Plein Air Tuesdays - Brand Teahouse
August 22nd, 2006
This morning’s plein air outing was at Glendale’s Brand Park. We went into the teahouse area, which sadly didn’t open until 10 when the sun was already very high. I have a preference for early morning and late afternoon lighting - it’s so much more dramatic and interesting. At any rate, I tried to make the best of it.
This painting is 11 x 15 on 140# watercolor paper. My first excursion with my new sketchbox easel which I got over the weekend!
Beautiful! It has such an airy look, very nice.
Lovely painting - very fresh and pretty. Interesting composition.
Oh, Karen, this is absolutely wonderful, maybe you should enter this one too! Your watercolors just keep getting more and more beautiful. I especially love the wonderful “modified S-curve” of the dark values, what a gorgeous line. The colors are great, yeah, definitely go back again. We want more!
This one gives a lovely sense of ‘being there’ - the sense of depth, the weather, the view - well done
This is lovely Karen.
Beautiful watercolor. You’re really good at composing so that there’s a focal point and a softer background instead of everything being equally detailed.
Thank you, Alison, Renate, Ruthann, Terri everyone …
Nel, you are so observant - I never even saw that S-curve in there! Do you ever get so close to something when you’re painting that it’s hard to see the greater picture? I did a pencil sketch underneath for this one but no value study so I didn’t even notice that was happening!
Jana, thank you, I have to keep fighting the urge to draw leaves in the background and little weeds in the foreground like I was doing last spring. It takes a long time to break old habits and hopefully one of these days I’ll be able to paint with wild abandon - just some swooshes and splashes and it will look right. it may be a long time, though …
Well, you made the light here look wonderful despite the difficulties!
Spoken like a photographer! And a wonderful “best of it”, I might add! Bright mid day light is hard to work with, although one would never know it from your paintings!
I really love this one, Karen! YES, enter it too!!
Very nice……
What a beautiful atmosphere you have captured. Absolutely breathtaking!
Wow, Karen - this is GRAND! Sweet memories of a lovely afternoon with you in this very spot.
And I’m even *too* familiar with the complex foliage, values and composition in this scene. You’ve really done it so well!
Karen, your paintings have the best of both worlds. They look like paintings/drawings. YOu have the considered look of a painting which takes more time but the loo
seness of a spontainious drawing.Lovely. Did you get a gurilla box? Is it heavy to tote around?
Got to agree with you about the times of day for lighting. Nice sketch!