The Driftwood Beach

The Driftwood Beach

8"x16" oil on canvas

Day #21 of the Daily Painting Challenge ( https://www.flickr.com/groups/2756377@N22/?added=1 )
So I was out painting on the island one day this summer when a guy came up to see what I was doing and asked if I'd ever painted the driftwood beach before. Well, I'd never heard of it, but he gave me directions, just over the bridge to Longboat Key. This morning my children came with me to check it out and were we ever rewarded! It was a gorgeous morning and the giant driftwood trees were casting all kinds of cool shadows on the sand, it was hard to decide what to paint first! I had so much fun painting this one, still, my kids claim they had the most fun of all playing in elaborately constructed driftwood huts that some people had created and jumping off the branches into the ocean! I think it's pretty safe to say we'll all be back!

Late Afternoon

Late Afternoon

9"x12" oil on panel

Decided I wanted to focus on my brushwork with this one, specifically, on putting it down and leaving it alone! It's a challenge for sure with such a composition as this, where the foreground gets rather complicated. I started with by blocking in the darkest areas (the trees) and keying in the value of the sky in the background, then I worked my way down, dark to light. All in all, I'm quite pleased with how my Day #20 painting turned out! Two thirds of the way into this Daily Painting Challenge and I'm really starting to feel like I'm on a roll!

Totem-Pole

Totem-Pole

5"x7" watercolor

Little sketch of my kids playing their favorite game in the ocean this afternoon where my daughter climbs on my son's shoulders then leaps off into the water!

Shell Study

Shell Study

5"x5" oil on primed paper

Day #19 of the daily painting challenge and today was definitely a challenge! Well, somedays are diamonds and somedays are shells I suppose... a busy and rainy day meant I had only a little time to squeeze in a quick painting sketch before heading to the beach for the weekend. Guess I was kind of already there in my head!

Artist in the Shade (Phillippi Estate Park)

Artist in the Shade

11"x14" oil on panel

Painted with The Light Chasers plein air group in Sarasota. Loved how regal the two palm trees looked against the clear blue sky. I only noticed my fellow painter in the shade towards the end!

Tea Time

Tea Time

5"x5" oil on primed paper

#17... A rainy day= priming panels and a nice cup of hot tea! 

In Mama's Shade

In Mama's Shade

 9"x12" oil on panel
Day #16... Turns out cows are really good models... as long as it's sunny and there's shade. About half way into this painting the sun disappeared and before long, so did my models! Finishing it was a challenge to my memory :)