#47 Poppy path

Wanted to get out the gouache for some plain air painting. This field offers so many possibilities for experimentation, that I am trying to get there every chance I get. They'll be gone in about two weeks.

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#46 Poppy paradise

Yes there is a house way back there in this field of poppies. It really is a sea of orange for about a month this time of year.
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#45 Geometric Street

Ah, a sunny day with a clear shadow pattern--perfect for plain air painting! I was trying to interlock the shapes so that the composition would flow.

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#44Spring pollen

The greens of spring are a challenge; I don't have any green pigment on my palette, so the mixes that I make are not overpowering. There  is so much earth tone in those greens this time of year.


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#43 Verulam sunken garden

A sunken garden has the advantage of being shady and cool, with dappled light coming through the plantings. It was a challenge to keep this as simple as possible to express the shady light looking out into the light filled lawn.

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#42 Gilette's garden at Verulam

It is garden tour time in central Virginia, and there are some wonderful places to visit. This year I got invited to paint on the grounds of this estate with a sunken garden designed by Charles Gillette. There was water on the path after heavy rains the night before, and the light was enchanting.

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#41 Euclid Street vespa

The trouble with painting in the city is that the spot I always gravitate to is right in the way of traffic. I was so engrossed in what I was doing that I am not sure if I got any dirty looks...

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#40 Last daffodils

I know they will be gone soon so I thought about making these daffodils, with the morning light playing on them, the center of interest. The intersecting fences, one in the light and the other in shadow are another resting place in the painting.

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#39 Flip on a fence

Flip likes to be with us on our walks in the field; he waits for us on the top of the fence as we do our laps.  Using mostly light and warm colors, with a bit of cool and dark.

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#38 A little bit of red

Trying for variety in shape, color and value.   The red underpainting showing through added to variety of brushstroke.

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#37 It's coming

Somehow my car keeps going to a new french bakery with the most awesome baguettes...on the way out I noticed this view and made a note to come back and paint it. It had a lot to play with--a  variety of shapes, lines and colors. The train came through twice during my session, and I liked how the lights announced its arrival. Plus, that went with the highly anticipated arrival of SPRING 2015!

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#36 Evening entertainment

Nothing like Spring for getting out the kite! (Any small piece of grass in the city becomes a playground.) I painted this standing in an alley between two apartment buildings in Washington, DC.

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#35 Poppy Walk

There were so many poppies everywhere, that the red underpainting was useful as a suggestion of all the warmth they create in the field.

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#34Dream date 1

I have been meaning to prepare some canvases with a red underpainting, just to see what it is like to start with a strong color. Well, found out that it is very useful as a connector between areas so that not everything has to be covered.  Can't wait to try this again!

#33 Follow the fence

Fences are handy for creating distance and for casting interesting shadows.  I liked the combination of curvy and straight lines on this one and the violet and green colors that I saw everywhere.
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