Cobb Sunset Trail – New Gallery Site
“Cobb Sunset Trail” – 12 x 16 – oil on canvas
After a certain amount of procrastination, I’ve finally organized some of my favorite paintings (including this brand new one) into a gallery website separate from this blog. If you’d like to have a look, visit Karen Winters Fine Art or click the New Gallery Site icon in the right hand sidebar. I will be updating that site regularly, but I wanted to get something in place. If you find any links that don’t work, please let me know.
I’ve just joined two local art associations, the San Gabriel Fine Arts Association and The California Art Club and look forward to getting to know other artists and participating in paint outs and learning from the many fine artists who share their knowledge so generously. We are fortunate to have a lively and active arts community in the city, and I’m hoping to participate in every way that I can.
As a matter of fact, I’ve already taken part in two events at the SGFAA – I entered a watercolor painting for their July “Americana” show and was delighted to find that it won first prize. I’m sorry, I’ll have to wait until I visit the gallery to take a picture and post it. I framed it the night before it was due and neglected to scan it first. The other event, last Sunday was a wonderful demonstration by Joseph Stoddard, whose loose watercolors are a delight to behold. If you’re in the So. Cal. area, check out this group.
This Sunday I’m going to be taking part in a California Art Club paint out at Pasadena City Hall in honor of the refurbishment of their classic building, bringing it up to seismic standards and re-beautifying it as well. I’m really looking forward to the event and hoping that the day won’t be a scorcher.
Until then, I’ll be busily painting. Have a good weekend, everyone!
Eaton Canyon Morning
“Eaton Canyon Morning” 9 x 12 – oil on hardboard – SOLD
This morning was delightfully overcast and cool for an hour or so while I painted this in Eaton Canyon, in the northern part of Pasadena. The wash is bone dry and even the random grasses seemed to be struggling for whatever meager water they may find under the gravel and boulders.
I’m really looking forward to going back in the late afternoon to paint some of those shadows. I’ve painted the same area before in watercolor (below), but not in oil. Another day, another season, another medium – it’s a whole new experience. (And this time I didn’t see or hear anything scarier than a covey of quail!)
Painted this last September – “San Gabriel Sunset” – watercolor
Rosarium Sunset
“Rosarium Sunset” 8 x 10 oil on canvasboard
On the heels of yesterday’s plein air outing at the arroyo, we went to Descanso Gardens at sunset today for some more painting and photographing. Descanso is open Thursday nights for the months of July and August. I wait all year for this opportunity to see the beautiful gardens at “golden hour” – the loveliest time (other than dawn.)
This represents one of the paths lined with rose bushes. Roughing in the painting took about an hour, from 615 t0 715, and I added finishing touches (such as the sky) after I got home. At that time of day the light was changing so rapidly there was not much point in painting after an hour had elapsed. I finished it off at home, refinining edges, adjusting things. The above painting represents the colors as they really are under room light conditions. The photographs below are more bluish, representing shady daylight conditions.
I promised some people that the very next time I went out painting with my lightweight easel that I would take pictures of the shelf in closeup, so here they are. I made a cardboard mock-up to work out the dimensions, then gave it to my husband who cut it out of 1/4″ masonite. There are no supports underneath the shelf other than two little L brackets to reinforce the holes. It sits on the easel by a friction-fit.
Arroyo Dawn – Daily Painting
“Arroyo Dawn” – 8 x 10″ oil on canvasboard
SOLD to a collector from Pasadena
See more Pasadena paintings here
When my husband and I had our duck adventure a few days ago, we were so struck with the beauty of the upper pond under Pasadena’s majestic bridges that we decided we’d go back soon to see what the light was like in the morning. (Can you tell we are dyed-in-the-wool photographers and artists?) Knowing that the 4th of July wasn’t going to be a work day, we set our alarms for early and got up before the sun peeped over the San Gabriels (see yesterday’s post) so we could grab a cup of coffee and head down to the Arroyo Seco.
Now, even though I’ve been doing a lot of oil painting recently, most of it has been studio painting from my own photo references – I haven’t taken the time to schlep my gear out into the field. The main difference is that even though watercolor takes practically as much gear, you can just pop the finished painting into a bag and not worry about it. Oil takes a bit more planning. I’ve got to get one of those wet panel holders to carry them home. I attached this wet one to the side of the French easel but worried about it as I carried it back up the gully. I found this environment to be beautiful but very challenging as the light changed radically from moment to moment as it slipped into the deep ravine. I followed the advice of the best plein air painters I’ve been studying: block in your scene and then stick with it.
Here are a couple of pictures of my setup and a glimpse of the environment
And if you were wondering about the fate of the ducks, we saw that mom and her brood were up early, having breakfast as we arrived. The fifth duckling is on the other side of mom, obscured by her tail. They were grazing for bugs or whatever they eat at the edge of the steep spillway.
San Gabriel Sunset
San Gabriel Sunset 14 x 11″ Oil on stretched canvas
SOLD
If one stands in Hahamongna Park, in the northern part of the Arroyo Seco, you can see NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab facility in the foothills of the mighty San Gabriel range. I am especially fond of drawing and painting in the arroyo area. There are so many different textures and colors to experience through course of the year, depending upon the time of day.
The Ducklings and the Dam: An Art Fable
“Duck and ducklings” 6 x 8 acrylic on matboard
SOLD
On Saturday afternoon, just before sunset, my husband and son and I decided to take a walk in the Arroyo Seco area of Pasadena, which is spanned by several enormous bridges. A river runs through it, although this time of year it is usually a trickle. The river comes out of Hahamongna Park, another area that I like to go to paint and draw.
Having left the parking lot, we were heading toward the bridges when both my husband and I spied something extraordinary down in the flood channel: a mother duck was leading her five ducklings upstream. The channel, paved with cement, was mostly dry, but the area where they were walking (and they were walking, not paddling) was damp and slick with algae. The mother kept a brisk pace and the ducklings ran their little buns off trying to keep up with her. Where did they come from? How did they get down into the channel with its vertical sides which they clearly couldn’t get out of?
I was not concerned about them drowning. They are ducks after all and even if the meager flow in the channel increased, they could simply float on top of it. But I was worried about one hazard that lay ahead; a steep 45 degree ramp that formed the dam’s spillway that held back the upper pond. If they could not get out of the channel, the group would be easy picking for predators (such as owls) and night was approaching rapidly.
We gave up our desire for an aerobic walk and paced the ducks as they continued their trek. At times some of the smaller ones would take a tumble, but they quickly regained their footing and put on the speed to catch up with the group. The mother did not hesitate nor look back but would occasionally issue sharp quacks which I took to be a sort of encouragement to keep up. She set the pace and their imprinting forced them to follow.
Soon the steep ramp loomed ahead. We crossed a bridge and continued watching them as they approached this obstacle. We wondered how they would fare and held our breath. My husband was already assessing the situation and figuring a way down into the channel in case he had to do a rescue operation. That’s just the kind of man he is – always at the ready to help a damsel in distress.
The mother duck bravely led her charges up the ramp, avoiding the slick area and keeping to patches of dry paving. Her children struggled behind her but kept up the pace. But there was a final obstacle – a small protruding ledge, jutting out no more than 3 or 4 inches that they would have to go around. It was this ledge that had kept the slope dry for their ascent, but going around it and entering the pool of water at the top would mean stepping into a slippery stream of slime. We could practically see her assessing the situation and she opted to go around the corner of the ledge, her babies following. The safety of the pool was only a foot away, but the steep slippery slope was too great a match and she tumbled far down the slope, sweeping the ducklings with her. As soon as she recovered from the fall she turned around and headed back up the dry area again, and the ducklings followed. Thankfully, none seemed injured in the fall. As she approached the barrier ledge, this time she fluttered her wings and hopped over it. She was safe … but what about her brood?
The mother duck turned around and issued a few sharp quacks and the babies, unable to fly enough to get over the ledge, went around the ledge as they had before, but with their lighter mass and without the mother falling and carrying them down, four were able to scramble through the slippery scum and just barely get a webbed foothold on the top ledge, to join the other in the waiting pond.
The fifth duckling was not so fortunate and tumbled down the slope a second time. We were surprised to see that the mother duck was not anxiously looking over the ledge to see what happened to the final one. She had four to keep track of on top. Nature, or instinct probably told her to look after the greatest number. The fifth duckling shook itself off again, and with inspiring determination trudged up the slope a third time, got to the most treacherous part, fluttered and made it over the top to join the family. We, and some other walkers watching this episode all broke out in applause. The duck then quickly shepherded all the ducklings under some willow trees that were overhanging the pond. This, no doubt, would be their safe haven for the night. We saw her later diving for food in the pond, but the babes were nowhere to be seen.
Questions arose that we will never have answers for. Had the family been nesting elsewhere and just decided to relocate? Or were they always living in the upper pond and the mother had taken them all out for exercise and strengthening. Had she been a duck raised in that area or was she from somewhere else? Where was the drake? Was she unconcerned about the fate of the fifth duckling when she turned her attention to the others? Was she obeying an instinct that told her to keep her eye on the greatest number? Or did she have faith that the last little one would make it?
And what, if anything, does all of this have to do with making art?
Here’s what I’ve learned from these duck adventures:
1. Getting where you want to go isn’t always easy and it isn’t always fun. It can be a lot of hard work just trying to keep up. But whining and falling behind really isn’t an option.
2. When you’re on a journey (creative or otherwise) it’s good to have companions to help you keep the pace. Make friends with other artists and take part in activities that challenge you. “Play up” as they say in sports. Do things with people who are more skilled and experienced than you are. Be inspired by their determination and energy.
3. Find a good mentor who knows the way and who will lead by example. The mother duck didn’t try to carry the babies on her back or worry about whether they were all comfortable and having a good time. (“Are we there yet?”) She set the pace and the expectations. She didn’t nag, cajole or make snarky comments about their paddling technique. A few directive quacks seemed to be enough to keep the group in line. Imprinting and instinct did the rest.
4. Unexpected obstacles will arise. Take them in stride. Just when you think that your journey is going to be a walk in the park, you come upon a 45 degree wall of slime with only a small semi-dry pathway to the top. Try to avoid the slime if you can. And if you can’t …
5. Don’t let a setback (or two, or three) stop your journey. If you’re pushing yourself you will certainly face seemingly insurmountable problems. But the truth is, everyone trips. Everyone falls. Everyone makes a fluttering, crashing spectacle of themselves at one time or another. But those are learning experiences and the next time you face the obstacle you might just try something different or decide to gather yourself together and muscle your way through. If you’re a duckling, failure and giving up is not an option. Don’t make it an option for you, either. Even if you’re the fifth duckling and everyone else has “arrived”, keep going. You can all party and pig-out on polliwogs at the top.
6. Struggle makes you stronger. My guess is that those ducklings were going to sleep well Saturday night. But Sunday morning they’d be stronger and more experienced than if they hadn’t had that field trip. Maybe the mother duck knew that, too. If you avoid a certain type of drawing or painting, tackle it. Face the hill.
Below: The real mom and ducklings in the channel. Sorry it’s not a good picture but low light conditions, distance and shooting through a chain link fence complicated things
Let’s Play – Daily Painting
“Let’s Play” – 8 x 10 acrylic on canvasboard
A few days ago, at an art gathering, one of the people mentioned that a local art club was having a show on the theme “Americana” and invited me to submit something. I realized that it was too late to paint something in oils, due to the drying time, and I wanted more of an oil look instead of watercolor. So I decided to paint this in acrylic instead. I don’t often paint in acrylic but I have to say that the convenience of having something done and ready to show quickly is really appealing.
I’ll also consider this something for the Everyday Matters “Draw some sporting goods” challenge.
The more different media I explore, the more I come to realize that painting is just painting. Although there are specifics that are pertinent to the particular medium (painting from light to dark in watercolor, vs. dark to light in oil … having to ‘save whites’ in watercolor vs. the freedom of painting white over other layers in oils) … a great deal of painting is much the same. Brush handling, painting values and shapes, composition, modeling forms – these things are very much the same no matter the medium. The other day I picked up one of Charles Reid’s books on flower painting and I was amazed at the consistency between his watercolor and oil painting. They both portray Reid’s characteristic style and flair, even though rendered in completely different media.
So if you’ve been avoiding experimenting in a different medium, give it a try. You might be pleasantly surprised that it’s not as difficult a stretch as you might think.
White Oleander Trail
“White Oleander Trail” – 8 x 10 oil on canvasboard
This is the second in my ongoing series of “Trails of La Canada-Flintridge.” Eventually I’d like to paint all of the interesting byways that criss-cross our little town, winding along back yards and horse corrals in this distinctly suburban-semi-rural area. This part of the trail, in Flint Canyon, passes by fences that are crowned with huge oleander plants – in rose and white. I suppose one of these days I’ll include a hiker, biker or horseback rider on the trail, as they are used by all three. But for now I’ll leave it open and you can use your imagination to suggest who’ll be coming round the bend.
Lemons and Silver – California still life oil painting
“Lemons and Silver” – 8 7/8″ x 7 7/8″ – oil on masonite –
Arroyo Shelter – Daily Painting
Arroyo Shelter” – 8 x 10 – oil on canvasboard
When I take a walk through the Hahamongna wetlands area in the nearby arroyo, I love to look at the various forms of short shrubbery and small trees that are home to so many kinds of wildlife. Late in the day, rabbits emerge from the brush and red-winged blackbirds roost in the many small willow trees that fill the area.
I’m not sure of the name of these small trees – next time I’ll have to take a field guide along and see if I can identify them.
This week I’ve been taking a break from watercolor to work in oil and to put into practice some of what I’ve been learning. This week I was fortunate to come into contact with a woman who was giving up oils for acrylic painting and selling her supplies. So my paint box is restocked (for the moment) and I have a few new colors to experiment with, too.
