Valona Paint-out 2014

St. Mark's - 8x10"- oil on linen panel

I have always admired this little church, in Crockett, set back among the tall pines. Now, during the Valona Paintout, I decided to paint it. When I started, there was bright sun on the church and the flowers--looking good. Passers-by were very nice and complementary. But the light changed... so I had to pack it in and return the next day.

Well, by the next day, someone had cut all the flowers! And the light was overcast. So, I tried to go with what I remembered and photos. I had left white spots on the canvas where the flowers were supposed to be. I think it turned out really successful!

Framed in gold. Shipped free.

Alone on the Mountain

Papoose Pass Vista - oil on linen - 12x9"
 

Here, again, a ranger at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, took me to Papoose Pass, an area that would have been inaccessible to me otherwise. It's always scary, going to a new place and starting a new painting, I guess because it's out of my comfort zone. I spent a lot of time walking back and forth trying to get a different view and thinking, "How am I going to compose this? What am I doing here?" I actually saw that I had cell service and tried to call a friend, but she wasn't home. Finally, I just got to it and started putting paint on the canvas! It was so quiet, even birds weren't singing. Very hypnotic, really.

This is what the painting looked like by the time I had to pack up and meet the ranger for the trip back:

 

I am really happy with the end results! And the painting is SOLD!!!

 

If you like this, please share it with others. I love to have people enjoying my work! (Notice the little like and share buttons at the bottom of the page...)

 

Getting my bearings

Babbling Creek - 9 x 12" oil on linen panel

Okay, it was second day. I slept about 10 hours. Then I spent the morning taking pictures of the beach, which amazingly, was deserted, probably because of the cold. Finally decided I just had to do something. I really liked Brandy Creek, and set up my easel along the bank.

Here is the set-up. Notice my coffee mug perched conveniently on a rock! The locals say that during the salmon runs, this creek is full of Chinook.

I was happy with this painting! And relieved! Maybe I can do this residency thing after all!!

 

 

 

 

Artist Residency

I just returned from an Artist Residency at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. Pictured above is the Artist's Cabin, where I stayed. It was a fantastic experience! I did not have internet access there, so I will report retroactively.

First, some background... Whiskeytown was founded back during the gold rush. The story is that some prospectors were crossing a stream, when one of their mules slipped, and the kegs of whiskey spilled into the water. So, they named the stream, Whiskey Creek. Afterwards, they called their town, along the creek, Whiskeytown. By 1959, the town only had about 200 residents. They moved out, and the town was flooded, by the construction of a dam that formed Whiskeytown Lake. This was part of the Central California Water Project.

This is Whiskeytown Lake today.

I arrived on a Saturday evening, and met my roommate, Heidi Marshall, a wonderful pastel artist from Michigan. She had been there 2 1/2 weeks and had seen two bears! I never saw any... (Probably a good thing.) Normally, an artist is alone for their residency, but in our case, we overlapped by three days. Being alone, and without internet, sounds almost monastic, and I did find that I felt differently being there. At first, I slept 10-11 hours at night. I wandered around admiring everything on the first day and was not able to decide on anything to paint. My mind was just blank. Finally, I went down to the marina and started a painting, which was not working out at all. Then, Jim Milestone, the Park Superintendent came over, and introduced himself and took my picture, with the horrible painting! He was so nice, and I was so embarrassed. I was asking myself why I ever applied for this!!! What ever made me think I could do this?

(spoiler-it gets better tomorrow)

John Cosby Workshop

Yellow Truck - oil on canvas panel - 14 x 11"

Painting  is a process of continual learning. Each painting is a learning experience! And, in order to accelerate the process, I try to take a workshop with another artist every now and then. The painting above is one I painted during the John Cosby workshop in Lodi, CA. John is an excellent teacher, and there were some very advanced painters in the class, but he made all of us stretch ourselves!

John teaches a painting process that can be adapted to most painting styles. He starts by mixing four or five color puddles that represent the different values in the scene. Then, he mixes all the rest of the colors from those puddles. Also, he really stressed drawing and composition. I drew the truck in this scene by first drawing a box, which had the same proportions as the truck, then drawing the truck inside the box. And the composition is a three-point, with the three main elements being the truck, the palm tree, and the telephone pole. Can you see it? I really had to subdue the bush, which, in reality, was a bright, bright green! And I used shadows to balance the composition. Just making my own reality... Fun!

Painting at Napa Country Iris Garden

Goddess of the Rainbow - oil on museum-quality panel - 6x8"

The iris is the goddess of the rainbow, according to classical mythology, so I thought that would be a fitting title for this painting. I had gone with a painting group to the Napa Country Iris Garden. We have been having a lot of cool windy weather here by the Bay, but up in the wine country, of Napa, it was warm and beautiful! There were so many wonderful irises, it was hard to choose which to paint. But I liked this one because of the subtle warm/cool color shifts. I had decided beforehand not to rush with the painting, because so often when I get in a hurry, I end up with a painting I don't like. This one I do like!

Irises only bloom for such a short time, which makes them even more precious. All the irises here are ruffled varieties which are newer than the plain irises. Here are some more pictures of the irises for you to enjoy--

 

The iris garden was open for business while I was there, and many people were strolling through, picking out their flowers. Even a bus stopped, and people got out and were enjoying the scent and colors. The owners were very friendly and talking with everyone. They welcome artists, and said classes from some of the art schools come to paint!

I hope you will get out and enjoy the springtime! And if you enjoy reading this, please forward it to your friends. I love to have my work shared!

Spring Greens

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Here is my plein air painting from last Sunday. Okay, I know it isn't spring yet, but this is what the grass looked like! The yellow in the distance is wild mustard.

Here is is, about halfway complete. As you can see I was in the shade and behind a fence. I added the sky color to the background hills, because really, it's all about painting the air, and the further away something is, the more air there is between you.

Hope spring comes soon for you too!

Painting in Suisun

Suisun Sparkles - 8x10" - oil

Yesterday, I painted in Suisun with "DaGroup," a local painting group. This is the tidal marsh at the edge of the city. Tidal marshes are difficult because not only is the light changing, but because the patterns of the grasses and water change as the tide rises or falls. I totally love sparkles on water, and there were lots of sparkles in this scene! And we had nice weather (unlike last week, when it was so cold.)

I hope you are having good weather and can get out and paint!

Painting in the Middle of Nowhere

This morning, I went out plein air painting with two artist friends. Robert had suggested we go to Skaggs Island. When I couldn't find it on Google Maps, I asked him where it was, and he said, "Out in the middle of nowhere." Well, he was right! There was not a house to be seen (and we could see for miles). It was so off the beaten path, that we set-up our painting stuff right on the road, on a bridge, no less! Here was my easel. Only two cars went by while we were there, and they got around us pretty easily!

I though you might like to see more of this place:

There were tracks of wildlife in the mud. Red tailed hawks and snowy egrets were flying over. It was great!

Plein Air--Going Back

Cariquinez Bridge (final version)

I think I should tell you that even though this painting is done plein air, I actually went back to the same site on three different days to complete it. And each day, the previous day's work was dry. That is how I was able to put in those fine lines of the bridges and towers. By this time, walkers were saying, "Back again?" as they went by. The wind was so strong, that by the second day I didn't even try to use an umbrella or easel. I sat on a rock and held the painting in my hands.

I had thought the painting needed some life, and luckily, here it came! A ship painted faded red was moving under the bridge. It was accompanied by two motorboats, one on each side, with another boat behind, but I only put in one of the motorboats. Now we have more interest!

This painting is now hanging in Epperson Gallery in Crockett, CA, along with another one that also took three days to complete. I'll show the other one next time! Have a good weekend!

Color Vision

Cariquinez Bridge - 8 x 10" oil on linen - plein air painting by Linda Schweitzer

For years, I have known that, in theory, the larger the pupils of your eyes, the more color you can see. Because of this, I sometimes wear a visor, even when painting in the studio. But I say "sometimes" because I've never really noticed if it made any difference.
Well, this is the painting from my last post. It was done plein air, meaning outdoors, from life. As I was walking towards the water, I saw that it was a lifeless blue-gray color, and I was a little disappointed. But I set up the easel, and the umbrella. By the time I was ready to paint, the water appeared a beautiful aqua! I thought, "Good, the light has changed!" And I proceeded to paint, but could hardly believe the color, and kept checking my mixtures against what I saw.
When I finished, I packed up my stuff and started back up the hill. Looking back at the water, it was that blue-gray again!
Now, if you look at the photo on my last post, you can see I was in a pretty deep shade under that umbrella. It is a Best-Brella, which is silver on the outside and black on the inside. And I was wearing a broad brimmed hat. With all that shade, my pupils were probably quite wide even though the sun was full blast. I know some artists say a white umbrella is enough, because it gives a filtered light which is more gentle, and your colors will be more accurate. What do you think?

Crockett Paintout

I spent this morning painting plein air, as part of the Crockett Paintout. This is my view of the Carquinez Bridge, from the Carquinez Strait Regional Shoreline Park.  Here, I have completed the underpainting, to establish the basic composition and value pattern.

It was horribly windy, and I had to keep holding the easel to keep it from blowing over. Several times the umbrella "released" and just fell over (which is what it does, I guess to keep the easel from going over).

People kept walking by and saying nice things about the painting, and of course, I invited them all to the exhibit, which is next Sunday. Each artist may show three paintings.

California Wildflowers

Sunday, I went out painting plein air to a park in Oakland. It was really a gray, foggy day when I started painting, but the sun came out as I finished-up. This was a little area of native wildflowers, which included the bright orange California poppies. There were some little yellow and white flowers that a former Easterner, I don't think I've seen before.

I have some conflict about posting my plein air paintings because I feel that they are just studies, and not as good as my studio works. But they are more spontaneous. When I am outdoors painting in the landscape, I am in the subject, I am part of it, so to speak, so it is a whole different experience than studio painting. In many ways, it is a different art form than studio painting. So, maybe they shouldn't be judged by the same standard.

Okay, I do have a tendency to think about stuff too much! Nonetheless, I am looking forward to my next plein air experience. That's the thing, even if the plein air paintings aren't as good from a technical point of view, they are a record of experience.

Thanks for reading these thoughts. Now you go out and paint! And try not to think about it too much!

Coyote Hills Paintout

We checked in at 6:30 am and had our canvases stamped. I was glad I had put on five layers of clothing because it was so cold! I had tucked "Little Hotties" inside my gloves. The sun was just starting to come up as I set up my easel at the edge of the marsh.

I took a photo, and this is what the camera saw. Well, the idea is to catch the feeling, more than the appearance, and who wants to paint all that brush? So, racing the sun and painting as fast as I could, I did the top painting!

Here it is in progress. 

This event was sponsored by the East Bay Parks, and Coyote Hills is part of the park system. After I completed the first painting, I walked to the top of a very steep hill to do a second painting. Well, now the sun was really up, and people were coming in to the park. They were all making comments about the paintings and how the different artists were painting differently (I think there were about 30 of us.) One guy took my picture, then I gave him my brush, and let him paint on my painting while I took his picture! It was a lot of fun!

Here are some more of the artists.

At 12:30 we all had to stop painting and return to the visitors' center, where we were given a tasty lunch by the park staff. We all were to bring frames and easels to display our paintings. Each artist had to choose one painting to display.

 

The park staff had set-up canopies so we could display our paintings without sitting out in the sun. Here you can see the artists setting up. People could vote on a People's Choice and bid on a silent auction to buy their favorite painting. Unfortunately, by this time it had become very windy! The easels started blowing over. Then the canopies were blowing over! So we took them down. But we all had a really good time!

Spring Tree--Lake Anza

...Spring Tree--Lake Anza...

oil on linen panel - 6" x 8"

I went with some friends to Lake Anza, which is in a local park. People were there enjoying the sun and letting their dogs swim in the lake. I really liked this little tree, which was just starting to leaf out, but also starting to fall into the water. The lines of the branches were so graceful. 

I set-up my easel and started to paint. I got the underpainting on, but that really needed to set-up a bit so I could put on the next layer of paint on without smearing. So, I came home and finished it in the studio.

Plein air painting along Lakeville Road

Yesterday, I went out painting with some other artists. It was such a beautiful day! Sunshine at last! I liked the way the light was hitting this barn, and the atmosphere in the distance. Behind that fence in front of my easel there was a field of the cutest miniature horses with their fowls. People kept stopping and taking pictures of the horses. We artists talked about painting them, but they look like out-of-proportion horses, so we would have to title it "Miniature Horses," and still, really not a good subject for plein air, unless you know horse anatomy very well.
Anyway, I got really engrossed in the painting and was concentrating on mixing the colors to reflect the quality of the light. So, the resulting painting was a surprise--

 

I kept telling the others I don't paint like that. Well, not normally. They seemed to like it. I haven't decided...

Plein Air in Benicia

...Fish-Riddell House...

oil on canvas panel - 6" x 8"

I went out painting with the plein air group from Benicia, CA. (DaGroup, a really nice group of artists!) They paint at different spots, and this was the subject for this week. The house has a long history, but the woman who lived here was Benecia's first plein air painter. Did you know Benecia used to be the state capitol?

Anyway, I don't usually do architecture, so this was a special challenge. And of course, painting outdoors at the scene is always challenging. 

Well, little did I know, but the local newspaper thought our group painting outside would be a good story. So they sent a reporter out to interview us. Since I hadn't been with the group long (this was my 3rd time out with them), the reporter asked about how I paint, etc. There was also a photographer who was taking our pictures, and pictures of our paintings as they developed (no pressure there!)

As luck would have it, the painting came out fine. The sky was the same value as the roof, and at first I had made it lighter, so the roof would contrast with the sky. After I got home, I decided the painting would have more life if I darkened the sky, so this is the final result. The story will be a feature article in next Sunday's Daily Republic!

Early Color

...Early Color...
6" x 8" - oil on canvas

This is another plein air painting, started in the field and finished later in the studio. The leaves seem to be turning early this year, probably because it has been so dry. It is easy to get too detailed in a painting like this, especially since there is so much beautiful detail in the scene. I tried to lessen the detail by making the tree trunk on the left the same value as the foliage behind it. Not sure if it helped--It's hard to judge your own paintings when they're fresh.

While I was painting, one of my friends took my picture. Yes, I am using an umbrella in the shade! It really helped, too. There was dappled light coming through the tree above.

Falls Mill

...Falls Mill...
oil on canvas - 6" x 8"

Last week, I went out plein air painting with some friends. We went to this little waterfall. There had been a mill here long ago, but all that's left of it is part of the stone foundation. At this hour of the morning, most of the scene was in shadow. I had to work really fast and did a quick study, which I finished later in the studio from a photo.

The photo, by the way, was really boring and looked nothing like my quick study. (Did you ever take a picture of a scene you thought was really beautiful, and when you see the photo, you wonder why you took it?) I altered the photograph on my computer so that the colors and contrast would match my study. Otherwise it would not have been useful at all.

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Oh, and here is the plein air study:

Mill Run

...Mill Run...

oil on canvas - 8" x 6"

I was painting with the international plein air artists' group when I did this one. Every year we get together for a week of painting on location, taking turns going to each others' countries. This year the USA was the host country, and we were painting in Western Maryland, near Deep Creek Lake, Swallow Falls and Friendsville which was all beautiful! And the people were so friendly and generous! And, yes, we did see wild bears, but they didn't hang around long enough to pose for a painting (or even a photograph for that matter).

While I was painting, one of the other artists took my picture...

Heavens! I look like I am totally concentrating on it, which I guess I was...