Huntington Gardens Tea Room and Rose Garden – San Marino
Huntington Gardens
Tea Room and Rose Garden
Oil Painting
11 x 14 inches – oil on canvas
This is a plein air painting that I did a few years ago, and somehow it escaped being photographed and posted to my blog. A recent conversation prompted me to revisit it and I discovered that it was missing from my site.
Not too long ago we renewed our Huntington membership and I’m looking forward to visiting again when the camellias are in bloom. On a trip a few weeks ago, they had a California landscape exhibit which I enjoyed, along with other permanent collection work in the Paul and Heather Sturt Haaga gallery. If you live in Southern California and you’re not a member of the Huntington, what are you waiting for?
Pasadena Rose Bowl Painting – First Night Fireworks – Pasadena Pops
“First Night Fireworks
Pasadena Pops at the Rose Bowl”
16 x 12 oil on wood panel
See more Pasadena and Rose Bowl paintings here
This painting is the 2nd place winner of the 2010 Pasadena Artwalk Competition. The Artwalk will be held Saturday, October 9, from 10 – 5 pm on El Molino Street in Pasadena, between Colorado Blvd. and Green Street.
The theme of this year’s Artwalk competition was “Art and Culture in Pasadena.” Because the Pasadena Pops and Pasadena Symphony orchestras bring so much cultural richness to the city, I decided to paint the closing act of the first show of the 2010 season. This year, the Pops is at a new venue on the lawn next to the Rose Bowl and fireworks provided an exciting finish to the June concert. I have not painted fireworks before (and this was a studio painting, not from life) but it was a lot of fun to do. Who knows, there may be other explosions in my future. Look closely and you’ll see that of course, there are eucalyptus trees in it – silhouetted by the pyrotechnics.
In 2008, this painting of mine, “El Molino Afternoon,” took First Prize and went home with a nice family who lived on the street.
California Landscape Painting – Cambria Farm – Central Coast California small format oil painting
Cambria Farm
6 x 8 oil painting on linen panel
Plein air field study
See more California Central Coast paintings here
An old farm building is surrounded by lofty eucalyptuses in Cambria. The marine layer had started to roll in, softening the contours of the landscape that day. Another quick study from our Central Coast California trip, with the California Art Club.
Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. Or write karen at karenwinters.com See more of my paintings on my website
California Wildflower Landscape Cambria Lupine Flowers Plein Air Field Study
Cambria Lupine Flowers
8 x 6″ oil
Last spring, when we were in Central California with the California Art Club, we wandered through the countryside in search of wildflowers to paint. We came upon this beautiful hillside just covered with lupine and small orange flowers. The scent of the lupine was heady and I think the bees must have been drunk with it. As I painted this small study there was a constant buzzing sound around me. This study will provide information for a larger painting.
-Interested in this painting?
Click this link to write me. See more of my paintings on my website
A Garden Wedding – Live Event Painting
Garden Wedding
9 x 12 oil
SOLD
Not too long ago I was at a botanical garden for an art show and a wedding was about to take place. It seemed like a beautiful romantic scene to paint, so we asked the wedding party if they would allow me to paint discreetly from the side. They graciously said yes and this was the result. The framed painting was delivered today to family members who are giving it as a gift. (You’ll notice I’m not mentioning the name of the garden or the family. Shhh, it’s a surprise.)
Usually when I do a plein air painting I try to portray an exact moment as it is – a shadow pattern at a specific time, a certain quality of light. Wedding paintings are somewhat different in that they are idealized renditions of an entire event. In this painting, by the time the bride and groom arrived after taking their pictures, there was little light left on plaza. Some of the guests said they were sorry that the wildflowers in the background were not blooming as they had been a month before. I told them – in my painting they’ll be blooming. Milford Zornes, the watercolorist, once said “paint it the way it could be.” When it comes to event painting, that is very good advice.
Wedding paintings make treasured heirloom gifts. To ask about live painting at a wedding (or a studio painting from a wedding photo),
click this link to write me.
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Newport Back Bay Twilight – Newport Beach California estuary marine oil painting
Back Bay Twilight
(Upper Newport Bay – “Back Bay,” California)
9 x 12 oil on canvas panel
Plein air oil painting
SOLD
This is sold, but you can see more of my Newport Beach paintings here
This was one of the paintings that I took to the Newport Back Bay show last weekend, one of several which went home with new collectors. What a great weekend it was meeting so many new people and sharing my love of art with them. The weather was beautiful. Good times all around.
Now I’m painting for several upcoming shows but my outdoor show schedule will settle down until early September when I do the Montrose Artwalk again, followed by the Bowers Museum Invitational show. It’s good to have a few weeks off to regroup, get out and paint some new work for fall exhibitions.
Silvery Streams – Newport Back Bay Oil Painting
“Silvery Streams”
8 x 10 oil on canvas panel
Juried into SoCal PAPA’s Newport Back Bay Show – July 23-25, Muth Interpretive Center, Newport Beach
This was painted in Rigel Park in Newport, about a month or so ago, for the SoCal Plein Air Painters Assn. biennial show and sale which will be taking place this weekend. The artists reception is 6-9 pm Friday evening. If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll attend.
This small painting was challenging to do not only because of the changing light at sunset but also because the tide was coming in and the patterns of water among the estuary sand bars didn’t stay the same for long.
Kayaking on Back Bay – Newport Back Bay Oil Painting
Kayaking on Back Bay
acrylic
11 x 14
When I was painting this, I liked the scene, but I liked it even better when some kayakers glided through the bay. There was a good place for them so I put them in.
This is one of two paintings that I painted for the upcoming SoCal Plein Air Painters Association Juried Show at the Muth Center, in the Upper Newport Bay next Saturday and Sunday, July 24 and 25. In addition I will be exhibiting about 18 other paintings of Southern California in this 50 artist outdoor group exhibition and sale.
I’ve decided that in addition to getting around the state and exploring different areas, I should also explore some places closer to home. Orange County, and the areas around Laguna, Newport Beach, San Clemente and Dana Point are among the locations that I’ve been painting at, and will continue to appreciate in paint.
Through the Bowers Museum show and various California Art Club events, as well as through the San Clemente Plein Air paint out and studio painting opportunities at Randy Higbee’s store and gallery… I’ve had the pleasure of meeting a number of SoCal PAPA artists. It was the right time to join the group and have fun participating in some of their shows, too.
Here’s one thing that’s tricky about classifying a painting like this. It’s an estuary, so technically it’s a marine painting. But is it a seascape? A landscape? A sea-landscape? I’m going to list it in both categories, just to be contrary.
La Canada Landscape Oil Painting – Memorial Day Concert – California impressionist genre painting
Memorial Day Concert, 2010
(La Canada Flintridge, featuring Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries)
8 x 10
plein air oil painting
This painting is now SOLD but I have many others for sale…..
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Ah, the beginning of summer, and the summer Music in the Park series in my hometown, La Canada Flintridge. I enjoyed painting this scene while visiting with picnickers and others who were out savoring the warm day. The first act, Misplaced Priorities, energized the audience and set the stage for the second act, Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries. Both 50s-60s rock bands were enthusiastically received. In front of the gazebo/bandshell, dancers of all ages found their groove.
When I was growing up, I couldn’t imagine having fun dancing to the same music my grandparents liked. But old time rock and roll was appreciated that day by 70-somethings and 5 year olds alike.
It was good to see so many friends and neighbors out relaxing. Thanks to the LCF Chamber of Commerce for making Fiesta Days a wonderful event once again.
Moonstone Beach Sunset Cambria Plein Air Oil Painting Seascape by Karen Winters
Moonstone Beach Sunset
6 x 8″ plein air study
oil on linen panel
April 2010
This past week I was up in Central California for a California Art Club paintout on San Luis Obispo Land Conservancy lands. The locations were beautiful, but we got rained out inland several days in a row. One day we headed for the coastline where the weather was very cold and windy but clear. At sunset I painted this small study.
How windy was it? Check out the front of my broad-brimmed hat, below. It doesn’t normally flip up in the air like that. It was also too windy to use my easel on a tripod so I held my EasyL easel on my lap. A furniture pad provided some padding and protection from the cold. Brrrrr. We finished off the evening with a dinner at a nearby Moonstone Beach restaurant, then headed back to our motel in SLO, to rest up for another day.
