Weed Pickin'

oil 8x8 inches Not for sale. For a closer look, click here. Mr. Richard Bumann graciously allowed me to take pictures of him while he weeded. Painted from my photo reference taken on a spring visit to historic Bumann Ranch, Encinitas, CA. Thank you to artist Rita Pacheco for inviting me to join her on this unique plein air opportunity.

Anza Borrego -plein air paintings from the California Desert

Near the end of January we had scheduled camping trip to Anza Borrego State Park. I had painted there before, but this time the challenge would be squeezing in a painting on arrival day after driving and setting up camp, then again on departure day. With some planning it all worked out. Below are my four daily paintings. If you're interested in a purchase just email me: karenwernerart@gmail.com

DESERT DUSK 6x8 inches. Barely time enough to squeeze this one in. Late afternoon. The sun dropped behind that mountain and instantly the light was gone.

CAMPGROUND PALMS 10x8 inches A morning painting followed immediately by a wind storm. When your paper towel roll is rolling away you are done!

DESERT CHOLLA 9x12 For those of you not familiar with cactus, this is a particularly nasty plant full of fine and painful needles. But boy is is beautiful when the sun shines through. Difficult to capture in paint, but I had fun trying.

BOTANICAL BORREGO 9x12 inches Right outside the campground visitor center there's an informative nature walk. I liked the variety in this grouping, and I liked the nearby restroom too. Always a bonus.

My husband accompanied me on this trip. We enjoyed the many sculptures outside the little town of Borrego Springs, great Mexican Food in town, a hike up Palm Canyon and the REALLY dark quiet nights. So peaceful. I hope you've enjoyed this epic post.

A Cow Named Mocha -a plein air painting from Amy's Farm

oil 9x12 magnify/purchase info Afternoon at Amy's Farm, Mocha was intent on her lunch and staying there a while it seemed. I set up quickly, snapped a lot of pictures and painted her first. She changed positions several times, so I relied on memory and the photos. Mocha is the new bovine star to groups of children on field trips at Amy's Farm. I painted her predecessor, the late "Grandma Tina", back in 2014. (below, sold.)

Overcast, Abalone Point -a plein air painting from Crystal Cove, Laguna Beach, CA

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info Third day of the Strada Challenge I had the pleasure of joining the PAM (Plein Air Mission) painters down at Laguna Beach. Painting can be a very solitary endeavor, so getting together with like minds was refreshing! Thanks to Bob Francis who invited me.

Valencias -a plein air painting of oranges

oil 8x8 inches magnify/purchase info This is the first painting for the Strada Easel Challenge: 31 paintings in the 31 days of January. Probably hundreds of artists have signed up for this. Each day we post on Facebook #stradaeasel. There's a chance to win a Strada Easel at the end of the month. In addition to the goal of painting every day, I have set some personal goals: paint 50% of them outdoors (didn't know we'd have this much rain!), paint what is around me, paint things I've wanted to paint for a long time but never have gotten around to it. So far I have 17 paintings. Eventually they'll all be posted here on my blog for sale. Please note, if you purchase, shipping will be after February 1. About this painting: I set up in our backyard and painted one of our orange trees-something I've wanted to do for a long time. The next day I added a few more oranges in shadow on the left for balance. It's still heavy on the right, but hey! our juicy oranges are heavy! Long post! If you have read this entire post, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Cider Mill Morning -a plein air painting from Oak Glen, CA.

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info I recently got out to paint with friends at Oak Glen, specifically Snowline Orchards. It was a wonderful warm morning of painting followed by a nice lunch. We just beat the high winds expected in the afternoon. We drove home happy friends, happy painters, with our bellies full of warm apple cider mini donuts, apples and cider in the back seat. Not a bad day in the classroom for this old teacher. IN OTHER NEWS: This coming Wednesday night, Oct 12, I'll demonstrate for the Tustin Art League. 7 pm TUSD Board Room, 300 S. C St., Tustin, CA. Also, the OLD TOWN TUSTIN ART WALK AND PLEIN AIR COMPETITION is this Saturday, Oct. 15. Unfortunately, I had to cancel my participation this year due to some health issues. Nothing major. So if you were planning to visit me there, enjoy the art and music, and hopefully I'll be there next year.

Farm Cat -a plein air painting in oil -SOLD

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info This could be a long post. So much happening, I'm going to try to catch up a bit here. On Labor Day (seems like months ago!) I had the pleasure of taking Katie, a very talented 8th grader, out painting for her first experience in oils and plein air. We had a great time at Amy's Farm as did the farm cat and this chicken that was overly interested in us, especially for a chicken.

My demo in Rancho was Sept. 12th, and I haven't painted since, but yes, I've been just a tad busy. We moved on the 25th after 25 years in the same house. About 175 boxes later, we are now down to maybe 30 left to unpack.

Part of the reason we moved was for a nice big studio where I could do my thing. So... in our backyard there's this "RV Garage". At first sight I thought "ART BARN!!!!" It already had a tiny restroom, industrial sink, overhead lighting, heater, epoxy floor and a north window (that might get bigger). Woo-hooooo!!! I just needed to clean, move cabinets, put in new counter tops and paint. Here are some progress shots. We are still working on it, but I might actually be painting in there very soon!

The top two indoor shots show the size (28x30 feet) and condition. Lots of potential! Then I had it painted taupe before move in day. More pictures coming in the next post.

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!

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

Deck Work -a plein air painting from Balboa Island, CA -SOLD

oil 9x12 inches magnify The second morning I found a nice place in the shade for this piece. The worker was coming and going, but I got plenty of phone shots of him in different positions. I placed the figure in the initial draw-in, then finished him last using my photo references. The human element always adds life and interest to what otherwise might be a fairly mundane scene. This painting is framed and available at The Debra Huse Gallery, Balboa Island, CA. 949-723-6171

Crystal Cove Overlook -a plein air painting of Historic Crystal Cove -SOLD

oil 11x14 magnify/purchase info I got out to paint one day while we camped at Moro Campground. This view has been painted my many artists over the years, and I was glad to finally have my turn. The morning started cloudy which allowed me to get my shapes in, and as the sun burned through I added the light. You can see that in the progress shots below. Today I'm packing up for Just Plein Fun on Balboa Island. So excited! Wish me luck!

Wagon

oil 12x9 inches magnify/purchase info Nobody was home in these cabins just a few doors down from where we were staying. I walked down with my afternoon iced coffee and parked myself under the pines. What a nice rustic scene.

Boulder Bay -a plein air oil painting from Big Bear Lake, CA

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info I made adjustments in the studio to enhance atmosphere and light. I lightened up the value of the distant mountain and grayed the color to push it back in space. I warmed up the shadow sides of rocks a bit, and added light and warmth to the lit surfaces. Sorry about the wet paint glare in the upper right.

Permanent Parking -a plein air painting from La Verne Heritage Park

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info Here's a plein air piece I did yesterday. I think this is an old citrus hauler. I was told by one of the volunteers that it's a 1938 and has 180 thousand miles on it all within the city of La Verne. I don't know a thing about vehicles except how to drive them, which I enjoy very much! This one won't start anymore. Lost all it's power, but gained a lot of character.

Weeping Rock View -a plein air painting from Zion National Park

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info On the second and last afternoon in Zion National Park I hiked the short distance up to Weeping Rock. My feeble attempt to describe it is this: At Weeping Rock you are on a ledge on the side of a mountain. The ledge is maybe 50ft long and 10 feet wide. The wall curves up and over your head with a curtain of water dripping off. The photo and my painting both show the view from the ledge. (If you enlarge the photo below, you can see the water droplets falling.) Spectacular atmosphere changing every ten minutes or so. Very challenging, but what a very special place to experience with my brushes in hand. For the painting, I was interested especially in the sweet spot where the mountains rise out of the valley floor so near each other. Also pictured are my four paintings for the trip laid out on my campsite table. The color represented is very accurate. It was a great trip.

Bridge At Canyon Junction -a plein air painting from Zion National Park -SOLD

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info My second day in Zion I got out early. I hopped on the tram (or dragged myself and gear into the tram) by 8 am. Hey, that's early for me! At Canyon Junction a trail runs right along the river, giving easy river access for painting. I found the perfect spot, shown below. It was quite secluded except for the perfectly tanned "buff" guy. Is that still a word for muscular??? He hung around a bit, walking here and there nearby. A small backpack, no shoes, wearing nothing but a Speedo. Yep! Well that was a little weird. EXCITING DAYS AHEAD! Tomorrow I teach a small one day workshop in Anaheim Hills. Sunday I'll be at the BALBOA ART WALK with 100 fellow artists. If you're in SO CAL don't miss it! You can find me right along the sea wall on the island at Pearl Street. Park in the big parking lot on the Peninsula, and walk onto the ferry. Turn left off the ferry and I'm close by. It'll be a great day! Here's a pic of the guy in the Speedo.

(Just kidding!) But there really was a guy in a Speedo.