Huntington Gardens Teahouse Plein Air – Karen Winters Daily Painting
Lions at the Gate – 8 x 10 oil on canvas on board
The truth in advertising part of this program compels me to confess that this was all painted from life at a paintout except for the sky – because I inadvertantly left the house without my tubes of paint – and there was insufficient cerulean and cobalt on my palette to do the deed without running out. So I used what skimpy blue I had to fill the area with the right color thinned with mineral spirits, but the thicker paint had to be applied after I got back home. There. I feel so much better.
Frankly, I might repaint that tree that has already shed its leaves, but I sort of liked the fact that it represented fall at the gardens. So I’ll have to think on that for awhile. The story of this painting is mainly about light – how it falls on the facade of the teahouse and the lion(s) that guard its entrance. The other lion is obscured by the front one so I left it out.
OK, and here’s some art news.
On Sunday I took the below painting to the San Gabriel Fine Arts Association meeting – which I’ve missed attending due to being at Descanso and other commitments, and I was thrilled to get first prize among the paintings displayed for competition, and to be chosen as artist of the month. The painting will go into the SGFAA gallery on Wednesday for a month and will compete in December for artist of the year.
And this painting got an award at the Verdugo Hills Art Association fall show. All in all, a good month!
Pasadena – Colorado Street Bridge – Arroyo Seco – Karen Winters Daily Painting
Colorado Street Bridge 5″ x 7″ oil on canvas panel
SOLD
The Colorado Street bridge, which spans the Arroyo Seco was the inspiration for this small impressionist painting. I’ve done plein air paintings in the arroyo many times and it is always a joy to be there. The beautiful sculptural arches frame a wide variety of California flora and fauna. (Remember the duck family?) Cottonwoods are turning color now and the eucalyptuses are as green and graceful as always.
Many years ago we needed a film shot representing falling in a nightmare and we lowered a small camera off the bridge. The effect was dizzying! If the bridge police are reading this, I can assure you it was at least 20 years ago and no eucalyptus trees were harmed in the process. And you can bet that the camera was safely tethered off, too. So that bridge will always have a special meaning for me.
University of Redlands Plein Air Painting – Admin Bldg and Rose Garden
Redlands Roses – 9 x 12 oil on canvas panel – Available
Here’s another painting from the Redlands paintout in Riverside, part of the centennial celebration, a view of the Admin building featuring the sculpture “American Deposition” and the Chancellor’s Rose Garden. This was painted on October 20, between 1 and 2 o clock when the sun was quite high in the sky.
Impressionist waterlilies – daily painting
Pink waterlilies – 9 x 12 inches – oil on canvas
I had such a good time painting the reflections on “Drifters in the Stream” that I decided to paint another “reflections” painting but this time with brighter subject matter. These bright waterlilies provided exciting subject matter to practice with.
Saturday night’s opening at the Pasadena Women’s City Club (Blinn House) was a wonderful event and I was so honored to be able to participate with a painting in the show. The show features 40+ paintings of streams, rivers and harbors and I was happy to see many of my painting friends there. We also had the distinct pleasure of meeting Lewis MacAdams, poet and co-founder of Friends of the LA River. His enthusiasm for stewardship of the river was contagious and we found ourselves captivated by his “word paintings” as well as his wealth of information about this beautiful resource. It’s just another beautiful place to paint in LA.
There aren’t any waterlilies in the LA River (that I’m aware of) but there are fish such as tilapia, catfish and carp and abundant crawfish which the herons and egrets adore. Steelhead salmon used to run in the LA river, although those days are past. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the river could be restored to the degree that it was possible again? To the untutored eye, the LA River seems to be completely encased in concrete — yet there are miles and miles of stretches where the river has a natural sandy bottom and where plant life abounds. Yes, I am a natural history geekette as well as a paint and botany fan. I could listen to stories of our local environment for hours and thankfully my dear husband feels the same way – we are both inveterate information junkies.
Sunset Oaks – Karen Winters Daily Painting
“Sunset Oaks” 12 x 16 oil on canvas
SOLD
This studio painting, based upon plein air references is a companion piece to Evening Glory (sold) which can be seen in the sidebar to the left. Painting “oaky goodness” as my husband and I refer to it, is one of my favorite things to do. Our coast live oak trees are simply magnificent any time of year. The dried grasses glow in the sunset giving yet another reason why we’re called The Golden State.
This painting will most likely be included a week from tomorrow at the Montrose Artwalk from 9 – 4 on Honolulu Avenue in Montrose. Look for me near the Citibank bank building.
University of Redlands Clocktower – Daily Painting
“Clocktower at Sunset -(University of Redlands)” – 11 x 15 watercolor
Here’s another of my University of Redlands series – the chapel clocktower at sunset, framed by a Chinese silk tree (I think) and a deodar fir tree. In the late afternoon the light made the facade of the tower just glow. I pushed the colors, of course, but that’s the fun of painting.
University of Redlands Sunset – Daily Painting
“Sunset on the Quad” – (University of Redlands) 5 x 7 oil
SOLD
This is one of the paintings I did last weekend en plein air at University of Redlands, about halfway between Los Angeles and Palm Springs. It was painted in the last 20 minutes of light of the day, when the colors are most intense and represents a view of the Administration Building from the viewpoint of the quad. Only a handful of painters were left at this time, but the colors were worth waiting for.
Painting at that speed means giving up actual detail for suggestion of detail, which is different kind of challenge and one that I enjoy.
This is one of the pieces that will be in the U. Redlands show, along with two other plein air paintings and a big bunch of other regional and desert scenes, some of which have already been posted here.
Temple of Love – Huntington Gardens – plein air
“Temple of Love” – 8 x 10 – oil
SOLD – but I have other Huntington paintings.
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
This little painting was painted plein air style at Huntington Gardens early one morning. The sun was climbing rapidly so I concentrated on painting the “temple of love” first, while the light bounced warmly inside the classical structure. Then, I worked on the foreground and background trees and finally the grass, which didn’t change appreciably. I don’t know the species of the large tree but it is not a weeping willow. I’d say it looks like it’s in the juniper family, and although I looked for a plant marker I didn’t find one. Maybe some horticultural expert who knows the Huntington plants can enlighten me? There is such a plant as a Tolleson’s weeping juniper, but it supposedly only grows to 30 feet and this one was much larger.
Anyway, back to the plein air part. I’ve been using a glass palette these past few weeks and although I’m a little concerned about its fragility in the field, I really like the ability to clean it quickly with a glass scraper and have a fresh area to mix in. I use a Masterson’s box to transport my palette and to keep it airtight between painting sessions, so the paint does stay fairly moist.
I think I have just outted myself as both a plant geek and a paint geek. Sad, isn’t it? (grin)
Call of the Desert – Pinyon Crest
“Call of the Desert” – 12 x 16 – oil on canvas
SOLD
This new painting – of an Inland Empire desert scene – will be one that I’ll display at the Redlands Centennial Plein Air show and sale this Saturday at the University of Redlands. It depicts a typical byway on the road to Idyllwild – up highway 74 – in a little community called Pinyon Crest. If you live in that area you know just the kind of terrain I’m talking about. Very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. The sale includes not only paintings of the University of Redlands and the city of Redlands but also scenes of the surrounding Inland Empire area – including San Bernardino and Riverside Counties.
Last Saturday’s paintout was a great deal of fun. I got three paintings done that day – two 8 x 10 sized ones of campus buildings, and one small 5 x 7 painting, done feverishly at sunset – showing a long view of the quad with students lounging on the grass. Surprisingly, it was not windy on Saturday and the weather was in the low 80s, quite mild. There’s another paintout tomorrow but I don’t think I’ll be going – too much wind on the freeways bouncing around big 18 wheelers.
A fall garden, plein air
Fall Garden – 9 x 12 – oil on board
A little plein air painting at Huntington Gardens – in a fall mood. In the foreground: mexican bush sage, backed up by red amaranthus. The green clump was another sage but I don’t know the name of the plant with the yellow foliage. I’ll try to ID it on my next trip. The day was gray and overcast but it made the colors “pop” in comparison.
Tonight I had the great delight of watching watercolorist Fealing Lin paint a demo. Last month I saw her paint a landscape – this month, at a different art group meeting, she did a fantastic loose portrait. Seeing her use of color and wet-into-wet techniques was inspiring and made me want to reach for my palette.
