February-June, 2019

CATCHING UP!

Sorry, it's been ages since I've posted anything and I told myself I would start up this blog again as soon as....well, you know how that goes. No time like the present to procrastinate. The month of February was hectic with selling old house and buying new then the wonderful people of the Main Street Arts asked if I would be a guest artist and I knew I had to squeeze it in because it is such a friendly and talented group and the space downtown is my dream gallery. Go to this link to check them out: Main Street Arts. If you get the chance to be there for the art walk, go! They know how to have fun in Martinez. I was lucky to sell a bunch of my paintings (even though it was pouring rain) so I didn't have to pack them for the move. 

February

I love the Main Street Arts Gallery in Martinez, especially for its cool storefront windows

PROUD GUEST ARTIST AT THE MAIN STREET ARTS GALLERY IN MARTINEZ

March

Moving, uggg. I know people who love to move every four or five years but I am not of that ilk. I am happy to plant roots as deep as I can and not budge if I can help it. That said, I am very happy to be in a smaller, more manageable home with my studio in the garage. I like being able to spill stuff on the floor and not have to scream and pull out my hair at the stains I make on the carpet. I've got my Richard Schmidt color charts up and my drying shelves--currently displaying older paintings since I haven't any wet ones yet to put up. I'm totally faking the action here...not actually putting paint on anything...It will take me some time to settle in enough to get the juices flowing. 

My new studio in Lincoln, CA

April

Our first plein air session since the new move: Horton Iris Farm in Loomis. I just love to say the word Loomis. It's such a great sounding name for a cool little town. This is a great place to paint with lots of choices of where to set up. And there are baby goats!

Jeff, my painting partner. He helps to schlep my stuff and tells me when it's time to go home for martinis.

BACK TALK: If you can't get away to paint outside, stay home and paint in your yard. Someone's grandma once said that, I'm sure of it. It can be such a hassle to pack up all your gear and drive around looking for a good spot. Sometimes you don't have to look any further than your own backyard. I think Dorothy said that. Or her grandma. 

ROSES...ARGGGG!

When the roses started blooming, I realized I had no idea how to paint them! They are complicated little suckers. The little painting below was left unfinished for now. You can see I had problems with values and shapes. I promised myself I would keep trying.

GOING OUTSIDE TO PAINT IS HARD TO DO, BUT VERY NECESSARY. 

Lincoln Hills: Used to be ranch land, now retiree heaven. This pond is not far from my house and is a wonderful open space. Don't tell anyone, but I stepped off the path to set up my pochade and paint. Here, I have taped off the panel to do a quick study of the tree and its reflection. 

MORE OPEN SPACE NEAR MY HOME. We've been given warnings about the dangers of rattlesnakes in the area. People I barely know come up to me and tell me their snake stories. I have yet to see one, but as soon as I do, it will be plastered all over the internet. 

MY TINY TREE PAINTING. 

The pond on one of the hottest days in early June. I set up in the shade, but it quickly disappeared. Then I forgot to put in a duck or two, sheesh! Not bad for an hour of painting, though the 5x7 size was about all I could manage in that time.
How hot will it get in the Sierra foothills you ask?
Everyone keeps telling me to gird my loins for major sun action. 

June

GOING FROM TINY TO HUMONGOUS. 

Underpainting the 40x30 big boy canvas. I love Transparent Oxide Red because it is transparent and red. I have no idea what oxide is, but I love it too. I do this because I can't draw. I just move the paint around until it looks good enough, then I let it dry and start slapping paint on top. 

NEXT STEPS

My subject is the dogwood tree in Lithia Park in Ashland, Oregon where painters who have been very, very good must go when they die. This one is a much larger version of a painting I did last year and now is owned by my good friends John and Kathleen. Here, I am starting to add some blue and green notes to the background

More progress in defining shapes and trying to bring the dogwood flowers forward. I will be sure to post a picture of the finished painting. Sometime in the next century. 

ANOTHER STEP BY STEP SERIES: THE SHEETROCK HAMMER and the CUP OF JOE
Just in case you didn't get enough from the dogwood series. This one was back at the old studio, just before we sold the house. I had been looking around for something to paint when I came across Jeff's old sheetrock hammer and I fell in love. My friend Kim Homes, who is a painter and a potter, gave me this funky coffee cup that seemed to fit in well in the story of the sheetrock guy who had to put down his tools and stop for a break. Jeff said he liked it but the nail looked a little bent. I said that was why the guy had to stop...to find straighter nail.