Northwest Scenes

Here are a few more new works, northwest scenes of a waterfall and a river. First is 6x8, river scene is 5x7. I'm working on getting back to the daily painting routine I started last year about this time, and then finally slowed down in the fall after almost 150 works. The result is I'm getting a more consistent loose "touch" I've been working toward. Now the task is to get this technique to be refined on larger paintings.  

New Seattle Landscape

I've been very busy as President of the Evergreen Association of Fine Arts, so now slowly getting back to my own painting. Here is a great scene of a tugboat moving toward Puget Sound from Lake Union, in the fall color season. This is 8x10. 

More Maui paintings

Catching up on the blogging. Just took over at President of the Evergreen Association of Fine Arts here in northwest Washington and the tasks have been keeping me pretty busy. We have about 300 members, put on shows, have monthly meetings with artist's talks and demos, a public art program with many venues, do plein painting groups in the summer plus other activities. A busy group. 

These works below are 5x7's I did while on a recent trip to Maui. Will enjoy them all again as winter begins here in Seattle and will be missing the sun. I love doing these small "postcard" views in 5x7 and 6x8 sizes as I can capture the feel of the location quickly with a few loose strokes, then touch up what's "off" in my studio.  

Top item is the view toward Makena from Kihei area.
Next is the main intersection in Makawao, looking up toward the crater road.
Third is the view upcountry toward the crater from Kihei.
Last if the view from upcountry, in Kula, back down toward Kihei and the road to Lahaina. 

Maui Paintings

Returned from a great hot week in Maui. Did a couple of 8x10's on a canvas pad, a great way to do travel paintings and save space in the suitcase. The top one is a view back to the beaches from upcountry, in the town of Kula, where we visited a lavendar farm. Below is a view from Paia, looking up toward the volcano and upcountry. I did several 5x7's too but will show these later as they need a few touchups from the travel wear and tear. Both the below are done in the looser style I'm working on. 

Marymoor Park Mill

Our EAFA painting group worked at Marymoor Park, east of Seattle, Wednesday. I did an 8x10 on site, then did another 8x10 looser painting from the photos I took, while the scenes were fresh in my mind. Here are the two works. I'm leaning toward the looser style but like the results on both. It's a three bladed windmill, by the way. Bottom painting incorporates the slough that runs through the park.  

   

Outdoor work continues

The top painting is a 16x20 landscape of the Snoqualmie River. Feeling a need once a week or so to challenge myself on a larger work after a summer of smaller paintings. I've entered this in the next EAFA show and will see what happens. 

Next are two 6x8's of flowers at Fall City Farms. i did the top one on site, the second I began on site and finished at home. I wasn't happy with the composition of the top one and wanted to remove some of the detail yet keep the colors.

Second from the bottom is an 8x10 view at the same farm where I feel I got in some good detail and also nice lavender colors in the field. The last work is a small one again, 5x7, from my Lake Joy photos as I do love waterlilies and could paint them forever.  

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Latest Plein Air work

Have been outdoors at Fall City, and the UW Horticultural Center, for the past two sessions of the Evergreen Assoc. of Fine Arts Plein Air painting group. Weather is starting to change to fall here in Seattle so it's getting a little cloudier but we lucked out and didn't rain on us the past two Wednesdays outside.

The first work is 6x12, painted after I got home as the on-site work didn't satisfy me but the fog in the mountains behind the farm where we painting at Fall City fascinated me. 

The second work is an 8x10 painted at the horticultural center where I emphasized the water lilies at the shore's edge. This is the view looking north from the water's edge. It's a great viewpoint and I did several works last year facing west and south.