Watercolor: Central California High Noon

Central California High Noon 15 x 11.5 Watercolor on Arches Hot Press
Available for sale here.
This was painted during the San Diego Artwalk in April (in process on my easel below), based on a photo my step dad TC sent me of an abandoned farm in Cayucos, CA. I've listed it on Ebay and will be posting more work there, and in my Etsy shop, each day this week, so check back to see what's available.

Painting & talking all weekend in San Diego.

Watercolor: Three Tenors

Three Tenors 5 x 6.75 Watercolor on Arches paper
The roses in my yard are great models for still life. I'm snapping photos and painting from them as studies for larger pieces I'll work in this Fall. This one was done on the plane enroute to the east coast last week.

Watercolor: Tender Garden

Tender Garden 6 x 5.3 Watercolor on BFK Rives
Painted on the plane while flying west - after an incredible visit with family; mostly between 70-94 years old. There were some peer-age cousins in there too, but the focus was on those born in the first third of the last century. It was a nostalgic and poignant trip.

Watercolor: Copper Mine

Copper Mine 9.5 x 7.5 Watercolor on Aquabee paper
This copper mine is in southern Arizona near the Mexican border, and my traveling buddies were kind enough to pull over and let me take photos to use as painting reference. The geometry & colors of the storage barrels and metal feeders made me want to try something industrial.

Watercolor: Guitar Solo

Guitar Solo 5.5 x 6.75 Watercolor on paper
Available for sale here.
Sold
My rearranged studio has a new sound system connected to my itunes library. The music in here sounds really good when it's LOUD. I *love* music. It makes the paintings spill out faster.

Monotype: Indian House Mountain, AK

Indian House Mountain, AK 8.5 x 6 Caran D'Ache Monotype & Watercolor
Available for sale here.
Sold

Using the same piece of mylar as yesterday's post, this was a fast and loose sketch of Indian House Mountain, from a reference photo taken as we drove along Seward Highway near Anchorage last June. You can see in the image below that the pressure on the press was too light, and I got a very faint print, but that's okay, because there are plenty of art supplies in the studio, waiting for experiments after the print & paper dry.

Pulling the print after a trip through the press.

Monotype: Not Tied to the Ground

Not Tied to the Ground 8.5 x 6 Monotype & Watercolor on Somerset paper
Available for sale here.

You and I, we're not tied to the ground
Not falling but rising like rolling around
Eyes closed above the rooftops
Eyes closed, we're gonna spin through the stars
Our arms wide as the sky
We gonna ride the blue all the way to the end of the world
To the end of the world.

You & Me, Dave Matthews Band

There's a reference photo in the background of a bird, some roses and a horse on the window sill in my studio. I'm drawing on a sheet of Mylar (.005 Matte Draft Film) with Caran D'Ache crayons and a wet brush to soften areas and add layers. (I left the process photos full size so you can click on them to see more detail.)

The mylar is placed on the press bed face up on a same-size piece of matboard. A sheet of soaked and blotted Somerset paper is carefully laid on top of the pigments. After a trip through the press with quite a bit of pressure, I'm pulling the print.

The print on the left, and the mylar sheet - with remaining pigment - is on top of the matboard. (I did get a ghost print, though it's quite faint.)

Watercolor: Seventy Four Years

Seventy Four Years 2.75 x 3.75 Watercolor on Fabriano Artistico paper
My maternal Grandparents, Al & Margie, have been married for 74 years. They met in a textile mill in Connecticut on the assembly line - they were both 17. Al used his first paycheck - in 1933 - to take Margie to the movies. I'm going to see them soon, and I can't wait to hear more of their stories.

Monotype: Chestnut Mare

Chestnut Mare 3.75 x 8.75 Monotype & Watercolor
Available for sale here.
This piece was pulled from the same mylar sheet used in the last post (Geat Dane), made with Caran D'Ache Neocolor II Water Soluble crayons. Scroll to the bottom photo: you'll see my reference photo, and the drawing on mylar, next to the crayons, an old paint brush and water. You can scribble the crayons on the inside cover of the box they come in, and use a wet brush to pick up pigment and paint washes and soften areas around your line-work.

Pulling the print after a trip through the press.

Laying the mylar sheet on a piece of matboard on the press bed; notice that you can see my fingers through the plate. The one I'm using here is about the same weight and texture as a plastic file folder.

In process: reference photo, mylar, crayons, brush and water.