8″ x 10″ oil on linen panel
I painted this in June along the banks of the South Fork of the Merced River near the Wawona Hotel. Most years, the willows would be defining the banks of the river. With the super wet winter we had, the willows now find themselves knee deep and in the midst of rushing water.
6″ x 8″ oil on linen panel
I was drawn to the churn of the surf around this collection of rocks just below the Devil’s Slide area near Pacifica and the way the colors changes in the sunlit and shadow areas.
11″x 14″ oil on linen panel
I painted this early in the morning from a small dock in South Lake Tahoe just as the sun was inching above the treetops. A flag was up alongside the small cabin on the left and with Memorial Day Approaching, I had to include it.
8″ x 8″ oil on linen panel
I love the way aspen groves come alive in the spring sparking with lemon lime shimmering leaves. It’s that movement, I am most trying to catch here.
8″ x 8″ oil on linen panel
I have mixed feelings about the iceplant we see along the Northern California coast. I know it isn’t native and that it’s invasive. Still it can be so beautiful. In this plein air piece I’m drawn to the backlit glow brought on by the rising sun as the fog lifts.
Exhibited …
2024 – Coastal Arts League “Iconic California”
8″ x 10″ oil on linen panel
The sliver of blue sky only made a brief appearance when I was painting this from a bluff in Half Moon Bay. Still, that was the moment I had to catch.
16″ x 12″ oil on linen panel
Tenaya Lake is magical. For me, it marked the end of a week long endurance-testing backpacking trip, the spot I first painted en plein air and the scene of a hasty one time only skinny dipping experience. Here I am catching the lake in spring as the impossibly pink penstemon flowers make their appearance in nooks and crannies between granite rocks and in shaded lakeside patches.
8″ x 10″ oil on panel
Most Monday’s, I paint outside painters affiliated with the Los Gatos Art Association. I met Rebecca when I first joined the group. She’s the group’s heartbeat. These Hollyhocks and hydrangeas were painted in Rebecca’s backyard a couple of years ago. I pulled this painting out of a group of paintings with happy memories on a recent cloudy and added in a few more hollyhocks just because.
8″ x 10″ oil on linen panel
I painted this from a small dock in South Lake Tahoe just before Memorial Day weekend. I always think of that as the launch of the summer season in Tahoe. I hope these boats and their people have enjoy a wonderful summer on the lake.
Memorial Day is the unofficial kickoff for the Tahoe summer season. I was so fortunate to be invited to stay with good friends the week before this summer start. There was lots of time for hiking at favorite spots and enjoying the rush of waterfalls after our wet winter.
I was able to spend time painting before breakfast. These three paintings were done from a beach with a pier that was just steps away. Lucky me!
