No School Today!

 

No School Today!  oil 10x10 inches  

Purchase info here.

I still remember the freedom of having a no school day and taking off into the neighborhood on my bicycle.   These Balboa Island kids have a pretty cool neighborhood!  Mom, young friends and even baby in the baby seat were headed out for a little adventure.  This photo is a bit blurry.  On the contrary, the painting is full of crisp brushwork and happy color.  

Alley Ride -SOLD

 

Alley Ride 14x11x1 1/2   oil   

Purchase info here.

And now for a change of pace!  Summertime on Balboa Island.  The alleys are one of my favorite spots to paint.  Biking through the alleys is the best way to navigate this often crowded little island.  For a painter, you can't beat the shadows and tunnel view that leads the eye right down the alley.  I painted this from my photo reference on a gallery wrapped canvas.  Ready to hang with just a hanging wire, or frame as you like.  

For another change of pace, here is a portrait of our granddaugher and her cat, a Christmas gift to our daughter.  It's not a great photo, but I've been working on a bit of portraiture lately, and I think this one shows progress.  

Cheapie Del Rio SOLD

oil 10x8 inches Purchase info here. This little boat with the funny name sits off the north shore of Balboa Island. It's a favorite subject for many painters. I painted this from my photo reference. The painting is framed and ready to hang. If you're interested in purchasing, and would like to see a photo of it in the frame, just email me. karenwernerart@gmail.com

Scooter -SOLD

oil 10x8 inches Purchase info here. Painted from my photo reference taken on Balboa Island, Newport Beach.

Dock & Dinghy -a plein air painting from Balboa Island -SOLD

oil 11x14 inches This is one of the many paintings I'll have in my display at the Balboa Island Artwalk this coming Sunday. Don't miss the fun! One hundred artists along South Bayfront. Art of all kinds and live music too. Hours are 9-5. Park in the Balboa Pier Parking lot and take the ferry on foot across to the island. Stepping off the ferry, turn left onto the sidewalk and you'll find me.

A Little Bit Dinghy -plein air paintings from Balboa Island -sold

Here are some shots of the last two paintings I did as part of Just Plein Fun on Balboa Island.

A Little Bit Dinghy 8x8 inches was my quick draw. About thirty artists participated along South Bay Front, having two hours to complete a painting. It was fun and festive, with an awards ceremony complete with Olympic music and gold medals. This painting sold off the easel which was a great ending to a great week. Is my head really that big, or is the painting really that tiny? Ha!

This 12x9 was my thank you gift to my hostess, Joanne. It was so kind of her to open her lovely home to me and let me come and go as I please. This is an island cottage that I thought would make a cheerful painting with its sunflowers. The quick draw was the grand finale of the week. There you have it, finally!!! Here's a shot of the participants on Gala Night. I really enjoyed getting to know a few of these fellow painters. I hope to be invited again next year.

Stop by this great little gallery when you're on the island. Some of the work from the event is still on display. 229 Marine Ave, Suite E, Balboa Island, CA. 949-723-6171

Gallery Glow -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA

oil 12x9 magnify Our week of painting ended on Friday morning with all work due into the gallery by 11 am. I started early and planned to choose as subject close to the gallery in order to get it framed and in on time. I had previously considered painting the gallery itself. This morning's overcast gave the lights inside a warm glow. The crooked painting and gold frames added to the charm. This painting is available at Huse Gallery, 229 Marine Ave, Suite E, Balboa Island, Ca. 949-723-6171. IN OTHER NEWS: This coming Saturday, September 10th I'll demonstrate all day at Victoria Gardens, Celebration Hall, Rancho Cucamonga. Hours: 10 am to about 5 pm. with a break for lunch sometime. If you're in the area, come on out and enjoy Associated Artists of the Inland Empire's Fall Show. It runs from Friday morning the 9th at 10 am to Sunday at about 4. Lots of great art and demonstrations too. It's free!

Island Kids -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA. SOLD

oil 9x12 inches magnify Sorry my posts are slow in coming. I'm still getting my energy back two weeks after my sinus surgery. No oil painting (breathing solvent fumes) for me for another week. I can't tell you how anxious I am to get back to it. Meanwhile, this painting has a story. I set up to paint in some late afternoon shade. While drawing in, I planned to watch for people on the bench and include them. Along comes two moms with kids in tow. The kids are interested in what I'm up to. They walk right up and start asking questions. I tell them I'm drawing in, then mixing the colors I see while watching that bench for people I could put in my painting. "Can WE be in your painting?", the boy asks bursting with excitement. Well, sure. But I have to take your pictures, so go ask your mom if that's okay. Well the moms were as excited as the kids. I told them I needed one adult on the bench for a size difference. They went back and forth a bit about which of them "looked better" to be in the painting! I settled it by picking the one with the red hat. Turns out this is a Balboa Island family. They were "home." No wonder they were excited. I painted this in two afternoons. During that time another friendly island resident told me all about the little upside down sailboats. Each boat is assigned to a nine year old on the island who is taught to sail by a sixteen year old who learned the same way. The children's names are on the rack. The masts are sticking up in the center of the rack. I've spent a lot of time on Balboa Island over the years, but hadn't ever thought about what childhood would be like growing up there. So different! Back to the painting, I thought the helmet added whimsy, and their little dangling feet and shadows added charm. The grandparents came to the gallery and bought the painting. This will go down as one of my favorite plein air experiences.

Cinnamon Stop -a plein air painting from Balboa Island -SOLD

oil 8x8 inches magnify Blue Chair Bakery on Marine Ave. has the most delicious cinnamon rolls! I started painting during the morning overcast and added the light near the end of my painting session. Cars and people came and went. I snapped shots of people on the bench as I painted and added them in last. No time to eat a cinnamon roll, but I treated myself the next morning. This painting is framed and available at Huse Gallery, 229 Marine Ave., Suite E, Balboa Island, CA. 949-723-6171

Morning Walk -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA -sold

oil 12x9 inches magnify I chose a nice cool spot Wednesday morning. The street lamps were still on when I started. The sun eventually broke through. This view is looking toward "the little island" from Balboa. The painting is framed and available at Huse Gallery, 229 Marine Ave., Suite E, Balboa Island, CA. 949-723-6171. This is one of my favorites from the week, having a quiet peaceful feel to it. WORKSHOP NEWS: I have one space in my October 8-9 Workshop, and three spots in my November 5-6 Workshop. We paint still life from life in my large studio building in Upland. Limited to 6 students, you'll get a lot of individual coaching. Suitable for beginners with some experience and intermediate painters. If you're in Southern California, treat yourself to some good instruction. One of my recent attendees told me, "I feel like I got two years of art school in two days!" For more info, email me at karenwernerart@gmail.com I'll email you a description of the content and cost.

Pots, Pots, Pots! -a plein air painting from Balboa Island

oil 10x8 inches magnify On Tuesday afternoon, the second day of Just Plein Fun, I walked the island looking for shade and inspiration. Specifically, inspiration IN the shade! The multiple pots at this little cottage caught my eye. I have a thing for potted plants myself. I loved the reds against blues and that small pot directly in front of the open Dutch door. I thought about leaving out the giant pot in the foreground, but maybe the golden color might be a nice foil to the others, and maybe it would lead the eye in to the focal point. Sometimes you have to entertain some maybes. Your comments are always welcome. This painting is available at Huse Gallery, 229 Marine Ave. Suite E, Balboa Island, CA. 949-723-6171

Wearing my nametag backwards so it won't create it's own little painting on my shirt. Tomorrow I'll have sinus surgery. I might not be posting for a while.

Bouys & Boats -a plein air painting from Balboa Island

oil 12x9 inches and framed. magnify Monday, August 1st was pretty warm on the island and I ended up painting in direct sun. So by Tuesday I took advantage of morning overcast. At first, no sun and shadow, but they were both on the way, so I planned to add the lights at the end of my painting session. Available at Debra Huse Gallery, 229 Marine Ave, Suite E, Balboa Island, CA 949-723-6171

Island Posse -a plein air painting from Balboa Island -SOLD

oil 12x9 inches magnify Here's first painting last week at "Just Plein Fun" on Balboa Island. I'm very happy to announce that I was awarded Third Place and a Purchase Award for this piece. Thank you to esteemed judge Jean Stern and Debra Huse Gallery. About my process: While setting up and drawing in the design, I had my phone ready and watched for people, interesting cars and such going through the alley. I chose these little kids from the ten shots I took. I then drew in the figures. I painted the entire scene, then the figures from my phone. I love being able to include simple figures in my work. In four and a half days I managed to finish 7 paintings. Someone asked me recently if the pressure of competition gets to me. No. I love the process of painting SO much, I just do my best like I usually do, enjoy myself, then put it out there for people to see. It is what it is. Some will love it, some will like it and some will not. That's art. I'll post all the paintings in upcoming posts. Here's a better photo of the painting.

Winning any award is the icing on the cake. Do I look happy? You betcha!

Boats & Bouys -a plein air oil painting from Balboa Island, CA -sold

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info Happy New Year everyone! This is my last painting of 2015. I took off down to Balboa Island on the last day of the year for some plein air with my feet in the sand. The sun was out and it was about 68 degrees in the shade. I was overdue for this kind of stuff, so it felt like Heaven. I used a very limited palette of color: T white, Cad Yellow light, Cad Red light, Ultramarine Blue, Cobalt and Alizarin. I painted pretty fast in an effort to keep it fresh, not overworked. It took me two hours to drive home in the holiday traffic, but I don't mind. It was a great way to end the year.

Paint The Banana! -SOLD

oil 10x8 inches magnify Here's the last painting for Just Plein Fun, the quick draw. We had from 4-6:15pm to paint a scene from Marine Avenue, frame it and get it into the gallery. What a lot of fun! Throughout the week just about everyone painted one of the frozen banana signs at one time or another. I chose it for my quick draw because it's so iconic for the little island. This piece is available through the Debra Huse Gallery 949-723-6171.

226 -a plein air painting from Balboa Island -SOLD

oil 8x8 inches magnify The Just Plein Fun Invitational ended on Saturday with a quick draw in the afternoon. This is the piece I did in the cool overcast of that morning. This painting is available through the Debra Huse Gallery 949-723-6171.

While painting that morning I had a delightful visit from my friend Tammie and her husband from Bixby, Oklahoma. We met in Colorado last September at the Kim English workshop. They were in the area for a wedding and took time to hunt me down. Thanks so much, Tammie! It was so good to see you both.

Here's how it would look leaned up against your car's wheel.

In The Zone -a plein air painting from the Balboa Fun Zone, CA -SOLD

oil 14x11 magnify This painting is available at the Debra Huse Gallery 949-723-6171. This is a back of my car shot before I took it into the gallery, and below an easel shot. Fortunately I got set up early enough to start this piece before the ferris wheel started up. I got the drawing in without any figures, then painted the ferris wheel first, then the rest of the scene. I added the figures last from shots I had taken with my iphone while painting, then painted the sidewalk around them. Lastly, I did some edge work for a feeling of movement. Several of the competing artists painted this scene. Nice to see the different interpretations. IN OTHER NEWS: I have a demonstration coming up on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Victoria Gardens, Rancho Cucamonga. Associated Artists of the Inland Empire will hold their annual show in Celebration Hall. Demo is from 10am till 9pm with breaks for lunch and dinner. Over 300 pieces of artwork will be on display Sept 11-13. Come on out to Victoria Gardens for a meal at one of the restaurants and enjoy the art!

Got Candy? -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA -SOLD

oil 9x12 inches This painting is available at the Debra Huse Gallery. Last chance to purchase one of the many great paintings for Just Plein Fun Invitational! Just visit the website to see them all. 949-723-6171 While I was MIA, my husband and I enjoyed a two week once-in-a-lifetime trip to Paris. I hope you enjoy the pictures below. Now we are packing up the house. In the next few weeks we'll move about 10 miles north to Upland. I'm very excited because I'll have a much larger studio for painting and teaching. Don't know if I can keep painting while preparing to move, but I'm going to try.

Montmarte was my favorite place in Paris. It was thrilling to walk the cobblestones the impressionists walked and eat lunch while surrounded by artists selling their work. Sacre Couer, at the top of the hill was my favorite cathedral of the many we visited.

Utilities -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA SOLD

oil 10x8 inches magnify By the afternoon of the third day I was feeling a bit overbaked and extra crispy from the sun. So I walked to this familiar spot I've painted in the past knowing I could sit in the shade. I hear the residents of the island are not fond of the utility lines and poles and there's talk of burying them. For me, they add to the island charm and are great verticals for paintings! I've always loved the sun and shadow between these two houses. This painting is framed and available at the Debra Huse Gallery, Balboa Island 949-723-6171 IN OTHER NEWS: We will be on vacation for the next two weeks. So there will be no posting and no shipping until after August 27th. See you then!

Banner Day -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA -SOLD

oil 9x12 inches magnify Here's a back of the car shot, the only one I have of the finished painting! We were painting like crazy, framing in the backs of our cars and hanging them wet in the gallery. Sometimes I'd take it off the wall the next day to tweak it a bit the back of my car. In the scene, the cars were a big challenge. Work trucks kept coming and going. But I loved the flags strung up across the street, hence the title. This painting is available at the Debra Huse Gallery, Balboa Island, CA 949-723-6171