Lately I have been working on a series of paintings and sketches of Crystal Cove, a small community of cottages and cabins on the coast of Southern California. It is a magnet for artists of all types, and someone is always there, on the beach behind an easel. I attended my first watercolor workshop there with Robert E. Wood back in the 90's. Many of these paintings will be at the Crystal Cove Art Gallery the weekend of March 19th.
I gave a demonstration for the California Art League in Tarzana last night. It was well-attended and the food was spectacular. Video Vic filmed everything. I painted the Colorado Street Bridge using pencil, fine point pen, and water-soluble felt tip for the drawing, and bright splashy color to suggest a fall day in the Arroyo.
We were at the Huntington a few Saturdays ago, and as usual, I brought my small Aquabee sketchbook just in case. I was rewarded with a few sketching opportunities as you can see here.
These were all very quick studies, done in ten minutes or less, with a Sanford Uniball pen. I tried to capture the big picture - the main shapes and values, without regard to any details. I find it is easy to get wrapped up in the little things, and miss the primary inspiration.
I took a few reference photos, although I really didn't need to as I was able to remember the colors easily. I added color to all of the sketches later in my studio. This was a good time of practice: eye/hand coordination; sketching on the go; value; composition; and painting technique.
I am continuing to work on sketches of Los Angeles for my Los Angeles Sketchbook, which will be published some day. This is a series I just completed of the skyscrapers of downtown. The top painting is very loose, with little regard for detail. I was trying to express shapes and forms through the use of color, value, and shadow.
The next three are very tight, and done with a series of background glazing washes with small bits of detail selectively located through the paintings, giving the illusion that there is more detail than there really is.
The bottom two images are of my studio(s): my inside one, and when the weather permits, my outside one, on the patio table in the back yard.
Here are some recent sketchbook images taken from my Aquabee.
This is a scale model of a model train layout I am going to build someday. It is to be in N Scale, using Kato track and equipment.
I flew to Denver a few weeks before Christmas so I could ride back to Southern California with my son, Tyler. These are the sketches from that trip.
At the top is the view from the plane as we flew over an overcast and cloud covered landscape. It was very cold when we landed. We had to wait for the handlers to get organized, so I used that time to capture the action on the tarmac.
We drove to Craig that afternoon. Tyler was driving so I was able to do some quick sketches from the passenger seat. It snowed off and on and the roads were icy in parts. We took I-70 instead of Berthoud Pass (which is my favored, but slightly longer route), and went through the Eisenhower Tunnel.
Craig is beautiful in the wintertime. All of the trees are bare and the sky is a mixture of whites, light blues and steel treys that I never tire of. I made a few sketches of the view from my mom's backyard.
We were there for only a few days, leaving on Saturday for the long drive back. The scenery is epic, and show in the bottom two sketches. It was the perfect trip.
