Les- Ultimate PA Easel design

[les lull]

I didn't get anything painted over this last weekend, but I did manage to put together something to make the outdoor experience a little more familiar to the studio experience. I have a Frech Mistress that I use in my studio that I really like. I have both the pochade box and a french easel and I dislike them both. No place to put the brushes, no convienent place for a thinner cup or paint knifes. The French mistress solve the workspace dilemnas nicely in the studio, so I have been brainstorming how I could make that work outdoors without a 40 mule train to pack it in and out. Here is my solution. Since no one makes the outdoor easel of my dreams, I decided to make one with a french mistress, a place to mount the umbrella, and easily handle large canvases, and breaks down easily.

I used the tripod that came with my guerilla box and made what I hope to be the perfect solution. It is quite solid and versatile.









I plan on testing it out this week, so I will let you know whether or not my personal excitement is warranted or not.

[Liz Abeyta]

Looks great, Les. I'll be waiting to hear how it works for you.

[iron mark]

Looks just like the ones made here Art Box www.artboxandpanel.comwww.artboxandpanel.com

[les lull]

Dammit! I could have been painting this last weekend instead of playing carpenter. That is uncanny. Here I was feeling all accomplished and original. That is almost an exact duplicate of my brainstorm. Note to self, do not send plans to patent office. It is even made in my home state. Good news is that if any one else is frustrated with a small workspace, and a difficult setup, You can buy one of these if you lack the carpentry skills. I guess I should get out of the studio more often.

[Johnnie]

Hi Les
Well, look at it this way you saved yourself $200 bux minus the cost of wood you used.. far less I would presume.. It looks quite different that the other one posted at Art Box .. Main difference I see is the depth of the sides.. Much more room to put your tubes, brushes , knives etc... Very well done.

Now you have a palette and easel that ''you' designed for what you want.. It is very nice and you should be proud of making such a thing.. Also its something that may be handed down to your children one day, that you made .. not store bought.. There is something to be said about that ...

Great job. How about some closeups of your work.. Looks really cool.

Johnnie

[les lull]

Originally Posted by Johnnie

Hi Les
Well, look at it this way you saved yourself $200 bux minus the cost of wood you used.. far less I would presume.. It looks quite different that the other one posted at Art Box .. Main difference I see is the depth of the sides.. Much more room to put your tubes, brushes , knives etc... Very well done.

Now you have a palette and easel that ''you' designed for what you want.. It is very nice and you should be proud of making such a thing.. Also its something that may be handed down to your children one day, that you made .. not store bought.. There is something to be said about that ...

Great job. How about some closeups of your work.. Looks really cool.

Johnnie

Thanks Johnnie. The depth of the sides is one of the considerations I had in building this. I wanted it to be wide enough to hold full length studio brushes. That was a gripe of mine with the pochade box. Need a place for my java, pallet knife, camera, or a value study. It will hold a painting with a max width of 20 ".



I am also enclosing a photo of how it attaches to the tripod. 2 reall easy to make L brackets made out of wood. No other hardware, gravity does the rest.





Last but not least a photo of all three pieces broke down and this also shows the hardware that I found at Home Depot for the canvas holder.

[MFER]

Les. here is my set up. It has been in use for 2 years with no problems. It is the same design as yours. I customized a Sun Eden Palette than is made of plastic. I built a 10 x16 box around their palette. Sun Eden has a good web site with very inexpensive and light weight products. Your looks much nicer and better built than mine. I can attest to your design will work and you'll love it esp. since you made it.


My Rig with how I set it up.







underside of paint box, thanks Mark

[les lull]

Thanks for sharing pictures of your set up Mark. Glad to hear that you are satisfied with your similar set up. I am getting quite excited to take it for a test drive. I still need to get a piece of glass cut for mixing the paint on. I was going to float the piece of glass on four quarter sized dollops of silicone to absorb any unexpected abuse to the box.

By the way, that is a good looking painting on the easel.

[WV.Artistry]

Originally Posted by les lull

. . I am getting quite excited to take it for a test drive.

Hello from Scottsdale

I'd love to see how this all comes together, so if you don't mind, shoot me a PM and I'll come watch.

I've seen the art boxes at the Scottsdale Artist School and would like to compare theirs to yours . . glad you brought up brush length (I use long handles too). Have thought about purchasing a system, but I'm a bit ignorant re: plein air, and don't want something I can't use.

I'd rather be painting instead taking photos. Don't need much, just need the "how to".

[manfrommerriam]

Well, I like yours just because you dreamed it up. You will get satisfaction from that. Not a bad idea and so it is not too amazing someone else had it also. Next will be one of aluminum... and then someone will make one from corrigated plastic sheets... and then someone will publish plans to make them from the cartons Neu-Pastels come in or perhaps antique cigar boxes.
Enjoy! have fun, Dave

[Johnnie]

Mark and Les.

Neat photos Les and nice box there Mark

Les, cant tell in the photo but those Lbrackets, are they made of plywood.. If not I would suggest you change them.. Looks like there is a grain there that over time could split on you from the weight and then the palette would end up on the ground..

Just a thought

Great job great photo's

Johnnie

[Clothyard]

Hey Les, I am impressed!!!! I too am a woodworker as well as a painter (sorta) and I have just recently made my own pochade box from plans I got on the internet. It has drop in pallet/panel carrier and slide out shelves on each side for work room. I like it but this thing of yours will hold bigger panels and I suspect weighs less. The umbrella holder is a definite plus. Way to go!

[les lull]

Good Luck with your new setup Keith. This one looks lighter in the photos than it actually ended up being. I overbuilt the heck out of it. The piece of 3/8 inch glass didn't help at all. After I built this one I found a guy that makes a version that is quite reasonable. www.artboxandpanel.com I bought the pallett and tripod canvas mount. I field tested it in the tetons for a couple of weeks and was very pleased with it. I was able to fit everything I needed into a backpack, including a raymar wetcanvas carrier. I really like having the pallet at waist level and the canvas at eye level. The extra space on the sides for a medium cup,a Holbein brush washer, tubes of paint and brushes make it easier to just focus on painting. I also had a tripod stool in my backpack for those days when you just can't stand up anymore and need to take a load off. I am sure not everyone would find this set up agreeable, but I found it to be a great solution for taking the studio outside. Here is a picture of the setup and the end of a long day.

[James or Jimmy Jim]

Les, very impressive. I also tried to figure out a way to use my French companion in a similar way, but didn't follow through.

You might like this one, also made by a WC member (where is he?).

http://www.outsideshore.com/school/a...l/pictures.htm

[les lull]

Originally Posted by James (or Jimmy Jim)

Les, very impressive. I also tried to figure out a way to use my French companion in a similar way, but didn't follow through.

You might like this one, also made by a WC member (where is he?).

http://www.outsideshore.com/school/a...l/pictures.htm

That is an ingenous little setup.