Art Camp

I spent last week in Grass Valley with four good friends, making art....well, that was the idea, but we were all tired and slow to start.  Once we got going some very nice work was done by one and all.  We spent one day exploring Nevada City and taking tons of photos with hopes of some good references for new paintings.  We enjoyed the geese and goslings ( counted 28) that came to wake us every morning on their way to the lake viewed from the deck on the  property.  I felt as though we all benefitted from the time together and since this is our fourth time at 'art camp' I can see the strides we all have made in these four years.  Looking forward to next year.  Above you can see 2 pieces I finished while there.  The first one, 'Trees across the Lake' was an attempt at plein air painting. Wanting to project the mood of the serenity of the scene,  I used 300 lb Arches wet in wet, and completed most of the painting outside.  Later I used Carn d' Ache watercolor crayons to finish the job.  The second piece,  ' Cottage in the Woods' was painted directly, dropping in colors that I wanted to show through to the finished work, yellow, opera and permanent rose, peacock and some cobalt.  I wanted to keep the mood warm and give a sunny feeling to the tree trunks.  I think they both have the mood I was working toward.