Randy's Whate Tours

 

Randy's Whale Tours  12x9 acrylic

Purchase info here.

A while back I bought some acrylic paint.  I wanted to play around with a fast drying water soluable medium.  I thought maybe they would be more convenient to travel with,  Well I haven't been able to leave my oils at home yet!  In any case, this is one of two paintings I have finished in acrylic.  We visited Monterey a few years back, so I used my photo reference for this painting.  

The Radiant Tree -a plein air painting from The Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase info Recently I applied and was accepted into the Huntington Library art guild. This gives me permission to paint on the grounds of the Huntington Botanical Gardens in San Marino. They are very protective of their grounds and museums, and rightfully so. I promised to not block the walkways, not to paint over walkways, not pour my turp out in the bushes (who does that?!!), bring no food, and take my trash home. That's what I do wherever I paint, so I shouldn't be too much of a threat! Yesterday we had 75 degree weather. A perfect day to give it a first go. I headed to the Chinese Garden area and wandered a bit until this tree stopped me in my tracks. The reflections were especially fun. I hope you like it.

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.

Yellow Cottage -a plein air painting from Crystal Cove -SOLD

oil 12x9 inches magnify/purchase info Yesterday I met others from SOCALPAPA to paint at Crystal State Beach Historical District. While I set up the sun started to burn through the overcast giving my subject some nice shadows. In the shots below you can certainly see the change in light conditions. (The last shot of the painting is more accurate than above.) By the time I finished, my subject was pretty much buried in shadow. It's always a surprise when I finish and look around me. The beach had filled up with sunbathers and children played in the waves. I chatted briefly with some of the other artists then headed home at 1:30 to try and beat the Friday afternoon gridlock. A great place to paint is worth the drive, especially if I come home with a good one, and this one made me happy.

Prado Pond, Winter -a plein air painting in oil

oil 9x12 magnify/purchase Last day of 2014 I put soup in the crockpot and went out for some afternoon painting. The day was cold and brisk with migratory birds out and a few fishermen. Quiet and peaceful. The sun was strong and I had forgotten my hat. I ended up painting while holding a rain umbrella in my left hand to shade my eyes. I usually clean my brush with paper towels held in my left. So I wiped my brush on a folded up pad of paper towels laid next to my brushwasher instead. It wasn't a problem at all. I remember Carol Marine doing this, and Kim English doing the same, but with a terry cloth rag. In fact, it was kinda relaxing. Might try that again! It's been a while since the plein air workshop with Kim English, but I used a lot of what I learned: pre-mixing all the colors I see, no initial drawing, but rather laying in the large shapes with thinned paint. Once he said "Cover the numbers as quick as you can." I love that!

Along The Rogue

oil 9x12 inches magnify/purchase Last painting of the trip. The morning was overcast and cool, but the sun was trying to come out. I got so shivery I had to go get a sweatshirt. I can paint when I'm hot (barely) or cold, but if I get cold enough to shiver I can't control the paintbrush! As a native Southern Californian it felt kinda good to shiver in August. This is one of those paintings that looks so much better in person. Full of subtle color shifts.

Class Watercolor Finished

Here's my finished demonstration painting from my Monday night class. Also pictured is my student/friend, Margaret with her finished painting. You can see she's happy with how it turned out. She's wearing her sunglasses to temper her excitement. Not really. The 5500K studio lights are a bit much for her sometimes.
To finish it up we did some negative painting in the grasses, adding a few blades of grass on top, then painted the center of the flowers. To see the 4 posts showing the progression of this painting, go to labels below, click on watercolor and scroll down.

Class Watercolor Stage 3

Update from January 28th post. We enhanced the shapes of the lily pads by painting the water spaces around them, careful not to outline. We wanted to maintain the large patches of lily pads otherwise all the repetitive shapes would be about the same size. We brought the water to the color and value desired with a second layer. The reflections of branches are added, lifting paint crosswise here and there to indicate water ripples. We removed the masking fluid on the lilies and bushes to reveal several values of green. Next class we'll finish the bushes with some negative painting, add centers to the flowers, make any needed adjustments and the painting will be finished. To see the previous posts in this series, go to "labels" below and click on "watercolor", then scroll down.

Two Little Islands SOLD

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
private collection Chattanooga, TN

From Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco you can see this tiny island, "Forbes Island", and the notorious Alcatraz in the distance. I don't know if Forbes is a real island, or if the little lighthouse is a real lighthouse, as both are so small. Anyway, the reflections on the very glassy bay water caught my eye. I painted this piece on a black gesso ground. As I experiement with this I really enjoy the texture that can be achieved and the bits of black peeking through as well. I submitted this to the current DPW challenge; reflections on water. To see the other entries click here.