Another productive day at the harbor......even though my day got off to a slow start as I left my tube of white home, and had to buy another at the art store to get started. This is the point at the mouth of the harbor. I was attracted to this scene by the bouy, and the navigation warning light attached to the point. This piece has that nice Hawaii sparkle!

#41, The winter surge

Took my paints for a long walk down the coast line. Its all lava rock cliffs with the winter surge splashing up against them. I found this small cove where the water swirled as it washed in and out, so I thought I would give it a try. I think I did a good job creating movement in the water, and a strong center of interest with the deeper cerrulean blue pool, and the gold bleached lava rock. I like the work, but wonder is this subject "saleable"?? It seems to need something more, but what?? More color?, Maybe a stonger group of rocks in the left side of the pool? Anyways this is painting number 41 on my way to 100 plein air works. Maybe by 100, I will know the answers. :)

Out of the Breeze and into the Trees

I was watching this grove of palm trees waiting for the sun to go low enough to light up their trunks. When it finally happened, I gave it a try. I like the mass of the fronds and the background.........I might like to vary the coloration on the trunks next go round, and work to capture the low lighting a bit more. But hey....I'm outside painting palm trees!!

A fight to the finish

We drove down south today to Naalehu. Wonderful rocky coastlines and .....WIND! Set up to paint this rocky point and had much trouble shifting from realistic to abstract. I can't stop painting rocks instead of just massing them in, and I have trouble with the greens on top of the point......it keeps looking like a bad green toupee. After about an hours worth of painting in which my water blew over twice and my whole easel tipped over once, and I gashed open my hand trying to catch it................this is the results! I like the liveliness of the ocean.....this was a good learning experience.

Back lit Begonias

We have this wonderful potted Begonia on our back lani, and every day I say..."Today I will paint those Begonias". Well today I did! I'm pushing myself towards abstract..especially in the flowers....just blobs of color, and dark leaf mass. They are the best part of this painting.

Shapes and Color

Got back outside again today, and found a new beach. A big view on a smaller panel. Since there was no real center of interest, and too big of a scene, I just worked on shapes and color. I like the results.....but I will soften the right hand edges of the bright green bushes.

Reaching out to the ocean

Sometimes I do a plein air piece and nature just doesn't arrange itself in the best possible way.........So, I have to restucture it a bit. Originally this had a solid rock "barricade" across the ocean which halted the viewers enrty into the painting and made it uninviting. Back home I punched a hole in the rocks so the viewer could let his eye wander all the way to the water, and brightened the sand in the entry to make sure the viewer got all the way to the ocean. Now you can feel yourself move towards the gap and down to the ocean.