Sunny Saturday at the park in Sellwood: a wedding, swimming pool, dogs & their owners, frisbie, picnics, the sounds of kids screaming on a nearby roller coaster, a blues concert, and just enough shade under a tree to paint! "Park Path" is 11" x 14", oil, painted en plein air.
Last week I went to the central Oregon coast, to Rocky Point State Park, with artist friends to join in the annual Eric Sandgren coast paint out. Although I did not attend the workshop, artists were invited to join in at the selected locations. There were painters all over the place among fabulous views of rocks, trees and surf. The sounds of the waves were hypnotic, and the weather was perfect, not hot or cold, although the wind did knock my easel over once. C'est la plein air! My first painting was an overview including the changing sky and foreground with wildflowers. I noticed a large rock that reminded me of the profile of the Sphinx, later he/she became more of a meditating Buddha, so I painted a second 11" x 14" canvas, called "Meditation on Rocks and Sea".
Two oil paintings of waterfalls, one based loosely on a photo of Proxy Falls, the other completely from imagination, both involving "happy accidents" of texture from previous paintings left on the canvas, both 12" x 12", gallery wrapped and painted on the sides in cool, watery colors.
A golden field on Sauvie Island at Blue Bee Farm. A deer bounded through the meadow and disappeared into the oak trees, represented by a tiny brown dot. Afterwards, picked blueberries!
Sauvie Island Pond, 11" x 14", was painted en plein air with just some minor changes in the studio.
A lovely day, interrupted by a few pesky mosquitoes, enhanced by birdsong and the low buzz of a distant tractor. The water reflections changed at every moment!
