Under The Oak V2

I re-worked this painting after posting an earlier version last week.  Afterwards I kept finding little sections that I felt I could paint better , so I spent another day working on it. Painters are crazy aren't they?

Under The Oak

 

A midday siesta on a blistering hot summer day, on a quiet country road, I had to stop and photograph this nonchalant group. They weren't going to move !

10 1/4"  x 13 1/4" watercolor on Yupo

Pink Pears

What will food scientists come up with next ? Imagination is running wild !

These pink pears are really just  an attempt to tempt you to come to my Studio Sale which will be held here at my studio on Saturday, November 24 th from 11 - 6.

Come on over and see, there's even more than just pink pears.

Barn At The Bottom Of The Road

This barn and picket fence anchor the dirt road in Briceland which winds uphill for 2 miles from this point. I always notice this particular spot, the pickets tilt and lean, and you hear the chickens clucking as you slowly bump past.

This will be one of the paintings shown at my studio sale held on Saturday November 24
Invitations extended to all!

8" x 11" on Yupo

Painting Darks

I painted this in class as a demonstration of the topic called painting darks. It is rough and direct,
and painted on heavy paper.   I was surprised to see the physical brushwork that I find so attractive in painting on  the smooth surface of Yupo.  Painter talk.....
7" x 9"

Pears on a Silver Tray

Color, glorious color..... This little painting is framed and will be shown at my Studio Sale November 24th here at my studio.
The image is 9" x 12" Yupo frame size is15" x 12 1/2"

Calla Lillies 2019

 This is a variation of a painting I did earlier this year. In this painting I feel I was more successful in showing the vitality of the leaves and the energy of the plant.
9" 12" Yupo

Pile of Paints

One of the reasons I like to paint so much, is that I love my materials-paints and brushes.
Writers swoon over a semicolon, I love color, it's all about possibilities.
 6" x 9 1/2"  Yupo

Going For It !

The race in all it's grit!  Another version of the county fair horse races.
7 1/2" x 12"  Yupo

Still Life with Pears

Continuing my fascination with Yupo, I painted this still life, which is a version of one I previously painted. The first version has the classic qualities of traditional painting; attention to values, edges and paint handling.
 This one rips that all loose in boldness and brilliant color. This still life doesn't sit still  !
9" x 12"

Pierce Point II

This is the second watercolor of the old ranch at the Pt Reyes National Seashore, painted on the plastic surface called Yupo,  This smooth surface  completely determines the paint application and it is barely controllable. It is an exciting process and the result is fantastical rather than the usual painterly approach which is more conventional and reportorial.
It looks like I must have been drinking lots of champagne while I was painting this, but I assure you it was a slow and deliberative process !
12" x 9"

Pierce Point Ranch

This was painted on a  cold, windy, foggy day last weekend at the National Pt. Reyes Seashore Park.
It was quite an adventure - brrrrr.
 I want to see how this atmospheric subject matter looks on different surfaces, so I plan to paint it on a very soft paper, and also the very slick surface I used on my last two posts. It will be a watercolor experiment.....
9 1/4" x 13"

Boaters

This painting is another using the plastic surface ( Yupo ) of my previous post. The brilliance of color is amazing, if this landscape had been painted on paper the result would have been softer and more subtle, you can compare it to other versions of this Eel River landscape I have done. It reminds me of German expressionist work, or woodcuts. Each space is defined and leaves a line . It is a very dramatic and an experimental approach to traditional representational painting. Whew !

9" x 12"

Girl's Soccer

A game from last season, these girls have now graduated to the U10  ( under ten ) league.  And the fall soccer season has just begun. Watch out world !

This was painted on a plastic surface - not paper. The paint sits on top instead of being absorbed into the paper, which results in brilliant color and an active surface. Pretty exciting stuff!
9" x 12"

GO ! GO! GO!

A warm day at the races at the county fair. Large crowds and fast horses ! The actual winner of the race was the one coming up behind the front runner.
9" x 12" on hot press paper

Pony Races

Watching the ponies run - a tiny study on a sunny day at the fair.

4i/2" x 9 1/2"

Hydrangea Bouquet 2012

Hot days, cool bouquet with seed pods and buckwheat. The heat is bleaching the color from the blooms that are still on the shrub, alas.
14" x 17 1/2"

I will be holding  a studio sale this fall, and many of the small and midsize paintings that I have posted here will be for sale. If you are interested in any of the paintings you have seen here, email me.
 Any painting sold thru this blog will get a pre- sale price !

Oh No ! Oil Spill !

Oh well, at least it was green.......
11 ' x 27 1/8"

Humboldt Bay I

I just taught a 3 day workshop in Eureka, " Painting the Bay". We were an enthusiastic group, energized by the painting potential of water, dramatic skies , boats and birds.
I did this watercolor on the first day.
13 3/4" x 9 1/4"

Hydrangea Shrub

 This shrub has had a hard life - I am a negligent gardener, but this year it has come into it's full flowering  beauty, despite me.  And I am lured by beauty again .
13 3/8" x 11 1/8 "

July 6

My flower patch continues to be a colorful invitation to paint
6 1/2" x 9"  tiny!

June 27

After working on the large studio painting of the previous post , I wanted to change gears and do a plein air piece. These flowers are in my backyard flower patch - a jumble of perennials that just want water, and this is the reward in June. I found a painting I did of this same patch last year , and I will post it later.
15" x 12 1/2"

6 Pink Tulips

This is a large watercolor, based on the garden painting I posted earlier.
More garden paintings to come - 'tis the season!
30 3/4" x 27 1/2"

Calla Lillies

I paint these Callas yearly,  when they bloom they pose politely until one day I say, " Aaah yes,  perfect!"
9 1/2" x 13"

Study for Pink Roses

So often when I wish to explore an idea, I do a small study first, which then gives me the courage to paint larger. This watercolor appears spontaneous and quickly done  ( ha ha ! ) I hope I can keep this freshness in the big painting.
19 3/4" x 15"

Fishing Boats

This is one of several watercolors of Greek fishing boats I've painted. It may be trite subject matter,  painted hundreds of times, but what painter can resist?  All that light !  all those reflections !!
This small watercolor is 9" 12"

Sonoma Landscape

Premium wine grapes are grown everywhere in Sonoma County, marching across the landscape in pleasing geometry, climbing the  hills with gentle contour. This view is of a hillside vineyard protected at the top and bottom of the hill by large trees.
12 1/2" x 11"

View from Methana

Standing on a deck, looking down at the sea and out at the coastline of the rocky Peloponnese you can't help but sense the long history of the Mycenaean civilization of this part of Greece. It's part of the current paradox and very compelling. What a long story !

Old Olive Tree in a Stoney Field

Olives are a major crop in Greece, many orchards are very old and are pruned so that the fruit stays close to the ground. The result is massive, characteristically twisted trunks, with low slender branches that bear heavily. To this painter, they have strong personality. This study is one such character in a grove next to an old church.
13 1/2" x 9 1/2"

View of the Sanctuary at Epidavros

Back home after a month in Greece, where I was visiting family during a hectic time for the country. The base of family love and the glories of the country were in strong contrast to the current political and economic turbulence.
This was painted as I sat under an olive tree ( and on fallen olives ! ) next to an old wall , with the columns of an ancient sanctuary of Asclepius, the god of healing, on a slope in the distance.
 The artifacts of the ancient civilization are everywhere, history lives strongly next to the present in Greece.
15" x 11"

Magnolia Blossoms III

 

It's amazing that these delicate blooms survive spring storms - they must be tougher than they look

This is painted on a very soft watercolor paper, which encourages soft transitions.

the size is 30" x 22"

This will be my last posting for a while - I will be in Greece for most of April, returning in May,  and will continue this  blog when I return.

Sycamore Tree (again)

A few weeks ago I posted this painting on the blog of the sycamore tree in my front yard, and as it sat in my studio I realized it wasn't really finished. So I have been working on it intermittently since then, and now re-post it. I wonder if anyone beside myself sees the small but significant  differences ?

Early Magnolia Blossoms

Dramatic blossoms make a bold statement in the changeable weather of early spring. This is a playful approach, letting the paint do it's watercolor thing.
13 1/2" x 20 1/4"

Grocery Produce

and now for something entirely different... I painted this as a demonstration for my last watercolor class.... fresh produce, still wet from the market. Who could resist?
11" x 15"

Sycamore

The Sycamore Tree -

large version

43 3/4" x 32 1/2"

Sycamore Tree

This Sycamore tree serenely reigns over our unpaved street where I live. In summer the dense foliage makes for deep shade and cools my house, in winter it reveals it's majestic structure, but in autumn it buries my yard in fallen leaves....
I painted this a few years ago and I'm currently painting another version, of course

Olive Trees

This is the finished watercolor of the olive trees twined at their roots. As I paint larger, I see more detail and subtlety and  the paintings become more "physical". I like this visceral portrayal.
  More tree paintings to come.... 
30" x 22"

Old Olive Trees at Knossos

I decided to continue work on some earlier paintings before beginning on my Mexican adventures.
These remarkable old twisted olive trees were once joined at their very complicated base. The deep fissures on the trunk continue in a more superficially stenciled way on the branches.  And then the gnarled roots just dive abruptly into the sandy soil. I had previously painted a small study of these trees, and this is the next step to a large painting.... Step by step....
15" x 11"

Palm Foliage

One of the things that struck me in Mexico is how the strong sunlight on palm foliage makes a patterned netting and colorful shadows - almost flattening the subject. Now I understand Matisse better, the light is very different from Northern California !
11" x 7 1/2"

Painting in Mexico

Dear visitors to this blog-
I will be back in early February, and I hope to post new work done on location in San Pancho Mexico.
I am excited by the opportunity to paint in the light and landscape of the area. I'll share the results!

Faded Flowers

This painting is about the soft color and curled blossoms of these dried hydrangeas.
Call me old fashioned, but I love their beauty!
15" x 18"

Fenceline Marker Tree

Although this painting is 40" x 30" it is not large enough to capture the strength of this amazing tree.

Workshop

Come visit Mexico for all the usual reasons, plus this lighthearted 3 day workshop.... my friend Shelby would like to start offering art classes at her place in San Pancho, and I am her  willing guinea pig for this first effort. I'm really looking forward to this - anybody else interested??