Painting at Lake Anza


Lake Anza #
2   acrylic on 22 by 28
I almost cancelled todays session because of the heavy fog but decided to go after all. It was foggy all the way to the park but once inside the fog was gone and there was even sun.  The lake was glistening.  I did this painting last week  at the lake and have been working on it in the studio.   Karen

Sunday, November 27

We will meet on Sunday at Adams Park in downtown Oakland, by Lake Merrit. We will not meet on Saturday, November 27. Please see the mailing list message for an explanation. There are no bathrooms and there is no water available. We will meet at Adams Park and walk towards the lake together. Here is a map:
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Monday Nov 28







We will return to Lake Anza in Tilden Park.   On our trip there this week we all were impressed with how romantic it looked with the painters all around the lake.  It was a very quiet day without the  barking dogs of the previous week and few walkers.  Carol Sutton took these beautiful pictures.

Fall Day at Meeker Slough


Meeker Slough #2
  watercolor
Sharon Hind-Smith did this one on our second visit to Meeker Slough this fall. It was a beautiful crisp day, warm in the sun.

Monday, November 21


We return to Lake Anza. The only change to the directions is that the parking lot closest to the lake is closed and we had to park in the lower lot. There is a set of stairs up to the other lot and then a paved flat path to the lake. There is also a short cut from the parking lot to the paved path to the lake

It is  hard to give really good directions because there are many entrances to Tilden park. I usually go in at Spruce street.  So I am giving you the Google map link to get directions to  Lake Anza   Just type in Lake Anza, Tilden Park and then you can get directions from you house.  Once you are in the park there are a lot of signs that will help you find the lake.



You can also get a map from Google to Tilden Regional Park.

Godzilla Shows Up In EL Sobrante

Godzilla Shows Up In El Sobrante, Acrylic on Canvas, 20 x 24"
As a child I watched the Japanese series Ultraman on TV. There was no Godzilla in it, but there was a character, Dada, which struck fear in my six year old self. I decided I would include one of these characters in a painting after watching another painter, Julie, do something similar during a figure painting session. While researching these characters, I saw a picture of the old Godzilla and thought he would be perfect for this El Sobrante landscape, painted with our landscape group while on the hill at the end of Hidden Springs Court. After a few studies, I ended up placing him behind the hill that shows some of the homes on Painted Pony Rd.  

Monday, November 14

We will take the Lake Anza challenge again.  I say that because it is wonderful to paint at the lake but it is difficult painting, at least for me ,with all the shades of green and the reflection of the trees in the water.

It is also hard to give really good directions because there are many entrances to Tilden park. I usually go in at Spruce street.  So I am giving you the Google map link to get directions to  Lake Anza   Just type in Lake Anza, Tilden Park and then you can get directions from you house.  Once you are in the park there are a lot of signs that will help you find the lake.



You can also get a map from Google to Tilden Regional Park.

Meeker Slough


Meeker Slough #2
 acrylic on canvas 20  by 30
We have been back to Meeker Slough a few times.  I did this on one of our recent visits. The weather was wonderful.  I  hope we have a few more days like that one.

Karen

Cancelled: Saturday, November 11

No one was able to make it today, so we will not meet in Adams Park, which is at the corner of Harrison and Grand Lake, in Oakland. We'll try again on November 26 if enough people are interested. If you can come, please reply to the message we sent out today. Leave your home early as traffic may delay your arrival. If coming from 580, take the Broadway exit and turn left on 27th and right on Harrison. You can also take 980 and get off on 27th, then turn right on Harrison. Bring a cell phone. No bathrooms and possibly no water. Here's a map:
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Monday, November 7

If the weather is good and it is not too windy we will meet at Meekers Slough in Richmond. If necessary as the weather changes I might change the location to get away from the bay where it might be less windy. So check the blog on the weekend.

Directions:


From Berkeley, take hwy 80, then hwy 580 toward the Richmond Bridge.

Take the South 23rd St/Marina Bay Pkwy exit off hwy 580.
Turn left (over hwy) on Marina Bay (1st traffic light).
Continue on Marina Bay across Regatta (4th traffic light).
Turn left on Bayside Drive off Marina Bay (about 0.4 miles from Marina Bay/Regatta intersection).
From the parking area, it’s approximately 1 block to the Meeker Slough.
Continue to end of Bayside Drive.  There is a small area to park (10 spaces or so + sign for public access). 
If the parking lot is full, you can park on nearby Shimada Park and walk approximately two block to the same slough.

Cancelled: Saturday, November 5

The Saturday coordinator is not well enough to go out on Saturday, so the Saturday session has been cancelled. Please see your e-mail for more details, if you are subscribed to our list. We will try again next week!

Western Stege Marsh

This big acrylic (30 x 40") was the result of three visits. I tried a different approach, with an underpainting that was very desaturated. The buildings caught my attention, they looked so boxy and bright against this marsh environment. Then I went home and found out they were part of a turn-of-the-century explosive manufacturing plant. Unfortunately this is also what made Western Stege Marsh one of the ten most toxic places in the Bay Area. The land has been owned by UC Berkeley since the 1950's and the cleanup has been going on for the last few years. It is almost complete, yet there are signs warning passersby to stay on the bay trail because of "hazardous substances."