Again

 

"Struck by Beauty2"
Scottish Highland cattle near Dillon Beach
8" x 8" watercolor on Arches 100% cold press paper 

Today I tried a stand-alone painting based on the sketch I shared earlier. This one's just a little bigger. I'm not sure it's any better, but I enjoyed bringing in some apricot (front lower left and middle, just in front of the green bushes) created with new gamboge and opera pink watercolor, plus a little white acrylic. So fun. 

From the Sketchbook: Struck by Beauty

"Struck by Beauty"
Scottish Highland cattle near Dillon Beach
6" x 6" watercolor in Hand-Book w/c Journal

My husband and I took a short get-away this week to Dillon Beach, at the mouth of Tomales Bay along the Pacific coast in northern CA. The sand is surprisingly soft for that area of the state, and oh, how I love the feeling of fine, soft sand on my feet. 

One afternoon, on our way to eat at Nick’s Cove to the south, I was struck by the scene of grazing Scottish Highland cattle, whose shaggy, reddish coats glowed yellow with the sun’s afternoon rays and echoed the texture of the grassy hills nearby. Ironically, the beauty of that scene, for me, surpassed even that of Dillon Beach--which was also quite incredible.

I find it best to try to capture in my sketchbook as quickly as possible these transcendent moments of beauty that spark joy when traveling. I drew both these sketches and finished the one below during our stay. I waited until we were home to finish the one above; that scene captured my heart the most, so I wanted to be able to take my time with it. 

Finishing the sketches at home helps extend and savor the travel experience. Travel sketching is such a superpower!   

Palms @ Dillon Beach
7" x 7" watercolor
in Hand-Book w/c journal

Another Version

 

Poppies in the Grass2
7" x 7" watercolor
Arches 100% cold press paper

Wanted to circle back to this composition, which I first painted in my sketchbook in June (see second painting in that post). 

This top one is still direct, but more defined. It's not as loose and free-flowing as the initial painting, but it does seem to pass the wall test. That is, it's been taped to my studio wall for a few weeks, and it does look good from a distance. That's something. 

The one below is looser and looks pretty good up close, but not as good from a distance. 

Of course you want something to read well both from afar and up close. Right? Or maybe I am just making that up. 

Okay, I give up...for now

Crown Memorial Beach Bathhouse4
10" x 14" watercolor
100% cotton Arches hot press paper

Dang it, anyway. I've tried three times to create a stand-alone painting of the Crown Memorial Beach bathhouse...hoping each time I might hit the flow I had with the sketchbook painting that I posted last week after watching that Richard Thorn video about creating a strong pencil drawing foundation that allows for a looser approach with the paint.  

But it just won't happen. Here are two versions; see what I mean? The top version comes closest, but it still doesn't have that free flowing look of the sketchbook version. The bottom version is just--well, stiff (though it does look better in person than on this screen). I won't even post the third version.

An artist I admire says she never tries to paint a duplicate of a painting she likes because it never comes out as well. Yet other artists say they recreate paintings all the time. 

I'm giving up on this one for now. But it's just such an iconic image of my daily walks along the Robert Crown Memorial State Beach. I'd sure like to nail it someday for a stand alone painting that I can be proud to frame. 

Crown Memorial Beach Bathhouse3
10" x 12" watercolor
100% cotton Arches hot press paper

It May Not Look Like Much, But...

Crown Memorial Beach Bathhouse
8 x 16" watercolor
in Hand Book Journal

Funny how the muse circles back now and then and reminds us of something important. 

I'd forgotten all about Richard Thorn's video demo that I watched almost three years ago. At the time, I thought it might be a game-changer to use his technique of a very strong pencil drawing (as opposed to the light lines that many artists use) for the framework of a loose watercolor painting. I was all excited about a painting I did using that technique. 

And then I forgot all about the technique. Until this week. 

This painting in my sketchbook may not look like much, but it helped me re-see the magic of laying down a strong pencil drawing and then using a freer, looser approach to the painting. My heart sang as I painted this, and it sings again every time I look at the painting. (You'll just have to trust me that this one looks better in person than on the screen.)

Since this one I've done two stand-alone paintings that I don't like as well. But that's to be expected. This time, I won't forget about this technique. 

Thank you, Richard Thorn. 

 

Zion National Park

Spring in Zion National Park
8" x 10" watercolor
Arches 100% cotton cold press paper

Had to dig in my archives for a photo reference for this one. I snapped the photo in the spring of 2022--our first trip to Zion National Park. I hope it wasn't our last. I see that Utah watercolor artist Carl Purcell, a favorite online w/c instructor, teaches workshops at Zion each year. Hmmm...something to consider. 

Morning Along the Bay

 

Morning Along the Bay
4" x 6" watercolor

I thought this would be just a color/value study--or a "draft," as I like to call them because of my years of teaching writing. But the three larger paintings that preceded and followed are awful, trust me. This may be the best I can do right now with the beauty that struck me so powerfully a few mornings ago as I stood by the bay. 

What struck me were the rich blues and purples and aquas of sky, distant hills, and water--all in contrast to that very dense, very dark cypress tree. How to suggest that tree without overpowering the composition was, and still is, the question. So far, this has come the closest.