Batiquitos Lagoon, Carlsbad Plein Air Oil Painting – Batiquitos View – by contemporary California impressionist Karen Winters
Batiquitos Lagoon View
9 x 12 plein air oil painting
Carlsbad, California wetlands landscape art
SOLD
Yesterday, my husband and I went to Carlsbad, CA (in San Diego County) where I fell in love with this beautiful eucalyptus guarding the trail to the Batiquitos lagoon. The tide seemed to be fully in at the time of our visit – late afternoon. This is the second time I’ve painted Batiquitos, and I expect it won’t be the last. Anywhere that there are eucalyptus trees and water is a winner with me. I was surprised to see so much green still in the grasses, considering that it is approaching the driest time of the year. But there was a lot of humidity in the air, so maybe that helps.
Here’s a previous Batiquitos painting which was based on a study like the one above.
Batiquitos Path
20 x 24 oil on canvas
SOLD
Descanso Gardens Rosarium Wedding Painting – Live event wedding painter
Descanso Gardens Rose Garden (Rosarium) Wedding
16 x 20 oil on canvas
Live event painting
SOLD
See more of my wedding paintings here.
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I had the honor of painting this live event at Descanso Gardens for some dear friends who are also collectors of my work. The occasion was the marriage of their daughter to a fine young man. The party was going to be in the evening which presented certain strategic challenges – namely, painting at the time of day that the light was changing the most rapidly. The bride and groom couldn’t be dancing in the dark under the pavilion while the sun was still shining brightly. Nor would it make sense to paint the whole thing in the dark, because then the beautiful garden couldn’t be seen. We decided on a twilight look, and I painted the garden as rapidly as I could right after the ceremony, knowing that I could always paint the sky in later. It was a lovely occasion, and one that I hope they will always remember with romantic notions, whenever they look upon the painting of that day.
California Poppy Plein Air Landscape Oil Painting – Tejon Ranch
Tejon Ranch Poppy Hillside
9 x 12
oil on plein air panel
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A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of painting at the Tejon Ranch with other artist and signature artist members of the California Art Club. It was a unique opportunity to enjoy the spring beauty of the land, which is not open to the general public. The wind gusts were intense at times, but the color made up for the distraction. This is one of the paintings I worked on over the two day period – this one was on the Antelope Valley side, not too far from the Lancaster Poppy Reserve. I’ll be posting more soon.
San Luis Obispo Plein Air Landscape Painting – When Sunrise Fills the Sky – SLO Art by Karen Winters
SOLD to a collector from Nipomo …
“When Sunrise Fills the Sky”
11 x 14 oil on linen plein air panel
Near Nipomo, San Luis Obispo County
Plein Air Landscape Oil Painting
I thought that I had photographed all the paintings I did last year at the CAC paint out, but I recently came across this one and thought I’d wait until spring to post it. It was painted near the Dana Adobe near Nipomo, as were the other two done that day at the California Art Club paint out.
In the early morning the sun broke through the moody fog with the promise of a beautiful day.
See more of my California Central Coast paintings here
My paintings have been recently featured in an article “Top 15 oil painting blogs” on this site. Thanks to the site owner, Andrea.
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.
Interested in this painting?
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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.
Garden at the Ranch – San Luis Obispo – California Plein Air Landscape Oil Painting by Karen Winters
“Garden at the Ranch”
11 x 14 oil on linen panel
San Luis Obispo Central California Coast area
See more of my California Central Coast paintings here
Interested in this painting?
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I’m still catching up on posting a year’s worth of plein air paintings that didn’t get photographed when they were created. This one is from last May, 2010 at a California Art Club paint out at a friend’s ranch in the San Luis Obispo area. Although it was a gray day, the poppies and other California natives really shone through. In fact, maybe the grayness accented their colors. Our friend has a wonderful native plant garden that would rival any garden planted with cultivated non-natives. It’s drought tolerant and seems perfectly adapted to the environment – because it is!
An almost finished work in progress photo is below – thanks to my hubby for taking it. Yep, there’s that hat again.
Can Spring Be Far Away? California Landscape Painting Oaks and Chapparal
“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.
