Sketches

We lived in Southern California for a few years. Every weekend we went sketching - the weather was always perfect. At least before 11 a.m. - sometimes it was too hot after that. These are from Crystal Cove, San Juan Capistrano and Balboa Park.

Elephants in Between

I'm working on elephant paintings from sketches I did in the summer of 2010.
Usually I paint to a point of completion and see one area where I'd like to add a color or brushstroke...and then I add another and another. My paintings are layered several paintings and colorways thick before I finally stop.
With these I'm stopping before I repaint - and starting on a new canvas from the last point where I saw something to do differently.
The sketches I'm using for these paintings are below. They're different from other sketches I do at zoos. I did them intentionally to be used for abstract paintings and they're gestures - very quick studies of that moment.

Awaiting Winter

This is a pastel done in January 2010. It really starts snowing - and sticking, and piling up - in January. Sunny days after snow are my favorite time to paint, because the shadows are amazing - color, shape, movement - there's so much happening all day.

Spring River

This past spring we had so much rain that our back yard flooded. Standing water makes such nice reflections.

I find greens really hard to paint - or maybe to live with. I see that everything is green, but it doesn't look right on the canvas - in the composition.

I lightened and lightened with yellows and rusts. The rust of pine needles.

Elephants

I painted some elephants from my sketchbook.

I didn't care for the composition - I don't know what exactly - something wasn't right.

So I turned the painting upside down. Sometimes that helps.
Then I put it away. Maybe next time I get it out to look I'll know what to do.
The answer may be to paint over it.

Grandpa

I tried out what I can do with pencil in this really large drawing (20" x 30") of my great grandfather. I realized, when it was done, that a picture of someone bigger-than-life is o.k. on movie posters but not something I want for portraits of family members.