Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Canyon Park

It's been so much fun and very enlightening to find out about new-to-me areas just a few miles from home.  Thanks to the plein air group's paint-outs, I'm seeing so many lovely locations that I didn't know about before.  Last Thursday we met at Monrovia Canyon Park.  Wow.  Another wooded area just 10 minutes from the freeway and just up a street from downtown Monrovia, CA.  At an elevation of 1,300 feet, there is even a spring-fed 30 foot waterfall.  A real get-away.

It was another drizzle-y day for our paint-out.  At least the rain held off but we had some sprinkles up in the mountain area.  I chose a view to paint from the covered porch of the Nature Center, thinking I might need to get out of some possible rain.  I had a nice view of the distant roof-tops of the city below which I wish was a just little closer.  I love atmospheric perspective and it's a great opportunity to paint with some neutral colors.  A flock of birds flew by in the middle distance at one point so I wanted to include them.  Since the air was so damp, I was happy to see I was near a restroom equipped with a blow dryer for hands, which was useful for drying a first watercolor wash!  Here is my watercolor and a photo of my view.  I also got a neat shot of my friend Phyllis as she drew the view, and finally a rustic park bulletin board.





5 comments:

  1. This little spot is so pretty and you've done a great job of it. I always like seeing the adjustments an artist makes. We learn a lot from seeing what is missed out or moved around. I can imagine finding new spots to paint quite difficult if you do plein air regularly as your Group does. My Group mention all the time that new venues are few and far between these days but then again some of them have been going out with the Group for over 20 years.

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    1. Thanks Laura! Yes, I've just started with these groups and already I've been to the same locations a few times. Like your group, some have been to the spots many more times and still find something of interest to paint. Always fun and hopefully we're improving.

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  2. A beautiful rendition, Sherry. The flock of birds is the perfect touch.

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    1. Thank you Terry! I wasn't sure if I could get the feeling of a flock flying across.

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