American Avocet

I found a picture of this bird while surfing the web nearly a year ago.  I printed it out and then it got lost in a drawer somewhere.  I found the picture the other day and realized that I needed to paint it.  I was thinking what could I do to this picture.  There really isn't a lot going on with it.  Just a bird standing there.

So much like the beach here where i live, when you look, the beach just kind of disappears in the distance and the sky starts.  There is no real line of demarcation. I tried to make this painting resemble that.  A nice gentle transition from sand to sky.

As for the bird, i really like everything except its head.  I just don't understand what happended there.  Love the wing, love the underbelly, like the legs.  Head.... meh.   Oh, well,  I guess thats why they call it practice.  Thanks for taking the time to read, and check out the picture.  Hope you enjoyed it.

Mermaid

My daughter's best friend is going through a mermaid phase right now and asked if I would paint one for her.  I, of course, said I would.  I first had to find an image, then draw it out of course.  What followed is this painting of a mermaid.  It's not the best painting of a mermaid, but I think its a really good first try.

My favorite part of this painting is the ribs on the tail.  I think they turned out really well.  The next painting will probably have some scales, or some such.  And I'm always looking to work on hair.

I got about half way through this painting and then thought I needed to have her sit on something, so the rock is somewhat improvised, but I think it mostly works.

I've also made a video to go along with this.  As if you hadn't seen that coming.

Pictured Rocks National lakeshore

Here is a little painting I did over the weekend.  It Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  I've been there many many times and it is truly a beautiful place to be.    I painted a picture of the lakeshore a few years ago and always wanted to do another one, but never got around to if for some reason.  Well, last night, I finally did it.  I make myself sit down and paint it again.    Of course, I had to make a video to go along with it.

I had a lot of fun painting it, I hope you enjoy viewing it.  and if you are so inclined, paint along with me.  

Taking Flight

We have had a bit of turnover at work.  We got a new ASC and she is into airplanes.  I thought it would be a good exercise to paint one.  This is a quick sketch of a plane that she likes.  Its called the Boomerang, and apparently is a prototype made by Burt Rutan.  I know its just all blue around the plane.  It's kind of like giving up on the background.  And I know that given the angle, you should be seeing ground under the plane instead of all sky.

Well, it's just a quick painting I did.  I didn't plan on spending a whole lot of time paint this, and therefore just wanted to block in some background.

Let me say one other thing.  I got some new software for my scanner.  Since I started using it, the pictures I have put up here have been terrible.  I don't know if it is all the scanners fault, or if it is something else, but when I post to blogger the color of the pictures goes all wonky.  If I look at them locally on my machine, they look great.  I'm going to get to the bottom of it, so please be patient while I work it out.  Thank you.

Pelican, Not Pelican't

Today I decided to use my watercolor pencils and crayons.  It's been a LONG time since I have tried them so I didn't really know what would happen.  In fact, I was so confident in my failure, like last weeks pelican, i just used old scrap paper.  And this is what I cam up with.

Here in Morro Bay we have two landmarks.  One is of course Morro Rock.  The other are the smoke stacks on the power plant.  Many people think they are an eyesore, but must admit that they, along with the rock are the first things people think about when they think of Morro Bay landmarks.  I've done a few paintings with the stacks in them.  Personally, I think that they are so integral to Morro Bay's history that they should always stand.

I'm also trying to get back to painting birds.  I thought I could get a little practice with both.  I found I was really shocked to see the colors jump off the page after I go the pencil lines wet.  Its like the painting was revealing itself to me for the first time, going from something dull and flat, to something vibrant.  Ok, the sky in this picture is a bit terrible.   I didn't remember that I would get such bad texture marks from the crayons.  But I really like the way the front wing on the bird worked out. And I really like the way the bird and the roof joist are clearly in front of the rest of the roof and the stacks.  I don't think the angle is quite right, but thats a different issue.

At any rate, this was a hoot to do and really quick.  I think I'll end up doing more of these quick pencil/crayon painting/drawings.

State Park Marina

SOLD

If you ever stop by Morro Bay, California and by the State Park Marina, you will see a sight like this. The marina has about 8 slips to lease out.  Standing on the north shore, facing south, you could see a similar  view repeated on each of the 5 docks.   I've had the idea to paint this for quite a while now.  The kids and I go to the state park every so often.  On the south side the park system has installed a wooden boardwalk  that circles the peninsula.  Its a great walk if you have an hour or so.

Those of you who have been following my painting since the beginning will recognize that many of the first paintings I did were boats, and I always knew I would make my way back to them.

I've been getting to "tight" with my painting recently, and I purposely painted this one more quickly that ones I have done recently.  Sans drawing, this painting took me about 40 minutes start to finish.  Not bad, that still gave me time to eat my lunch at a leisurely pace.  I like this one, and hope you do too.

Quick Sketch

This painting for sale.  Watercolor 5 1/2 x 8 1/2. $8

Here is a quick sketch I did of an old car.  I know I have mostly moved on to other things, but I can't quite get away from cars and trucks.  I did this over the weekend.  It was fun, and quick.

I painted this completely with my waterbrushes.  I love how they provide a little extra water to your painting.  When you are outside, in the sun, they compensate for the extra drying of the paper quite nicely. I painted this one at home on my dining room table.  I really like how the colors ran together, but I think i needed to do more with it.

Monterrey Cypress

Ok, well, I tried to do another  one from the central coast.  This one being a monterrey cypress trees along the coast.  I think I jus tmissed the mark on this one.  I like some of the rocks, I think the grass is ok, but I really think I missed my mark on the tree itself.  I know, I know, thats a pretty big thing since the tree takes up the whole painting.  Well, some are winners, some maybe come in second place.  This is one that probably finished second, or even later.

Old Dodge

This painting for sale. 6x9  $15

This isn't a picture I planned on posting this week.  I had been working on this at home and had been taking my time doing it.  For some reason, I brought it into work with me, and then felt compelled to finish it here.

I've do this with just about every painting I do, and I thought I might share with you all.  My friend, Bob Ross, always says to make up a story about what it is that you are  painting.  When you do this, you will create a better connection to the picture.

This car is obviously sitting on a plain somewhere,  I imagine it is South Dakota.  The summer is gone, fall is in there air.  There hasn't been much rain for the past several months and the grasses are going dormant just before winter sets in.  Here the car sits, just rusting away out in a field.  Probably there are animal trails all around it.

Well, for what it is, here it is.  Hope you all enjoy it.

Going Back On My Word

This painting for sale 9x12  $30

 Well it didn't take long for me go revert to my old ways.  A short few posts ago I swore off cars for kittens. It looks like I was abel to keep that word for all of a week.

With that, what we have here is a Studebaker.  I can just imagine this cars sitting, baking in the sun somewhere in Texas, or Oklahoma, Arizona or someplace like that. The blazing sun has cracked the pavement and provided no relief to the dry, brown dirt on the other side of the parking lot.

I didn't take pictures for the whole process this time.  This is the first one I took.  You can see the sky is already done, but there is plenty to do on the rest of the painting.  I tried hard to put in some coud details on this painting instead of just a plain sky.  It's a bit hard since we don't have many real clouds here to look at in real life.

I've jumped ahead quite a bit here.  You can see the shelter in the background is done as well as the sidewalk, the windows, and the chrome on the car.  If you look at the shadows, they are different than the final product.  I thought I had them right when I put them in,  then I stepped back to look.  Wow! was I ever wrong.  I had to go back in and fix them.  They look a lot better now.

Finally, a few finishing touches and the painting was done.  I strengthened a few of the colors and put in the trees and weeds.  They seem simple but they really do add a lot to the painting.

Hope you all enjoy.

A Barn in the 'Hood

Ok, so on this painting i was working on letting color mix on the paper.  You can see on the barn roof and siding, that the colors are not uniform.  We all want to think that colors are mostly solid, but if you look closely, most colors are a mishmash of many many different colors.  I think I am getting a handle on form and shape, I might even be getting a handle on depth in my paintings.   Painting while allowing multiple colors to make up the body of each object may well make my paintings look more alive and vibrant.

Hope you enjoy.

Who Doesn't Love the Shell Shop

Once more I'm tackling the more memorable sights in Morro Bay.  Everyone who comes here drives past the Shell Shop.  Some even stop.   I've lived here six years and been in there once.  But if you talk to visitors of our fair city, they all know the Shell Shop.  I don't think my last picture did it justice, so, armed with a different picture, I tackled it again.

This one has much better perspective.  The really big thing I did differently, which I started on the last painting, but brought out more here, is the shadowing.  The shadows of the building are all building color. It's a more intense, darker color.  From this you can tell what part of the building is in shadow (most of it), and you can see the triangle at the bottom that is not in shadow.  I think it makes more sense to do shadows this way than by putting a blue grey shadow on everything.  I might have been able to mix a little more grey in the color, but I think the principal is one I am gonna continue with.  Shadows on the focal point of the painting are gonna be the same color as that of the subject.

Additionally, I think the anchor turned out pretty good.  The writing on the shell is a little crooked.  Its really hard to paint letters freehand.  Especially with red.  With red if you make a mistake, you can never take it off the page.  Other colors a a little more forgiving.

Well, thats it, I hope you all enjoy it, and when you come to Morro Bay, you can stop by the Shell Shop and see it for yourself.

Morro Bay City Limits

Yes, this is Morro Bay.  I know there was some question about what this painting is.  This was painted from a picture taken in Morro Strand.  You actually have the city limit sign with some bushes behind it, and the rock in the background.

The thing I like least about this painting is the sign.  I thought for sure I would like it best when I was drawing it.  As it turned out, painting around all the letters was pretty difficult.  I think I'm getting much better at letting the paint mix on the paper.  If you look at the bush behind the sign, there are lots of different colors, brom yellows to greens, blues and purples.  They all seem to work together to give you the feeling of a huge bush.  and if you look at the ground around the bush, it is blue at the top, which pushes it back, and has a reddish tint on the bottom which serves to pull that area forward.

Hope you all enjoy this.  It was fun to draw and paint.

Cotchett Education Building

This is the Cotchett Education Building on Cal Poly's campus.  In the foreground you can just see the word Design, which is on the Architecture Building.  Expect to see a picture or two of that building in the coming weeks.

I love the way the trees turned out on this picture.  They look like they have movement and life too them.  I also like the purple plants in the planter in front of the word design.  

In judging this one I think I should have made the shadows on the building darker. I think that would have given more definition to the building.  Also, I think I am gonna start to draw in pen so that I can get leaves on the trees.  As you can see I have loose drawings underneath the paint.  Drawing it this way allows me to have a general shape to the tree, but not get bogged down with a "tree" shape so that I can then just put the color on and let the tree become a tree.    Hope you all enjoy this.

Anyone Recognize This House?

Yes it is the pride of west Michigan.  It is, of course, The Buckeye House.

Natural History Museum

This is, as the title says, the Natural History Museum in Morro Bay.  It really does sit atop a little cliff overlooking the bay.  It has stunning views and when the tide is out, like in this picture, the rocks at the the base of the cliff are visible.  I think I made the building a little small in this picture, but I'll get it all right at some point.  Just gonna keep working at it.  If I were to turn about 160 degrees to my right from where I was standing to take this picture, I would have Morro Bay rock directly in front of me.

I really like the look of this building sitting up there and am going to keep painting it until I get it right.  Oh, and by the way, until the 1950's, this was the clubhouse for Morro Bay Golf Course.

Got Fish?

This came out a little redder that I had originally intended, but I still think it is a really great painting.  If you have never been, you need to go. Giovanni's is an institution in Morro Bay.  Great fresh seafood, and there is alway a line for fish tacos.

Dorn's The Original Breakers Cafe

Double click this picture to enlarge.

This was done over the weekend.  I found out one really important thing.  If you have two sick kids who are pretty needy, you aren't gonna be able to paint very much at any one time.  This entire painting was drawn and painted in one to two minute segments.

Even with the challenges this turned out ok. Now, I will say that I have been past Dorn's a thousand time, and I don't think the colors are right.  As it turns out, I had to paint the entire thing from a black and white picture.  I should also say that I felt so confident when I started this, that I didn't even do it on really good watercolor paper.  I did it on a slightly lower grade paper.

Bayside Cafe

I have been thinking of painting all the landmarks in Morro Bay.  To see if I could do it I did a few quick paintings yesterday.  They turned out OK.  The problem for me is that same problem I've had all along.  DRAWING.  Having not had a drawing class since Mrs. Mudrack's class in high school.  Drawing is tough.  I have been working on it.

Yesterdays quick sketches gave me a little hope so today I decided to give a go on the Bayside Cafe.  It is located in the State Park, right on the water.

So, armed with a little confidence, resolve and dogged determination, I set out to draw, and paint.  Let me pat myself on the back for a second (pat, pat).  This was drawn in PEN.  Did you get that?  PEN, no pencil.  Once I started, I was all in, for good or bad.  It did take just a while to draw it, but the painting went great. OK, there are a few problems.  The perspective is off in a few places.  I know, I know.  But without an eraser, i was forced to forge ahead.  From a drawing perspective, this is like 5 times as difficult as most of my others.

In talking to my painting partner, Ed, (who is learning to watercolor at the same time) he suggested that it may not be quite enough to mix colors in the tray and then put a homogenous color on the paper.  These are watercolors after all, let the paint mix on the paper.  I am trying to take that advice to heart.  If you look in the painting, you can see that most of the colors change ever so slightly as they lay across the paper.  I do think it adds to the interest of the painting.  I am trying to do it even more.  Please click on the picture to enlarge it, it will look much better.

John's Chicken

John is a faculty member her.  His son took a whole bunch of pictures of their chickens one day and John asked me if I wouldn't paint one.  I said sure.  This is the result of my effort.  No, its not an exact match.  I never really try to make the exact match, but I think I got a fairly good likeness.