Delphiniums and Foxgloves - Plein air painting

Hello, Sorry I have been MIA from the blog. I have been painting and sharing updates on Facebook page whenever I can, but keeping up with all of my social media is becoming a chore these days :).

Here is a plein air painting done from my backyard couple of weeks ago. Delphiniums and Foxgloves were in full bloom and I couldn't resist painting them. Done on a 12 X 12 canvas with acrylic.

And here is my set up from the garden.

Weekly Painting #15 - Pudding Creek Afternoon

We went to Fort Bragg/Mendocino over the Memorial day weekend. I attempted to catch up on some Plein air sketching while the kids were playing at the Pudding creek beach. Saw this mom and toddler wading the water. The afternoon sun was lit up the cliffs & people and I couldn't resist painting the scene. I quickly sketched the composition and started on the painting but couldn't finish it on location. Continued the painting at the hotel and finally took a photo today. Here is the sketch and some scenes from the location.

Weekly Painting #14 - Mackerricher Beach Plein Air

Plein air Gouache sketch from last weekend at Mackerricher beach, Fort Bragg, CA. It was a perfect day to sit on the cliff and work on my sketch. I was contemplating a different location and a different composition. But with a short time in hand, I had to settle for this view closer to the parking lot. It was a relatively quick sketch, completed in about an hour.

Weekly Painting #1 - Dos Daffodils

My resolution comes two months late. I got tired of seeing so many inspirations around me and not being able to find the time to paint. While I dream of painting daily, I am going for a more realistic goal - one painting every week starting from this month. I want to be able to start and finish my painting in one session. So, I will be painting small, no more than 11X14 and take no more than two hours. Very excited to experiment different artistic styles and develop my own :).

To kick start the weekly painting session, I grabbed the daffodils from my garden and put them in a pretty cobalt blue cup. Placed it on a white dry erase board next to my window. I loved looking at the shadow cast by the blue glass. So much that I tossed my original intention of painting lose and got sucked in to doing a realism with the shadows. Here is my painting with the subject.

And the painting. 8 X 8 canvas with acrylic, done under 2 hours.

Backyard Blooms - Plein air Gouache sketch

We have recently moved to a house with a real backyard and I find myself spending more time gardening than painting these days. Two weeks ago while the east coast was buried in snow, the almond tree in our backyard was in full bloom. The flowers don't last long, one strong wind/rain they carpet the ground. Started as a plein air sketch and finished up inside. Here are some pictures of the tree and my sketch :).

And here is a close up. Done on a 8X10 watercolor sketch pad with Gouache paint.

Coyote Hills Plein Air

Sorry for being MIA for a while. Past two months have been crazy at work and I am trying hard to keep up my painting schedule. I did manage to squeeze in sometime to go for the 4th Annual Plein Air paintout organized by East Bay parks last month at Coyote Hills Regional Park in Fremont. There were about 15-20 artists. It was a gorgeous day and I chose to paint the marsh. Took me about 2 hours to finish the painting below.

Done on a 11X14 Canvas with Watersoluble oil.

The Egrets kept darting in & out of my frame and I couldn't resist including them in the painting :). Here is a closeup of them.