Hillside Bouquet

"Hillside Bouquet"

6" X 8" Oil on Canvas
Winter naturally brings on thoughts of Spring so I suppose that's where the thought process began for this piece. A gentle hillside meadow covered with random Spring flowers, some green left in the grasses before Summer takes over. A very common sight along the mountainsides of the valley here.

A High Desert Painting

"Hills Above Little Rock"

8" X 10" Oil on Canvas
The view here is overlooking the small town of Little Rock up in the high desert not far from Lancaster. Whenever I can get up that way I like to drive through the desert, stop and explore...take in the desert air. The last time I was there I stayed till the sun went down to get some nice reference photos...took my painting gear but it was too windy and cold for that.

Valley Grasses

"Valley Grasses"

6" X 8" Oil on Panel
A quick one painted this morning. I like the summer colors in late afternoon light and miss seeing them now that Winter is here. I used this painting to play with color and try a few things out...nothing serious just little things. Fun little painting to work on today.

In The Arroyo

"In The Arroyo"

22" x 28" Oil on Canvas
A large painting of the sycamore trees down on the Arroyo Seco in Pasadena. This is an area that was painting by many of the early California Impressionist painters around and after the turn of the century. It's a great spot to get away from the city for a few hours even though you are just a short hike away from cement and red lights.

Eaton Canyon Meadow

"Eaton Canyon Meadow"

22" X 28" Oil on Canvas
I grew up hiking around in Eaton canyon which is just above my parents old house in Pasadena, CA. This small meadow is on the north side of the riverbed that runs down the length of the canyon. I think it is a great place to go and smell the sage and other aromas in the canyon. I remember my Dad taking all of us boys in the family hiking there once and we ended up hiking up to Henneger Flats...boy was that a story.

Spring Blooms

"Spring Blooms"

9" X 12" Oil on panel
This is the first of 2011 paintings. I started this painting 1 hour before midnight on New Years eve but finished it today Jan 2 due to a cold I've had and preparing for the rains that have now arrived again. We've got two trees down from the high wind in the early morning hours so I'll be playing with the chainsaws as soon as the weather breaks. Not the greatest start for the new year but I'm still in a good mood.
This is a larger version of a painting I did earlier at 5x7. I liked the foreground poppies and the spark they brought to the smaller painting. I also like painting with a knife occasionally so this was an appropriate one to start the new year off with since the flowers were mostly knife work.
Happy New Year to everyone.