tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59432059971581057442024-03-21T01:02:47.808-07:00A Brush with ColorPresenting new paintings with discussions of issues related to watercolor media.Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.comBlogger649125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-81734005006413930712022-05-15T16:00:00.000-07:002022-05-15T16:00:41.221-07:00 A week of watercolor. Many of my group are back painting and I will get back to adding to the blog. There are new painters and they are very good. this pushes me to get more done. Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-77288342339542091282020-07-16T11:26:00.002-07:002022-05-15T15:31:44.087-07:00Painting at the UCDavis ArboretumOur group was out on a beautiful morning painting along the creek. I put additional color into the painting to offset the total green that is everywhere. I did manage two paintings in 2 hours since I really stayed with my mop brush for to do most of the painting. There is so much material on the campus which is very empty with the shutdown. Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-10539042058356564162020-07-08T14:30:00.000-07:002020-07-08T14:30:57.167-07:00Arboretum BridgeToday is Wednesday and we are all at the University of California, Davis arboretum. Lots of construction going on but plenty of parking. There are bikes and people exercising but not many. The birds are singing this morning and it is still cool. I do look for shade and then paint very quickly. First, a value study and then I paint the subject. The value study Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-7897430710026519572020-06-25T09:57:00.000-07:002020-06-25T09:57:21.363-07:00Morning at Willow CreekWe gathered at Willow Creek, a nice shady spot on a predicted hot day in Davis, CA. The creek is dry but has this bridge over it with plenty of rocks where the water runs when wet after a rain. The area is without bugs. It is just beside a bike path and there were plenty of bikes. Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-41010052743764451552020-06-17T14:36:00.000-07:002020-06-17T14:36:28.772-07:00Morning in the RedwoodsThis Wednesday our plein air group went to the UC Davis Arboretum. It was very windy but deep on the floor of the Redwood section we were sheltered from it. There are many redwoods and they grow quite close to each other. There are breaks and light comes through. I tried to capture this as the streaks come and go. It gets darker in the distance with light at the top.Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-23250070181475422972020-05-29T11:33:00.000-07:002020-05-29T11:33:50.287-07:00Patchwork Farm Lavender
With temperatures reaching triple digits, the lavender crop was ready early. We went out to beautiful Capay Valley to take it in and paint. Things were buzzing with the pickers ranch hands. The fields appear to have a lavender cloud over them with the green base. It brought me back to years being in southern France seeing and smelling the field of lavender. It was a bit difficult to find Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-74786970222288961492020-05-23T11:25:00.000-07:002020-05-29T11:38:34.328-07:00Morning Stroll During the quarantine I've been trying several ways of showing the arboretum. For a couple months I have painted all over the paths that wind through the beautiful plants and trees. I do not want a realistic painting of them. What first calls to me are the shadows and the lights created by all of the vegetation, so that is what I emphasize in this painting. Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-79206077396734556912020-05-20T16:55:00.000-07:002020-05-29T11:39:04.954-07:00Gilligan's Return The morning plain air painting was again at the arboretum on the UCDavis Campus. Davis has had black bear sightings on two consecutive days and named the bear(s) Gilligan. Not sure he was here today but was on my mind. There is so much material on the campus for painters. We have a huge Veterinary school and hospital next to the arboretum at one end. They ofter have exotic animals in the Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-43332202213325731632020-05-13T15:50:00.000-07:002020-05-13T15:50:52.333-07:00Painting on the UCDavis Arboretum It is Wednesday which is about the only day that is different for me. We have a small group that goes plein air painting on Wed. For the past month we have explored many areas of the beautiful arboretum on the UCDavis Campus. We freely park and move about and then join up to show our paintings. It is a group that has been together for a long time. We keep our social distance and were face Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-86160078866747597872020-05-08T11:57:00.001-07:002020-05-08T11:57:17.176-07:00UCDavis Arboretum. Our plein air painters have been enjoying the sights at the UCDavis Arboretum. We have traveled the length of it finding things to paint or sketch. It is an amazing place with no traffic and very few people. My watercolors are all quick sketches wet into wet. The opportunity to do this is so therapeutic with all the sheltering involving the rest of the week. I used a yellow sky and bright Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-30930366958768154552020-04-29T15:53:00.000-07:002020-04-29T15:53:18.641-07:00Painting UCDavis Arboretum. The arboretum is alive with trees and flowers and practically no one there. I have been painting different areas. No problems with parking as the school is not in session with the virus. Love mixing all the different greens needed at this time of the year. It can be challenging. I am using a credit card and a palette knife paint some of the structures. Most of the scenes are painted wet Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-6267901548500097532020-04-05T16:37:00.001-07:002020-04-05T16:37:19.562-07:00Chatham Springtime Mood Found a photo of mine from years ago. I was on the bank in front of an auction house sketching and painting the Chatham downtown scene. I was always challenged by the whites and grays of the houses and buildings on the Cape.
This is my take on the imagined spring of the downtown in Chatham. It has nothing to do with the current crises of closes business and stay at home customers.Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-6791574869853672352020-03-25T17:11:00.000-07:002020-03-25T17:11:31.198-07:00Playing with Fog One would think that fog and watercolor would be a natural. There are many ways to do it. Whitney tried putting the paint down and rubbing it out and later turned to misting the shapes to show fog. After all, fog is just rain drops causing loss of the sharpness and color of what is in the fog. In a painting with fog the value scale is at the lower end, perhaps 3-5. In order to show fog you Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-56798418573739655292020-03-19T14:16:00.000-07:002020-03-19T14:16:36.472-07:00Mendocino Grazing. This composition evolved from a house that I sketched in Mendocino, CA. The result was just a house so I decided to add. Eventually, the house was reduced to nothing special and I added the landscape. Finally, I put the cows in front. I'm not sure any of this fits with the lovely little town of Mendocino except for the cottage. This is fun making up scenes with no pressure to do anything.Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-49176775309677352972020-03-17T19:41:00.000-07:002020-03-17T19:41:08.513-07:00Back Street on Cape Cod There is something nostalgic about VW buses. This is a very old model as I remember. They were commonplace during the 6o's. I did not own one but had friends and when it appeared, a good time was ahead. There is a shop in Sacramento that works on VWs and often I see the old model buses. I have painted them into several of my paintings done on Cape Cod because I see them there. It is a bitBrush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-28637972338034942862020-03-16T17:28:00.000-07:002020-03-16T17:28:19.185-07:00SF Summer. I've painted a lot over 6 years in Sausalito. There are terrific views of the Golden Gate from Fort Baker where you can set up pretty close. I am not there now. This painting is from memory and many sketches done. Fog comes in under and over the bridge. This is the cooling system for the Sacramento Valley. This cool fog travels up the Delta and keeps us cool during the night. Many a Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-83261917450926346182020-03-16T15:42:00.000-07:002020-03-16T15:42:49.187-07:00Stormy Davis. It's only 3 days to the start of spring. After weeks of beautiful weather with sunshine and temps in the high 70s and 80s, we are cold with rain and dark skies. This adds to the misery of isolation and quarantine from our pandemic. It does mean painting but I'd prefer to be out doing plein air. As I manipulate my photos I want to see value changes and the real thing. When plein air Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-8206391764895490982020-03-15T13:17:00.000-07:002020-03-15T13:17:16.584-07:00Under Quarantine One of my great moments as a child growing up in New England was the 'no school whistle' that sounded after a big snow storm. It meant breaking out the board games and playing music with my sibs. There are some similarities to the current quarantine with the corona virus, painting plus the board games. I pulled out some photos and did some sketching and painting and there went nearly an Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-76850647572931197432020-02-26T15:08:00.000-08:002020-02-26T15:08:32.868-08:00An Old Barn. The morning sun was shining and our group traveled out to farm lands east of Davis. As you can see from the photo this barn was not much and was quite distant in a large field. I set my easel up and did a value study trying to decide if should go any further. Everyone else was settled in with various trees and roads, so I decided to paint, making several changes. This is the warmest Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-68455315706211466072020-02-19T16:15:00.001-08:002020-02-19T16:15:26.383-08:00Plein Air Painting on Old Davis Road/Becker, Davis. It was a beautiful morning. Our group came looking for an old barn. Actually, there were several old barns, barking dogs, lots of junk, eg. cars, tractors, sheds, etc. on the site. Sunflowers were farmed last year and the field was ready for planting. I did several sketches and added and eliminated until I finally found something for painting. I sketched more on my watercolor paper and thenBrush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-5613599648333832142020-02-18T11:47:00.000-08:002020-02-18T11:47:36.080-08:00Tornado Cleanup 2019. A tornado came in from the ocean and hit Harwich on Cape Cod. We had the warning but couldn't believe it until we heard the screaming wind and retreated to the basement. It was over quickly but the cleanup lasted. The chain saws and grinders greeted us every morning. Every tree and arborist in New England seemed to land on Cape Cod and worked throughout the summer. I didn't have to go far Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-83990872827483267912020-02-14T14:22:00.000-08:002020-02-14T14:22:43.289-08:00Mexican Seaside. This morning I was visiting a large marina to paint some boats. In setting up I tried to find shade from he hot sun. Under a large palm I found myself facing this little enclave jutting out into the bay. I did this painting in an hour and then went off then to paint sailboats. I did attract visitors who were also walking under the palm trees. We had a lot in common, since everyone was on Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-72674953082552354352020-02-13T13:07:00.000-08:002020-02-13T13:07:17.647-08:00Marival in Puta Mita, Mexico Away for a week and returned 7Lbs heavier. That by itself, tells you how good it was. Marival is a new resort with wonderful staff and 5 class restaurants. I can cook and consider myself a food critic. This was the real thing. I avoided all inclusive resort until 3 yrs ago. This was really amazing with someone always making sure I had something to drink or eat, during all my waking hours.Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-68864106258638317692020-02-12T20:33:00.000-08:002020-02-12T20:33:38.812-08:00Spring Run of Putah Creek. Just back from Mexico and out with my Plein air painters. This morning is warm, about 60 degrees, and the hills are green. The trees are not yet budding but it won't be long. These are perfect conditions for painting. The sun creates some shadows as well as rim lighting on some tree limbs. The water is running fast as it is coming down from the dam just up the canyon. Ducks even appear Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5943205997158105744.post-55422740118356847402019-12-17T13:42:00.000-08:002019-12-17T13:42:25.796-08:00Rough PatchWas at a familiar spot for some painting but it was really different. Pretty neglected and the sheep were scratching to find grass. Must be new owners, hard times, on extended vacation? Brush with Colorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15374310755153680074noreply@blogger.com0