Sketchbook Rose - 7 x 10
While I work on some larger projects to prepare some paintings for shows, here’s a page from a Canson Montval sketchbook with a full blown Descanso rose. I didn’t spend a lot of time working on the subtle turn of each petal and leaf - I […]

Alverno Villa study - 7″ x 11″ watercolor in Raffine sketchbook
This morning our paintout group had the great treat of going to Alverno School in Sierra Madre, where there still stands a beautiful structure which was a villa of a wealthy man in the 1920s. There were so many wonderful views that […]

Tonight was Pasadena’s semi-annual “Art Night,” during which all the museums and other cultural institutions are open free to the public for their enjoyment. There’s not enough time to get around to all the rich offerings, but we had the opportunity to visit the Pasadena Museum of History where we saw the artwork of Sam […]

Asparagus 9 x 12 - 100 lb. paper
From my sketchbook …. When asparagus shows up in stores it’s a sure sign of spring, even if it comes from Chile or who knows where. My dear husband knows how much I love the vegetable and when it appears for a […]

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“Teahouse in Twilight” 9 x 12 watercolor in Raffine sketchbook.
It should come as no surprise to regular readers of this blog that I’m a very big fan of the California watercolorists of the 20s, 30s and 40s. The colors they used, the free use of color, line, shape and value and the […]

“Spring Thaw” - Watercolor on paper - 15″ x 11″ - 140# paper
We’ve been discussing color studies recently in the everyday matters yahoo group, so I’m posting this, and the preliminary “thumbnail” study as an example of that sort of thing. In a value study, the lights and darks (without color) […]

Yesterday I said I was going to pick some of my favorite drawings and paintings of 2006 and take a look at what they represented to me on my Creative Journey. It’s going to be too long to do all 12 months - so I’ll do the second six months tomorrow.
Now, when I look back […]

I interrupted Ripley’s morning nap (which occurred about an hour and a half after she woke up) to ask her to move to another dog bed where the light was better. Lucky thing I have such a cooperative model, who is willing to respond to my every command.

“Citrus Valley” - 9 x 12 sketchbook study
Between holidays and business, this week’s paintings may consist of quickie sketches in my sketchbooks. This study, painted in my Raffine book, represents a part of the landscape we visited last Sunday during some high windstorms. The area is near Ojai - inland from […]

Let’s say you’re a passenger in the car riding around with someone else doing errands. And let’s say one errand takes an unpredictably long time and there’s literally nothing attractive to paint or draw, even though you’ve got a sketchbook, portable palette and waterbrush with you.
You could read a magazine you keep in the car […]