If you paint outside, they will come....

Um, are those sugar cubes in that box per chance....?

Thank you Ida, for taking pictures of me and my fans! I must have been so flustered with all the attention I got (at one time all three muzzles were sniffing at my box), that I did a poor painting.  So, below, behold my sky and foreground grasses!  (The rest are bold edits by Bill, which made it look a lot better!)




"Sierra Valley View"



Painting at the Stream's Edge

"Stream's Edge"

I really like painting streams now!  It is very fun, and I think I have developed a method.  HOWEVER, as I progressed up the page, I was getting PRETTY tired of painting all those dang rocks!!!!  Enough is enough!  So I left it a little unfinished looking....to Bill's dismay.  He gave me a hard time about that!

Learning to work with a different paper

"Indian Paintbrush on the Ledge"

Another thing I struggled with to learn - was to use different paper than I'm used to.  This is Canson "Twilight" colored paper.  I just need to pile on the lighter pastels because my paintings come out too dark.  Again, after the sun moved, I found myself being blinded by reflected light in front of me, blinding me.  I realized it a little late.  Better late than never.

Hike down to the Falls

"The Falls"

One day we hiked down a steep ravine on the Pacific Crest Trail to a waterfall.  It was VERY LOUD!  This is my attempt to do the water, but I didn't finish it as you can see from the sketched in rocks.  I learned something this day.  I learned about how the light reflects off the rocky walls of the canyon and how it blinded me.  I could no longer see what I was doing.  Now I know what I SHOULD have done.  I should have turned my easle 180 degrees around and stood on the other side so my back was to the "back-lighting".  Lesson learned....

Alpine Lake Scene

"Salmon Lake"

One day we went to a little lake to paint.  We were all told to bring our swimsuits if we wished.  So I did and I enjoyed the cool, refreshing waters since I wilt in the summer sun and heat.  Afterwards, I sat in the shade and used the back hatch of my Subaru as a desk and sat in my folding chair in my wet swimsuit and did this painting.  My plan was to do more bold "light" areas (the grassy areas cascading down the slope).  I think I succeeded, but compared to others, mine still looked pale and wimpy.  Another thing I've learned by watching Bill, is using the edge or the flat side of Terry Ludwig pastels to suggest light on the granite rocks.  He does it so well ---- maybe with practise....

Another practise at the stream

"Stream and Rocks"

This was painted totally by me!!!!

Some Mountains Need Editing!!!!!

"Sierra Buttes Meadow"

One morning, we drove down the road and went into a lush meadow with a terrific view of the Sierra Buttes.  I happily painted away (as did others) of these rock formations with snow in the crevaces.  Once I worked my way down to the trees and the meadow, I got so frustrated with my dumb looking meadow and willow bushes.  I was so absorbed with them, that when Bill came by I asked if he could help me with the meadow - my attempts weren't working well and I wanted to see what he would do.  Swipe, swipe, swipe and he was done.  Very simple, but so much more effective than my rendition.  Then, he mentioned that the mountain looked like a big hand with curling fingers like claws!  He was right!  The mountain really did look like that!  Just goes to show that nature doesn't always make a good subject to paint literally as it is!

Observing Light Hitting Water Ripples and the Rocks Under Water

"From the Bridge"

One thing Bill paints that is so amazing, is streams and lakes where you see the rocks below the surface.  I hope I can learn to do it as well, although I seem to have a different style than he does.  Here is one of my attempts.  When he came by, his critique was that I did not have enough color and light on the rocks, so he added a couple of strokes of orange.  When I look at my paintings from this workshop, I gave him permission to make a few strokes or corrections on my paintings.  That way I can see the difference.  I can actually see the part I did , and the part he did and the difference.  His strokes are bolder and simpler.  This is what I seem to need to do.  I have a habit of doing little whispy strokes.  Good learning experience.

Back from Artists' Boot Camp!



"Morning at the Camp"

 I am back from Bill Cone's pastel plein air workshop in the Sierra Buttes area.  It was a LOT of fun, a LOT of work, and the group of artists a GREAT bunch - not to mention Bill himself!  We were such a fun group that a few members of a different study group (the Spiders of the Sierras!) hung out with us at mealtimes.

Bill demonstrated on the days that we were in wide open spaces where 14 people could gather around.  Other times the terrain did not allow many people to watch him work, so many of us did our own paintings nearby and when Bill was done he made rounds giving us pointers.  Each night we had an informal critique, and many evenings he had slide shows and lectures. 

We all were so appreciative of his giving us a week of his vacation time from his full-time job, to give us instruction and guidance.

Most of us artists stayed at the campus "camp", staying in tents, and eating meals prepared by the staff in the dining hall.  We had no visiting bears, but we were warned not to have food in our tent.  One night I SWORE there was a bear outside our tent, scuffling around, but it turned out to be my tent-buddy, my artist friend Ida, searching for her flashlite!