Pier Group Three

This is part of a series that started out as 1, 5 and 15 minute drawings of a scene. After the lesson, I continued to work on them. They were done on Khadi paper using multiple mediums. The subject matter is a marina in Richond, California.

Magical Hills

The fog was extremely thick on the day I took the photo that inspired this painting. Of course all images are open to interpretation.

Night Flight 2

This was inspired by the sketches that were posted previously. I am in the process of evaluating what I currently have in storage. I have a lot of old sketchbooks that I have completed. Maybe I can explore them again with fresh eyes and different skills. Some of them were completed in 2009-2010. IMHO my people sketches were much better.

Point Reyes Layers

This was also inspired by the same set of plein air sketches I spoke about in my most recent post. Below are the sketches completed on site.

I recently purchased a set of oil pastels made by Caran D'ache. I think the next paintings will be with this medium. I will keep you posted.

Miller Knox Renovations

During my last stay in Northern California, I of course went to many marinas. The Miller Knox Marina is one of my favorites because the fishermen/women are fun to sketch, photograph etc. They are so used to me that they ignore my presence. Part of the old pier was being removed. It was quite an interesting thing to watch and film.

Rebirth

On our way to and from Lee Vining, California and the Eastern sierra we drove through many areas that had been hit by wildfire's. These areas were going through what appeared to be regrowth. I tried to capture that in this image.

Crowned Wave

This was painted from one of my favorite places.

Fort Bragg Storm Clouds

Happy New Year all. I spent some time in one of my favorite spots at the beginning of the year. It was rainy and foggy a couple of days, but that makes for dramatic skys and waves. I painted a lot. Great way to start the year.

Albany Bug Cove

I follow painting groups online and that is how I found this fine painting spot. I was attracted to the atmosphere which for me is the fog. Depicting fog for me is a fun atruggle.

Emeryville Marina View

It was cold and very windy. The Emeryville Marina was a beautiful place to sketch.

Lake Cleone Morning Mist

When last in Fort Bragg, California we visited one of my favorite morning spots. The morning mist and colors were beautiful. I did some small value sketches on pastel paper. I later added pastel. I used that painting as inspiration for this piece.

Coastal Fog and Waves

I recently had the pleasure of moving (not) and found a lot of paintings that had not been shared or posted on my websites. This painting was completed a number of years ago. Its from Fort Bragg, California. I think the scene is near the Beachcomber Hotel. Its painted on a copper panel and was inpired by a previous plein air painting completed on one of our many birthdays celebrated there.

Hol Up

The title refers to a situation involving two friends one of which senses a sketchy situation that the other doesn't. Its a person that has your back. This image is associated with the "False Bravado or Self Care" painting posted earlier. I recently saw it framed in a collection (Pam's) and really liked the design from a distance.

Downtown Hopland

Great food served here especially on New Years Day on the way home from the Mendocino coast. I hope everyone has a fruitful and happy new year.

Bulb Entrance

We went back to the "Albany Bulb" for some different scenery. This time we walked around a bit before I got this sketch in. One reason, I had a new modified full spectrum camera to play with. I really liked that the eucalyptus tree provided a natural entrance into the area. I threw down the intial lines in ink and moved on to the next sketch/photo op.

Lake Cleone Muse

This is Lake Cleone in Fort Bragg California. Behind you is the Pacific ocean. The atmosphere is always compelling here. We visited this month and the views did not disappoint. I did two small value studies that I later covered with pastel. I think that I'm finally beginning to see this place.

Girlfriend Fishing

Whenever I'm in Richmond I have to go down to the pier to sketch the people fishing. They ignore me sitting or squatting in the corner sketching and taking photos and video. The group varies depending on the day or time you show up. It's always a diverse group and a chill mood until someone catches something. I was able to film a man catching an eel. Of course the video is shaky because I was excited. On this particular day a little girl was catching "all the fish" as one of the guys below would report to me as I was leaving. I had photographed them earlier as they approached the pier

I didn't realize who they were until I uploaded the photos that day.

Sierra Cliffside and Sierra Slice

Another two paintings for the Eastern Sierra series. I'm working in different formats and mediums and it's fun. I took hundreds of photos and almost finished a complete sketchbook while there. I'm really looking forward to going back.

Pank Trim

This is just a random building that I took a fancy to and photographed. I made up the colors and street sign. To me this is a combination of Richmond, California and Charleston, South Carolina. I know that this building is on Cutting Ave in Richmond. However, the overall scheme reminds me of Charleston. Oh well it's just our artistic licenses on display. I'm not very good with perspective but that doesn't deter me. I am slowly getting more comfortable with structures and my own way of rendering them.

Fort Bragg Revisit

I just got back from a long stay in northern California. It was a very fruitful visit in many ways. I did a ton of sketching, painting, photograpy, video and of course relaxing with Pam. This painting is from a visit in early 2000. Before my trip, I was doing a series of oil paintings from old sketches. I used a Sourcetex wood panel for my surface.