Monday, October 17

We will meet at the Vista Point just before Crockett.  There are wonderful views of the strait and hills beyond. And there is beautiful color and in the ground cover all around.

From 80 take the Cummings Skyway exit and go left onto Commings Skyway then right on San Pablo. The parking lot for the Vista Point will be on your left.

Hillside Natural Area From End of Portola Dr.

You learn the most interesting things by doing a Google search with the names of a city's streets. The historical societies websites pop up, and also, the minutes from city council meetings past. And that's how I learned that I painted a former quarry by the name of Hutchinson. The story is fascinating, given that the entire street still shows traces of its past.

In any case...this was a difficult acrylic to finish. I devoted a total of seven hours to it. Somehow, it demanded a more thorough treatment than others I do in half the time. I also used a much larger canvas than I normally use, 24 x 36". I had fun painting in the company of Milada, Ling and Kendall.

Monday, October 10

We will return to Tormey.  From 80 East take the Cummings Skyway extit (26). Go left on Cummings Skyway and left on San Pablo and you will see a row of houses on the left on Old County Road. Take a left on Old County Road. We will meet at the end of the block.   

Saturday, October 8

We will return to the open area on Navallier and Portola streets, in El Cerrito. No bathrooms. Bring a cell phone, your own water. Please park along Navellier and wait for the others. There is a variety of views, among them, of the Nature Area hills, of streets that stretch across the hills, and of a lonely white house up Moeser. It may be foggy, but it could also be warm and dry. Dress accordingly. Please reply to the listserv message if you are coming. 
View Larger Map

Tormey in October

Tormey October  acrylic,  20 by 30

We went back to Tormey. It was a wonderful fall day with wild turkeys, goats, sheep and horses.  We made it until 12:30 when the rain started.  I did this looking looking west.  Karen

Tormey, Skyline & Corral

This was the first painting I did at Tormey, a town at the west end of the Cummings Skyway. I finished it from photos this spring. It's kind of austere, but I felt pretty good about being able to convey the sense of all those bars to the pasture. It's oil on canvas and 30" x 40." I feel the reddish toned canvas added to the depth of color, at least in the original.

A second piece I started soon after, facing the other way. Karen was set up right at the base of the telephone pole.
Betsy

Dusk, King Ranch

This is one of two paintings I made for a show at the Vallejo Maritime Museum, called Seeing Solano: Solano Land Trust through the eyes of artists, running through December. It's of a low, rocky tree-covered ridge in one of the windiest places I've ever painted. Started pleinaire, finished in the studio, it's 30" x 40" oil on canvas.