Thursday, June 28, 2012

Where the Road Meets the Wetlands 6"x 8"

My aim was to take a small canvas out and try to complete it in an hour.  Gosh, I'm so slow.  This was two hours.  The drawing is off but I do like the colors.  I think I will try redoing it inside just for practice.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Fisher Butte Wetlands June 8"x 10"

Generally, I like this one.  It was a gorgeous day and I managed to get out there pretty early.  I tried using Cad red deep which I used to love and haven't used for quite a while.  Now we are scheduled for several days of rain so no more outside painting for a while.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Storm Coming 8"x 10"

Yesterday was predicted to clear in the afternoon and it did for about half an hour.  It was pretty windy and kept getting worse.  I was about frozen when my friend Mona and I left.
I've been mixing colors that are a little "prettier" than the landscape really is.  I'm thinking I've gone too far and will try greying the colors again.

Reed Pond at the Fisher Unit 10"x 8"

I've been painting out at the Fisher Unit so often that I'm having trouble thinking of titles.  As usual I had a lot of trouble with certain parts of this but it sure was a great day.  Real sunny and warm.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Fisher Unit Wetlands 10"x 8"

Yesterday was so beautiful out at the Fisher Unit.  Only saw about 4 people the whole time I was out there.  Lots of birds, ducks, and a blue heron flew right over me.  So grand to be out there!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Ox Eye Daisies 6"x 6"

Rainy weather has forced me to stay inside.  I had to drive out to Stults Road to find these little wild flowers.  I was really surprised I couldn't find any right across the street at Amazon Slough.
Anyway, I really struggled trying to use the view finder drawing method.  So long since I've done it.  The whole thing was kind of a struggle except for the center of the daisy on the left.  It just happened and I really like it.  Wish it could all come together like that.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Lupine Trail--Studio Version 8"x 10"

I think this one really is an improvement over the outdoor version.  Removing the tree and lightening the value of the path really help.

Twilight at the Fisher Unit--Studio Version 8"x 10"

I wanted to try something I read from a Jill Carver workshop.  That's to try painting inside using the the plein air painting and a black and white photo of the scene as a source.  So with the recent rainy weather I did give it a try.  While I think it was useful to do, I don't think I really improved painting inside.  Some parts seem better but others seem worse.

Twilight at the Fisher Unit 8"x 10"

I went out rather late for me--about 3:30 pm.  By the time I walked all the way out and got set up it was probably 4:30 or so.  It was kind of an amazing evening to be out there.  A storm was definitely on it's way in.  I could hear bull frogs bellowing just past my feet.  The wind picked up and it was just lightly sprinkling when I packed up.  It poured as I drove home.  It's often so exciting to paint outside.

Trail at the Fisher Unit 8"x 10"

I've gotten a little back logged in my posting.  This was done about a week ago.  I am trying to think about color harmony and using appealing colors instead of mixing just what I see.  This is a difficult concept for me.  So this came out a little extreme but it is in the direction of where I want to be going.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

The Willamette from the end of Stults Road 8"x 10"

Yesterday the plein air group was at the river.  My painting seemed really grey when I got home so this morning I put a little more color back into it.