work done in the last few weeks - small paintings and gouache studies.
great portability for travel,
working from a photo taken
from an earlier outing
diane handloser
a k park gardens
gouache on paper
3"x3"
walking around the neighborhood
taking photos suitable for
experimenting with the medium
pamela zwehl-burke
chase palm park pond
gouache on paper
3"x4"
pamela zwehl-burke, chase palms, gouache on paper, 3"x4"
pamela zwehl-burke, chase palms and fountian, gouache on paper, 3"x4"
pamela zwehl-burke, sidewalk shadows, gouache on paper, 3"x4"
from earlier in the month:
libby smith, skofield park mountain view
oil on panel, 5"x7"
libby smith
camino cielo
oil on panel, 4"x4"
nina warner
camino cielo
oil on panel
9"x12"
may has been quite a month so far: extreme weather (hot), lots of travel and some slogging through portrait painting. we have also pursued entering work in some local shows and have done well: L & N have work in the Westmont 'made you look' juried show, P, D & N will be represented in the 'petite landscape' show at the sb tennis club, and P, N & L all made it into the Elverhoj museum show 'santa inés mission mills'. not bad!
we have also become enamored with the small gouaches of thomas paquette that are showing at the Wildling museum: beautiful, tiny jewels of landscape.
so we are trying to see what we can do with this interesting and challenging medium.
here are some efforts from mimi:
started working from a cropped, vintage, postcard image just to get used to the paint and develop some sort of technique.
3"x3"
gouache on mat board
the colors seem too bright and un-natural
3"x2 1/2"
gouache on mat board
next came working from my own photographs, cropping the image to suit a small format. somewhat flat, but challenging to mix more muted color
3"x2 1/2"
monterey wetland preserve
3"x3"
meadow in the sierra
this was done from a photo after painting the scene in oil on site. it actually came out better than the oil.
3"x3"
view from camino cielo
time to try working from life, looking at the real thing. easier to work with natural colors and light.
3"x2 1/2"
backyard poppy
3"x3"
montecito peak
3 of us had a monday session in the landscape - coastal marine layer, but sunny and pleasant in the foothills. skofield park is a off-the-beaten-path gem. missed gigi amongst us.
photos taken with my i-phone, so not the best representation - just a record of the day's work.
pamela zwehl-burke
view through the oaks, oil on panel, 6"x9"
pamela zwehl-burke
stone wall, oil on panel, 6"x9"
libby smith
la cumbre peak view, oil on panel, 5"x7"
libby smith
light through the oaks, oil on panel, 5"x7"
nina warner
view of la cumbre peak, oil on panel, 9"x12"
some new work and a bit of catching up. L & N have been working at the mill at the santa ynez mission. it's a beautiful site, but can get pretty windy. we had some moments of 'extreme painting' hanging on to our easels and our hats.
libby smith
grist mill, april 2014 - oil on panel, 8"x16"
libby smith
santa ynez mission grist mill from above, oil on panel, 6"x16"
libby smith
santa ynez mission
grist mill #2
oil on panel
9"x12"
nina warner
santa ynez mission mills, oil on panel, 12"x12"
nina warner
santa ynez mission mill, upper building, oil on panel, 6"x12"
nina warner
valley behind the mission, oil on panel, 6"x12"
some posts from coco from earlier this year:
libby smith
winter afternoon, slough and geese, oil on panel, 8"x16"
and from last month at rocky nook park:
libby smith
light and shadow
oil on panel
9"x12
beware the ides of march - such a lot of unexpected, hard things. and such a reminder of the tenuous hold we have on life and to be open to it and thankful for it.
our portrait sessions have been fun and frustrating. so good to get out into the landscape and breathe.
rocky nook park is a great spot. D, L & N spent a day trying to do justice to a boulder. will post the others as soon as I can get images.
nina warner
rocky nook rocks
8"x12"
oil on panel
Mimi was lucky to have a beautiful weekend in cambria/los osos area.
nina warner
coast at cambria
5"x7"
oil on panel
L & N went to do battle with the wind and paint by the old mill at the santa ynez mission. we worked fast and loose and managed to get something reasonable started. will post when we finalize them.
yes, we did get out to paint last month, just haven't posted them yet. D, L & N worked at rocky nook park after a long stretch of inside portrait painting.
now it is march and we had a beautiful post-storm week. lots of boats where they don't belong. L & N took a few hours to have a look.
libby smith, stranded sail boat, oil on panel, 8"x10"
nina warner, stranded, oil on panel, 8"x8"
full moon on january 15 - we decided to try the view from the bluff at shoreline park. it is a challenge. beautiful, big yellow moon, with great reflections on the water.
libby smith
wolf moon, january 2014
10"x10", oil on panel
