Spring Blue

Spring Blue

Pastel, 6x6 on Wallis

The blue birds have built a nest in either our bird house or our neighbor's for a number of year, and several generations come and go to our bird feeder. Though they are a daily sight, their colors never cease to dazzle. 
I began this particular bird last autumn, but when I finished, there was something just not quite right.  Today I added three touches of white and black to enhance his eye and to adjust his beak. Now I think he is finished, but it's no longer autumn but spring.

Quiet Passages

Pastel 8x8, en plein air

This plein air painting is a view of one of the ponds with an island at Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville.  I wanted to capture the dappled sunlight and the sweep of shoreline on a quiet morning.  Many of the details of the scene were edited or eliminated to emphasize the sense of motion in the curves of the shore and the grace of the tree.

This painting is available through my web site - CLICK HERE

Waiting, not Waiting

Pastel, 9x12 on Wallis

As the tide comes in, the gulls often wait at the edge of the wave ready to grab any morsel of unwary fish that comes.  They seem almost made of stone until the moving tide encourages them take wing.  The sense of quiet and unhurried patience of the gulls belies the breaking waves only a few yards away.
The "original" that was posted yesterday bothered me - it was somehow incomplete. Decided to add the sanderling and change the title - now the picture tells a story.

Lifting

Pastel, 9x6 on UArt

Number 13 of '21 in 21' Cloud Challenge

Before the afternoon thundershowers roll in, the smaller clouds of the early morning start to lift and scurry away. I wanted to catch some of the color and confusion as the heat of the day begins to take control of the salt marsh.
To purchase this painting, click on Lifting.

One Pair, Both Red

Pastel on Wallis, 6x6

I was inspired by these two red pairs.  The natural light from  my studio window added a touch of magic.  I worked with contrasting colors and secondary reflections in the color and foreground.

Invitation

Pastel on Wallis, 13x20


This view of the beach through the half-buried boardwalk bordered by winter-bare sea oats presented an irresistible invitation to come and walk on the wet sand.  I took several photographs of this scene of the beach on a calm, brisk morning in December, and I chose this particular view because all the major lines point to the single breaking wave as the main point of interest.

Invitation, WIP

Pastel on Wallis, 13x20

Second photo of work in progress. Looking now for values, consistency, and faithfulness to my original objective and motivation.

 

First photo of work in progress.  Railings were put in with calculated accuracy to insure the perspective.  Darkest values are hard pastel set with denatured alcohol. Sky and water are basically done.  Values in the sand were put in to set the tone and perspective.

"Amy's Anise"

"Amy's Anise" 9x9 on Wallis

I was inspired by a demo last Saturday by Donna Biggee for the First Coast Pastel Society.  I have not devoted myself to a "daily painting" routine for some time, but here is my effort for today.  It took my some time to get a still life display set up - I'm out of practice.

This little saki vase was just right form some anise blossoms that our neighbor had brought over. I wanted to capture the contrast between the dark orange blossoms on the bright blue of the vase.

Dunes at Sunrise

Pastel on Wallis, 6x9

This work is a color and value sketch with the anticipation it will become a larger, more formal piece.

I began with a pancil sketch to which I added value markers and notation lines to indicate the movement I wanted to achieve.

After that, I did a watercolor underpaining to indicate basic color and value relationships.  Loved the bloom that happened in the sky. 

From that I added the basic pastel color scheme for the sky, the ocean, and the sand.

 

 

The next step was to emphasize the deeper values, and added the structure of the bushes and grass.

 

I'm pleased enough with the result to use this for a larger work.

 



Pellicer Creek, Windy and Bright

Pastel on Wallis, 12x9

Plein air painting at Princess Preserve, Flagler County Park.

FCPS, last paint out before summer vacation

This view along the edge of the marsh toward the mouth of Pellicer Creek features an old, abandoned boat shed.  The rusted steel roof intrigued me, but the emphasis for this painting is the windy sky and the broken water of the bay and creek.  The atmosphere I wanted to capture was sun shining on the far bank while the near ground was in partial shadow from the passing clouds.

"Morning Shadows"

Pastel on Wallis, 16x12

Occasionally my wife and I have breakfast in a little restaurant near our house, and afterwards we like to walk on the beach before we start the day. One morning last week, we came to this scene of the blazing sun rising above the low clouds casting brilliant shadows of the old fences on the sand. There was no wind, and the calm surf lay sparkling to the horizon. The sharp sunlight seemed to draw me past the shadows to the beach ahead. I have tried to capture that atmosphere and experience with this picture.

"Thru the Sea Oats, III"

Pastel on Wallis, 9x6

SOLD

This picture is a view from the top of the dunes at Cape San Blas State Park.  The blue of the water and the blazing white of the sand are always spectacular, and in the mid-summer, the sea oats add their greens and golds to the vista.

I have done this scene before, but doing it in pastels offers new opportunities, new pallet, and new challenges.

"Storm Tide, Color on Gray"

Pastel on Wallis, 12x9

When the summer storms come at high tide, the waves push almost into the dunes. The colors among the sea oats are their purest after the rain.

This painting was inspired by a photo of the beach after a summer storm.  The high tide the night before had washed sea weeds into the base of the dunes.  As the sun was starting to come up, the sea oats were awash with color, and the grays of the storm grew muted by purple.

July Palms

Pastel, Ink, and Watercolor
on Wallis Pro - 5.5x8.5

Palm trees and the salt marsh have become a favority theme for me.  These two paintings of palm trees on the salt marsh were done by doing a sketch in Chinese ink, shading and coloring it with watercolor, and then adding the values, color, and detail with pastels.

This project started with sketches on my white board.

Both painting have been sold.

 Then I added the Chinese ink in broad outlines of the subject.

Next I added the color tones and suggestions with watercolor.

Finally, this is what the whole process looked like.

"Late Day, Winter"

Pastel on Wallis, 18x12

This view of one of the old trails in the woods near Pablo Bay.  Late in the day, the sun slants across the trail leaving long, dark shadows.  There are few oak trees in this section, and the pine trees give it almost the air of an ancient church with a high roof and great stained glass windows.

There were a few maple trees that still had some yellow and orange, but most of the color had gone leaving the evergreen and gray of our southern winter.

Received Honorable Mention - 2012 Summer JCVA Show (Jacksonville Coalition for the Visual Arts)