Orchids

Today, I puttered around on a few things, but this is what I did which was the biggest change on things.  I decided to block in the start of these Orchids.  Just the basics color notes and the background.  I will add to the Flowers details and will leave the background dark but textured from the thick application of paint.

Great Falls, Virginia - Plein Air

Today, I braved the cold with artist Armand Cabrera and Plein Air painted at Great Falls Virginia.  It is where the Potomac river passes over a series of rocky shelves.  Plein Air is great for observation of nature and improving your painting skills.  It is also a huge challenge.  I only completed part of my two canvasses.  I will probably work a little more on both tomorrow.   I captured as much as I could before the winter sunshine shifted too much and changed all the colors and shadows.

Sycamore tree study

Sycamore Tree study is what I worked on this evening after the full day at work.  I had done the initial block in early for the background and I added the trunk and some of the branches.  More work will need to be done on this but it has a decent start.

Rooster Finished up

I finished up with some highlights on the rooster as part of my activities this evening.  Now I will ignore it for a while and see if anything bothers me after a few days, but this is probably finished.  I will get a scan of it when it is dry which will be better than this photo.

Snow Day Fun

Today was a snow day in DC.  Not really because there was so much snow, but more through bad drivers, ice and no road prep.  I putted around on a couple of paintings, but this is a small study which I did the most on and which I was most satisfied.

Pentel Pen Brush - Quick Sketches of seagulls

Just a quick post tonight, I went back to the day job today.  I did this quick sketches of seagulls on the last day of the year.  I did three pages but these are probably best.  I tried a new technique with a brush pen.  Imagine a felt tip maker but with a more brush like flexible tip.  It makes interesting lines but it will require a lot of work to get them interesting and better than these.

Hallett's Peak - Pocky Mountain National Park

In keeping with my resolution to paint more, this evenings activities were to block in the initial oil colors for Hallett's Peak from Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.