Fall Forest

I've had a long break from gouache, as you can see, but wanted to get in one painting at least during November! This one is a familiar place and time, as I revisited a photo taken last year. It's a trail we love to walk along the Rio Grande in the bosque (woods) that spread out alongside. Fall is a spectacular time to be there. I'm particularly pleased with the way the smattering of leaves along the dry, dusty path worked out in this one. I hope you like it, too.

The Shield

There is a dramatic slab of rock atop Sandia, the peak that fronts Albuquerque, called the shield. I caught this dramatic shot of it several years ago and have painted it in pastels more than once, using various styles and colors. When I happened upon the bent and dusty old print, I knew I had to paint it in gouache. I enjoy the swooping shapes, but it's the light and color that makes this tiny painting seem to glow.

Just for scale, here it is in its little bag.

October Sunflower

The canvas paper gave this just the texture I wanted. I think Vincent would get this painting, don't you? I was thinking of the famous pot of sunflowers he painted--a different variety, but related. The purple and blue ground did it for me, and I decided the sun struck petals told the tale of sun and shade.

Shady Spots and Flower Pots

I had such fun painting these flowers in their pots. The idea was simply to challenge myself to paint nine of them--odd numbers being so interesting--and see what happened. Individually the paintings please me, but together I think they made a really beautiful collection!

In order to show you how they look I'm including a shot I took before framing them, just loosely arranged on the table. You can see the individual paintings fairly well this way. (You'll notice they aren't in the same arrangement as when I matted them. I spent quite a while deciding on the perfect order for them!)

Red Cliff-

I love the towering red cliffs we see around here in New Mexico. They're such a delightful contrast with the surrounding greens and the blue sky. It took me a while to recognize that to get the striations in the layered rocks to read correctly I needed to paint them in perspective, but it's not stringent the way architecture is, just gently receding into space.

Summer Afternoon

These summer skies just thrill me! I love seeing the towering clouds as they build up during the afternoon, so often bringing a nice shower to cool things off. The shadows on the land are an extra bonus of contrast and color. 

Great Bay Shore

Another of the Gouache Corner photos that Hal Kirby posted, this one of the Great Bay. I cropped it, too, to take out  the tall trees and focus on the rocks and shadows on the sandy, rocky shore. I enjoyed sorting out the jumble of colors and shapes on the steep bank behind the boulders, letting the paint suggest to me what was there.