California plein air seascape oil painting of Morro Bay – Montana De Oro by Karen Winters



SOLD “A Walk to the Dunes”
(Morro Bay, Montana de Oro vicinity, San Luis Obispo)
8 x 10 plein air oil painting on linen panel

See more of my California Central Coast paintings here

The day after the reception for the California Art Club group show at the San Luis Obispo Art Museum, the weather was perfect for some painting. In the morning I painted at Karner’s point (near Baywood Park) and in the afternoon, the destination was this spot near Montana de Oro. The hazy late afternoon light created a magical look to the whole scene. The tranquil sea can be seen beyond the distant dunes. Large eucalyptus trees shelter one of the many small houses in the area. From this viewpoint, if you were to look another 30 degrees to the right you would see Morro Rock.

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Morning at the Cove – Baywood Park, Morro Bay California Impressionist Plein Air Painting by Karen Winters

“Morning at the Cove”
8 x 10 plein air oil painting on linen panel
Cuesta Cove, Baywood Park (near Morro Bay, Los Osos area)
California Central Coast
SOLD

This plein air painting was done last weekend while I was up in San Luis Obispo attending the opening of the California Art Club “Gems of the Central Coast” show at the San Luis Obispo Art Museum. The morning after the reception, some of my painting friends and I went over to this picturesque area. When I began to paint, the tide was in and the water was very still, allowing a beautiful reflection of the eucalyptus grove. By the time an hour had passed, the wind came up and the reflection was gone. Such is the plein air life!

California Landscape Spring Oil Painting – Eaton Canyon Pasadena

“Gentle Springtime”
11 x 14 oil painting on hardboard panel
Eaton Canyon, near Pasadena, California

See more Pasadena paintings here

I started this plein air painting a few years ago and got distracted with other things and didn’t finish it up. Now that it’s almost springtime again, it seemed like a good time to revisit it and complete it. Since then, I’ve bought an artworks essentials EasyL which is much easier to transport, and doesn’t require a separate easelmate to hold things, like this Yarka did. I like the fact that I can raise the tripod with the Easy L so I’m not looking down at the painting. I’m tall and I always ended up with a backache at the end of the day from slightly bending over at the waist. A good friend of mine said that the Yarka is great for carrying pastels outdoors, however, so I might set it up with that. Almost every plein air painter I know has a collection of easels that they try, in search of the perfect one. The biggest advantage of this old Russian Yarka is that it’s light and sets up in about 1 minute. The down side is its height and lack of adaptability to carry wet panels of all sizes.

Can Spring Be Far Away? California Landscape Painting Oaks and Chapparal

La Crescenta Park plein air oil painting of oaks, sycamores, buckwheat and the San Gabriel Mountains, by California impressionist Karen Winters

“Can Spring Be Far Away?”
8 x 10 plein air oil painting on linen panel
San Gabriel Mountains, California native plants
Near La Canada Flintridge

These days the sycamores are beginning to show a little color. (Those trees in the background with white trunks.)
The buckwheat is putting on green growth (the shrubby bushes in the foreground) and the live oaks even look a little fresher around the edges, even though they never really lose their leaves like their deciduous friends. (Oaks are on the right side.)
Yup, the signs are all there that spring is on the way – which arrives earlier in California than most of the country, sorry about that. The joggers have abandoned their heavy sweatshirts, and a few souls are running in shorts.

California plein air seascape Morro Bay Cuesta Cove – A Walk by the Bay

“A Walk by the Bay”
(Cuesta Cove, near Morro Bay and Baywood Park)
12 x 9″ plein air oil painting on linen panel
Central California

This painting was started en plein air last springtime, and I am getting around to finishing it up. A beautiful little inlet near Morro Bay is the setting. Of course there are eucalypti, which was what attracted me to the setting to begin with. At this time of day the tide was fully in the estuary. Other times, it looks like a mud flat – not a lot of reflected blue sky, then.

Pasadena Colorado Street Bridge Plein Air Painting – The Bridge Aglow

Colorado Street Bridge, Pasadena, oil painting from the viewpoint of the Robinson House

SOLD

“The Bridge Aglow”
(Colorado Street Bridge, Pasadena)
11 x 14
Oil painting on linen panel

This painting is sold, but you can see more Pasadena paintings here

The Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena is an icon that I never tire of painting. This painting was started on site last fall, and has been waiting for me to put on the finishing touches. The viewpoint is the eastern side of the Arroyo Seco, not far from the Federal Courthouse, formerly known as the Vista Del Arroyo Hotel.

There used to be monthly California Art Club paintouts at the arroyo, but I don’t think they’re doing that any longer. I liked this viewpoint for painting the bridge because it shows it in relation to both sides of the canyon, although not the entire span.

Sunflower Garden – Descanso Gardens Landscape Oil Painting

Descanso Gardens Sunflower Garden
9 x 12 oil painting on linen
Plein air painting

See more of my Descanso Gardens paintings here

Last autumn, when the flowers were completing their blooming season at Descanso Gardens, I painted this stand of Mammoth Sunflowers, caught in the afternoon sunlight. By the way the heads were bowing, I knew they wouldn’t last too much longer. The camellias are in bloom now, and I am looking forward to the tulip show at Descanso, if they have planted them this year.

Painting note: although the underpainting was done with thin transparent darks, the opaque paint on top was painted with a very limited palette of red, yellow, blue, white and gray. Amazing how many colors you can get from those few primaries.

Windy Vineyard – Temecula Vineyard Landscape Oil Painting

“Windy Vineyard”
12 x 9 oil on canvas laid on panel
Plein air landscape, Temecula,
Falkner Vineyard. November 2010

SOLD

See more of my vineyard paintings here

This was the third painting I worked on last year at the Falkner Vineyard paint out. I can’t say it was the third painting completed, because the light had changed so completely late in the afternoon (and a cloud bank rolled in) so I knew it was time to call it a day.
I finished it up back in the studio where there was considerably less wine, and a lot less wind.

The folks at the vineyard had a nice reception for us after we all finished painting for the day. After a glass of “Luscious Lips” I erroneously declared this one to be titled “Vindy Wineyard.” The alternate name stuck. So you can call it Vindy Wineyard or Windy Vineyard, depending upon how much Luscious Lips you’ve imbibed.

Have I ever mentioned here that I love to paint eucalyptuses? Only about a hundred times, right?

Karen Winters paints at Falkner Vineyard in Temecula, California

San Mateo Creek, San Clemente – California Plein Air Landscape Painting by Karen Winters

San Mateo Creek, San Clemente
9 x 12 plein air oil painting on linen panel

See more of my seascapes here

This overlook of the San Mateo Creek in San Clemente was painted last summer during the San Clemente Plein Air paint out.
I liked this location with its expansive vista of land and sea in the distance. The famous surfing spot, Trestles, is on the other side of that railroad bridge.

California Central Coast Plein Air Oil Painting – Farm near Nipomo


“Farm Near Nipomo”
8 x 10 oil painting
Central Coast, California, San Luis Obispo County

• SOLD
to a collector in Buffalo, NY

See more of my California Central Coast paintings here

This is the 2nd of three plein air paintings I did last spring in Nipomo, near the Dana Adobe. If you look at my previous painting posted a few days ago, you’ll see some trees and buildings in the distance. This is a “closeup” of one of those clusters of habitation. Because I wasn’t inclined to move my whole setup, I simply changed my point of view to “zoom in” so to speak, and continued with a new field study.