Golden Gate Avenue at Dusk

Golden Gate Avenue at Dusk

original oil painting 12x12 SOLD

Plein Air Painting and Beyond

An Exhibit of Eight California Painters

Castilleja School Art Gallery, Palo Alto

I was invited to participate in a show at Castilleja School.  It's an all girls, private school in Palo Alto. The show is titled "Plein Air Painting and Beyond, An Exhibit of Eight California Painters."

The art teacher asked us to write something about our approach to plein air painting.  Here's part of my statement:

Plein Air Painting and Beyond

Plein air painting relies largely on spontaneity and intuitive reaction. An artist must paint quickly outdoors - usually in two hours from start to finish - to capture the light in a scene. There is no better way to learn to see and mix colors than by studying them directly in nature. By standing on a street corner in San Francisco, painting outdoors in natural light and struggling to match colors, the job of mixing colors in the studio for other works becomes infinitely easier. My plein air paintings are generally sketches that can be used as references for future studio compositions.

The painting above was completed in my studio from a photo and a quick study on location.

Real Food

Real Food

original oil painting 12x12, SOLD

Studio Gallery

While I was painting for an April show at Studio Gallery, I walked along Polk Street in San Francisco looking for interesting compositions.  The Real Food Company in Russian Hill had great colors - oranges and yellows.  I also liked the depth created by the darkness inside the market, contrasted with the bank of lights.  An old gray El Camino was outside on the street along with a motorcycle.

This painting is part of the "Delicious" show at Studio Gallery in San Francisco. The show runs August 27- September 14. The reception is Sunday August 30, 1-6 pm a 1641 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco. Stop by to see the work, it's a fun show!

Polk and Broadway, San Francisco

Polk and Broadway

original oil painting 12x12, $550

Studio Gallery

This is a cityscape of Polk Street on Russian Hill in San Francisco.  The Russian Hill neighborhood got it's name in the 1850s when settlers discovered a Russian cemetery at the top of the hill.  Russian naval ships had visited San Francisco beginning in 1806 and buried crew members in the cemetery. The cemetery has been removed, but the neighborhood name has remained.

The painting above is for the "94109" show at Studio Gallery in San Francisco  I was trying to get the feel of the bright sunlight on the street and buildings.   

Local Organic

Local Organic

original oil painting, 12x12 SOLD

Studio Gallery

Real Food Company is a market on Polk Street in Russian Hill.  Local Organic is a painting of the oranges and lemons on display on the sidewalk.  This month, Studio Gallery has a show called "94109" that features paintings in the zip code where the gallery is located.  I was originally drawn to the color of the fruit, but after I started painting, I found the reflections and shadows in the window to be interesting.  There are some long flourescent lights and small spotlights that you can see through the windows.

Fort Mason, San Francisco

Fort Mason, San Francisco

original oil painting, 6x6, SOLD

Elliott Fouts Gallery

We've had warm sunny weather this winter, so I've been painting with a friend at Fort Mason. The buildings above are part of the Golden Gate National Park Headquarters.  I believe it was all part of the Presidio - at least the architecture is the same.

The low sun angle and dry weather create more intense colors in the landscape.  The Canary Island Date Palm casts a striking silhouette against the white stucco buildings.

This painting is reminiscent of my Southern California paintings.

Union and Taylor, San Francisco

Union and Taylor Street, San Francisco

original oil painting, 12x12, SOLD

Studio Gallery

This painting is in a show called "Huge" at Studio Gallery. (Although the painting is only 12"x12".) Looking North on Taylor Street you see the Bay, Alcatraz and Angel Island.

There is a concurrent show titled "Tiny" which includes three of my 6x6 paintings.  Stop by Studio Gallery in San Francisco to see the beautiful new gallery space on Pacific Street. You can chat with owners Jen and Rab who are super nice.

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge

original oil painting, 10x8 SOLD

Viewpoints Gallery Sept 2-27 

 

On Sunday, as I was hanging my paintings for my show at Viewpoints Gallery, I sold this painting of the Golden Gate Bridge.  Several people came into the gallery, one woman who came through owns several of my paintings and she picked this painting of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Stop by for the Reception on Friday, September 5 from 5-8 at Viewpoints Gallery, 315 State St, Los Altos, CA.

19th Ave at Dusk, San Francisco

19th Ave at Dusk

original oil painting, 20x20 SOLD

Elliott Fouts Gallery

Heading South on 19th Avenue near Ulloa Street at dusk.  This area is just outside of the Golden Gate Park.  The Pacific Ocean and Ocean Beach are down the hill on the right.  The sun was setting on the ocean and causing the warm light on the homes and trees on 19th Avenue. 

Ellis St, San Francisco

Ellis St, San Francisco

original oil painting, 14x11 $400

Viewpoints Gallery, Sept 2-27

 

A view on Ellis Street near Larkin on a sunny day in San Francisco. The Hotel Essex is the gray building on the right.  It has a cool sign that lights up in neon at night. This is the Tenderloin district, which has been historically kind of rough.  This particular part of the street looks like it's been evolving or gentrifying, or at least it looks pretty good to me.

California and Polk, San Francisco

California and Polk, San Francisco

original oil painting, 11x14

Viewpoints Gallery
SOLD

I started this painting about a year ago for a show in San Francisco.  I was intimidated by the complex composition, so I set it aside.  I picked it up again a couple of weeks ago.  The wide asphalt street, the grooves for the cable cars and magenta building on the right were challenges . . . but I finished and I really like the painting.

It's on display at Viewpoints Gallery in Los Altos.

Chestnut St, San Francisco

Chestnut St, San Francisco

original oil painting 20x20

Viewpoints Gallery
SOLD

I painted recently in San Francisco on the corner of Hyde and Chestnut Streets.  I have painted at this corner before and decided to paint the view looking down Chestnut Street.  The Bay Bridge is in the distance where it crosses Yerba Buena Island.  Across the bay are the hills of Oakland and Berkeley.

The dark shadows in the foreground draw your attention to the San Francisco Bay and the hills in the background.  I tried a different color palette for the hills, viridian green and ultramarine blue.  It does a nice job of pushing the hills back.

View of Coit Tower

 

 View of Coit Tower

original oil painting, 8x10

Viewpoints Gallery
SOLD

 

The view on Filbert Street in San Francisco has the Bay and Coit Tower in the background.  Coit Tower is a classic icon of San Francisco. Built in 1933 the tower is 210 feet tall, art deco style and located in the Telegraph Hill neighborhood of San Francisco.

Montgomery St, San Francisco

Montgomery St, San Francisco

original oil painting, 14x11

Viewpoints Gallery
SOLD

The painting above is on Montgomery Street, in the Financial District in San Francisco. The tall buildings block the sun, except in a few places. I liked the contrast of the sun shining on the street with the dark buildings in the shadows.

Bay View on Hyde St, San Francisco

Bay View on Hyde Street

original oil painting 14x11

Viewpoints Gallery
SOLD

Hyde Street has stunning views of the San Francisco bay, Alcatraz and Angel Island. I took a reference photo while I was plein air painting on Hyde Street in San Francisco, which I turned into a painting in my studio.   

I chose this composition because I liked the two cable cars crossing paths on Hyde Street. Also, the dark cast shadow on the tree on the right contrasts nicely with the rest of the bright, colorful painting.  A cast shadow is a darker shadow, created by another object blocking the light- in this case, a building out of the picture frame on the right.

6th Street, San Francisco

6th Street, San Francisco

original oil painting, 14x11

SOLD

6th Street is a busy thoroughfare in San Francisco. In the distance is the Golden Gate Theater on Market Street. The Golden Gate Theater opened its doors in 1922 as a vaudeville venue and was restored and reopened in the late 1970s.

The composition was interesting for me, because the buildings on Market Street come in at an angle to 6th Street. The perspective of the buildings was a challenge.

San Francisco Street 5

San Francisco Street 5

original oil painting, 16x20

$850

Painting cityscapes can be a color challenge.  In this composition, the red cable car contrasting with the dark shadows in the tree on the left, make for a strong focal point.  The different greens in the trees add a splash of color to a city scene of a San Francisco Street.

I did a smaller version of this painting, an 8x10 and I liked it so much, I decided to paint it larger.

California Street, San Francisco

 

California Street, San Francisco

original oil painting, 8x10

SOLD

 

California Street is over 5 miles long and one of the longest streets in San Francisco. It has a number of important landmarks including the Fairmont Hotel, Mark Hopkins Hotel and Ritz Carlton. The view in my painting is the eastern portion of California Street which runs from Market to Van Ness Avenue.  You can see Polk Street in the foreground and the cable car lines in the street.

 

You may have noticed that I like to paint streetscapes.  It makes for challenging compositions.  Part of the challenge is deciding what architectural elements to paint and what to leave out.  Simplifying the color palette brings harmony to a city scene that can be full of bright garish colors on signs, buildings and cars. 

View of the Bay, San Francisco

View of the Bay, San Francisco

orginal oil painting 10x8

SOLD

I was painting in San Francisco and I wanted a photo of a street scene with Alcatraz and Angel Island in the background. I drove around until I found this spot on Hyde Street and then I waited for the Cable Car to crest the hill, into the sunlight. It actually took quite a while. The cable cars don't run that often. It turns out that people driving in cars don't like it when you're standing in the middle of the street to take photos, but I was happy with the composition.

Mission and 2nd Street, San Francisco

Mission and 2nd Street, San Francisco

original oil painting, 24x30

SOLD

I took the photo for this painting, after I had been to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art with my friend Alicia.  We were on Mission and New Montgomery Street waiting for a bus, when I pulled out my camera to capture this composition.  I liked the F-line rail car with the Ferry Building in the background.

This painting is 30x24, the largest size oil painting that I've done to date.  I used my t-square to get the vertical building lines parallel in the background.

View of Bay Bridge, San Francisco

View of Bay Bridge, San Francisco

original oil painting, 8x10

SOLD

The Bay Bridge is an impressive site.  You can catch a glimpse of the bridge from many streets in San Francisco.  It's actually a pair of bridges spanning the San Francisco Bay between San Francisco and Oakland.  A western span connects downtown San Francisco to Yerba Buena Island and an eastern span connects the island to Oakland.  It has one of the longest spans in the world, which it feels like when you're driving across it.

My painting shows the Bay Bridge in the distance on a street in San Francisco.  In the foreground, on the left you can see a typical San Francisco building with curved corner windows.  When painting cityscapes it's difficult to decide how much detail to include in the painting.  I simplify the information while trying to suggest a sense of depth and space.  Then I hope to find a balance that works in the painting.