Sol Duo (Cafe Scene)

8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival panel

For more information about this painting, follow this link, or email me here.

Sunshine, excitement, peach lemonade

An umbrella of welcomed shade over a table of two. 

I actually painted several different couples seated at this table. Luckily, when I started around one in the afternoon, I made a quick value sketch first. Then laid in the darks first thing- ALL the shadow places. Squinting down helps really reduce the values to a minimum. Even the sun and shadow on simple plastic cafe chairs becomes really fascinating. By getting the BIG shapes down quickly, the rest of the painting fall into place.  So with those basics down on canvas, you have the "basic truths" that you need to proceed. 

Some of the staff at Cafe Sol, kept me hydrated with some fantastic peach lemonade (delicious!). They also kept a lot of folks happy with snow-cones! Thank you all!

For a second painting in the late afternoon/early evening, my friend Joanne showed up with this fantastic hat & green sun-dress...super for painting a "Hensche-esque mud-head" type quick figure sketch in the sun. Her hubby and daughter came along too, so it was great fun to catch up with the three of them. Thank you to Constancia for this last photo of me painting her mom!

 

Beach Day 4th of July

8"x6" oil on linen mounted on archival panel

“Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think.”

--Robert Henri

I've had a delightful long weekend, with both of my daughters visiting from Arlington, Virginia. We've been hiking, playing cards, and just enjoying each other's company. Today we went out to the beach where I got to paint a quick sketch of Chelsea, based on Henry Hensche's "mud head" paintings. I brought my little 'thumb-box' once again, to keep things very light weight. With a limited palette this exercise came together quite easily- which was a very nice surprise. I've been trying to push my comfort level on a few things this summer with some of my plein air works.

Into The Light

10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"Seek not to follow the footsteps of men of old;
seek what they sought."
- Matsuo Basho (from 'Warrior Wisdom' compiled by Daniel Moore)


Have you ever really looked (and I mean really looked) at a white object? Whether it's in sun or shade, the colors that surround it, reflect up into it. In our every day rush, rush, rush we miss a lot of that wonderful-ness...perhaps until we learn 'how to see color' . A simple object, whether a ceramic pitcher, a house, a fence, will look different depending upon how the light is hitting it, whether it is cool or warm light, and what is surrounding that object. We might pass by any one of these objects day after day, thinking that all shadows are gray. While they probably ARE a grayed version of some color, they are also going to be either a warm or cool version of some grayed-down color. Now, for an interesting view, click on the image to make it larger, now set your computer monitor where you can walk across the room to look at it. A strong image will 'read' well from a distance as well as up close! Today's painting, "Into The Light" is an exercise demonstrating those very things. It is a 10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board.

For purchase information, please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.