California impressionist wildflower painting by Karen Winters
“Those Fields, Those Hills”
9 x 12 oil on hardboard plein air panel
See more of my landscapes here
Springtime in Southern California brings the awakening of wildflowers to the hillsides. Some of the dried grasses of winter remain, but the cheery California sunflowers brighten the scene. This hillside was not strewn with wild mustard, as many are, but had a profusion of small beige and white flowers, plus helianthus californicus, the California sunflower.
The large tree is a pepper tree. The foliage of its soft branches seem to drift and sway in the wind, not unlike a weeping willow.
Tejon Ranch California Oak Landscape Plein Air Painting – Welcome Shade
SOLD
“Welcome Shade”
9 x 12 oil on plein air linen panel
Painted at the Tejon Ranch, May 2012
See more of my oak tree paintings here
In the middle of a warm spring day, just about high noon, a mighty Tejon Ranch oak spreads its limbs to offer shade to all who visit. Cattle, mostly, but most likely some other critters, too. This majestic tree was silhouetted against the rolling hills and mountains of the ranch. Wherever you look, beauty surrounds you, making it a real treat for plein air painters – even during the part of the day when the light is less than dramatic. (That’s why we get up at dawn and stay painting until moonrise, when we can.
Below, a photo of my work in progress. There were occasional gusts of wind which threatened to topple my umbrella. A road hazard sawhorse came in handy. Sometimes you’ve just got to improvise.
Sunrise in the Oaks – Tejon Ranch California plein air Landscape impressionist oil painting by Karen Winters
“Sunrise in the Oaks”
11 x 14 oil on linen plein air panel
Tejon Ranch, May 2012
See more of my oak tree paintings here
REMINDER – Artists reception for my show at Gale’s Restaurant, Sunday, May 20 – 4-6 pm, 452 S. Fairoaks Ave., Pasadena
Good morning, Tejon. A small band of intrepid California Art Club plein air painters woke at 4 am to get to the ranch and queue up in our vehicles to be on site before the sun rose. I had found my perfect spot – on Sycamore Creek, looking eastward just as the sun peeked over the hills and made the leaves of the old oak dazzle with the backlight. I had to bundle up and dress in layers, knowing that before long I’d be peeling them off as the day turned warm. This, like all of the Tejon Ranch, is absolutely beautiful – a real treat for plein air painters. We appreciate the invitation and the privilege to be there.
California landscape oil painting- Vineyard and Eucalyptus trees – Summer’s Splendid End by Karen Winters
“Summer’s Splendid End”
16 x 20
California impressionist oil painting
SOLD
Golden vineyards, eucalyptus trees, rural agriculture and warm golden light. What could be more perfectly “California.”
Interested in other vineyard paintings?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
New Beginnings – California Sunrise Landscape Oil Painting by Karen Winters
“New Beginnings”
11 x 14 oil on linen
This painting represents the way dawn light falls on an old oak tree, in a California coastal meadow. I painted it as a study perhaps in preparation for a larger painting, but I’m keeping this one.
If you are interested in a larger version of this scene, Click this link to write me.
See more of my paintings on my website
California impressionist landscape oil painting – Hahamongna Park, Arroyo Seco, Pasadena – by Karen Winters
SOLD
“Reflections of springtime”
18 x 24 oil painting on canvas
Hahamongna Park, (Arroyo Seco)
Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
See more Pasadena paintings here
Winter rains leave seasonal ponds that eventually evaporate – but while they are present they provide a beautiful mirrored surface on a day with fair weather cumulus. Some of the arroyo has been dredged of its silt to provide a greater water-holding area near the dam, but I hope that the reedy parts will stay as they are.
Arroyo Moonrise – Arroyo Seco California nocturne oil painting by Karen Winters
Arroyo Moonrise
18 x 24 oil on canvas
Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
See more Pasadena paintings here
The moon serenely rises over a pond in the Arroyo Seco, San Gabriel Valley, CA. I intentionally kept this within a limited color range to capture the twilight mood. I’ve really been enjoying painting a lot of water lately. Look for more of those paintings here soon.
Fall at Convict Lake Eastern Sierra California oil painting by Karen Winters
“Fall at Convict Lake”
12 x 16
oil on canvas
Convict Lake is one of the most accessible High Sierra lakes – and in the fall, when the aspens turn color, it’s especially captivating. Some day I’ll spend the whole day there, just watching the light play across the faces of the granite mountains, as the clouds slowly drift, disappear and reform. I’m not sure what kind of fish were biting that day, but there were a lot of fishermen enjoying the freshness of fall.
Just this side of Paradise – Los Osos Central California plein air oil painting by Karen Winters
SOLD
“Just This Side of Paradise”
8 x 10 inch
Plein air oil painting
Exhibited in the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art
during the 2011 Plein Air Festival
Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
See more of my California Central Coast paintings here
This painting was done along Los Osos Valley road one morning, as rain clouds were gathering (or leaving) and the sun was trying to break through. I saw this scene while driving and hurried to turn around and park and set up my easel before the effect was lost. I liked the hay bales stacked up by the eucalyptus trees, so I put them in also.
The central peak in the background is one of the 9 sisters – the volcanic plugs which include Morro Rock and Bishop Peak. I think that one is Cerro Romualdo. It’s pyramid-shaped top is swathed in clouds.
The title comes from the fact that Paradise Lane is quite close by. I seem to run into a lot of places named Paradise – like Paradise camp in the Sierra, too.
California Central Coast oil painting “The Kitchen Garden” – Los Osos – by Karen Winters
“The Kitchen Garden”
9 x 12 oil painting
See more of my California Central Coast paintings here
Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
While I was in San Luis Obispo County for the Plein Air Festival this year, I saw this charming rural scene down a side road in Los Osos. The red barn style house provided a beautiful contrast to the vibrant green eucalyptus trees, and I liked the small vegetable garden growing nearby. It took me back to early California days, a bit of the past still thriving in the present.
