Painting Mountains from Florida

 

                                            Grand Teton View              gouache on panel, 6x6

    It's been a few years since I've been on a hiking trip in the mountains.  Whenever I travel, I bring my paints and sketchbooks so I can do some plein air painting.  It's a long drive from Florida to the Appalachian Mountains and the Blue Ridge Parkway.  When I can't get up there, I resort to painting from my own reference photos and from friends' trip photos.

    This Grand Teton scene was painted from a friend's travel pictures.  Gouache is a nice medium for small travel art paintings.  I often use gouache as a plein air medium, so I can travel lightly.  It dries quickly and I don't have to figure out how to travel home with a car full of wet oil paintings.  

    Here is a photo of me on a hiking trip in Cloudland Canyon State Park in northwest Georgia.  It was a wonderful camping and hiking trip.  I didn't get very much painting done, since I was going on long hikes with a friend, but I came back with some nice photos and lots of memories.

                                            Spring is Here                        oil on panel, 12x12

    Here is a scene from the Berkshire Hills in western Massachusetts, where I grew up.  I photographed a view from the road on the way up Mount Greylock.  I was there during the early fall, but in this painting I imagined a spring scene.  I still remember what the Berkshires look like during the four seasons, even though I've lived in Florida for 20 years now.  Painting the Appalachian mountains is like going back home for me.  I look forward to doing more trips into the hills and making some new mountain art.

Enjoying the Beach

 

                                            Watching and Waiting, watercolor, 5x7

It is finally cool enough for me to paint outside.  I enjoy watching people enjoying the beach.  While I was painting this scene, the woman came back and sat down in the red chair, but I decided to leave it empty.  Here in Florida, visitors are coming in from all over, and locals are starting to spend more time outside.  The water is getting cooler, but it is still pleasant to walk along the edge in bare feet.  I look forward to more plein air painting sessions at our beautiful beaches.

Colorful Cows

 Mable, 6x6 oil on cradled panel, is a first in my new, Colorful Cows series.  I am adding some favorite rural subjects to my portfolio.  Visit me website for more originals and fine art prints.

Blue Green Early Afternoon

7x5 oil on panel

The water was an amazing blue-green as the sun was getting lower.  I made a quick study of the different shades of blue and green.  Boats were still going out, leaving foamy, white wakes that cut through the smooth water.

Coastal Colors Art

Painting Plein Air at 7am

7am Sky, oil on panel, 7x5

I arrive when the sun is just starting to come up above the palm trees.  I decide to paint behind the bunches of sedges and sea oats.  There are no waves today, but I can hear the soft swish of water lapping against the shore.  A few pelicans glide by, looking for a place to land.  I face Northwest, and set up my easel.  The air is still cool, and I keep my sandals on.  I block in the sky and the cool, grey clouds.  The water is slightly darker than the sky, with a greenish tint.  The lower section of the sky is a beautiful, pale green-blue, turning towards a cooler blue above.  This morning the clouds are scattered in clumps of small, round puffs, with dark purple-grey bottoms and rosy tops.

After I finish the sky and water, I lay in the sandy area with a thin wash of warm ochre and a touch of pink.  The sedges look brown and green, and I use a palette knife to mark where a few tall sea oats that rise above the horizon.  The air is warming quickly, and I take my sandals off, scrunching my toes into the cool sand.  Now, the water is turning into a brighter blue and the sedges are lit up as the sun rises higher.  My painting is complete.  It is hard to leave the beach as another incredible change in colors and light has opened before me.  Each painting session is like a deep meditation where I become one with the sand, sea, and sky.

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Bird Nesting Season

Watching Over Baby
watercolor & gouache on watercolor paper
8x10

Spring in Florida is nesting season for many birds.  This Great White Egret at the nest with her tiny chick lives at the Venice Rookery in Venice, Florida.  The Rookery is an island of mangroves in the middle of a lake.  In the spring, it is full of nesting egrets, herons, anhingas, and cormorants.  It is a peaceful place, other than the sounds of the many birds that make it their home.  In the bushes around the lake, redwing blackbirds flash their red patches and cackle.  The Rookery is down the street from the Venice Audubon Center.

For more information about this painting and more bird paintings and fine art prints, visit my website.

More Bird Paintings

Feathery Display, gouache and watercolor on paper.  10x8

I keep coming back to the bird paintings.  During the April shutdown, the Venice Rookery was still open.  It wasn't crowded, and I enjoyed sketching the nesting birds from life and taking some photos.  I also did a little plein air painting during the sunset.  This painting of a great white egret has a lot of vibrant color, and I showed how the light touches her feathers.  Gouache and watercolors allow me to paint quickly and keep it loose.  The paints dry fast, and I can work in a few layers to enhance the effects of shimmering color and light.  If you like this bird painting, visit my website for more of my bird art.