Lemons Side by Side

Love painting Lemons...

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Lemon in Front

I started drinking a little bit of lemon juice in water every morning, so I have lots of lemons available to paint. I never get tired of them either. Here one is to the front, while the other is in shadow...

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From a Small Study to a Large Painting

"Foggy El Moro Morning" from my last post is a little 8 x 10 I did on location at one of my favorite places to paint lately. I would call it my muse, but I'm not sure you can say that about a place. In any case, I seem to be endlessly inspired there. No matter the conditions, I want to paint there. Up close, far away...I can't really explain it. Anyway, I thought this was a perfect piece to use as a study for a larger work. I chose to paint it as a 20 x 24. Here are the original study and the two large pieces I did from that painting. I did two, because I wasn't happy with the composition of the first one, though there are some elements I like too. In fact I'm sort of torn between the two and can't decide which I like more. Let me know if have an opinion. I'd like to hear what you think.

Foggy El Moro Morning 20 x 24 inches

Fog Burning Off 20 x 24 inches

You can see how I changed the mood and scale in the second one, but I did work a bit more on it after I decided I wanted to make a few basic changes. 

New Landscapes

Here are two landscape paintings I did during the past month which have been accepted into the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association "Less is More" show of small paintings.
I did them both at Crystal Cove State Park, one of my favorite places to paint.
The first one was done at El Moro Cove, which is now part of the state park a couple of coves south of Crystal Cove. It was cold and foggy that morning, a perfect time to paint actually, since the light stays consistent for much longer than when the sun is out. That's when the pressure is on!
The second one is painted where the Crystal Cove Cottages are located. This cottage is actually the main office where you check in if you've reserved one of the many cottages available for rental. It was a beautiful afternoon, and so quiet and peaceful up on the bluff in the sagebrush that grows wild there.

Foggy El Moro Morning
8 x 10 inches

Cottage Above the Sea
9 x 12 inches

Apple in Shadow

Here is another apple painting on a napkin. I love painting this damask napkin, part of a bundle I bought at an antique store ages ago hoping one day to use them in a still life. I'm this close to painting just the napkin...though I'm not sure how interesting a painting it would be. That would be my job though wouldn't it?

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Two Apples on a Napkin

Wow, 2 weeks since my last post! In my defense, I've been working on a bunch of other paintings for some upcoming shows, including trying my hand at a larger piece from a study which I'll post very soon. We finally got around to photographing everything today...
So, here are some lovely apples I found at Trader Joe's. Not exactly Spring fruit, but it's so cool here right now it feels like Autumn. If you would like to bid on this painting, please click here.