The Vintage Lady - Silk Painting

This is going to be one of my submissions for the annual Tustin Art League's "Scenes of Tustin" juried show.  If  it gets juried into the show it will hang in Chemers Gallery in Tustin for a couple of weeks.

This is a quaint building that I've always loved in Old Town Tustin.  Unfortunately, it was damaged by a fire last December.  From the outside it looks like it might be able to be saved but I don't know if it is structurally sound.  Anyway, I had taken pictures of this building a few years ago intending to paint it and never got around to it.  I thought this year would be a good time to immortalize the image since it is no longer the Vintage Lady.  I hope someone is able to save this building and bring it back to its original charm.  I'll be very sad if it has to be torn down.

I had a lot of fun creating this silk painting.  I used techniques that I've never used before.  I wanted the foliage to have a softer look so I painted the lightest green color then after it dried I covered some of it with wax to save the light green.  Then I painted progressively darker greens and saved them with the wax.  By doing it this way, I was able to not have the foliage surrounded by the white resist lines.  I like the look of the resist lines but by having some areas without them I think the painting has a more complex look.

I also used a product called "No Flow" which keeps the dyes from spreading. This made it possible to paint the sign and filigree at the top of the facade.  This painting took a long time to finish but I'm very happy with the result.

The Vintage Lady
Image Size 22" x 20.5"
Silk Dyes on Silk

Buellton Vineyard

This brings back memories of an idyllic day of wine tasting with family and friends last summer.  We went to Buellton which is north of Santa Barbara, CA.   It's a beautiful area that doesn't have the crowds that you might find in other well known vineyard areas in California.  This is the area that is seen in parts of "Sideways" the movie.

I painted this in watercolor on Aquabord, a surface where the paint sits on the surface rather than being absorbed as it is when paper is used.  It's a completely different way of working for me but gives a refreshing effect.  Another nice thing about this surface is that I can spray a sealer on the painting and then it can be framed like an oil or acrylic without using glass to protect it.

Buellton Vineyard
Image Size 6" x 6"
Watercolor

Koi Ripples

What a surprise, another koi painting!  I just can't seem to stay away from them.  I painted this while I was in Mexico.  My friend that lives there was looking at my reference photos of the Koi and since she had never seen this type of fish before she said how beautiful they were and asked if they taste good.  When I told her that people don't usually eat them and that they can be very expensive she looked at me like I was crazy.
This is a 48" x 48" acrylic painted on a cradled wood panel.

Koi Ripples
Image Size 48" x 48"
Acrylic

A Lonely Allium

I'm playing around with pastels again. This was done on an unsanded pastel paper.  I've become so used to using pastel paper that has a sandpaper-like surface that it was a bit frustrating to try to add multiple layers to this paper.  The tooth filled up pretty quickly.  I may try this one again using the sanded paper and see how different it looks.

A Lonely Allium
Image Size 7" x 9"
Pastel

Chardonnay

Here's a small oil painting that I started using brushes but finished it with a palette knife.  I like the texture from the palette knife much better than the brush.  I tend to work the paint too thinly when I use the brush.

Chardonnay
Image size 6" x 6"
Oil
Sold

Delicate Bougainvillea

I know you're probably getting tired of seeing so many bougainvillea paintings but these flowers are fun to paint and since I was out of town last week, had no reference photos for anything else and there were plenty of bougainvillea growing there, that is what I painted.  I'm excited to get back to my studio and do something larger and hopefully a bit more creative.

Delicate Bougainvillea
4" x 6"
Watercolor

Green Figs

I started this painting last summer with acrylics and finished it this week with oils.  The acrylics were making it look too bright and flat.  I'm happy to have finished one of my unfinished projects.  I'm one step closer to getting that studio clean..... Of course, this is only 6" x 6" so it really hasn't freed up much space.  : )

Green Figs
Image Size 6" x 6"
Oil

Sally Strand Workshop

I just got back from a 4 day Sally Strand pastel workshop in Fallbrook.  This is one of the paintings we worked on.  There was a live model posing for this.  I've only drawn people a few times and definitely don't feel comfortable with that subject matter but I did enjoy working on this.  It's not finished but it's getting close.  We ran out of time and the models were done for the day and nobody was finished.  Oh well, I guess I'll have to guess what the rest of it should look like.

Sally Strand is an incredible pastel artist and she's also a wonderful instructor.  I can't wait to put everything I learned into practice.

Puerto Vallarta Sunset

This painting was my second attempt at a poured watercolor.  I think my first attempt, Colimilla, was more successful but this was a learning experience.  I may try it again because I think this scene works well for pouring.  I would like to get more color variation next time.

My reference photo was taken just south of Puerto Vallarta and I loved the white light glistening on the water.

Puerto Vallarta Sunset
Image Size  11" x 15"
Watercolor

Descanso's Gate

If you live in Southern California, maybe you've visited Descanso Gardens in La Canada/Flintridge.  That is where I took the reference photo for this pastel painting.  If you haven't been there and have a chance to go, it's worth the trip.  It's about 160 acres and has about 1000 California Coastal Oaks in a forest with huge camillias growing beneath them.  There is also a rose garden, lilac garden, koi pond, Japanese garden and tea house, art gallery, gift shop, a cafe, classes and so much more.  I've been there at different times of the year and I don't think I have a favorite (there are always so many things in bloom) but this year I think I might go in March for the Cherry Blossom Festival.

Descanso's Gate

Image Size 7" x 10"

Pastel