Cat Heaven
“Cat Heaven” 8in x 12 in – watercolor on 140# Fabriano paper
SOLD
Auction will begin at 4 pm Pacific Time Friday – Click to bid
The theme of this months’ Nibblefest is “doorways” or “open doors” and I had the idea of painting a door open onto a beautiful garden. But it looked empty so I thought I’d add a cat for a point of interest. And after I painted it, it hit me: I was painting Mandu in what I hope is an environment she would like. (There would be mice and cream, of course, but that didn’t fit the theme.
Here’s a closeup of just cat:
Here’s a closeup of just the climbing rose:
Looks Like Rain
We’re hoping it will be rain, that is. Tonight we may see showers and tomorrow there’s a 90% chance of real, honest to God RAIN. This has been the driest winter in recent years which means the fire danger will be even more extreme as the sparse bits of grass and growth on the hillside dry out. The sierra snowpack has been less as well, so I’ve heard. Our water bills are out of sight so I’m hoping for at least one good soak before we head into the dry season that extends to November.
Tomorrow afternoon I’ll be posting a new painting for Ebay’s Nibblefest – that’s the one where we all try to get the highest number of very small bids from different people. Bidding will start at 99 cents and go up in 50 cent increments. They haven’t posted the winners for March yet, but I thank everyone who bid on the baby bird in the man’s hands and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it competed well. That painting went to a loving home and the collector is someone who raised a baby bird by hand, so it was quite special to her. I love to paint things that strike emotional notes, whether it’s one of joy, nostalgia, hope, even wistfulness or turmoil.
I guarantee that the painting to be posted tomorrow will be an emotional one, too. If you’ve been reading this blog for a year or so, you’ll know why the moment you see it.
Sycamore Creek
Sycamore Creek – 11 x 15 – watercolor on 140# paper
SOLD
Now this is a little more my speed. Some abstraction and impressionism, but some realism, too. I painted this picture twice today. The first one used more glazing, more overlapping patches of color in the main tree. I put that aside and tried another where the leaf patterns were painted more wet in wet. This seasonal creek is really at the Placerita Canyon Nature Center. The trees are beautifully green now, but I liked them better when they were decked out in reds and golds along with the green.
Thanks to everyone for all your thoughtful and insightful comments about the abstract exercise and the experience of coming under the influence of a teacher, or a artistic friend with a distinctive style.
A propos of that, today’s art advice is a quote from Frank LaLumia, plein air painter, as quoted in the January 2006 American Artist magazine.
“When you are responding to the subject rather than painting in a preconceived manner, you will find yourself doing things spontaneously, differently. In this way, every year your painting will look more like itelf and less like that o your teachers or other influences.”
Abstract sycamore
This was an exercise in abstracting natural forms in my watercolor class. Our teacher, who paints marvelously, is encouraging us to think more in terms of abstraction and symbol rather than literally painting what we see in front of us. I ‘get it’ and am doing the exercises and such, but there’s still a part of me that wants a tree to look like a tree with all the leafy bits (although not TOO fussy.) I’m guessing that my style will even out somewhere between the two, under the influence of my own predilections, likes and dislikes and gentle influence of other teachers yet to come. I love the California school painters with their abstraction and wild colors, but I also love Sargent and his beautiful loose renderings that simultaneously reveal and suggest. And I adore the crisp geometric patterns of Dong Kingman and the sweeping emotional scenes of Emil Kosa and the controlled wildness of Charles Reid. All of them – they all touch my heart, much as I like early music like that of Talis as well as jazz (but only if it swings.) Must we fit in only one mold?
Synchronistically, I opened a random art magazine to a random page and came up with an interview with Tony Pro an oil painter. Pro relates how he had the opportunity to meet Richard Schmid (author of Alla Prima and many other outstanding books.) Pro says that Schmid was kind but honest in reviewing his work, and advised him to be true to himself and not to copy others. Pro concluded with what what is today’s art advice: “Don’t paint like someone else to impress someone – work only to impress yourself.”
Geometric trees may be sophisticated, but for now they just don’t swing. Maybe they will some day – I’ll have to wait and see.
California Byway
California Byway – 7″ x 5″ – watercolor
A peaceful country road in the Ojai area, a little northwest of Los Angeles.
There are still agrarian areas, even in Southern California, where the landscape still looks much as it did a hundred years ago (as long as you don’t notice the late model SUVs zipping by.)
When we take road trips we seek out these out of the way places off the beaten path where the late afternoon sun reminds us that it really is a golden state.
Art advice from watercolorist Rex Brandt:
“I advocate the study of other artists’ ways and indeed, I am suspicious of the student or teacher who professes neither knowledge nor concern about the ways of the masters of his field.”
High Desert Ravine
“High Desert Ravine” – watercolor – 8″ x 10″ – available
A roadside stop on the way to Idyllwild provided the inspiration for this watercolor sketch. Sagebrush, crumbing granite and the scruffy native bushes gave me an interesting variety of textures and colors to work with.
Good advice from David Millard on painting:
“Be a doer … don’t just talk about it. Talent is what your mother talks about. Work is what gets you around the bases and score!”
Cactus Cottage –
Cactus Cottage – 5.5″ x 8″ watercolor
Here’s an impressionist sketch of a cottage garden with a picket fence- inspired by a street we walked down in Capistrano.
Very quick and loose, with a minimum of explicit detail. I like the rambunctious feeling of it. In the midst of all the cottage flowers mixed with California natives there was a large beavertail cactus and some other tall, ridged kinds. I like the feeling of new world meets old, duking it out for visual superiority.
Back Country Creek
“Back Country Creek” – 9 x 12 watercolor on paper
A spring day in a subdued mood!
Wistaria branch
Wistaria Branch – 9 x 12″ on paper
Today’s paintout outing took us to a house in Sierra Madre where the world’s largest Chinese wistaria vine is growing. Sprawling, that is, over two homes. The perfume from the flowers was intoxicating as we painted the vine in all its springtime finery.
This was direct-painted primarily with a large, flat one-inch brush with no preliminary pencil drawing . The tiniest springs and trailing vines were added later with a very thin brush.
I think it has somewhat of an Asian feeling to it, appropriate to a plant that is native to China. What do you think?
Minerva Getty
Minerva – 9 x 12 graphite drawing on pastel paper – after Nollekens
Yesterday I had the opportunity to return to the Hillside Getty in Sepulveda Pass for a little drawing practice. I just had time for two drawings this time – This first was this Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of war. Unlike the Malibu Getty where there are numerous seats for viewing the sculptures, at the Hillside Getty they want you to keep moving so drawing means standing and balancing the sketchbook on your arm which is what I needed to do here. I much prefer the stability of working on my lap, but sometimes you just need to make do.
There were throngs of people, as usual. I started drawing this from one angle which was completely unsatisfactory and I turned the page over to begin again. A group of women walked by and asked if they could look. Rarely, I say no, but this time I did. “Is it bad luck?” one asked. “Yes, I said, it’s bad luck.” Gotta remember that one. Later another woman asked to see and I was far enough along that I was happy to show her the drawing in progress and we chatted for awhile about both Gettys and their Friday evening drawing class which happens twice a month. The gallery guard stopped by periodically to see my progress, too. He was a really nice guy and seemed to enjoy seeing the drawing take form. He said that an artist occasionally draws upstairs in the painting gallery but he scowls at anyone who attempts to speak to him so that says to me that people generally don’t know what kind of reaction they’ll get from someone who’s drawing. If I’m drawing indoors with plenty of time, I don’t mind stopping and chatting. But if I’m chasing the light with a watercolor outdoors, whoa, that’s a different story and I’m guessing my body language communicates that, too.
