Fantasy watercolor landscape

 I usually base my landscapes on a photo I've taken, but this landscape was fabricated from my imagination. Well, maybe not completely from my imagination because I did use about 4 different reference pictures and combined them into this fantasy landscape.

Figuring out where the light souce comes from is one of the most challenging parts of creating an imaginary landscape. It seems kind of like a night scene with the stars and "moon", but the rest of it seems like daytime. Maybe I should go darker with the sky and redo the stars to make them stand out more. I will let it sit for a while and come bake to it...what do you think?

Untitled landscape

This landscape painting was originally inspired by a screensaver photo so I don't know who to give the photo credit to, or even a location that the picture was taken. It just captured my eye because it seemed so peaceful and serene.

I really focused on the shadows on the mountains, trying to keep a consistent color.  Payne's grey does a great job with this, creating a shadow but letting other colors shine through. I also used it in the clouds. I'm not sure about the dark strip of grass in the foreground, though. It feels out of place. I think I need to tone it down a bit so I blends more. 

I'm still not sure what I should title this piece...any suggestions?

Haunted house, plein aire watercolor

A friend had invited me to an "Artober" festival where they invited several plein aire painters, face painters, etc. It was centered around a house that was decorated to the hilt with Halloween decor. Although the task of simplifying it down to paint was daunting, I took the challenge! A majority of the piece was done plein air, but I have to admit, I took a photo so I could finish it at home.
My perspective lines are still off a little bit...seems to be an area I need to work on if I keep painting houses. I used a couple of new techniques as well.  I used a crayon on the street sign to write the numbers and letters so it would resist the watercolor. I also had to lift color off a couple of areas, which I did with a stiff damp brush.  Luckily I was using heavier paper so that this worked. Otherwise the paper would have just started falling apart. I used white paint several times as well with varying success. The cob webs on the bushes just didn't show up like I wanted them to.  Next time, I would darken the bushes and try scraping the webs in with a knife.
At one point I thought I was done, but then realized there were a couple more details that I could add, but eventually I just have to say, "I'm done!" Can you find the four changes I made to the second pic?

On another note, my daughter decided to come with me to try out her artistic side...special effects makeup. Here are some pics of her creations.

Check out more of her work on Instagram:  @autumnelizamakeup

The 4 differences are: I added cobwebs on the bushes (which don't show very well), there's another pumpkin on the right side of the porch, the bat above the new pumpkin, and I moved the base of the street sign :)

Plein air watercolor barn in Georgia

Another day plein air painting in Georgia. The barn was just begging to be painted. The clouds were kind or threatening to storm, as they have been every afternoon this week, so I got to finish most of the painting outside, but then had to finish it up inside.

I debated whether to but the lines on the barn to show the wood planking. The barn looked a little flat without it, but a little busy with them...

The Longbarn cabin, a portrait of home: photo progression

Here is a photo progression of a watercolor I have been working on for my brother in law, Walter Bankovich.  This cabin has been in the Bonelli family, his grandmother, for a long time and I thought I would honor the house with a portrait.

I had just taken a workshop from David Lobenberg and was amazed to realize that it was ok to trace! I guess I just needed permission from another artist. It's is one of those preconceived beliefs that I had that it's "cheating" if I trace.  Other than the project from that workshop  (which I am still working on), this was the first time I had enlarged a photo and traced right onto the watercolor paper with the extremely fancy technique of taping it to the window! Once I had the structure of the house and the main areas of light and dark,  I laid down a light wash to create some depth and leaving highlight areas. Then it was just a matter of going back and putting in more and more detail, including the house placard "the Bonelli's" and street number done in pen ( they don't show up very well in the photo).

Pencil drawing at camp

While being a camp counselor at Camp Celiac for a couple weeks, it was nice to be able to sneak away for a while to be creative. Not knowing how much time I was going to have, I stuck with pencil, which always makes for quick set up and clean up.  Landscape drawing with pencil is always challenging because I have to get creative determining what shade to give to different colors. I sketched this plein-air and then later, snapped a photo of the scene with my phone.  I think it turned out quite accurate to the scene...not as much artistic licence as I have taken in the past! I need to work on not smearing as I drag my hand across my work.

Starry night

We were at a friend's house trying to figure out a Sip & Paint class...Drink & Draw?  Painting & Partaking? Anyways, we were deciding on a painting to create with non- artist type people that were there just to have fun and we decided on Van Gogh's Starry Night. Although it looks simple enough, and was very fun to paint for me, it is very complex. The impasto brush strokes, those small and short ones throughout the painting are very difficult too duplicate.  And then to complicate things even more, I was working with acrylic paint, which I rarely do...but the wine helped :) My favorite part was actually the little town.

Here is Van Gogh's original Starry Night:

My preliminary watercolor sketch:

And my acrylic rendition:

And the one my friend Rhonda did (still not quite complete):

Plein Air painting at I -Fest in Rancho Cordova

Here is a step-by-step look at me painting plein air at the Rancho Cordova I-Fest, a display of the city's international diversity. The Sacramento Plein Air group was invited to document the event.

I started with a rough outline with an Expo dry erase pen,
and then washed in sky and began working on the background.

Working my way down, adding in more background.

Filling in the foreground.

Add in shadows.

A few minor details... and voila!

This was a very challenging project because I have always avoided drawing people, and here was a huge crowd! Also thought I'd throw a dog in there just for sport! Here is my "almost complete" artwork displayed next to David Peterson's work.

Artist at work.

I forgot to give my wife credit for the photos.  I was too busy to even notice that she was taking them, but it worked out well for showing the steps. Thank you Joann!

Locke, again!

Locke is one of those towns that just lends its self to creativity.  The buildings are so unique and the walkways throughout the town create these unusual perspectives.  The last time I was here, Painting Locke, I found myself challenged by the rules of perspective, which seem even more extreme down the long narrow main street of the town.  So this time, I put the vanishing point in the middle of the painting.  The details of the buildings was where the challenge laid this time.  I found that interpreting them into geometric shapes was the best solution.  And the negative spaces between created the supporting beams (as well as a buffer to keep the colors from bleeding together). 

The left side of the street was obscured from my view, so it didn't get any attention other than the shadows that were cast. I need to work on foreshortening  cars, but this was my first attempt at painting cars (putting cars into a painting!) so I thought I did pretty well. I liked the big yellow street sign at the end of the street so it got more emphasis in the painting than can be seen in the photo.

I think my favorite part of the painting, though, is the motorcycle in the foreground.  I was just experimenting with different shades of black and trying to get the essence of  the bike and its shadow without too much detail. 

Painting Locke

On this beautiful Saturday morning I decided to make the drive down to the delta to the little town of Locke. This is a regular Plein Aire Meet-up, every 1st Saturday of the month, thanks to Martha Esch who lives in the area. The interesting thing about the Plein Aire Meet-ups is that you have no idea who is going to be there if anyone.  I am guilty of RSVPing and not showing up as well as showing up without RSVPing. And so, when I got there, no one was there. It was kind of like a ghost town--well, I guess its always like a ghost town, that's part of the charm of this place.  After taking a stroll around town (it takes about 15 minutes to make the loop around the whole town) I set up right on the corner of the main street through town. 

As I first started to sketch, I realized that I was going to need to remember rules of perspective from drawing classes 20 years ago- vanishing points!  Landscapes have some sense of perspective but when you're drawing buildings, it becomes VERY noticeable.  Even now, as I compare the painting to the photo, I can see my perspective should have been "more extreme". It just goes against reason as you are drawing diagonal lines for what your eye sees as straight lines.  This was definitely a new challenge compared to the last building I had painted, the Indian Museum, where I had looked at it straight on.  The eaves on the first building seemed to come straight out at me and were difficult to figure out.  And although the eave supports of the second building aren't quite long enough (they appear to be against the building instead of out to the sidewalk), I really liked the effect of the negative space.  I had wanted to create the same effect on the first building too but with watercolors, once your white paper is painted on, you really can't get it back! Maybe if I tried this again...?  Lots of good thoughts for next time. Of course if I would work in acrylic, it would be more forgiving...hmmm, I still haven't met that challenge yet of plein aire painting with acrylic.

Later in the morning, Martha Esch came by and took a photo of me finishing up my painting and invited me to her studio at the end of the street, The Shack. The building itself is a piece of artwork, with very eclectic art decorating the exterior walls and patio.  And once you are inside, she has on display a variety of paintings that she has done, from views of the town of Locke to old German warplanes, and Mona Lisa! She also has a small room dedicated to the history of Locke.  Martha has a wealth of knowledge about this little town, historical as well as political (oh, does she have stories!). Martha also happens to be the current coordinator for the Plein Aire Meet-ups, so I thought this was a very productive outing!

Indian Museum Paint-Out

My first outing with the Plein Aire Meet-up group to Sutter-Jensen Community Park was interesting but also a little intimidating. Not that a little fear is a bad thing, just part of my learning process.  So I signed up for another! This time at the Indian Museum at Sutter's Fort. (and I remembered to bring a chair with me this time!) There are a lot of different scenes around the pond and several artists had already set up their easels, but I was focused on getting my own art started.  That seems to be my biggest challenge: putting that first mark on the page. I'll wander around trying to find something to inspire me, start up a conversation with another artist...procrastinate! But once I get settled in and actually put paint on the page, I can get tuned in.  Maybe that is why I always start with the sky...simple and non-threatening. 

The building I chose was particularly challenging. The first reason being that it was a building! I had always focused on landscape, and although I liked adding in architectural features, it was never the majority of the painting. Painting a building meant that I had  to use straight lines! Another challenge was the white building. The midday shadows made about 10 different shades of white.  Up to this point I had never really thought about how to paint something white with watercolors. It is what you don't paint that makes it white.  I started with a blue wash (as seen it the lower left) then realized I just needed to use black.  A very light wash to start with and then build from there.  The high sun left just a little direct sunlight just between the windows but it kind of got washed out. The lines to imply the bricks was an afterthought but I kind of like the texture it gives to the wall.  I just needed it to be a little more consistant in shape. 

The other challenge I had with this painting is having a light colored object (the Yucca flowers) in front of a dark object (the window frame). The brown color would overpower any other color on top of it so I had to plan the "gaps" where the stems would go while trying to keep a fluid line for the window. I did not plan for some of the lower leaves which seem to be behind the window. I still need to look into this "masking fluid" to keep areas of your painting white.

Overall, I like how my first "building painting" turned out, even with the challenges.  I actually liked the straight lines! And even my oak trees in the background have improved detail from my first trees.  One watercolor artist working nearby commented on how quickly I had finished, as I had started after her and finished before she was done (about an hour total), but art does not lend itself to a timeframe. The painting told me I was done.