Yosemite Falls

If you want to see water in Yosemite Falls, you'll have to look at a photo or a painting 'cause it's pretty dry right now!

Avocado in Pastel

During the summer I had the privilege of meeting each Tuesday night with a small group of artists wanting to explore new styles of art. I was sad to make my leave when I had to return to the world of middle school teaching. However, I felt like working in absentia so I met up with a pastel group in Santa Maria; this is one of several sketches that I completed Tuesday night.

A Few Big Trees

I finished my season in Yosemite yesterday. It was a very good season. I was able to do a lot of art. I went with the intent of learning to work with Pastels. I completed about a dozen drawings. I also joined a weekly art group in which we explored various aspects of design and creativity. Did I mention that it was a very good season?

Seemed appropriate to post this drawing as a tribute to the end of the season. This is a drawing of the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia; this is where I work.

 I'm hoping that as I get busy with the school year that I will be disciplined enough to make time for art.

I haven't posted any new art this past month because of a failed computer. Hopefully, the situation is remedied.  This post compares a before and after depiction of a mountain sheep. Originally the subject closely resembled another realistic pastel drawing and I was experimenting with different colored papers. In the end it was pretty boring, so I decided to play around with color. Earlier this summer I read on another blog that "Value does all the work but color gets all the credit." So I decided to see if that were true and play with more abstract colors. Which do you like better?

Big Horn Sheep: Experiment with Colored Paper

I decided to do the same drawing twice on different paper using pastels. The subject was a big horn sheep photo by my buddy Paul. He is  a docent at the LA zoo and provides an endless supply supply of fauna photos and encouragement.

So, of the two nearly completed drawings in the final photo which do you prefer, the golden background or the gray one?

North Rim

Last week, for our family vacation we spent a few days at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Each morning I crawled out of bed and over my sleeping spouse to sketch the sunrise greet the canyon. After the first day I gave up trying to work in color and settled on Pen and Ink. Here are a couple of sketches.

I called this spot with the lonely pine Reception Point because it was one place in the campground where I could get cell service.

This is an unfinished view, but it was cold on the edge and breakfast was calling.

We pitched our tents among a group of aspens.

This dune study was done at the Guadalupe Dunes complex about ten miles from my home in Santa Maria. For those familiar with the area, this is where the Oso Flaco boardwalk approaches the shore (I removed the boardwalk from the photo.