Cascade Falls Bridge

This is not one of the safest places I've ever explored but definitely one of the better overlooked falls in Yosemite with many different beautiful sections. This is the view below Cascade Bridge.

This is not an area I recommend it is quite dangerous. The trail has decomposed granite that acts like ball bearings under your feet. Add to that it's a steep trail. Then if you get down to where this is painted from you have to be careful about slick wet rocks. Fall in the water in this area and they'll be scraping you up from the base of the falls down by hwy 140.

16 x 20 Acrylic painting.

Sierra Art Trails, Oct 5,6 & 7

Yikes Sierra Art Trails is just around the corner and I've totally neglected this blog. Too focused on the creative process and not the marketing. You'd think that someone who has made their living in as an Advertising Graphic Designer and Illustrator would know better.

Sad fact is I am horrible at self promotion. I love the process of creating art but selling my art is difficult. Partly because these creations are my babies and hard to let go of. As long as the art is in my possession I can rework and fine tune it at my leisure.
Now I've got too much of it and not enough wall space. So it's time to move these babies out of here and make room for more.

My home studio will be open to the public for three days, October 5,6, and 7 as part of this great tour of Sierra artists and their studios. Most of what you will see at my studio will be my recent landscape paintings. Of course my photography has been taking off well so you'll see some of that too. This is a great chance to get some art for your walls at discounted prices.

Another Creek Painting

"Alder Creek" -Yosemite-   16 X 20 acrylic on canvas

I'm never quite sure when a painting is done but I know when I'm done painting on one at least for the time being. This painting is of a section of Alder Creek in Yosemite.  The foreground plant is a thimble berry. It grows along creeks and provides an edible berry the size of a thimble, hence it's name. The berry isn't super tasty but not bad either. It is somewhat like a black berry only red and smaller.

I'm guessing this is Alder Creek but it could be Bishop Creek which is just up the road towards the valley from Alder. Both go under hwy 41. I'd often stop by an photograph these two creeks on my way back from giving a tour in Yosemite.  I took a lot of this one but can't quite remember which creek it was. My best guess is Alder. Both are very similar but Alder is a little bigger.

Hope to get a hike to Alder Falls in this spring. With the warm winter we've had this year they will probably dry up by July or August. Last year was a great year for falls this. This one is going to be a shorter season. I think tourists coming later in summer are going to be disappointed with the falls this year.

Cheyanne

Cheyanne was our model for this Friday. Always a treat to paint her. She's become a good friend and model and we've gone exploring some of the local hills.  She has what I call that Pocahontas look so I'm always looking for places where you might see an native American princess hanging out.

11x14 acrylic on canvas "Ripple

Above is a painting from one of those explorations along a tributary of the Chowchilla River. She's one of the nicest souls I've ever met. A delight to be with and a very patient model.   Below is my first pastel of her from the Yosemite Western Artists portrait painting group.

Ahwahnee Park Pond

Took a walk in the gated and barb wire fenced Ahwahnee Park last Sunday exploring some new locations. Someone had cut the wire near the gate so it was easier to walk around but the fellow in charge didn't like that so he redid it. I suggested he could keep it off so those of us without a gate key could get in without doing the barb wire limbo. Nope. He couldn't live with that. Oh well so far I haven't snagged any clothing and no one has said I can't be there so, I continue my visits.

 I was hoping to get some photos of some Hooded Merganser and Common Merganser ducks that I saw there a week ago. You really need and extra long telephoto because the minute you get near them they fly away. That was the case on Sunday. I got some nice photos as always seems to be the case. Some combos I take with the express intention of making a painting. The painting above is one done from that day.

Here's a few photos from that visit. This first one of the hazy sun reminded me of a spooky eye so I mirrored it. (oo)

The weather has been changing a lot during the day. One minute sunny and warm the next overcast and cold.

Friends on Facebook have already seen this Orange Winged Black Bird that came by singing his claim to his territory.

One of the joys of digital photography is you can take lots of pics to get that one good one. Such is the case with him. I noticed he only showed his orange wing when he sang so the minute he would start I'd click. Eventually getting this one.

A beaver has moved into the nearby creek and has started damming it up. He's been doing a good bit of tree clearing too.
 There was one spot above the beaver damn that had this really nice section of dried weeds. The textures were beautiful. I could have spent more time there but my walking partner was starting to get impatient. I suppose I try folks patience when they go out for walks with me. I've turned into an incurable shutter bug.


Speaking of bug catchers. I'll close this post with one more little fellow who was hanging out by the beaver damn. He had a nice little call and a charming personality.

I'm guessing he was some kind of fly catcher which makes him A OK in my book.

There's just so much to see and enjoy at this park. I'll almost be sad when it gets open to the public and crowded. I won't be sad to lose the barb wire though.

First Painting of Snow

I haven't painted a snow scene since I was back high school. It was a watercolor and a teacher bought it.  O was just never inspired to paint landscapes. Guess I just preferred pics with people in them.

So now here I am in my late 50's having inspired to paint landscapes. I like landscapes but feel my paintings aren't at the caliber I want them to be.  Up to 20 so far and it seems I always get to a point where I lose interest in the piece.

Take this snow scene inspired by a recent morning snow fall in the Ahwahnee Hills Regional Park. Rushed down early hoping to catch the snow still clinging to the oaks. But as I hussled toward the area where the barn is, it was melting fast off the oaks. Fortunately I took some shots of the trees closer to home on the way down so I got a feel for what the branches would look like.

The grasses and weeds were peaking out all over so there wasn't the nice smooth even snow. But the brown and rusty grasses still looked kind of cool against the white snow reflecting the sky. I took a lot of liberties with this composition. The bridge was much farther to the left and there was no water in the ravine. Overall though it still has the feel of what it was like. Three trees to the left and one on the right.

But here's the thing, the more I painted on it the more I started getting into the details of the branches. I'd start with the basic branch shapes and then start branching off into ever smaller ones. Next thing you know I had too many of these detailed branches going all over. It was king of cool but not where I wanted to take this piece. So I'd knock back using bigger brush strokes to define branch clusters. It was fun playing with abstract shapes and lines and got to the point where I lost interest in the rest of the painting.

So I've set it down to work on areas of other paintings that I wanted to improve. I wonder if other artists have this problem of finishing paintings. I've decide to go ahead and start posting these.  For the most part I like where they are headed but they're not quite where I want them to be.

The start of the Chowchilla River Series

Started a new series of paintings based on the Chowchilla river and it's tributaries. It all started with a trip down into the foothills near where I live. Neighbor, artist, and friend Charlotte Hoffman and I went to the nearby Ahwahnee Hills Park to join some plein aire painters. Only we went early to catch the morning light with out cameras.

I tend to prefer working from photographs when painting outside scenes because the light changes too fast. Lighting is everything for me and it's more comfortable working at home where I can adjust my photos, listen to music and take a break in my easy chair when I want. Plus some times the weather is just to inhospitable to sit outside and paint.

Coming back from our morning photo session I was telling Charlotte that I wished there was a way to explore more of the foothills closer to where we live. She told me of one her and her husband David had discovered and asked if I wanted to go check it out. It was amazing and I wrote about it earlier. This painting of the lake Eastman was inspired from that photo trip.

SOLD

Was talking about how beautiful the foothills by Lake Eastman were when the model at out Friday portrait painting group says you should come check out my ranch near there. So a few of us did just that.

This painting of his section of the Chowchilla river was inspired from that day. It was a great place to go river rock hunting, He said he fished there and also panned for gold.