Tower In Sky

A view of the sky in Charleston, South Carolina.

Daisy Almost Undone

I love painting flowers that have just about reached their last stage. These daisy's were just about ready to wilt. I set my easel up near the kitchen counter. I started with an under painting in watercolor. I laid in both hard and soft pastel to finish it up. I also let parts of the under painting peek through. I am exploring color more and I like it. The surface is Fisher 400 art paper. It was created by someone in the UK. It is similar to Uart paper.

Morning Inspiration

The inspiration for this painting was a small plein air sketch I did one morning in Fort Bragg, California. The original painting was in casein. I worked in pastel for this painting and I scaled it up to a 20 by 20 piece. The original was 8 by 8 inches. Happy Holidays to all and be safe.

Sunlit Creek

This is the second of a series of paintings depicting the Samuel P Taylor state park in northern California. I was inspired by the reflections in the water and of course the light.

Domino Hand

My family has a competitive side. We love playing cards, dominoes...we like games. When I lose I get to sketch. I chose to leave the searching lines visible so that people could see more of the process of creating a painting

Wet Sand

When I last visited Fort Bragg, California I sat on the beach and painted a few trading card paintings. This is one of the studies that deserve enlarging.

Smoke In Your Face

This is the second drawing from our Thanksgiving weekend celebration. Yes we have smokers in my family.

The Point Is

During the Thanksgiving holidays we did the traditional thing of partying and playing dominoes. Of course the game of dominoes involves trash talking and bragging. The participants and the spectators are usually animated. I focused on the lines during the drawing process. When I added watercolor and gouache I left those lines visible.

Flowers On The Table

I love painting this type of daisy. I think they are called gerbera. I like the shapes they form as they get older. I like painting them just before the petals fall.

Across The Tracks

We were walking back from dinner at dusk and I saw this image. I took some photos and now you have a painting.

Under The Leaves

Another kitchen counter painting. With a floral arrangement, one can make many paintings.

Counter Top Portrait 2

I enjoy painting from life especially flowers and people. I will buy a bouquet and paint from it for about a week. I just keep the flowers well watered and on the kitchen counter. This blue bottle is my latest favorite vase to paint. I am again experimenting with color and background shapes. The surface is a 6 by 6 inch art tile made by Strathmore.

Two For Brunch

I drew this painting on site and added the color and letters later. Of course its Gloria's Restaurant in downtown Austin. Casein was the medium and I used a black surface that was twelve by twelve inches. I took photos of the scene with my cell phone before and during the drawing process. I used the photos for pointers on color.

Counter Top Portrait 1

I'm focusing a little bit on color play also. I try not to limit my color choices to the local color and I want the background to have a statement too.

Cold Day In Commerce

This is a color study for a larger painting. I did the underpainting in gouache on grey toned paper. A snow scene from my home town. I think this is my Aunt Davora's house.

Green Eyed Cat

This painting is of a friends cat that happens to be a Maine Coon. Those cats are big.

Hiking Point Reyes

The photo that inspired this painting was taken during an unexpected hike on the Point Reyes National Seashore. We decided to go out to this area on a holiday. Of course the parking was limited, so we had to take this rather long trail to the ocean. I liked the way the sun lit up the overhanging trees and shrubs. I used a piece of black Strathford paper with a gouache underpainting.

Golden Hills

To those who read this blog, I have been painting a lot but I have been neglecting my blog. I painted this little painting at the gallery yesterday during the torrential rains. It was truly beautiful listening to the rain and just creating in a warm environment. I love reading blogs and watching painting demonstrations on You tube. That's were I found this surface called "glass paper". Its made by this guy in the United Kingdom and its called Fisher 400 art paper. Its a nice surface similar to Uart. This is a scene from northern California wine country.

Cat Perch

A little color study for a larger piece. I was free with my color choices on this one and I think it turned out nice. I used a black 6 by 6 Artist tile.

Street Hustle

A corner in the city of New York. Years ago my cousin took a bunch of photos for me to paint from. He has always had an interesting perspective. The sketch was done a few years back. I applied the pastel last week after I found the drawing.

This is a sketch from my sketchbook. I am going for a larger pastel and graphite image. These are two members of our family. I gave my nephew Cortez one of my cameras to take photos of our celebration. His perspective intrigues me.

Lazy Afternoon Brunch

I like painting restaurant scenes because they involve people interacting with one another and great colors. I like sketching downtown after my workouts on the weekends. The shadows are fun too. This is Gloria's. I like that space for some reason.

A Little Romance

I did this sketch in downtown Austin about three Sundays ago. I had two pieces of watercolor paper in the car. I sat down on the curb and got this sketch of two apparent lovers sitting on a bench.

A Stroll Through Town

A scene from Charleston, South Carolina. I liked the way the people were dressed and also the way that their shapes interacted. I started out with a gouache underpainting and laid in the pastels last using Terry Ludwig darks and a variety of other pastels.

Jilted Blooms

Another floral painting using an abstracted background. I painted on the textured side of Canson paper. I also added in some splashes of gouache.

Just Outside The Shade

This is a color study for a larger graphite and gouache painting. I of course love painting structures that are associated with vineyards and farms. Pam gave me a Blick gift card as a present and I of course had to spend it immediately. I bought a bunch of Canson paper in some really interesting colors. I like using the ground in the final painting.

A Bloom Away

I recently read a book written by Ray Balkill. He combines pastel, watercolor and gouache. I decided to give his technique a try. The colors are just my latest take on painting.

Garden Painting 1

I painted this watercolor at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. Usually I will shoot photos for painting later. On this visit I painted and didn't get too far into the gardens before I found this grouping of flowers. A beekeeper from New Jersey walked by and told me to include some bees. They didn't make it in to the painting.

One Side Of The Creek

I'm in the process of painting a large watercolor of this scene. This is a color study of part of the image done in pastel.

Which Path

This is one of the larger plein air sketches that I completed on my most recent trip to northern California. I was sitting under the perfect shade tree with my supplies. We were in a nice little park with people and animals. I chose this scene because I loved the graphic feel of it.

On The Trail

The beauty of this surface is that you have to let it and watercolor do what they want. You are merely the spectator watching them work after you apply the paint. This is terra skin paper which is a surface made of stone. Last month I spent time with a friend in Zilker park on a Sunday afternoon. I did this sketch while sitting on a bench on the hike and bike trail. I did the initial drawing on site and added color later.

Mellow Yellow

I have started painting flowers again from life. For some reason I tend to focus on a few flowers rather than the entire setup which includes a lemon, squash, cup, etc. The flowers are now almost gone and that will be a painting too.

Woods Overwhelm

I took the photo that inspired this painting during my most recent visit to Fort Bragg, California. The mediums used were graphite and conte. I recently purchased a roll of drawing paper and decided to do some large (for me) drawings. This one is 30 by 30 inches. I used extra large graphite made by Derwent.

Sunday Brunch 2

The second painting of Gloria's restaurant. I like this place because of the brunch activity. People linger, talk and the staff is always busy. Plus with the increase in population, people are all over the place. I used a number 6b pencil. I sat on some steps and got in two drawings. I added color later at home.

Sunday Brunch 1

I did the sketch on site about 2 weeks ago. I had finished my workout and had some extra time on my meter. I sat on some steps and did this little sketch of Gloria's on 6th street here in Austin. They have a great brunch. I like that they have the outside space. I fully intend to get some sketches inside too. I added color later.

Sharp

This is a family friend that I have painted before. The earlier painting sold to a collector from South Carolina. I saw him recently and of course photographed him. He always dresses well. The first painting of him also included my oldest nephew.

Sunday Fishermen

I painted this one from one of my plein air sketches. I had this small sketchbook with me while on my last visit to California. This one is a panoramic watercolor.

Wood In Redwoods

We had left Point Reyes and were going through the Samuel P. Taylor Park. Pam pulled over in one the only spots you can pull over on that road and I got out and walked into the woods a bit and found this spot. I took numerous photos of the area. This is a larger piece measuring 29 by 37 inches. I want the viewer to be able to walk into the painting. I recently bought a roll of paper paper and I intend to explore this image in the pastel medium.

Richmond Still Life

I like painting items in Pam's kitchen. The light is great and she has a lemon tree out front and a garden which includes tomatoes. The tin was new to me. I set the fruit and tin up in the kitchen and frankly painted the piece from multiple perspectives. That happens when I multitask. I played with color a bit too.

Wave Meditation

After years of painting these I have just now realized that these are meditation paintings. I usually paint these after a full day of painting. By then my brain is free to just paint the feel of the wave. I think its a good thing to memorize the crashing of a beautiful wave and then to put it down while its still fresh in your mind. I'm usually sitting on the balcony painting the waves and sunset until its too cold and windy to paint.

We have had a few cool days here in Austin. On those mornings these flowers come out. I love the color of this flower and I enjoy the surprise they give me when they come out.

Town Lake Fun

A few weeks ago I went over to Zilker park with a friend to do some sketching. We ended up under the bridge near Barton Springs road. I enjoyed trying to capture the kayakers as they paddled by.

Natural Dryer 2

This is the second attempt with this image. The first version was on canvas board using casein as the medium. For this version I used Terra Skin paper and watercolor. This is my baby sister hanging out clothes in Commerce. Before I finished this series of photos on my phone, she told me not to take her picture. I didn't after that.

Commerce Nocturne

Last weekend was spent in Commerce. This is the scene behind the hotel I normally stay in. I was standing outside and saw this beautiful sky. Of course by the time I got my paints and paper the sky had changed. I painted it because I liked the light and the way it fell across the bushes.

Three In The Weeds

This painting was a bit rushed because my painting time was short. I like to watch and painting birds. I was very comfortable sitting on the ground with my supplies spread about in the shade. I worked on a black 8 by 8 panel in casein. I was peaceful that entire vacation. I cant wait to retire.

Beach People Below

I painted this piece on my birthday which we spent part of on Point Reyes. It was a huge mistake to go there as everybody else decided to go there too. Most parking areas were full so even getting to this area above the beach took quite a hike to get to. I needed the exercise anyway. Pam not so much. We did have a bench to sit on at least.

Soaking Friends

During a visit to McKinney Fall State Park I saw this group of people soaking in the water. I took a quick photo and this is the first painting. I liked the way the water distorted the shapes of their bodies.

Woodward Trial Sketch 1

Last month I got to watch parts of the Lynn Woodward trial here in Austin, Texas. The allegations were that she drove under the influence of drugs and killed one person and injured another when she ran over them. She had been released from the hospital that morning and told not to drive for six months. Later that afternoon she hit a car and two people. The jury convicted her and she received a sentence of 20 years. In this painting you have the various players: prosecutor, witness, court reporter and the victim's best friend (the person that died).

The defendant and one of her attorneys. Her expression rarely changed.

Melting Waves

A watercolor from my recent vacation. This one was really fast with very little time between paint applications. Pam was collecting sea glass and rocks. I did this one alla prima with no time for drying.