We recently did a tour through southern Germany, with a bit of France and Austria, the prime objective to see the Passion Play in Oberammergau, Germany. It’s the first major trip we have taken since the pandemic. The tour was non-stop with LOTS of walking, so much so, I was taking pain killers and putting relief patches on my aching back the last week of the trip just to make it through.
I always bring a paint kit on my trips, but we had no spare time to do anything but tour, eat, and sleep! Perhaps I will do a few studio paintings of some of the locations we visited.
Enjoy this trailer/preview of the video I will be working on the next couple months. (Be sure to turn the volume up!)
Carmel Scenic Drive winds around the beach and bluffs in Carmel, CA with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean, Carmel Beach, Pebble Beach Golf Course, Point Lobos, and other sights. It’s actually a pretty busy place with locals and non residents alike walking and jogging along the adjoining pathway. Dogs are ever-present since Carmel Beach has been designated a ‘dogs off leash friendly’ beach. Along the drive prominently stands the Clinton Walker House designed by Frank Loyd Wright. I have painted here a number of times over the years, especially while participating in the Carmel Art Festival.
The Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters had a paint out along the drive today, and I joined in. It was a nice sunny day, and at least a dozen showed up painting the beach, Monterey Cypress, and other sights. Every turn in the drive is a different perspective and potential painting, and right by my car was as good a view as any.
I worked on it for a little over 90 minutes, taking a little artistic license to add more early morning shadows on the beach. I also didn’t finish the foreground, but added a few color notes for later. I might add the Clinton Walker House on the point, but didn’t really have time to paint it at the time.
I think it may be a keeper after I finish it in the studio.
Asilomar is a derivation of the Spanish phrase asilo al mar, meaning asylum or refuge by the sea.
I hadn’t been out painting in awhile, so went out with the Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters yesterday to Asilomar State Beach. It was a foggy, very misty morning. I used to always chase the light when looking for painting locations, but over the years have come to embrace the moody foggy landscape and seascape. I even started a ‘Misty’ series you can see here. Looking back, I think collectors like them also, as most of these have gone to a permanent home!
This morning, however, the air was thick enough that everything was getting wet. Although oil paints won’t absorb water, the water can muck up your paints, and lift them off the canvas. After about an hour of this, it did clear up enough and the sun broke out occasionally.
I did a simple scene of just the water and rocks. It turned out pretty good for a 90 minute color study, so might keep it. Below are a few pictures of the day.
Honored that two of my paintings will be part of the upcoming “Coastal Passions”, conducted by the Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters. The show will run 9/2/2022 – 10/27/2022 with a Reception: 9/2/2022 7-9pm at the Pacific Grove Art Center – Gill Gallery 568 Lighthouse Ave Pacific Grove, California
In days past, I often drove by this wondrous area of the south eastern dunes of Monterey Bay, but now find the area enchanting. Recently working on a new painting, I chronicled my efforts on Facebook as it progressed.
My weblog readers might be interested in the development and processes as things went along. Below are my posts from Facebook…
June 20, 2022. So, I have had this 12×48 inch canvas sitting in my studio for 10-15 years. It’s a bit of an odd size, and over the years contemplated on a good composition to fit it. So, this week, let’s try something…
June 21, 2022. An old adage is “paint what you know”. It is a good point, but artists should occasionally push themselves out of their comfort level. In the case of the odd size 12×48 inch canvas mentioned yesterday, I am going to paint what I know. We walk by this view at least several times a week near Marina, CA. Here is just a rough block in of the scene.
June 22 2022. Seems to be interest in the development of this odd sized 12×48 inch canvas, so here is today’s progress …
May not have a lot of time the rest this week to work on it, but stay tuned…
July 6, 2022. Back to the odd size painting (12×48 in) which has been on hiatus for a bit. Working all over the canvas now. Still working on the shape of the trees on the left. I actually scraped part of it off as it was overpowering the painting. Still a ways to go…
July 12, 2022. I did a little revamp on the 12×48 inch painting the last several days. I painted the large trees on the left several times, scraping and painting over. I still didn’t like it as they overpowered the rest of the painting, and didn’t give it the expansive view I wanted. So, I revamped for several days, painting them entirely out, repainting the background, and then a smaller tree. Here is the progression…the original trees, repainting the background, and then the result. I hope everyone agrees the effort was worth it!
July 18, 2022.The 12×48 painting still continues. Normally, I would have a painting like this done in about a week or two, if not sooner, however I have had a lot of distractions with houseguests and other things. You may not notice a lot of difference, but I put in a ‘separation layer’ of liquin, and then glazed some sunshine and atmosphere over the background areas. Also, similar to redoing the large trees on the left, I reduced the bushes on the right middle ground as they were too big and overpowering the view. Hopefully I’ll get this finished by the end of the week!
July 6, 2022. Coming down the home stretch on this one. Just a little touchup here and there, and will consider it done…for now…
It helps living close to things you paint. You can see things frequently, and then adjust your work accordingly. We did a walk in the area a few days ago by the scene, and I noticed the prominent green plants have a bit of dead underbrush. The green really contrasts with the reds and oranges of the ice plant, and a little underbrush modifies the effect.
In this painting, although true to the scene, I have moved a few elements around such as trees, bushes, etc. for a more pleasing composition. Cardinal rule of any good landscape painting moves your eye around the piece without going off the edge. Hopefully I accomplished that.
For those familiar with the area, the general view is in Ft Ord Dunes State Park from the hillside near the Divarty underpass. Monterey Bay is shown, and the distant shore is the Santa Cruz area.
For many years, going to my gallery representation in Carmel, participating in the Carmel Art Festival, etc., I drove right by this area to paint the rocky coastlines of Big Sur, the ice plant of Pacific Grove, and other more familiar attractions. Now that I live in the area, the dunes of Marina and the south eastern shoreline of Monterey Bay beg to be painted.
I’ll consider this done for now. Final painting is shown here and above.
Headland Cove, Point Lobos, 8×16, oil on panel $600 unframed
I was invited along with the Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters to participate in the inaugural Point Lobos Foundation Art Appreciation Day yesterday, June 11. The Foundation’s mission is to protect and nurture Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, to educate and inspire visitors to preserve its unique natural and cultural resources, and to strengthen the network of Carmel Area State Parks. We have had a warming trend in the area, and promised to be a great day for weather…and it was!
We needed to be in line at Point Lobos State Preserve by the 8am opening time as parking is always tight to non-existence there. They graciously waived the $10 preserve entry fee for us artists. Prior to the event, they asked us to pick a place to paint so they could advertise where we all were. I chose Cypress Grove Trail as I had never painted there, and would probably have a lot of foot traffic.
I spent most the morning working on an 8×16 piece of Headland Cove. The painting turned out pretty good, shown above, and is a keeper, although as always, will touch it up a bit. Below are a few pictures of the day…
After lunch, and a quick power nap in the car, I painted another piece, 8×10, from the same spot, but a more intimate, closer view of the rocks. My objective was to capture the ever changing colors and value of the ocean as it crashes agains the headlands. I accomplished that, but totally messed up the compositional aspect of the painting. I ended up with 5 evenly spaced rocks of equal size. I will modify it some for a more pleasing composition, hopefully without taking away the colors of the pounding surf!
Pt Lobos Surf, 8×10, oil on panel, $380 unframed.
I rarely put prices on my paintings online, but in this case I will. Proceeds from the paintings will go to the Foundation. Free shipping in the continental US. If interested, please email me donald@donaldneff.com .
Come join us at Point Lobos State Preserve this Saturday, June 11. I’ll be participating in their Art Appreciation Day by painting en plein air most the day. Any paintings I do that day, or a few I bring from the studio will be on sale with part of the proceeds going to charity. Come early, as parking fills up quickly.
I have five paintings entered in the May Plein Air Salon Art competition. They have a peoples choice award which you can vote for online. Below are the five paintings, and if you click on each one, will take you to a page to vote. If you have time, and willing, please vote for each painting. The deadline is June 10, 2022.
Misty Sentinel,16×20,oil on board
“Thunderbird Lodge”, 24×12, oil on gallery wrap canvas
At Ft Ord Dunes State Beach near our home in California, earlier this week, was an amazing display of nature. For several days, dozens of Humpback whales were frolicking close to shore, feeding, breaching, slapping, spy hopping, and other activities. Enjoy this short video I took mainly from shore with my iPhone 13, but also a few shots from my drone of some stragglers after most were gone. Be sure to turn the sound on.
