The Barn on 87D

The weather is nice again and our group was out painting on Wednesday morning. I have seen a big change in this barn which was a favorite subject in years past. The owners have horses, goats and sheep in and out of the barn. They have put new siding up on two sides along with canvas covers. Many of the old gaps are now patched. It is obviously more secure now but for me, less charming as a subject. I worked wet into wet and let the color of the wood mix with several different chroma. When almost dry, I went in and defined some of the boards.The horses never were still. I think they were excited by the painters. They went in and out and mostly stayed inside.

Broken iPhone

A colorful abstract in watercolor using three transparent colors. Starting with 11 random dots as anchors I use this for a warmup. It is fun. Watercolor painting should be fun.

Invited to a Beagle Birthday

Playing with abstract design in watercolor, this turned into a birthday celebration for a dog. Lot of angles and spots before anything developed, but definitely had a celebratory feel. This was one of my loosening up exercises for painting. Only 3 colors were used and when wet they mixed to allow others to form.

Rare Bird

Just returned from two weeks in Mexico. Had a group of 20 celebrating and every single one of us got sick for 1 to 7 days. Not a coincidence since this town has sanitation problems and lots of other visitors complained. We are home and all better but got little plain air painting done. I played with abstract watercolors and had fun. This is a bird of very rare plumage. I start warming up with 3 colors that are transparent. After playing with all the color I start to shape it up and this is the result.

Dreary Day

It was a cold morning for painting. No sun and threatening rain but I was out there with the Wednesday morning group. I did a lot of sketches and then setup my easel and painted an old familiar landmark of Winters, CA. At first, I was intensely occupied with composition and value; unaware of any chill. There was no color to the sky. Traffic moved but few people were out. After an hour, I was cold; it being 43 degrees. The only asset of being cold is a shaky hand for drawing tree branches, it helps. I did not touch up this painting and it is as painted. We all gathered later at the Cafe for some hot chocolate and soup and slowly everyone came back to life.

Welcome Home

I had to get away to a 'Trump free zone' this weekend. My daughter and wife could not refrain from talking politics. I went to my muse, the Davis Train Station. It was brisk but sunny. I painted for 3 hours and it really felt good. Davis has been so cold with lots of rain. I had to paint in the studio, which isn't my style. I love the outdoors and plain air painting. I sleep much better at night. The Davis Train Station is a restored Southern Pacific building. It is a busy train stop with all of the students that are here. I have always been attracted to it and painted it from just about all angles. I did not put any bicycles into my composition but there are lots of them parked there. Davis is a city of bicycles. It is perfect for riding since there are no hills and plenty of wide roads with designated bike lanes. It is the most popular form of travel for all ages. Kids peddle their bikes to kindergarten.

Mendocino Home

Did this painting this morning in watercolor group while a winter storm raged outside. It is from a very old photo taken in Mendocino, CA. What a wonderful location for painters. I took lots of liberties painting and completing it in an hr. My plan was to use paint on a wet surface by mixing colors when applying the paint There is some success if you look at the front of the building where you see yellow and cobalt blue. There are lots of surprises when you rush through a painting at high speed. I generated new ideas not planned with watercolors. I intended a picket fence and then saw the whites that were left and worked out the fence, steps and rocks that you see. You should try it.