On Location

It's been chilly and wet lately, so my paintings are having a hard time drying. Which means I don't have anything new to share on my this here blog, so I thought I'd dig up some "on location" shots. Not surprisingly , I found very few shots of me, but I also found some of my friends with whom I paint from time to time. I've linked their names to their websites, so you can go check out some of their beautiful work. You may see some work done on same locations. You may even see some paintings of the same motifs. I think it's really interesting to see how each artist handles the same motif differently, don't you?

Above pic is of me painting on the sidewalk in the town of Carmel. Lots of tourists in that town, which makes for an interesting challenge, because you often have to paint and talk at the same time. You get questions like, "What are you doing? Painting?"




This is me working on the bluffs of the American River. I live walking distance from this spot....not that I ever walk here.



Not all spectators are people. These guys are noisy critics, too. As you can see, this is a different easel than the one in the first shots. This one is an Open Box M. A very compact and handy system. Not cheap though. I like it, but I haven't used it much lately because I've outgrown the size (10 x 12) and haven't been able to bring myself to shell out the dough to buy a bigger one.

At the bottom of the picture, you see just the top of a wooden box? That's a 9 x 12 panel carrier by Easy-L.


Bryan Taylor, Paul Kratter, and Kevin Courter trying not to get run over by cars. A bunch of us were painting here and the owner came out and shooed us away. We weren't on her property, but she didn't like us "stealing the image" of her farm. Go figure.




Tim Horn painting the barn.



Terri Ford. Just off of Oakville Grade in Napa. Some of us worked, the rest sat around and had a beer. Guess which camp I was in?




Rob Sandidge painting in Telluride. An SUV with a hatchback is an integral part of many a plein-air painter's gear. Besides hauling stuff, and going off road, it provides shelter from rain and sun. Rob's easel is a funky Russian thing. I think he got it in Russia.





Sometimes you can't drive to your destination so you rely on other means of transportation. This is Ray and Peggi kayaking tandem on the Cosumnes River. Actually, we weren't painting this day. Just scouting and shooting reference photos.


Randy Sexton. Same day. I thought it'd be cool to have a custom fit pochade box on one of these kayaks, but I dunno. Maybe the boat would move too much. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad... at least you wouldn't get too tight with your painting!





Up in the Sierras. Kevin Courter, Greg LaRock, and Clark Mitchell analyzing the light ...or may be just waiting for dinner. Probably both.





Bill Cone sketching. Standing to the left is Paul Kratter.



Here's Paul again, at the crack of dawn. Chilly but worth it. I mean look at this view!?



At times, we have to risk our lives for our art. Wading through icy glacier water with 35 lbs strapped to our backs? No problem. We do this, like, every day. This is Clark Mitchell and Kim Lordier. They both paint in pastels. I wonder if their gear is heavier than us oil painters?



Sharon Calahan on the left, Kim on the right. Gorgeous views of Lake Ediza up in the Sierras. Their paintings turned out fantastic, too.




Me again. On the shores of Lake Natoma. This year, I'm not going anywhere for plein air events - didn't apply to any of them. Kind of a bummer, but hey, nothin I can do about it now because all the deadlines are past. I am looking forward to going up to Tahoe in about a month to do a three day workshop, though. It should be glorious in June!