Yes, I know it is still April. Before I left for Texas, I painted this view of the Mineral King valley as it looks from the Timber Gap trail in September. The first layer was done a few days earlier, but I didn’t take any pictures.
I left it wet on the easel to put branches and greenery on the tree and sign it after I get back home.
Tomorrow: Things I Learned in April.
As I plan for the solo show at CACHE in autumn, there are a handful of paintings that I want to improve. Finesse. Polish. Tweak. Pick your word.
I love this scene! It’s one of the earlier pieces of my obsession with orange groves, foothills, and snow-covered peaks, titled “Tulare County’s Best”. Why hasn’t it sold?
I changed some of the colors and tightened some details on Alta Peak, along with making it stand out a bit more.
I painted this one with the intention of enjoying it in my dining area for awhile before putting it in the gallery (the show isn’t until mid-October). After living with it for awhile, I saw a way to make it better. So, back to the easel.
I have a few more to puzzle over and figure out how to improve. But, I’m in Texas right now, so the other Tulare County paintings will have to wait.
Another beautiful spring day, accompanied by the desire to just be outside and pull weeds.
Nope. It’s a workday, chica.
But wait! There’s an eclipse! I joined Trail Guy for a brief look at the weirdness of shadows and light, with the help of a colander and a piece of white paper.
Back to work.
Two paintings now drying, so that tighter detail can be applied in the next session.
How about another break to enjoy the wildflowers?
Back to work.
In spite of succumbing to a few temptations, it was a very productive day. So, here is our final reward of the day.
Tall narrow canvases with oil paintings of Sequoia trees sell steadily, so I paint them steadily.
Sentinel Tree, 6×18″, $165
This one is modeled after the Sentinel Tree, in front of the Giant Forest Market, now a museum. I say “modeled after”, because I no longer feel the need to duplicate every branch as it appears in the photos. I don’t charge enough to paint that slowly, and frankly, no one cares. This painting is destined for Kaweah Arts, which sells sequoia tree paintings very steadily for me.
After spending most of the winter working on difficult subjects that took much thought, revision, and enormous amounts of time, painting familiar small Mineral King oil paintings to sell in the upcoming summer months feels speedy quick like lightning.
I think Hiking Buddy took the reference photo with her superior iPhone, generously sent it to me, and I phoofed up the colors, making them more vivid than the real life scene. Still, it was better in real life, because everything is.
This is Farewell Gap Alpenglow, 6×12″, $125, and it will be available at the Silver City Store this summer, unless it sells before that.
If you have ever walked to Timber Gap, you know experientially that it is far more than four steps. I don’t remember the specific mileage, but it seems to be about 2 miles.
This post is actually about painting Timber Gap, and it took more than four steps. However, I only took four photographs. (I liked the title, and I am the boss of my blog.)
The trail is not the Timber Gap trail. It is the trail that leads to Franklin Lakes and Farewell Gap, but we are headed the opposite direction here. The Timber Gap trail has terrific views of the entire Mineral King valley. The flowers are Bigelow sneezeweed.
I had a morning available to paint but it took awhile to get to it. First, I had to admire Pippin in the window.
Next I varnished three paintings, and then had to figure out where to put them. So I went into the studio to see if there were any available hooks.
While contemplating my space limitations, I remembered this painting. I’ve had it awhile and don’t understand why it hasn’t sold. I love this bridge! So, I texted this photo to my artist friend Krista for her input, and then we talked for awhile about all manner of the business of art. (It is SO GOOD to have someone to bounce ideas off of!) More on this in a later post. . . I have some thinking to do.
As I was doing laps between the studio, house, and painting workshop, TRYING TO GET TO THE EASELS TO PAINT, I looked at the end of the driveway and saw 2 friends with dogs on tangled leashes. The sunshine, the colors they were wearing, the envy that they can go on walks and I can’t just now. . . sigh. I just decided to commemorate the moment with a photo.
FINALLY AT THE EASELS.
Remember this? Duh. The scene has appeared many times on this blog. As long as it keeps selling, I will keep painting it. It is a little different every time, even if I use the same photos.
Oops, gotta go! Weird colors here are due to the somewhat unstable light in the painting workshop. The final piece will be closer to the colors in the top two photos here.
. . .I walked into the painting workshop, looked at all the paintings in their various stages, and just wanted to walk back out.
Why?
Because it was so beautiful outside and because I couldn’t figure out where to start.
The simplest solution was to start where I stopped the day before.
So, I did.
Some friends brought us lunch and we sat together in the front yard, then took a walk. YEA! I got to enjoy the perfect spring day with excellent people!
After lunch, I just dove into those embryonic Mineral King paintings. Knowing my heart wasn’t in it, I just took a handful of the paintings a short distance. When it required too much concentration, I stopped, and began another.
Suddenly the day was finished. None of the paintings were, but four new Mineral King paintings are closer to being finished than they were when I arrived in the morning.
This will need to dry before I add in the blossoms.
I mentioned a few days ago that there were just a few details remaining to finish three oil paintings of Tulare County’s prettiest places.
The painting factory at my address is up and running at a steady speed.