Thursday, January 18, 2007

Figuratively Speaking....


'Melissa'..........oil on canvas panel..........11x15"
Upon meeting Melissa in one of my ballet classes, I was struck by her exotic and alluring appearance. She graciously agreed to model for one of our 3 hour painting sessions.




'Requiescence'........charcoal on paper........10x12"
25 minute sketch of Allison, one of my favored and graceful models.

Monday, January 8, 2007

Inaugural 2007 Plein Air Painting


'Somewhere Near Chinatown'........oil on canvas panel........7x9"
William Wray and I found this gritty, nonrural location just minutes from Chinatown. I was drawn to the variety of textures and the stark contrast of the foreground buildings with the distant Los Angeles city scape. My first attempt was a disaster, but I persevered and had another go at it. The overwhelming paint fumes renedered me silly and light-headed but fortunately I made it through without passing out. Oh, the joys of plein air painting!

Monday, January 1, 2007

Post Holiday Stuff

Finally, the holidays are behind us! I despise this time of the year. Rather than subject myself to the usual family drama and strife, my boyfriend Ben and I opted to spend Christmas in Ojai, a quaint, little eclectic town located one hour north of Los Angeles. Below are two small plein air sketches I did during my two day sojourn in Ojai.


'Resting Cattle'.............oil on canvas panel.............6x8"
While exploring the idyllic Ojai countryside, we came across a horse and cattle ranch. It was late afternoon and the mountains and cattle were beautifully backlit from the waning sun thus urging me to stop by the side of the road to paint this scene.



'Lower Lake, Rose Valley'.........oil on canvas panel......... 6x8"
The following day, we drove a few miles north of the ranch and discovered a small, deserted fishing lake nestled in a valley across from an abandoned inmate labor camp. Sweet! Although the labor camp was obviously uninhabited for years, my vivid imagination left me feeling disquieted and paranoid at the prospect of a crazed and dangerous convict at large charging towards Ben and me. I walked around the lake until I found a view that appealed to me. I used Ben's car parked in the distance as a focal point to offset the placid composition.
The cool, overcast weather provided ample painting time, however, I painted hurriedly due to my paranoia, the random gunshots in the distance and fresh bear poop on the trails leading to the lake. Oh, and it was freaking cold!!