captured late in the day, descending toward the horizon. Painting along the tracks is interesting to me, because everything is from a time long ago.

Summer Sunset 6 x 8" $100

To end this email, I'll include one of my favorite paintings from the end of the day. The days are so long right now, that by the time the sun set's it always feels like it has been a long time coming. I set up my easel on my driveway and captured the light quickly as the sun dipped towards the horizon above the corn field.

July Sky 6 x 8" $100

Simple Still Life 10 x 8" $200

Summer Sky 6 x 8" $100

Vernon County Vista 16 x 20" $500

I have been back in Vernon County, painting the rolling hills, the farms and the fields. On this day, the sun reflected off of the metal roof on this well-worn barn. The barn has stood for so long, that it has almost grown into the landscape, and it casts a long shadow onto the banks of a Vernon County trout stream.

Down by the Farmers Company 8 x 10" $200

I always set aside time to paint down by the tracks in July. Even though the tracks stop here, there is a bike trail that starts here and continues along the route that the trains used to take. Even though the old warehouses no are no longer used, there is still a working Feed Mill in the building on the right side of this painting. The purple lady rock lines the old tracks, which point to the West.