Switch to local scenes

Continuing my daily painting. Now at number 31 (in 33 days). I'm doing local scenes from the past summer, to relieve the cold cloudy weather lately in Seattle. Was sunny today though so cool crisp day, with a full moon tonight. These works are 5x7 and 6x8. The top two are views from the Seattle Horticultural Center at Univ. of Washington. Next is a willow tree looking north toward Lake Union. Last two are about 30 miles north of Seattle. They are a tree orchard and mountains as seen from the I-5 highway, looking east.

Christmas Eve post

Moving into the holidays with two more 6x8 daily paintings. First one is sunset at Fort Lauderdale as we cruised out to sea and had a great view of the skyline just as darkness hit. There is a cruise boat heading away from us in the right hand distance. Now have 27 paintings in past 29 days. Gives me the chance to try out various images and scenes without worrying about success at each one. Pulling together a weaker scene I learn more in the long run.     

Other work is another beach scene at Grand Turk. White sand and turquoise water. Can't beat it for swimming and sunning. No surf, just lapping waves. 

   

Daily Paintings

The topmost daily painting from the last post, Half Moon Cay, tied for first place in a monthly contest held at the EAFA, (formerly Eastside Assoc. of Fine Arts, now to be called Evergreen Assoc.) meetings. About 8-12 works are brought in each month and the meeting attendees vote on their favorites, so it's kind of a quality and popularity contest. Always nice to get honors, however small. 

Here are a few more daily paintings. I did a larger version, 12x16 of the Half Moon Cay painting before the meeting mentioned above as I thought it was a nice work, deserving of more work. 

Below are:
San Juan Harbor, 5x7. The harbor was too windy, as seen in the water and misty atmosphere, for the cruise ship to dock, so this is as close as I came to San Juan.
The square picture is 7x7 and is from a park in Arizona.
The flower filled field, 5x7, is from a visit to California.
The last work, also 5x7, is Washington's mountains and forests. 

As you can see, this was a geographical variety week. 

Caribbean Trip Daily Paintings

Spent a week cruising the Caribbean on Holland America for an anniversary celebration. Tight quarters but managed to paint every day except the two cross country flight days. It's a long way from Seattle to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Took my 5x7 paint box and painted after a day of beach fun and sightseeing. Here are the results.

The first one is a 6x8 completed after returning home. It's a view of Half Moon Cay from the cruise ship. Others are from St. Thomas and Grand Turk and are 5x7. The two similar ones are the barrier island sheltering the cruise terminals at Ft. Lauderdale. I tried in these to capture the various blues and greens of the ocean and sky, which varied greatly. I usually carry both ultramarine blue and thalo and needed both to create the variations. The derelict ship, a residue from damage caused by Hurricane Sandy on Grand Turk island, especially let me use a wide range of blues in the sun dappled water and sky. 

Two more daily paintings

These are local Seattle scenes, a 6x8 view from Gas Works Park, looking toward the west and highway 99. The other is the path in Magnuson Park, near the beach, and it's 5x5. 

Daily Paintings going well

Continuing to do a small painting every day as an exercise in discipline and to take advantage of all the extra images captured during outdoor painting this summer. Here is another batch of work.These are, in order:
6x8, Eastlake View
5x7, Seattle Skyline
6x8, Skagit River Scene
4x4, Skagit River 
8x15, Interstate-5
6x15, Horticultural Center View