Cathy Orfall, #37, 38 and 39

I just returned from a trip to Newport, RI.  The Old Trinity Church and the Redwood Library Summer house were sketches I did in my journal.  Turns out I can't draw a non-wobbling line while standing so they are wonky!!  #39 is a sailboat anchored on Narragansett Bay, again in my sketchbook but sitting at a table!  

CathyO, #35, Baja ruins

Baja Ruins

From a photo taken a few years ago in an abandon village on the Baja pennisula.  I liked the fact that life had returned to the interior of the ruin.

CathyO, #34, New Arrival

We had our first ever hatch of Mallard ducklings on the ponds a few weeks ago.  Seven little fuzz balls scooting after their very good Mom!  Just wanted to share with you all!

CathyO, #32 and 33, Mt. Hood

We have been having cloudy, rainy days lately but Mt. Hood popped out of the clouds the other after and I rushed outside for a pleasant few hours of plein air painting.

CathyO, #31, Nishikigoi

This is another painting from Laure's Japanese Garden visit.  The assignment was to get the fish submerged in a 30 minute sketch.  At first, I wasn't very happy with it and closed my sketchbook when I opened it a few days later I decided it wasn't so bad!  

The title "Nishikigoi" means brocaded carp in Japanese.

CathyO, #30, Lanterns, Japanese Garden Visit

Another post from the Japanese Garden Visit with Laure!  We have been studying how to make grays from all the colors in our palettes.  I chose several of the lanterns she gave us and took them out of context (not in the landscape) and painted them with only Quin. red, Cobalt blue and Aureolin yellow.  I was surprised and pleased with all the colors I got!  And I even made grays!

Again, I apologise for the multiple posts!  I was called for jury duty, 3 times!!  Really put a kink in my painting schedule!  Getting caught up!

CathyO, #28 and 29, Japanese Garden Visit

Here are a couple more studies from Laure Ferlita's Japanese Garden Visit.  I am having some trouble with the colors reproducing true.  Guess I am going to have to read a manual!!  The lower Thai temple painting has a sky in a wonderful cadmium orange with mineral violet streaks.  And the upper Pagoda sky is a very subtle white to pale yellow to orange, magenta and then violet.  Oh well!  These are both 5 x 7.

#26 and 27, Japanese Garden trip, CathyO

These quick sketches were done for Laure Ferlita's current visit to the Japanese Gardens. The Lotus was lightly sketched in pencil while the MoonGate was done all with the brush.  Each took a 1/2 hour.

I apologise for the multiple posts, life got hectic for a while and I am trying to play catch-up!

#25, Blue pots, CathyO

A quick Plein air sketch done at our local nursery.  I have sketching and watercolor paper in this particular journal and I wasn't paying attention...... so,  this is done on the sketching paper and buckled some, but I still like the looseness.  #25!  A quarter of the way there!!!

#24, Loie Fuller tribute, CathyO

Earlier this month, a friend and I went out to the dedication of the new wing at the Maryhill Museum of Art in Washington.  Loie Fuller, a serpentine dancer from the turn of the 20th century, was very influential in helping bring the arts to Eastern Washington.  She established her own style of dance using yards and yards of silk, frequently attached to long poles at the arms, and then she swirled and twirled her way into the hearts of high society in France.  One of her dances, La Mer, was performed by a local dance troupe.  They danced on miles of billowing silk, depicting the ocean waves. 

CathyO #23 Oregon Cliffs from Catherine Creek

Another PleinAire painting:  This is the view of the Oregon Cliffs from Catherine Creek Park on the Washington side.  I was experimenting with using Aquaboard simplicity for painting outside.  I think I like it.  The firm substrate is a definite plus but I am going to have to work out how the color grabs and stays, I kept washing the previous wash away!  This picture is dark compared to the original.

CathyO #21 and #22

It is spring in the Hood River Valley and that means apple, pear and cherry blossoms!  #21 is a gnarled apple tree that I see on my daily walk.  #22 depicts the picking bins waiting for the blossoms to turn to fruit.

CathyO, #20

Today was our first beautiful day in weeks, so I headed out for a little plein air practice.  So different from in the studio!!  Looks like I got a couple of angles wrong but I had a good time!

CathyO, #19, Dogwood

Happy May Day!

CathyO - #18

I feel like I lost my concentration/direction on this one but quantity over quality!  Here it is!

CathyO #14 and 15

 #14 - I have been on a trip and am trying to catch up!!  Sorry for multiple posts!  While staying at my sons home I gathered up some of his treasures for a still life.

#15 - And another!

CathyO #16 and 17

 #16 - The moon was setting as the sun was rising.  This was my view (from my bed!) on the Monday after Easter!  I thought it made an interesting study!

#17 - As the weather has been warming up, I have been thinking about getting out into the garden soon.  Leafing thru some magazines, I saw a photo that inspired this study.

CathyO, #13, Serenity

This was a quick sketch using Vermilion, New Gamboge and Davy's gray of a Buddha I have in an alcove.  This took less than an hour.

CathyO, The Sunbeam, #12

My big old love of a cat, Stockholm, found a sunbeam on a cold winter day.  He couldn't help but toast his tummy and I couldn't resist trying to paint him.  (My photo is a little off - the background is a glowing yellow all over but it kept fading in the photo.  Don't know why....)

CathyO, Mocha, #10 and 11

I took this photo of a rainy afternoon Mocha break at my favorite cafe, then decided to paint one loosely, actually more of a sketch and then the other in an "old world" dark background style.