Nothing Gloomy About July

Little Corona Cove, 5"x7", oil on canvas panel,
©2013 Cindy Greene

I feel so fortunate to live where I do – only an hour or so away from some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. And I am having so much fun this summer visiting these beaches regularly with some like-minded painting friends. I love the overcast mornings as the "marine layer" plays tag with the sun. It can be challenging to catch the correct light, as often we have clouds/fog/mist/sun all within an hour or so.

Last week's paint-out was at Little Corona Beach. Wonderful small beach, with lots to paint (once you navigate the steep walk down to the sand). We even watched a wedding take place by the tidepools!

The small study above is looking south toward Laguna Beach, with the sun still mostly hidden behind the clouds. I'm loving the colors in the cliff, sand and rocks.

Next post, I'll share more of our Little Corona morning. Nothing gloomy here!

Early Summer

Early Summer, 9"x12", oil on panel, available here,
©2013 Cindy Greene

Although I have not been blogging, I have been painting. With a large amount of what seems to be known as Real Life going on in the last few weeks, I decided to just work on studies. No stress, just work. Process, not product! So I have been doing small studies of glass inside, and also painting outside whenever possible. Several afternoons I have sat in my patio and painted whatever the sun was hitting at an interesting angle. One day I took some tea boxes outside and painted them. None of these studies are blog-worthy, but they have served a good purpose. I've been really working on seeing the effects of light, shadow, local color of everyday objects, value changes in dappled shade vs. sunlight. Fun stuff.

So where did this painting come from? I have so enjoyed the jacaranda season this year. My podiatrist moved to a new medical building, and these jacaranda trees line the street of the office park. The field behind the trees will no doubt be the new home of yet another large complex soon. I was so taken with the sight of a large empty field lined with blooming jacaranda trees (in the middle of a large city), that I pulled over, snapped some photos and came home to paint it. The trees are young, probably planted earlier in the year, but were blooming beautifully. And the sprained ankle is finally healing.

Beginning of Summer

Beginning of Summer, 6"x6", oil on archival panel, auction here,
©2013 Cindy Greene

It's late May and the jacarandas are exploding all over Southern California. They are so gorgeous and I am enamored of them. (And please don't tell me they are messy; that's obvious and I don't care. I'm actually very appreciative of the people who clean up after them so that the rest of us can enjoy their beauty.)

I see these two trees most mornings on my bike ride through our neighborhood. My husband and I have a seven-mile loop that we've found (the fewest stop signs possible!), and I really enjoy watching the seasons change. At the end of this block, we turn and sprint to the next intersection, seeing how fast we can go each time. Four loops and then we head home. Anyway, I look forward to the jacarandas each morning. 

PS: Liz, is this a good Isle of Skye tartan painting?

Vineyard Afternoon

Vineyard Afternoon, 6x6", oil on panel,
©2013 Cindy Greene

Look familiar? Yup, same scene I painted and posted on Thursday. In the spirit of last week's Daily Paintworks Challenge, I painted the same thing two different ways. 

I enjoyed this — I kept this one a bit simpler, since it is a much smaller size. Makes me want to be there.

Koehler Vineyard, Late Fall

Koehler Vineyard, Late Fall; 8x10", oil on panel,
©2013 Cindy Greene

Confession: I really enjoy Fauvist art (along with many other types). Think Matisse, Derain, Marquet and sometimes Van Gogh. I stumbled upon Kathleen Elsey's website a couple of years ago and have enjoyed following her work since. She paints landscapes and interior scenes in bright, fun colors, and considers herself a "new Fauve."

So today, being fairly frustrated with my recent paintings, I decided to be wild and crazy, and paint a landscape in a fun, colorful Fauv-ish style. Above is the result. I put out a palette of brighter colors than I usually use and gave myself permission to use them. The reference photo was taken last November at the Koehler Winery in Santa Ynez.

Evidently, it's not easy for me to throw caution to the wind. Other than using quite a bit of purple, I'm not sure this qualifies. My conservative self is fairly strong.

But it was fun and I enjoyed it. I think I'll keep experimenting.

I'd love to hear comments!

Lavender Path

Lavender Path, 6x6", oil on archival board, $100
©2013 Cindy Greene

I found the reference photo for this painting on my laptop, named "practice greens 2" — I think I took it at the South Coast Botanical Garden. At any rate, I liked it and think it's more than just "practice greens."

Greens are challenging, especially in the spring. They can be so very intense, that they look unreal and not always attractive. I almost always mix greens from various yellows, blues and sometimes black, and many of them also include a red to gray the result. Without the red, the greens all scream for attention. By reducing the saturation a bit, it becomes more pleasing to the eye and then small areas of more saturated color can be used to direct your eye through the painting.

The Sentinel

The Sentinel, 7x5", oil on canvas panel©2013 Cindy Greene

I've always been fascinated by the eucalyptus, or gum, trees that are everywhere in my part of California. The ones that really get me though, are the ones that line the freeways. I used to snap photos of them at dusk against the sky (only when my husband was driving).

This huge old tree stands at a freeway on-ramp not far from my house. It is just over a bridge that is being rebuilt, and I am so thankful CalTrans did not cut it down. We have a major freeway/overpass/carpool lane connector project going on around here (which is making the population of at least two cities very cranky), and there are a few of these old trees still standing and guarding the ramps.

I took the reference photo for this while stopped at the light, waiting to turn left onto the freeway on-ramp behind the tree.

Sycamore Hill Path

Sycamore Hill Path, 10x8", oil on canvas panel,
©2013 Cindy Greene

Last Thursday I painted at Sycamore Hill in Irvine Regional Park with Kim VanDerHoek's plein air class. We have a standing joke that Kim picks the most challenging weather and location combinations that she can find in our idyllic area of Southern California. How bad can it be in May in SoCal? 

Well, the prediction was for 93F, and I noticed the wind symbol on the weather app on my phone. While driving over the hill to the park, I was having to dodge palm fronds and eucalyptus branches in the street. When I found the meeting location, I spent about five minutes picking a parking spot away from the large trees — leaves and branches were everywhere. It was really windy.

My main goal was to find a sheltered spot that had something "paintable." I knew an umbrella would never work in the wind, so I also looked for shade for my easel.

I'm pretty happy with the result. I picked out most of the bugs and bits of dirt and leaves that blew in, and managed to get the painting home safely. My challenges for this painting (other than dealing with the weather) were to paint larger (8x10), and to do a landscape without a sky. Done!

And April Flew By....

Instead of finishing daily paintings the last couple of months, I've been working on studies and spending time on some slightly larger paintings. One of my goals is to do some large studio paintings from some of the plein air studies that I do. I love working small and finishing a painting in one sitting, but I need to move on! 

So I'm going slightly larger in my plein air work - yes, an 8x10 feels large when you're outside with the weather and light changing every 10 minutes. (It's almost twice the real estate of a 6x8!) I've gone up to 11x14 for a couple of studio paintings and I'm aiming at some larger pieces this month.

Above is a collage of a few landscape studies I did in April. A few were in class, and a couple were painted from demos in Elizabeth Tolley's book.

Blown Away

Blown Away, 5"x7", oil on canvas panel, ©2013 Cindy Greene
available here

As I mentioned in my long posts about our Cambria trip, I painted a few small paintings at Fiscalini Ranch Preserve. This is the first one I did, from the Bluff Trail looking north to Moonstone Beach. The clouds were blowing in and out, and I was trying to capture the essence of the scene very quickly, especially the hills in the background. 

This was definitely the most challenging plein air experience I've had, what with the 35mph winds and icy fingers. There were a few friendly dogs and walkers, but they weren't a problem. I think there are a few grains of sand embedded into the paint — but that just adds to the authenticity, don't you think?

Sensory Overload, Part 2

Up the Hill

I decided to split the post about our Cambria trip when I realized that my sensory overload didn't end when we got home. Looking through the photos still overwhelms me. 

Part 1 if you missed it.

I burrowed into some bushes on the back side trail, and painted the grasses and some trees on the hill. There were many tempting views, but the least windy spot won.

White-Crowned Sparrows sang to us; they look like they are wearing bicycle helmets

After I finished the second study, I decided to whip out a third (since I still had some feeling in my fingers and paint on my palette). I painted fast and furious, but it was pretty much a disaster. "Wipers" aren't for public consumption, so it's not getting blogged. I quickly packed up, and we headed for some lunch. Winds were about 35 mph by that time!

While loading the car, I couldn't resist snapping more flowers in front of the house next to the preserve.

A friend had recommended that we try Robin's for lunch. What a nice surprise! Very eclectic, international and creative menu. We had the Salmon Bisque, a black bean and rice burrito, and a delicious bun-less hamburger for me. Oh and since we had worked so hard all morning, we shared a hot fudge sundae with McConnell's coffee ice cream. With a flower.

small photo to downplay the size of that sundae

We then took off to drive up Santa Rosa Creek Road to find more future painting locations. It was so beautiful, but it is a working road with very few turn-outs and a lot of trucks flying up and down the road. We did stop a few times to take some photos.

On one of our stops, I ran down the side of the road to get a better shot of a field, and stepped in a hole and twisted my ankle. I was able to get back to the car, but that ended the active part of the day. We drove around a bit more, but then headed back to the hotel where I spent most of the rest of the day with an ice pack. We did get to Linn's for dinner, which is always a treat.

Poppies deserving a sacrificed ankle?

We headed home the next day, but took a carefully-planned route to make the most of our trip (and to miss the evening LA traffic). First we drove north to see the elephant seals at Piedros Blancas Rookery (check out the livecam here if you can). Here's the lighthouse and the rocks, but no seals. Great colors in the ocean.

 And of course, the elephant seals. One of the volunteers explained that they are fasting right now on the beach, waiting to finish molting. Then most of them go out to sea to feed — the largest males get up to 5000 pounds while feeding off Alaska. They will be back next winter for mating and birthing season. They estimate about 4800 pups were born this last winter just at the central California beaches.

 A quick stop in Cayucos for more Smoked Pork Tacos (I only get these once or twice a year!), and then we went to Atascadero to visit Central Coast Trains. I went in the store for a few minutes, but then sat in the car with my foot up and enjoyed the clouds.

We drove down to the Santa Ynez Valley and made a quick stop at our favorite winery, Koehler. The Lady Banks roses were in full bloom. More overload.

Last stop of the day was to meet our "youngest" daughter for dinner in Santa Barbara. We always go to the Fishouse, mostly because of the location and they have a parking lot where we always find a spot (not so easy in Santa Barbara). The food is also pretty good. ;-) It was a great finale to the trip, and we did manage to miss most of the traffic driving back through Los Angeles. 

(The ankle is still pretty swollen and sore, but improving. It will be ready for another painting trip in a week or so!)

Building an Artist

Slowly Clearing, 10x8", oil on canvas panel,
©2013 Cindy Greene

Do any of you read Stapleton Kearns' blog? Well, if you're interested in art, you should. He doesn't post often, maybe once or twice monthly, but it's always interesting. 

In March, Mr. Kearns wrote a post called "Negotiating a Painting Commission." He rarely accepts commissions these days, but talks about when he accepted any request that "walked in the door." He describes a couple of unsavory commissions, and his advice to those considering accepting commissions. But the most interesting part to me was his last sentence, which jumped out at me. "Look at your work as building an artist." 

All good artists and art teachers will tell you that it takes time to learn to make good art, and it is hard. There are different phrases used to describe this process, which we all share when a fellow artist-in-process is having a tough time. Carol Marine says, "Paint 500 paintings before the real ones." A few artists have talked about the need to paint "miles and miles of canvas." Kim VanDerHoek says "Painting is hard. If it were easy, everyone would do it." Last night my friend Jeanne and I were talking about how to get through the frustrating times, of which there are plenty. (She and I both seem to cry a bit, and then buck up and move on.) I think it was Carol who also talked about if you started taking piano lessons, would your family expect you to come home and play a sonata after your fifth lesson? No. But when we pick up a paintbrush and some paints, we expect to be good, fast. At least good enough that your mother would want to hang your painting in her living room!

During the last couple of weeks, I've been working on just learning. I've done a couple of landscape "lessons" out of Elizabeth Tolley's great book "The Oil Painter's Solution Book: Landscapes," and a couple of landscapes from Kim's class (one is above). I've also been doing some tree studies, and have been experimenting with some new paints and painting surfaces. I try to paint outside at least once a week, usually in a new place, which is always a learning experience! It's fun to try some of these new colors and techniques, and Stapleton Kearns reminds me that I am building an artist. I'm thankful for that.

Here are the two landscape studies I did from Elizabeth Tolley's book. I have long admired her work, much of which is painted in my favorite part of the country, the California Central Coast. She uses a lot of transparent colors, and a layering technique that is new to me. Challenging, but fun.

Landscape Study #1, 8x10", oil on canvas panel

Landscape Study #2, 6x8", oil on canvas panel

Remember, it's a process. It's hard, but rewarding. And you may be "building an artist."

South Crescent Bay

Rocks at South Crescent Bay, 6x8", oil on linen on board

Last Thursday I spent a wonderful day in Laguna Beach with Kim VanDerHoek and our March plein air class. We were on a spectacular small beach with many painting opportunities. My goal was to choose a simple, strong composition, and not get caught up in the overall view and distractions.

These rocks are looking south, and I eliminated almost all of the bluff. I originally had some sand at the bottom, but it did not really add to the composition and I like it much better without it. As usual, the sun, fog, clouds, tide, shadows and general scene changed every few minutes, and the gorgeous weather and spring break brought in quite a few kids and families. It's very challenging to focus on the painting when there is so much going on (and I'm easily distracted anyway). 

About 10:00 am, a marine mammal rescue center released four rehabilitated seals right in front of us. That was a fun distraction, and it was great to see them dive right into the waves. You really never know what you're going to get when you go outside to paint!

Late morning, after the fog and seals, before many people showed up

30 in 30, #19 – Up the Road

Up the Road, 6"x6", oil on panel

Well, it is a challenge to get a painting done when you are on vacation, especially when you are staying in a condo with friends and doing lots of other things. After sightseeing all day yesterday, we stayed close to home today. The guys wanted to watch football this afternoon, so I took the chance to paint a scene from our drive yesterday. Yes, the grass was really that shade of green; our winter rains and this week's warm weather turned the world chartreuse. IPhone photo did something weird to the sky color though.

I talked Leslie into painting with me, and she painted her first oil painting, using a size 4 filbert brush and a rigger. We improvised: her palette was a couple of paper plates, and her canvas was taped to a cardboard.

Leslie did a great job! Here is her painting; it is of the same corner of the Demetria Estate Winery patio that I did a sketch of yesterday.

Demetria Corner by Leslie Fagan, 5"x5", oil on canvas