Samuel P. Taylor Trees

Happy New Year Everyone. This is the companion piece to the last post of 2021.

Samuel P. Taylor Stream

Years ago we visited Samuel P. Taylor State Park during the salmon run. I was testing out new camera equipment and playing with the light. This image is mixed media. I started out with fountain pen lines, watercolor, gouache and finally Posca pens for highlights. I used the mixed media blue toned paper from Strathmore as the surface. The goal was to capture the feel of the wet cool air and the nuance of light on the landscape.

Stream

I'm obsessed with painting the surface of water. I'm not good yet but the struggle is worth it. You have to look deep and come forward with the image. The photo that inspired the painting was taken at Samuel P. Taylor Park in Northern California.

Forest Meditation 2

I really appreciate painting and sketching in the same area in multiple seasons. This is one of my favorite little parks to ride through. We drive through this area to get to the Point Reyes National Seashore. The underlying skeleton for this piece was done sitting in Pam's car because it was raining. The redwoods were drenched in rain. My goal in this series is to get to that sense of rain and fog that gave me peace that day.

Forest Meditation 1

During the break Pam and I visited Samuel P. Taylor park. It was raining so I did initial drawing sitting in her car. Back in Texas, I am adding color from memory. My goal is to translate how I felt that day in the rain at such a beautiful and spiritual place.

Colorful Forest Floor

This park is such a beautiful place. It smells good, the light is just right and its cold. I actually went down a small hill to get to this area. I should have worn different shoes etc. It was worth it just to see the stream.

Sketchbook share.

Damp Ground

I am enamored with this silly log. Plus I am trying to get that green the way I saw it on site. I love this part of the park and this is the only area where you can park your car and explore. I don't do a lot of oil painting but I got the bug for the new year so you can expect to see more.

Stream Reflections

This is an exploratory sketch for a larger set of paintings. Its from Samuel P. Taylor Park in northern California. One thought is to base my paintings on this actual sketch as opposed to the photo. Those reflections are going to be fun in any medium and I have plenty of work to do to capture that in paint.

Moss Covered

As we entered Samuel P. Taylor park we found a legal place to pull over for me to take pictures. I slid down the hill to take a few shots of the beautiful stream that flows through it. I was busy taking photos when Pam said that I would hurt myself. I ignored her and continued shooting. At one point, I took a step without looking and of course fell. I had enough and climbed back up the hill. Of course two more mishaps before I got to the car. "You jinxed me", I told her once safely in the car. This is an old moss covered redwood tree.

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.

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.

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.

Mountain Stream 2

This is a larger version of Mountain Stream. I worked on most of this at the gallery last Saturday. I love the light there. I see better so I think I paint better when I'm at the gallery. I wish that I had done some sketches of this scene onsite. By the time I found it I had been painting for an hour on the side of the road. My feet got cold so I got in two quick watercolors and went to find Pam. She was looking for rocks in this beautiful area. I took some photos with my phone and went to the car to warm my feet.

A Play of Light

On the way to Point Reyes we stopped in the Samuel P. Taylor Park to paint and for Pam to look for rocks. This was the first painting of the session. I liked the way the light filtered through the trees. Pam was telling me that Indians refused to live in the Redwood Forest because the light was rare and it contained evil spirits.