Kalorama Street, Ventura

Kalorama Street, Ventura

original oil painting, 24x30

SOLD

The opening reception for my show at the Buenaventura Gallery was a lot of fun. We had about 200 people come through the gallery that night.  I want to thank everyone who came by to say hello and show their support. I'm also grateful for all the help from the staff and volunteers. I'm very proud of my new paintings and I think the show looks really nice in the solo room at the Buenaventura Gallery.  

The painting of Kalorama Street is in the show. We use to live in the Sea View condos off of Kalorama Street in Ventura.  I always thought the street was unique and interesting, it has Mexican Fan Palms growing out of the street. At some point the city must have widened the street and paved around the palm trees. There's an ocean view at the end of the street, a mixture of houses, churches and apartments. It has a Southern California feel to it - wide street, lots of palms trees, a fog bank and warm sunlight, colorful plants and a 1960s style apartment building.

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.

Underpaintings by Ann

 

A couple of weeks ago my niece Ann was visiting from Wichita.  She likes art and likes to help me in the studio.   I had some drawings from photographs on canvas panels and I asked her to do the underpaintings.  She used a thin wash of Transparent Red Oxide paint and divided the painting into three values, a dark, middle and light tone.  After the underpaintings dried, Ann also helped me lay in the sky on a few paintings.  The above photo shows Ann finishing the sky in a painting of the flower fields in Santa Paula.  Thanks Ann!

Red Van on Opal Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz

Red VW Van, Santa Cruz

original oil painting, 8x10 SOLD

I can't resist painting old Volkswagen vans. I ride my bike past this little yellow house and red van on the weekends on my way to Capitola.  It's at the corner of Opal Cliff Drive and Court Drive in Santa Cruz.  They had this old red van which I really liked, but recently they got a newer red van.  Luckily I got a photo with the old van on a day with wispy cloud formations in the sky.

  

Poli Street 3, Ventura

Poli Street 3, Ventura

original oil painting, 16x20  SOLD

available at the Buenaventura Gallery, Sept 11 - Oct 6

Reception: Saturday, September 15, 4:00 - 7:00 pm

The painting in this view is from the corner of Poli Street and North Catalina Street.  The street is lined with old Mexican fan palms, queen palms and 1920s Spanish style houses.  Ventura High School, which was directly behind me, casts a big shadow in the foreground.

Chill Out Cafe, Santa Cruz

Chill Out Cafe, Santa Cruz

original oil painting, 10x8 SOLD

available at the Buenaventura Gallery, Sept 11 - Oct 6
Reception: Saturday, Sept 15, 4:00 - 7:00pm

The Chill Out Cafe is on 41st Avenue in Santa Cruz.  It's a charming Santa Cruz hangout, full of locals eating breakfast burritos.  I've wanted to paint the building for a while because of the barn red color and it's popularity among surfers.
  

Lagoon at Hendry's Beach, Santa Barbara

Lagoon at Hendry's Beach, Santa Barbara

original oil painting, 10x8

SOLD

In March, Chris Beirne and I painted together in Southern California.  I asked Chris to find a place to paint with big cliffs, along the ocean. Chris picked Hendry's Beach in Santa Barbara and suggested that we paint at sunset. It was unusally warm and sunny, which meant the beach was packed with people, not the best situation for plein air painting.   

When I returned home, I painted the scene above. It's funny that I ended up painting the lagoon instead of the cliffs.  I was attracted to the reflections on the pond, the green in the hills and the vertical compositional elements of the fan palms.  You can see the long shadows from the setting sun.