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.  

Midnight Teahouse -a plein air painting from Tustin

oil 12x12 FRAMED For a closer look and purchase info click here. Here's an honest story about being an artist: This piece was part of Old Town Tustin Art Walk and Plein Air Contest. I drove an hour to Tustin and spent several hours choosing my subject and waiting for sunset. I painted this on the street after dark wearing a headlamp. It was a ton of fun, but when I finished at about 10pm I realized that I was very cold and my bad neck muscles were in spasm. Two weeks of daily headache followed. Maybe an award from the judges will make my effort worth it. Nope. The last straw was very poor sales on Tustin Art Walk day. Thus, I had spent a lot of effort for nothing. All this to say that being an artist is not all fun and games. "That must be relaxing," I heard recently from a passer by while painting on the street. Well sometimes it is just plain hard work, disapointment and even self-doubt. No, not relaxing. Except that your mind is so engaged that you don't even know you're freezing or you have to pee until you sign the painting. Maybe you could say the focused mind is a diversion from the news and personal troubles, but no, not relaxing. What keeps me going? I love to paint. I love paint, color, light and shadow. There's paint in my blood. I know I was made to do this. Today I'll teach a children's class. This weekend I'll teach an Advanced Still Life workshop. I'm so excited about both!

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.

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!

Island Charm -a plein air oil painting from Balboa Island

oil 12x9 inches magnify/purchase info I hear the residents of Balboa Island want to have their utility lines buried to eliminate the poles. I think they add to the charm of the island. Of all my Balboa paintings, this one's my favorite so far. To see the others, go down to labels and click on Balboa Island.

Fountain Rest -a plein air oil painting of the Orange Circle

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase Our weather has been beautiful and I've gotten out to paint the last two days. Friday I painted this at the Orange Circle. It sprinkled a bit, but I just kept painting. My little dog Sandy went along and attracted lots of nice folks, especially children who wanted to pet her. I enjoyed painting and chatting with them as the cars swirled around the circle. They're swirling much faster than they did when I was a kid, and honking now too. We have become so impatient, especially in our cars. All those honkers need to sit by this fountain a while! I think this man discovered that I was painting him. He soon got up and left before I could get the dog in. I added the dog last by looking at my iphone shot.

1967

oil 16x12 click for purchase info and magnifier Here's a piece I did back in November but never posted. We visited the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco more than a year ago. The sixties/seventies vibe was still visible, but the sidewalks were bare of hippies. Too bad. I loved all the graffiti in this shot, especially the 1967.

Orange Bike -sold

oil 12x16 inches click for purchase information My surgery went well and I'm hoping to get back to the easel tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who sent me well wishes. I painted this one from a photo I took while walking along the Boise river in November. It was parked next to the Boise State campus. Orange is just a fun color. Makes me think of summer and popsicles. This is painted on 1 1/2 inch deep gallery wrap canvas ready to hang. No frame needed. Just pop it on your wall.

North On Haven

oil 8x8 inches Click to Purchase While driving up Haven Ave. last week at dusk, the light was so beautiful. I saw everything in yellows and violets. At a red light I snapped a photo. My red traffic light arched way into the center of that beautiful sky, so I left it out. I toned my canvas with Indian yellow and while I left some showing in the sky, it is a lot more subtle than this image shows. LA County Fair News: Looks like I'll be in the Millard Sheets Gallery Thursdays through Sundays. If I get more specific demonstrating hours, I will let you know.

Mass Contemplation

oil 10x8 inches Click to Purchase We visited the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on the day "the rock" opened for viewing. Titled "Levitated Mass", the sculpture was many decades in the making. Interesting. Kinda creepy to walk under it. There were lots of figures to choose from for my painting. These two showed the puzzlement that I think many of us were experiencing.

Over 60

oil on canvas panel 8x10 inches
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Friday my friend, Lisa McDill and I got outside to paint. She knows all the cool overlooks in the Chino Hills area. I have an eye for detail which is both a blessing and a curse...hence this busy painting. Even so I like the brushwork, the overall pattern and the loops and curves. Her fabulous painting is visible in the photo, or click here to find it on her website.

Short Leash

oil on canvas panel 10x8 inches
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I've been waiting to paint this scene for a long time because frankly, the figures scared me. Now less scared, it was time. We went to Los Angeles for the Amgen Tour of California time trials a couple of years ago where this attendee caught everyone's attention. Like Carol Carmichael said recently, if there was a leg challenge, I could enter this. They really were that long. Things are incongruous here. I looked that word up in my synonym/antonym book. :-) Guess who's walking the dog? Also incongruous.

Frisco Streets -sold

oil on canvas panel 8x6 inches

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The sun was trying to burn through the clouds, but it was still dark enough for the glow of tail lights and street lights. I tried to capture this in-between state of light. I love those San Francisco streets that scoop upward in the distance. The buses and cars move the eye from side to side, so I tried to use line to direct the eye into the distance and up the hill.