Trip West

This is from a recent road trip we took to Nevada. I wanted to do more paintings along the way but we were pressed for time and it's a long way to go. But I did get one painting done at sunset in Utah, looking toward the cliffs of Bryce Canyon.  We found a camping spot on the road to Cedar Breaks heading west. It was late in the day and we had already eaten when we set up camp. So without the cooking to deal with I had enough time before sunset to try a small painting. Across the valley the sun was lighting up the cliffs of Bryce Canyon off to the east. I had to paint this in fast before the sun set dropping everything into shadow. Later as dark set in the full moon came up over the mountains. Fabulous place! Here's that small plein air painting.  Utah Cliffs, 6 x 8.

White Iris

Here are some more flowers from the yard. The white iris are blooming. This was done all prima as a still life, all in one sitting. I have other flowers about to bloom so maybe I will try some more iris.
White Iris, 10 x 8.

Lilacs

The lilacs have been glorious this year so I thought I'd have a go at painting them before they start to fade. They are tricky with all those tiny flowers - obviously you can't go about it by painting each little flower. But you want it to have the look of a bunch of little flowers.  Also there's all that luscious purple and lilac to paint - not colors I get use in great quantities usually.  Here's my take on it.  Lilacs, 10 x 8.

Spring Greens

I got out to paint early Sunday morning on a really overcast day although there was a strip of pink sky near the horizon. By later in the day it was pouring rain. Things are starting to look a lot greener around here.

This open space called Peschel is one of the many Boulder County Open Space properties. Every other year or so the county has a Plein Air Paintout exhibit. The rules state that the paintings entered have to be painted plein air on one of the open space properties. We have from now to the beginning of August to go out and see what we can do, and then enter our best. I did it the last time they had the paintout and it was fun. So here's the first of many (I am sure) paintings I will do this summer on open space properties, hoping to come up with some good ones by August, when I'll choose my four favorites and enter them in the contest. Here's a link to the Plein Air Paintout:  http://www.bouldercounty.org/os/events/pages/paintout.aspx

This painting, Spring at Peschel, 9 x 12.

Mothers Day Flowers

I received this giant bouquet of red and pink peonies and thought it was not only great to look at but also a great chance to try painting it. So here's a painting of the flowers. I had fun with jar, the petals are pretty tricky.

Mother's Day, 10 x 8

Spring hillside

It's a great time of year to go outside and paint. Green is starting to show up in the countryside now and I liked the look of this hillside with the new grasses starting to fill in amidst last year's skeletal remains of old mullein plants and patches of raw earth in the early morning sun.

Mullein Hillside, 9 x 12.

Nevada Sky #2

Here is another painting influenced by a trip to Nevada last spring.  The skies while we were there were amazing, especially around sunset.  Here we have the layers of mountains off to the west with lowering clouds, which looked like they were going to produce some rain. But this is dry Nevada and  even though we were hoping, it didn't happen. They eventually faded away as the sun went down.

Nevada Sky #2

Nevada Sky

This painting was influenced by a trip I took through Nevada last year. The skies and sunsets were impressive and it made me want to do some paintings on that theme.  This is one of them which I recently finished. I am working on a second one.  Nevada Sky #1, 16 x 20.

Spring Greens

Here's a painting from last week. The wheat fields are starting to sprout and the varying shades of green caught my eye as I was wandering around trying to decide where to paint. This is a scene from the south-east edge of town where the city breaks away into agricultural land. I had to climb a little rise next to a bridge embankment on a local 4-lane highway to get this view.
Green Fields, 9 x 12.

Red Rocks at Hall Ranch

I went here to paint last week. It's still pretty wintry looking out in the country away from planted fields and suburban yards and flowerbeds. The wild plants are still reluctant to succumb to spring weather. I really like the red rock cliffs at Hall Ranch and found this view that I liked - the way the gully snakes up to the cleft in the cliff, the gray/purple shrubbery, the red rocks, and the gold/green grass.  Red Cliffs, 9 x 12.

Spring Grove

Spring is certainly here in my back yard  with flowers and some green grass, but out in the countryside it's still not looking too green yet. One sign of spring is that the willows along the rivers and wet areas start to turn red before they bud. I went out to paint near the river the other day and was struck by the red willows, the pale bare branches of the cottonwoods and the pale green that was beginning to show in the fields between the tufts of last years golden grass. This is the painting I did, Spring Grove, 9 x 12.

Gold Reflections.

The mornings are warmer so I have gotten out to do a few early morning paintings. This was a particularly nice sunrise although I got there a bit later than I would have liked. The important thing in these early morning paintings is to try to get there and lay out the composition and the placement of the darks before the colors in the sky get to the point where I'd like them to be. Then when the color happens I am ready to go with that.  On this one I kind of had to play catchup.

 It is so hard to drag out of bed especially since the time changed. I guess I am not really used to it yet. Gold Reflections, 8 x 10.

Indoor Painting

I've been working on finishing a painting ready for a competition and haven't gotten out to go  painting very often at all in the whole month of March. I did do a few though and here's one of them, an indoor painting, some things that happened to be sitting on the table in the morning sunshine. In the sun, 6 x 6.

Winter Trees

Here is a scene I first painted back in early February.  The sun was hitting a snow covered hill behind some trees and I really liked how it looked.  The light rapidly changed and I didn't like how the painting was coming out - it didn't have the feel that I wanted. I took photos though while I was there. So I started doing this painting in the studio trying to get it to look the way I remembered. I finally finished it this week. It's pretty close to what I wanted.  Winter Trees, 11 x 14.

Sunset

Here's the painting I did later in the day.  On my way home from the first painting I stopped at this place which gives a great view of the mountains in the west, hoping to do a sunset painting. This is the result - Peschel Sunset, 8 x 10.

Looking West

I went back last weekend to the place where I saw the mink hoping to get a glimpse of it - no luck though. Instead I painted looking off toward the west, away from the trees.  The fields are all still pretty brown but here and there there's a hint that spring might be starting to come. The weather was balmy and the afternoon started out cloudy but patchy sun came out after a while.
Looking West, 8 x 10.

Back to sunrise

It's finally getting warm enough at dawn that I thought I'd go out and try another sunrise again.  Here's another one - same place I've painted many times before since it's handy to where I live. The water is now melted. There were no clouds at all. Clouds make each dawn interesting - the colors always change, the clouds are always different from day to day. This one had none of those features - pure high pressure sky.
 Rising, 8 x 10

Wildlife

One of the really great things about plein air painting is the wildlife. There are things you might never never see when you are out hiking. I suspect most of the animals go into hiding as you trample by. But I've run into a skunk, several flocks of wild turkeys and even a faun while painting, not to mention many interesting birds. Since you're standing quietly in one place for an hour or two the wildlife starts to ignore you and comes out of hiding.

The other morning I was painting in a shadowed and secluded irrigation ditch, down inside a canopy of trees, alongside the partially frozen water. All around were dry sunny open fields where the snow was long gone. But down in the ditch it was still winter with patches of snow and ice shadowed by large overhanging trees. I was there for a while and was surprised by a small furry animal that at first stopped to look at me and then went on about it's usual business unalarmed, foraging in the dead leaves, running up and down the banks, swimming under the thin ice. It then began what looked like nest-making, taking many trips to bring material and dead leaves into its burrow under a large cottonwood near the water.  When I packed up and left it peered out at me rather unconcerned. It was a real treat to watch. I wasn't sure what it was - I had to look it up to make sure - it was a mink.  First wild one I've seen in my life. The picture didn't come out that great - I was too busy watching the mink.  But I'll put it here so you can see what the place looked like. Tucked Away, 8x10.

Fog at the River

Here is the painting I did on a foggy February morning a couple weeks ago.  The fog continued to hold on all through the morning and lasted almost till noon, maybe because I was down in the valley at the lowest elevation and next to the river. We'd had a recent snow and most of it was melting off leaving patches here and there.  I was hoping the fog would hold out long enough for me to get a painting finished and I got my wish. I really loved painting in the fog - I wish we got a lot more days like that. But Colorado is a fairly dry place and foggy days don't happen too often.
Fog Along the River, 8 x 10.

Winter Fields

This was from a couple weeks ago - finally dry. Winter Fields. I had done one painting,  finished it up, turned around and saw this scene and decided to paint it also. I ended up not keeping the first one. Winter Fields, 8 x 10.

Old Pumphouse

There's an old run-down irrigation pumphouse on an abandoned farm near here. It's right next to one of the parks where I often go to paint. There's an old barn and some other falling-down buildings which I've painted before but this time I decided to paint the pumphouse. I liked the fading paint and the look of the weathered boards.  Old Pumphouse, 10 x 8.

Spring Grazing along the Yampa River

While travelling last May and coming back through northern Colorado we passed through Steamboat Springs. Along the way I took pictures. This painting is done from something I took along that stretch of Route 40. The pastures were starting to green up, although there were patches of snow higher up. It looked awfully pretty. I couldn't stop to paint - we had to get home by evening. I did this painting all in one sitting - kind of an alla prima sort of indoor plein air. I started working from the photo as though I were on location. I didn't really plan it out too much ahead of time. It was kind of an experiment.
Spring Grazing, 10 x 20.

House on the hilltop

Last Saturday was a really foggy morning and I thought it would be great to go and paint that. I did one 8x10 down by the river. It went well, and I decided I had time to do another. I had a smaller 6 x 8 with me and painted this small painting of a house on the hill. The sky was still fairly foggy and began to lift as I was finishing up. The first painting is still drying, the second one I am posting here.
Hilltop House, 6 x 8.

New Paintings

I have them - but gee - they are taking FOREVER to dry in this winter weather. I've got 3 sitting here just waiting for those last patches to be dry enough to scan.  Maybe tomorrow.

Contrails

I saw this scene while driving to Boulder one evening. I was on my way to something, had no camera with me or painting gear. I noted the time and came back the next day at sunset to take some pictures. The site is right next to a busy divided highway with no real safe place to park or setup, I'd be a little afraid to paint there, so I took a lot of pictures and worked on this at home. I particularly liked how the partially melting ponds and random snow patches added to the view.
Contrails, 9 x 12.

Painting at NCAR

NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research) sits on top of a hill in Boulder. The PAAC plein air group of Boulder went there last Thursday to paint. There are great views all around looking south, east and north, and west if you want to paint the building or the mountains behind it. We all set up mostly on the south side of the hilltop. The weather was pretty great and the sweeping views to the south looked pretty fantastic. I chose to paint this partly still snow-covered ravine off in the distance. Below is a picture of NCAR that I borrowed from their website  https://ncar.ucar.edu/.  (Hope you don't mind the picture borrowing, NCAR).   Great place to visit, exhibits for visitors, etc.
The Ravine, 9 x 12.

Gourds

Another of my "plein indoor" paintings done on a cold dark evening when I was wishing I could be outside and painting in the sun. We have a bunch of gourds leftover from the summer garden, kept around for decoration.  I threw a few of these outside afterwards and watched the squirrels tear them apart the next morning to eat the seeds.  Gourds, 6 x 6.

The Frozen Lake

Hamms Pond is surrounded by large swaths of cattails. Here's an early morning painting I did there. I had to go back a second day to finish it - there were things I wanted to change and had to see it again to do so. Luckily it was pretty much the same weather.
Frozen Lake, 8 x 10.

New Work

I have posted nothing in a while.  Doesn't mean I haven't been painting. Sure the weather's been pretty cold, so I haven't painted outside too many times. I have a couple of paintings here waiting to dry and be scanned, and when they are, I'll post them. I've hit one of those spells where I don't much like some of the paintings I have been making.  Either I've done a bunch of not-so-good paintings or I have been getting more selective and discriminating in my taste.  I like to think it's that... or maybe it's both. I've been taking a critique class - it's getting me to see things I hadn't thought about in my work. I highly recommend it.

Today I went and painted - I took a painting back out to the original location and worked on it again. It was one of those situations where the painting looks fine at the time but once it's home,  I start to see what's wrong, or think about what I'd like to change. "Fixing" it in the studio is never a good idea for me. I've tried it in the past - it always came out badly. I have learned it's something for me to best avoid.

 Today was a very similar morning, weather-wise so I took the painting back to the original location.  In a few minutes I had adjusted a few things and it's looking much better, and was easy to do when I could actually see the trees, the sky the mountains, the water, the actual colors again.  It was so much easier than trying to do it in the studio. Definitely an improvement.  With that finished up I then worked on a new painting. So far, so good. I see how I like it tomorrow.

Salt & Pepper

Another indoor painting of my salt & pepper shakers. They looked good on the red holiday tablecloth. I've been busy preparing canvas panels for future paintings and have a couple odd pieces left including these 6x6 panels, so have decided to do more indoor paintings on them.  Salt & Pepper, 6 x 6.