Halloween 2016!

Our spooky paint-out for this Halloween was a few days ago.  Last October we met at Mountain View Cemetery for James Gurney's October Graveyard Challenge, October Challenge.  Alegria Street in Sierra Madre has many neighborhood homes decorating for the holiday.  Some homeowners work for days on their decorations.  One owner even grows his own giant pumpkins to carve for his extravagant front yard display.  Most of our group chose to paint views of his decorations in progress for the 31st.  I tried a view in gouache.  A sweet, resident Halloween-colored calico cat was interested in our group for some petting.

7" x 5" Gouache

Homeowner with his pumpkin harvest to carve.

Reesie the kitty (for Reeses)

Lummis Garden

We painted at the historic Lummis House last Saturday.  It's also known as El Alisal for the surrounding alder and sycamore groves.  My previous painting there was about a year ago,  Lummis Light.  The arroyo stone home was built over thirteen years in the late 1800's.  I find it difficult to paint so on this visit the home's garden caught my eye.  Due to the drought we've had in Southern California, it was sad to see many trees in bad condition.  But in the center of the garden a large area of fountain grass really dominated the view.  The backlit, fuzzy flower plumes were beautiful.   I had to try to capture the fall feeling in a gouache piece.

5" x 7" Gouache

    

Under the Oaks

Our wonderful Saturday plein air group was back in Highland Park a few weeks ago to paint at the 1889 Church of the Angels.  On my previous visit last year I painted a gouache piece of my view across Avenue 64 to the hillside homes, Avenue 64.  So far I haven't tried painting the church.  I didn't try it on this paint-out either.  On the north side of the church driveway is a small undeveloped hillside with oak trees and of course, fallen oak leaves.  The light on the house and fence next door to the area caught my eye.  In the dappled light and drifts of oak leaves it was a challenge to find a good place to set up my painting materials.  I ended up sitting on a rock and had to pay attention to visiting squirrels and bugs.  Next time I might try painting the church.

8" x 10" Watercolor

Visiting Katydid

Church of the Angels

  

Grant Park

We were at Grant Park in Pasadena in late July.  Hard to believe it was almost two years ago when I was painting there for my first time, posted in Grant & Singer.  It's a busy park with lots of neighborhood kids visiting the cool playground, complete with a rope climber.  I didn't have too much time for the morning paint-out so I tried a small gouache piece.  I was inspired by the conventional, linear apartment building across the street contrasted by the pretty, blooming crepe myrtle trees...and two palm trees completing the scene.

5" x 7" Gouache

Rope climber

LA Plein Air Festival 2016

It's another warm autumn for the 3rd. annual Los Angeles Plein Air Festival.   I had fun last year and posted my two paintings in LA Plein Air Festival.  As before, certain areas were suggested for artists to paint on certain days.  There were also special purchase awards for two businesses which would select the winning paintings to hang in their restaurant and theater venue.

One cash award was offered by a crepe restaurant located in the 1924 12-story Spring Arcade Building connecting Spring Street with Broadway.  This was the location for our Saturday paint-out.  It was fun to paint downtown with so many other artists.  Many painters were in the arcade building trying for the purchase award from the crepe cafe.  A few friends and I chose to paint street scenes from the west Broadway entrance of the arcade.  As expected it was exciting to paint on a downtown Los Angeles sidewalk.  Looking forward to next year's Festival.

7" x 5" Gouache

Facing north up Broadway.

Broadway, the busy view south of my painting spot.

Directly across the street.  

          

The South Patio

One of the paint-out groups returned to Union Station in downtown Los Angeles a few weeks ago.  Opened in 1939, the stunning Art Deco building is a well known landmark in the city.  On my previous visit I tried a gouache piece from one of the courtyards, Union Station Gouache.  The north patio has always been a favorite since it's shady and has a lovely tiled fountain, Union Station Fountain.  This time some workers were power washing the north patio so no painting there.  There is still another patio, just through an archway in front of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Water District.  It was a calm, relaxing place the morning we were there.  Two tiled fountains add to the ambiance.  And there is a view of the Union Station tower.  I painted one of the fountains which had fish in the pond and pigeons in the lush plants.

5" x 7" Gouache