Thought I would post the final painting from the Los Gatos Demo I did last Saturday. I spent a little over an hour finishing it. I might touch it up a bit more in the coming weeks, but it is about 98% done.
Truckee Snow * 16×20 * Oil on board
Los Gatos Art Association DEMO Final Painting Read More »
We had been having spring like weather, plus it had been awhile since I had painted the Big Sur area, and taken the Harley out on a painting trip, so decided to do both today.
I left around 7:30 when the sun was just starting to peek over the hills and mountains behind the house. I love the early morning motorcycle rides when the air is cool, and the sun is dappling the landscape with color.
After passing through Monterey and Carmel, I arrived at one of my favorite painting spots, Garrapata State Park around 9:00. I had done quite a few paintings here, including the one which won “Best in Oils” last year at the Carmel Art Festival. The California marine layer, aka fog, was hanging just offshore, so I drove around for a few minutes to see where I wanted to paint first. I ended up at one of my favorite parts of Garrapata, gate 8, and started in. Below is a shot of the Harley parked alongside Hwy 1, south of Carmel.
My first painting was a 12×16 of Sobranes Point with the fog starting to drift in. As I was painting, the fog would drift in and out. The focal point of the painting, however was the foreground bluff which stayed bathed in the morning sunlight the entire time. At times, the entire point would envelope in fog. Below is a picture of my easel, plus a quick shot on the easel of the painting. It’s not a very good shot of the painting, and I will post a better one at a later date.
It was getting toward noon, so I hopped on the Harley and headed into Carmel for lunch. A restaurant I frequently stop at during trips to Carmel is Cafe Stravaganza. It is tucked in a little corner south of the main town in the Crossroads Shopping Center at the corner of Hwy 1 and Rio Road. Some years ago, a local friend who owned a store nearby said Doris Day, the famous movie star and singer, used to eat there as it is close to an animal hospital (Doris Day is an avid animal and pet activist). If you like Mediterranean food, I would recommend it. Plus it is not too pricey, at least compared to most Carmel restaurants!
After lunch, it was back down the coast to do another painting. I stopped at gate 2 in Garrapata, and found another view of Sobranes Point, except further away. The fog was really rolling in and out and covering most of the point, plus much of the ocean. I love trying to paint the moodiness of the fog and this painting became a study in gray. Once again, the focal point was a close by bluff which the sun was illuminating against the steely gray of the background fog.
Below is a shot of the painting location.
My easel while painting.
The final painting, once again a quick snapshot on the easel. I will post a better one at a later date.
I finished this painting around 3 in the afternoon. By that time, I was almost completely enveloped in fog. My back was starting to get a little sore, so I decided to call it a day. I hopped on the Harley, drove down the coast to Bixby Creek Bridge, and it was really socked in, so headed back north towards Carmel. Passing Carmel, Monterey, Castroville (the Artichoke Center of the World), then Gilroy (Garlic Capital of the World), and finally San Jose, I arrived home.
I received an email last week from a partner in an art gallery at South Shore Lake Tahoe. The email, which was totally unexpected, invited me to start showing at their gallery located in the new Montbleu Resort (formerly Caesar’s Palace). He had seen my work at another gallery, James-Harold Gallery, where I show on north shore (about 40 miles away) and liked what I was doing. I checked with the owner of James-Harold Gallery if there would be any territorial issues, and he said no problem, it will probably help all my sales in the area.
After a few emails back and forth with Galerie Noir, I am tentatively going to take a load of paintings to the new gallery early April. Stay tuned for exact dates when things can be finalized and my works actual be seen.
I mentioned in a previous blog I was invited to to a demonstration painting at the Los Gatos Art Association monthly meeting. Today was the day. I decided to demo a painting of a Truckee River snow scene. I had done a series of plein air snow scenes several years back, and am now doing some studio versions of them. You can read about my trips here, and here.
I only had about an hour to demo the painting, and the painting had to be fairly large so everyone could see. With fifty or sixty in attendance, they told me it was a good crowd for their meeting.
Below are some photos of the meeting, beginning with an introduction.
I used one brush to do the entire painting, a number 10 bright, which I use on about 95 percent of all my paintings, including the small ones.
A couple close-ups when I was about half way through the demo.
I probably got about 2/3 of the way towards completing the painting and stayed a few minutes afterward. When I finish the painting and have a chance to take a snapshot, will post it back to this blog.
I have a demo on my website of a similar scene which you can see here.
Los Gatos Art Association Demo Read More »
This blog is normally about art, so why would I write a note about a movie? Well, many of you know I have a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and frequently take it on plein air trips. I can never decide whether the ride there is more fun than painting while there!
Been waiting some time for the movie Wild Hogs to be released, so I snuck out and watched it this afternoon. I don’t like to build movies up and say how great they are, because when someone else overrates it, it may become disappointing. However, if you like bikes or want to see a light-hearted good comedy, go see it!
As a postscript, searching the internet, I noticed most critics are panning the movie. I think they should lighten up…it’s not an Acadamy Award wannabe…just an entertaining flick.
The Carmel Art Festival is considered to be one of the top plein air events on the west coast. I have been honored to join about 60 other artists juried into the show this year, which takes place May 17-20. The artists will paint “en plein air” for two days, and the resulting works will be auctioned off on Saturday, May 19. More details can be found by clicking on Carmel Art Festival.
Last year, my first time in the show, I was honored with the “Best in Oils” award, the painting shown below.
“Garrapata Colors” * 12×16 * Oil on canvas board
Last year, family and other commitments limited my participation in plein air events, although they are one of my favorite art venues. This year I am similarly busy, but hopefully can participate in more. Stay tuned.
Carmel Art Festival Read More »
I have just been invited to do a demonstration painting at the Los Gatos Art Association monthly meeting on March 10, 2007. The scheduled guest artist had a medical emergency, so they asked me to fill in. Prospective members and guests are welcome to this meeting which takes place from 1:00-3:00 pm. For more information click here.
I will probably demonstrate my ‘wet-into-wet’ oil painting technique I use while painting ‘en plein air’, and most of my studio work. Below is a sample seascape painted entirely on location using the technique.
Demo at the Los Gatos Art Association Monthly Meeting Read More »
I am writing this several days after the fact…something I will explain later.
The Los Gatos Plein Air was painting at Mission San Juan Bautista again, as it is becoming a favorite spot for many. Coming down from San Jose, the sky varied from clear, to cloudy, to heavy fog, so wasn’t sure what to expect. I arrived a little before 9:00am, and the entire town was enveloped in heavy fog. It was burning off quickly though, so we scouted around and started to paint.
I decided on an unusual angle lookup up from El Camino Real at the old mission. Below is the painting. I added a little pathway leading up from the foreground just to add some interest to the work. I also omitted a picket fence which ran right in front of the mission. I am not sure if I should put it in or not. It would add interest, but detract from the mission behind it. Anybody have an opinion about that?
Below are a few more picts of the group painting.
After finishing the first painting, I had about an hour before lunch, so did a little study of the clouds. The skies had broken into a beautiful cloudy day. I did the below painting in a little over 30 minutes. I like the quick roughness of it.
Around lunchtime the group retired to a local mexican restaurant. We had a great time talking about art and a lot of other subjects. On the way home, the lunch was feeling a little heavy on my stomach, but I didn’t think much about it. Around 6:00 that night, I started feeling ill, and had a few ‘dry heaves’. Now it is 3 days later, and I am finally feeling normal. Although my wife thinks it may have been the flu, I don’t think I will patronize that restaurant again!
San Juan Bautista Revisited Read More »
I had always wanted to see last year’s movie, Art School Confidential, so finally rented it this weekend. It was critically acclaimed (although somewhat mixed reception at the box office), so was looking forward to sitting down to a good flick. The movie is about a young, very talented artist who enters a prestigious art school only to have his hopes dashed with the manic antics of the students and professors.
I never attended art school, and I thought it was a funny tongue in cheek, offbeat parody until I viewed the “making of” extra where the screen writer said it fairly well portrayed his experience in four years of art school in the late seventies.
I would recommend the movie to artists, especially younger artists. Be forwarned, though that it is very crude, raunchy, and explicit in some portions, and very much deserves the R rating.
Art School Confidential Read More »
Last January 15, I painted in Santa Teresa County Park with the Los Gatos Plein Air group. Since returning from Yosemite, I had not been out painting, and the LGAA was going to visit this park again, so I decided to join them.
It was a wonderful day, a little warmer, but not quite as clear as the last trip to Santa Teresa County Park. Since we were on a hill with valley’s on both sides, I decided to paint the Santa Teresa Valley side of the mountain which was the opposite side I painted last time. I did one 8×10 of the Santa Teresa neighborhood of San Jose, then a little 5×5 looking out the same way, but a little more southerly. Below are some photos of the day.
My easel while painting the overlook to San Jose’s Santa Teresa neighborhood
“Gateway to Silicon Valley” – 8×10 – Oil on panel
David at his easel.
“Santa Teresa Overlook” – 5×5 – Oil on panel
The photos of the paintings are straight from the easel and not very good quality. I will try to get some better photos in the next day or so.
Another Day With LGAA at Santa Teresa Park Read More »
