Our recent plein air painting location was at Hahamongna Watershed Park in Pasadena. This used to be Oak Grove Park and I hadn't been there before. It's a wonderful spot at the base of Arroyo Seco Canyon. One area has lots of oak trees, and there are great mountain views to paint. As its name suggests, it's also a flood basin behind Devil's Gate Dam.
The morning was hazy which to my mind is gorgeous for photos and hopefully to try to capture in a painting. We headed out from the oak shaded parking lot into the dry river basin. There are many interconnected hiking trails through the various basin plants. Considering finding some shade, one small grove of a few eucalyptus trees seemed to be a good location to stop. I couldn't decide whether to paint the view north of JPL, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, or the view south of a trail into the trees. I wished I had my opaque gouache with me for the cloudy look of the bands of dried plants going to seed and the hazy mountains. I had to give it a try with my transparent watercolors and chose the JPL view since I like to include a building or structure. Dog walkers came by and even a woman on horseback. The bottom photo is of the view I didn't paint. Next time!
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| 8x10" watercolor |
Love those touches of violet/purple Sherry, you must certainly cover some miles in a week with all these great locations
ReplyDeleteThanks Lorraine! Our locations have been pretty close by for me. But I am getting quite a bit of walking in while looking for something inspiring to paint!
DeleteSherry this is lovely and it looks as if you will have many more paintings to share from those beautiful photos. Take care and have a great week-end.
ReplyDeleteThank you Debbie! It was lovely that morning, but will be getting too hot soon.
DeleteA splendid view, Sherry, and who would think to paint the JPL? You made it beautiful, and a place one would love to visit.
ReplyDeleteThanks Terry! Well, JPL is pretty popular around here. Not very distinctive looking though...
DeleteThis is really beautiful, you made a 'greyish' landscape come alive, bravo !
ReplyDeleteThank you Jane! I love the grayish landscapes but not so easy to put on paper.
DeleteHi Sherry, - love your art - and the fact you paint familiar places. Thanks for your visit. I'll be back to see more of your art.
ReplyDeleteHi Sandy! Thank you and I'm happy you had a look here!
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