September at Meeker Slough

 Slough Bridge, oil on canvas, 18" square.

The fog cleared to a beautiful fall day. I liked the glow of the dead grasses along the causeway to the bridge.

September Marsh, oil on canvas, 30" x 24."

Over the fence marked with a sign saying Danger, Toxic Materials, a wealth of life enjoyed the water.

Anderson Park

There were just a few of us that day in early December and I had a tiny 20 x 16" canvas. I worked with acrylic pretty close to the sidewalk. Just like in Richmond, passersby stopped to chat, wondering what we saw in the busy intersection. I was interested in the sycamores against the cathedral and the other downtown Oakland buildings. I did not finish there, but continued at the studio mainly from memory. It was a great location that I would like to return to.

Painting Occupy Berkeley

Occupy Berkeley   chalk pastel on paper  16.5 by 22.5

 not every day is a master piece:
Occupy Berkeley at Martin Luther King between Allston and Center is quiet and the occupiers were friendly even offering to share their limited breakfast.  All around a good day - chilly early and then comfortable, painted from 10 am to 2 pm. Will go back again.  Kelly Hammargren

9th and Camelia

Two months ago I was going to finish my painting of the church on 8th and Camelia, but when we got there, there was a memorial service going on. We realized it would be terrible to stand across the street, finishing our paintings while people cried in front of the church. So we went a block away to 9th and Camelia. I loved the extra-wide sidewalk and the car lineup. Phillip and Kendall were there and I was able to include them in the otherwise barren landscape. But when I got home I had to admit the figures were too small. After 24 hours of deliberation, I gave in and scraped them, but not without first taking a cell phone photo (you can find it here) to use as reference for the second attempt. The finished painting shows the correction I made to the figures, as well as the revised sidewalk, which I lightened.

Ninth Street Corner

This is the painting I was doing in the photo  (see the post titled "Painting in Berkeley").  It was a windy day, but we were in the shelter of a tall warm wall.  Hooray!  I used a photo to record the windblown clouds for later work in the studio.
30" x 40" oil on canvas.   Betsy Kendall

House at 8th and Page, Berkeley

I sat on the back of my car and painted this one week when there was a break in the rain.  oil on canvas 18" x 24"

  Betsy Kendall

9th Street in Berkeley

The group met at Harrison Park and decided to revisit the location at Camelia and the Ninth Street. On 9th St. looking to the South, the interesting shape of the building drew my attention. In the painting,  the foreground on the right was very empty.  I painted the sign on the road which leaded me to add the figure to the painting.  I hoped it helped to balance the composition. This was done with oil on a 12 by 16 gesso board."   Philip Ng

Camelia and 9th Street

It was nice to meet and paint with the fellow landscape artists.  This was a beautiful sunny Saturday afternoon. The location was at the corner of Camelia  and 9th Street in Berkeley. The painting was done with acrylic.  I emphasized the light on the sidewalk and tried to make the mailbox look more interesting.  The size of the painting was 9" x 12" canvas panel.      Philip Ng

Berkeley Adventure and Oriental Rug Co.

I headed down to the Berkeley Marina Saturday morning but unluckily for me I had inadverantly left my headlights on and when it came time to join the EBLP, I was waiting for the AAA truck. I amused myself while waiting by watching the local kids flying their kites nearby.
After my car was charged up ( by driving to have lunch at El Pollo Loco-yum!) I headed over to 9th and Camelia Street where the East Bay Landscape Painters were gathered. I was able to park a short distance down the street and captured this view of the Oriental Rug Company.  A fun end to an adventurersome day!  "Oriental Rug Company" 12" x18" pastel on black paper.    Janice Lopez

Saturday, February 26

We will not be holding a painting session today because we will all be at the opening of the show Immigrant Neighborhoods at the San Pablo Gallery from 1-3 pm.
Don't miss it!

Nicholl Park

This is one of the paintings I dropped off for our show at the San Pablo Gallery, Immigrant Neighborhoods. It is a well used small park with picnic areas and a skate board area. My composition is a little like a Seurat of the park with people in the shadows.  Only mine has a pitbull not a black dog.  It is 24 by 30.  Karen

Alvarado Adobe Museum

Fran and I were painting in the same courtyard next to the Alvarado Adobe Museum — one of the museums we visited during our research on the history of immigration to San Pablo & Richmond over time. The mayor came up to visit with Fran. It was a beautiful peaceful spring day with the sound of all the fountains in the background. The garden courtyard took me back to what it might have been like in an earlier more rural time. It was the last painting in my series for the Immigrant Neighborhoods up-coming show and a perfect painting for the end.

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11"

marilynhill.com

Mira Flores, Oishi, Sakai & Maida-Endo Nurseries

After being granted permission to paint at the greenhouse site through the Richmond Redevelopment Agency we were joined by Ellen Grailing a photographer who has been photographing Mira Flores for many years. She showed us places to go and places not to go. I was excited.

The roses appeared to be lifting the greenhouses toward the sky. It was raining and the paint kept running together creating a rather Zen effect on the painting. When we were done, I must have put the painting on top of my truck where it proceeded to fly off into the anon. I recreated it here.We could do many paintings here if it were possible. There was wonderful stuff everywhere.

A Mini Historical Note
"According to Donna Graves, who wrote the historical component of the 2004 “Historic Architecture Evaluation: The Oishi, Sakai and Maida-Endo Nurseries,” the site contains “the only extant cut-flower nurseries begun by Japanese Americans before World War II in the entire Bay Area, and [is] the last remaining of Richmond’s community of Japanese American flower growers.”
To find out more about the Japanese flower growers



Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11

marilynhill.com

Richmond Farmers Market

Fran and I caught the Richmond Farmers Market last Friday. The people were gracious, and curious — the weather was very cold. It was a grey day but I put in a blue sky. I think I was hoping the sun would come out. I liked the zig-zag composition this scene made with the vertical column of the back of the truck. Also the vender had some very engaging oranges hanging from her tent. I was beginning to play with the idea that maybe a brushstroke could hold up a table of onions

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11

marilynhill.com

Little Pink Home, 22nd near Market

The residents in this little trailer park seemed happy to see the sun, work on their homes and picnic in the street after so many cold rainy days. Karen, Fran and I were painting Saturday. The neighborhood treated us like visiting dignitaries — taking our pictures, bringing us food, and sharing their artwork, their stories and their animals with us. It reminded me why painting outside so important to me.

I took one look at this little pink trailer among all its neutral colored mates and decided I must paint it immediately. It's the first time I used a magenta in the shadows.

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11

marilynhill.com

El Chalatec, Hellings & San Pablo

While I was painting this, an old guy came up and was impressed that I was working so hard. I said I was doing it for fun. His answer was that it was to cold to be fun. Of course, that was for sure. I ended up doing a lot of the painting back at the ranch.

Recently I've been studying the paintings of Jean Michel Basquiat, a young artist with a short but powerful career in the 80's. I also attended the last day of the Japanese Print Show at the Palace of Legion of Honor. Towards an upcoming workshop my painting are becoming increasingly experimental - therefore not always my strongest – but still intriguing to paint. You can see the beginnings here and of the above influences.

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11"

marilynhill.com

Golden State Textiles, Rheem near 23rd St.

I was attracted by this white building with the decorative front and dark space within. The owner first thought I was going to paint on the building and was very polite in suggesting the police might not be happy since the city needs to paint over graffiti. Once we established that I was to paint a picture of his storefront all was a go. This was a nice spot. The painting came out a little cartoony but I've been exploring the idea of signage as symbol which fits right in. (Does the stuff we buy or sell become symbols of our culture??? Will we be remembered by KFC or Quarter Pounders???)

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11

marilynhill.com

Sopitos, 23rd St. near Market

Larry and I painted Sopito's. He was across the street and I, as usual, was right next to it. For me I think it was about the color, the umbrella + reflection and the palm tree with the fuzzy trunk. The sky was white.

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11

marilynhill.com

Rumrill Road

Finally got myself sufficiently organized to share these recent paintings, mostly of the Rumrill Road and Market intersection. I've somehow grown attached to the place, have encountered many appreciative people and had some interesting chats. Color is what fascinates me at the moment, and especially the impact that different light has, so it's been really great to keep returning to the same place under different conditions, and to keep looking and noticing and looking some more. These are still in progress and quite close to finished paintings but I'm still learning when to stop, and when to go on. I really want to paint the area near the tracks and maybe a freight train if I can do it, and also to put more people in - maybe when the weather improves a bit there will be more people out and about.

Oil on canvas 16 x 24 inches

Tacos, San Pablo

Only Larry and I made it out this day. It started raining about half way through so we needed to pack up early. I finished up with photo scrap. The taco truck is very beautiful well painted and well kept. The mural on the back of the truck with it's blues and greens was a wonderful foil for the orange truck.

Marilyn Hill
Watercolor
15 X 11"

marilynhill.com