Category: Plein Air

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Art theory Outdoors/Landscape Plein Air Puerto Vallarta Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Color Chords

PV-Fountain2

Ink drawing with watercolor in Canson 7×10 watercolor sketchbook
To enlarge, click image, select All Sizes

I left the workshop to go sketch outside behind the classroom, sitting on a little brick wall along a road with trucks and taxis constantly parading past. This dry fountain was going to be torn down soon as it’s in one of the ubiquitous construction areas.

(More from my workshop with Judy Morris in Puerto Vallarta last week).

COLOR CHORDS:

This is important to me because I can get so involved in rendering exactly what I see that I forget to take artistic license to create a more pleasing color scheme rather than painting whatever colors are present. A color chord is like a chord in music–a selection of color notes that harmonize or are exciting together.

  • Most paintings accepted into the American Watercolor Society annual show have a limited palette
  • Avoid too many colors or abrasive color combinations by making a “color chord” plan before painting
  • Use a LIMITED PALETTE with any combination of the 3 primaries (a yellow including yellow ochre, a red and a blue); a complementary color scheme (2 colors opposite each other on the color wheel) or an analagous color scheme (neighboring colors on the color wheel); or· 1 color and sepia OR
  • Use a BORROWED COLOR SCHEME: Collect samples of from good photos, postcards, or other paintings color schemes you like and keep them in a folder. Select a color scheme from these samples to select a color chord for your painting.

 

Categories
Life in general Plein Air Watercolor

Hasta la vista

easel1

I’m off to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for a week of painting, swimming, reading and siestas. I’ll be joining Judy Morris for her watercolor workshops from 9-2 in our courtyard patio “studio” and on plein air painting trips around the area. The trip is sponsored by Flying Colors Art Workshops.

The picture above is my new watercolor easel recommended by Judy. Here’s what she said about it:

“Some of you may be interested in the PERFECT plein air easel. I have one! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!! Look at Valpod Artist Easel website to see it. Norm Kramer in Idaho makes them (Valpod Artist Easels – Telephone: 208-522-8677 in Idaho). I prefer the #U8000 model. I take the tripod, shelf, plastic cups that are provided, and the small (1/4 sheet size) board. Fits in my suitcase perfectly!”

I’ll let you know how I liked it. I normally use a Winsor Newton Bristol watercolor portable easel and make a shelf by clipping a flat old palette on top of my old lady shopping cart that I drag my plein air supplies around in. I can’t bring that cart with me so will have to carry everything, which I’m not thrilled about. I may just use my watercolor sketchbook when we go off site. I’m bringing a Canson Montval Field Watercolor notebook (140 pound watercolor paper 7×10″), small Moleskine watercolor notebook and sketchbook in my backpack on the plane, and maybe a few others, depending on room.

Well, it’s already 9:30 PM and I haven’t finished packing yet and I’m leaving in the AM so I better say Adios now.

I’ll be back next weekend.

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Animals Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

At the Dog Park

Watercolor and Micron Pigma Brush Pen in Raffine 6″x9″ Sketchbook

Yesterday I’d planned to spend the day in the studio but it was such a surprisingly nice day that I decided to go sketch at the dog park which is only about a mile from my house. Pt. Isabelle is a 23 acre park where dogs are allowed off leash and can run, swim and play. It’s on the S. F. Bay with stunning views of the Golden Gate Bridge. I sat on a bench along the path and watched the passing parade of canines and their owners. One very large dog turned out to be a miniature horse, the size of a Great Dane, and she caused quite a stir. I overheard her owner telling the gathering crowd that they take her places in their mini-van and that she sleeps outdoors but comes in the house and hangs out with the family. That brought back fond memories of my favorite childhood book, Pippi Longstocking, whose horse lived with her indoors.

Every dog that passed by took a turn peeing on the post beside my bench but none would hold still long enough for me to draw them. I filled several pages with partial dogs and then switched to doggie stick figures, just trying to capture their gestures and shapes. It was a hoot eavesdropping on the conversations I heard with owners and their dogs: “Now, Isis, I told you not to do that…stop it now Isis or else you’ll be sorry when you get home, Isis, stay, no, stay, I told you to stay….” It reminded me of the Far Side cartoon that goes:

What you say: Oh Ginger, that was a bad thing. You’re a bad, bad dog, Ginger.
What a dog hears: Blah Ginger, blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah, Ginger.

After I’d finished the second picture it got really windy and foggy so I headed home, happy to be in the studio having enjoyed what may have been the last nice day before winter hit. Today it rained all day.

Categories
Outdoors/Landscape Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Painting Palms in the Dark

Painting Palms in the Dark

Ink and watercolor in large Moleskine watercolor notebook
(To enlarge, click image and select “All Sizes”)

The other night Michael and I were driving down Santa Fe Ave near Gilman in Berkeley and he pointed out these two palm trees that were lit up and glowing in the dark. Tonight I returned to paint them in the dark from the front seat of my car. I couldn’t exactly see what I was doing or what colors I was getting. The light in my car was fairly dim and my paper looked brownish instead of white. I was excited to get home and see it under the light, where it looks completely different. I’m really starting to enjoy letting things just happen with my art instead of trying to control it so much. That’s a wall  covered with ivy in front of some small trees in front of the palms, in case you can’t tell.

I’ve been noticing palm trees lately and wondering….why do they exist? Why did they evolve to be so tall and skinny, with the leaves/fronds and fruit up so high up?

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Outdoors/Landscape Plein Air Watercolor

Blake Garden Pagoda & Art Show

Blake Garden Pagoda

Watercolor and Ink on 9×12 Arches watercolor paper
(To enlarge, click image, select “All Sizes”)

I did this plein air painting on Monday afternoon at Blake Gardens. I got there 90 minutes before closing with a plan to paint the redwoods and creek area (just behind this little pagoda fountain). Unfortunately, landscape architecture students from U.C. Berkeley (the gardens belong to the University) had been allowed to do “art installations” and the creek had been covered with large white posterboards with yellow tape stuck here and there. (Is this art?) I had to quickly pick a spot to paint so settled for this fountain that was brightly lit on the edges by the setting sun at first. I painted without much drawing and then added the ink, using a non-permanent Pentel ink brush pen. I softened and bled the ink with a little water here and there.

Tonight my painting group met at the California Watercolor Association’s National Show held in downtown San Francisco’s Academy of Art gallery. There were a few stunning pieces, but the majority were disappointing. Someone was smoking cigarettes near the door and the gallery smelled horribly of cigarettes and was hot and stuffy so we headed over to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art three blocks away for a delicious dinner in the cafe and a visit to some “real” art (What makes something “real art?”).

I enjoyed seeing some Matisse paintings and sculpture on display that he made in the period I’m now reading about in the two volume, 1200 page biography, The Unknown Matisse and Matisse the Master. Then we saw an absolutely thrilling show of enormous sculptural paintings by German artist Anselm Kiefer. The scale, perspective, brilliance and 3-dimensionality of the work was breathtaking.

While we dined and looked at art we had many thought-provoking conversations about art, artists, showing, painting, and teaching. I’d love to share them with you but I’m falling asleep standing up (my computer is on a standing-height work table) so it will have to wait.

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Drawing Flower Art Gardening Life in general Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Westbrae Nursery Buddhas

Westbrae Nursery Buddha

Micron pigma ink pen, watercolor in Moleskine large watercolor notebook
(Click image, select “All Sizes” to enlarge)
(This was Monday’s post–I thought I’d clicked “Publish” but when there were no comments on it at all, I checked and discovered I had never actually put it on line….oops).

After working this morning I rode my bike into Berkeley this afternoon to do some errands. Last time I drove down Gilman I noticed that Westbrae Nursery had a bunch of Buddhas on display so after I finished my unshopping at REI (returning a clip-on umbrella that I thought would work for plein air painting but wouldn’t clip onto my easel) I rode over to the nursery.

I discovered that my new bike seat worked perfectly as a table for my teeny Winsor & Newton watercolor field kit. I stood with my bike just outside the nursery entrance to draw and paint this. One of the workers stopped by between delivery bags of manure and big plants to people’s cars. His comments: “Are you painting?” “Don’t you get tired standing?” “Wow you’re fast!”

Today was warm and sunny but by the time I started for home, the fog and wind had returned. Having not carried a jacket (a foolish mistake in the Bay Area), I had a chilly downhill ride home.

Categories
Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Cloudy Skies – First Rain

Clouds1

Watercolor in Raffine sketchbook
(Click image, select “All Sizes” to enlarge)

It rained last night and this morning for the first time since winter. Our staff meeting ended at 4:00 and I was back to my neighborhood by 5:00 which was a treat, since I usually don’t get home from work until 7:00 and it’s almost dark by then. The bright sky was full of dramatic clouds, so instead of heading directly home I drove to the top of Albany Hill on Solano Ave. I painted these two quickies there, standing in the street behind my parked Toyota RAV4, using the painting gear I keep in the car.

Clouds2

Watercolor in Raffine sketchbook
(Click image, select “All Sizes” to enlarge)

I noticed there was a full moon when the sun went down. Maybe that’s what all the craziness was about downtown yesterday when I said I wish there was an iPod for the eyes so you could see beautiful things instead of ugly urban grit. Tami cleverly quipped that an “eye-pod” would be great. And then today I read this in David Pogue’s New York Times technology column:

“Apple’s rep gave a little talk that focused on iPod accessories. One of them looked like a pair of skinny wraparound sunglasses that displays your video iPod’s TV shows and movies on a virtual big screen that floats in the center of your vision. What’s cool is that you can still see–by looking around the TV set on either side. Hard to explain, but really neat.”

Categories
Outdoors/Landscape Plein Air Watercolor

Blake Gardens – Trees & Yuppies

Blake Garden Trees

Watercolor painted en plein air at Blake Gardens on Arches 9×12 watercolor block

This afternoon the weather was gorgeous and knowing that plein air painting time will soon be over (at least for wimps like me who hate being cold) I grabbed the opportunity to go paint at Blake Gardens. I love this area of the garden, with the rows of trees and reflecting pond. Unfortunately a professional photographer and a perfect little yuppie family were also using the area to take family portraits.

For the entire two hours I was there painting they were alternately posing for pictures and trying to keep their little son from falling apart as he became increasingly bored and tired of all the phoney posing together. They were all perfectly groomed, in matching blond hair, white shirts, khaki pants (father and son) and khaki skirt (mom). They enthusiastically worked on keeping little Griffin engaged (Dictionary: “Griffin: a fabulous beast with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion”) in silly songs, teddy bears, slinkies, hugs and tickles, snacks, bribes of lollipops later, and discussion about his favorite tools (he’s got a hardware fixation and prefers monkey wrenches to screwdrivers). They were a really nice, loving family but I had really been hoping for serene communing with nature, not yuppies.

By the time we all left when Blake Gardens closed at 4:30, I had a headache and they were moving on to another park for more pictures. I was happy with how the painting went today–there were many moments of enjoyment as I became more closely aquainted with these grand old trees and as the paint appeared on the paper in ways I liked.

Categories
Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

View from Moeser Lane

moeser-lane-web.jpg
Click image to enlarge

I was driving down Moeser Lane on my way home from Blake Gardens and as usual was amazed by the view and had to pull over and paint it from the front seat of my car. Moeser Lane is a very steep street that heads straight uphill from my house (in the flatlands near the S.F. Bay) and ends at The Arlington in El Cerrito (which means “little hill”–hah!) . Moeser Lane has a colorful history, having once been a tramway carrying rock from a quarry located near the top of the hill.

Painted in watercolor on a Sennelier watercolor block sized 10″ by 4″ — perfect for such a widescreen landscape.

Categories
Plein Air Watercolor

Blake Gardens, Kensington, CA

Blake Gardens

Painted on site in watercolor on 9 x 12 Arches watercolor block.

I finally got back up to Blake Gardens today with two hours before closing. My plein air painting supplies live in an old lady shopping cart in my car. I dragged that thing all around the Blake Gardens estate looking for a spot to paint that wouldn’t be too cold and windy as it was a foggy day in Kensington.

A woman taking photos stopped to see what I was doing. She’s an oil painter who paints there often so I asked for her advice. Landscape and plein air painting never really interested me until this year, and I’ve only begun exploring it. While it initially feels humbling, even embarassing, to allow myself to be a beginner and ask for help, it’s also very freeing.

She saw that I was doing pencil thumbnail sketches in a sketchbook to get started and she suggested using a Sharpie instead, blocking in the main shapes on a full page instead of doing thumbnails. She was right–that helped a lot. Then I did a quick pencil sketch on my watercolor block, picked up the biggest brush I’d brought–a 1″ flat (something I rarely use) and dug in and started painting.

The funny thing is that the scan has better contrast, value range and color saturation than the original. I’m going to make a printout of the scanned image, and using that as my reference, enhance the original painting to match the scanned version. It showed me how to make the painting better–isn’t that cool?!

So my moral dilemma is this: which is cheating more, to post the scan-enhanced version before changing the painting, or to change a plein air painting by working on it in the studio? I guess then it’s not a plein air painting anymore? What do you think?