Hurried Shadows at Eventide

Once again the autumn vineyards shimmer with all the golden colors of the season. Here a Napa Valley vineyard caught my attention in the late afternoon. The shadows moved fast, so I could only capture the image with a few strokes of my brush before taking the canvas home to finish from a digital photo.

Me and the Boys

Diverging from the usual photos of my artwork, here is a photo from my recent trip to Nepal and Tibet. The trip was not your usual vacation, nor was it for the meek. Our accomodations were rustic and many on the tour suffered from altitude sickness after ascending to 12,000 - 14,000 feet along the Tibetan high plateau. I am pleased that I made the journey to see such a mysterious country.

An Autumn Afternoon

Another painting from a photo. I like the Starbucks cup the woman is carrying.

Black Ranch Vineyard

On a drive out West Dry Creek, I spotted these bracero houses. The narrow, twisty road has lots of traffic, visitors driving who are out wine tasting in the area, all in all a leathal combination for setting up a plein air painting. So I took a photo and worked from it instead.

Tom Soltesz Workshop

Last week's plein air workshop with Tom Soltesz yielded a couple saveable plein air paintings. Tom's style of color application is much more muted compaired to mine. But I did come away with some valueable painting knowledge. Mixing big piles of paint before tackling the scene was helpful to learn. Without continually mixing as you go, the plein air painting is finished in lightening speed (provided you know where to put the paint). I liked the way Tom applied the highlight areas on the tops of trees. "Sort of William Wendty", he says.

Eucalyptus at Oak Hill Farm

It was just another day in paradise for plein air painters. We were invited to Oak Hill Farm along Highway 12 in Kenwood on a Sunday so that we would not be in the way of the farm workers . Oak Hill Farm has wonderful, organic produce, as well as wreaths and other fun stuff. I painted this above the Red Barn, looking across a field of Eucalyptus that is grown for flower arrangements and wreaths. While painting there, I had to look out for rattle snakes and bees. Oak Hill Farm sells some really tasty honey from the bees who live in the hives located near my plein air painting setup.

Kendall Jackson Chateau

Monday Morning Painters venue yesterday was at Kendall Jackson Wine Center. Here are the vineyards that surround the Kendall Jackson Chateau and tasting room.