Delta Painting

Slow Water, 18 x 24 inches, oil.

This is a work in progress, further exploring the impressionist theme. I keep getting happier with it, so I will continue to work on it. I am learning that Monet why painted with dibs and dabs of paint; because editing and continueine from day to day is very easy--I never have to worry about melding the paint strokes together. The tackiness of the paint does not influence the painting, unlike when I am working with a palette knife, or more conventional brushstrokes and have to put an entirely new skin on a painting if I want to change something.

Open Studios this weekend!

Morning Barn, 24 x 36 inches, pastel.

Open Studios at Cubberley Studios
Building E, Studio 6

11-5 pm Saturday and Sunday
May 2 and 3

Please join 20 artists for open studios this weekend. Some of us will have workstations set up for you to try out our media. Admission is free and all are welcome. More information is available at Cubberley Studios.com

Spring Morning in Winters

Spring Morning in Winters, 18 x 24 inches, pastel.

Winters Quick Draw

That's my Baby, 11 x 14 inches, pastel.

This car was parked along the Winters main street during the quick draw--the title is how the owner described the car to me as I was painting it. I had to borrow a stronger turquoise from a fellow pastelist to get the color correct.

Painting in Winters

In the Orchards, 16 x 20 inches, pastel.

I just participated in the Briggs and Co. Gallery Winters Plein Air Event. The landscape out in the San Joaquin Valley is lovely--flat farm country with the Sierra in the distance. The farmland is planted to tomatoes, wheat, alfalfa, or orchards of citrus and walnuts. This painting is done in a walnut orchard.

Carmel Beach Impression, 16 x 20 inches, pastel.

Carmel in the Evening Light, 16 x 18 inches, pastel.

Napa River Mouth, 8 x 10 inches, pastel.

Jessie's Grove Barn, 10 x 10 inches, oil.

Kim Fancher and I went out to Lodi to paint antique barns for a show at the Knowlton Gallery. Hey, sometimes the magic works-I like this one! It embodies the odd combination of freshness and precision that comes with plein air painting.

Carmel Dunes in the Morning, 18 x 24 inches, pastel.

This is a painting I did outdoors two years ago--reworked. I took it out last week and worked it over again, changing the format, cropping the base of the painting and enhancing the color. I am quite pleased with the result. It was too large a canvas to finish successfully outdoors. Sometimes that works, but sometimes the light just changes to fast to keep up.