Seven Layers of Spring, painted on Mount Diablo

Seven Layers of Spring

The dark pine-covered ridge was the perfect foil for the early spring oaks and poppies.
This was painted on Mount Diablo on Northgate Road looking down from the poppy meadow and across to the western ridges of the peninsula. there's not enough elevation to see it , but the San Francisco Bay is in between the last two ridges.

Curry Point November in Signature American Watermedia Exhibit 2017

Curry Point November 21 x 21

Curry Point November Framed

I am showing a photo with me in it to show scale, this is a pretty large painting for plein watercolor.
Thank you to Juror Dale Laitinen and the Fallbrook Art Center for presenting this for the eight time.
Since this is going to a watermedia exhibit , it is framed in a traditional matted format.

Here is the exhibit information:

Signature American Watermedia Exhibition 2017, 8th Annual
Fallbrook Art Center
Feb 5th to March 19th  Opening Reception Saturday Feb 4th, 5 to 7 pm.

Poppy Paintings

Poppy Meadow 14 x 14

Windy Day Poppies 24 x 18

These were painted a while ago, just getting around to posting. Available The Fairmont Gallery, Sonoma CA

Curry Point Calm 12 x 22 Plein Air Watercolor

 Curry Point Calm, Plein Air 12 x 22

The drought has brought out a very understated landscape, the subtle taupey /lavenders and buff grays are way out of my painting habits.
There is no point in going out to see if I am not going to try to be true to what is out  there
I liked this subject because it was a still day with no wind and I could see across the Central Valley to the Sierras.

Still staring at it, I think it is done, if I want more saturated color I would do another painting vs glazing this one over. It helps to remember sometimes less is more.

Demonstration: " After the Fire II " 18 x 24 (Mount Diablo)

I thought it was time to post a demo.

This is Mount Diablo during the brief rainy season after the fire. The pink slash of exposed chert contrasted with the greens of spring.

After the Fire II 18 x 24. Still trying to get a good picture of the final piece.

"Fresh Greens" Plein Air Watercolor

Fresh Greens 18 x 24

 Here's the final version, after two weeks of staring and making minor adjustments , mostly to the foreground values. My goal was to keep the freshness but ad enough vibrancy to make the painting exciting. The title comes from the lovely greens in the grasses and the grazing cows nearby munching on the fresh greens.
Here's the link to the earlier version:
http://robinpurcellpaints.blogspot.com/2013/03/in-process-on-my-easel-today-fresh.html

"On a Clear Day" Plein Air Painting on Northgate Road on Mount Diablo

                                                         "On a Clear Day "10 x 13

A couple days ago I went up Northgate Road on Mount Diablo looking for poppies, I didn't see many poppies yet ,but was attracted to this view of the bay and hills of Marin to the North. The higher elevations on Mount Diablo are pretty dry already.  This painting involved a careful drawing of the silhouette of the slopes and the flat lands and mountains beyond.

 Here's an in process shot to give you an idea of how I started. I generally paint the lightest value I think will work in a given shape and glaze over if it seems too light later in the process.

In Process  " On a Clear Day"


Playing around with photo, the sky is actually pale yellow.

Mount Diablo Springtime

Diablo Springtime 14 x 14

This started out a while ago as a class demo and I missed posting it at the time. Since we are finally getting some gorgeous greens, I thought it would be fun to post now. This was painted from a summer version of this same place in Lafayette called " Northern View. "