Friday, May 4, 2012

A Sunny Sunday in Mokelumne Hill

Once again, with artist friends Ruth Andre and Howard Rees, I ventured into the Mother Lode Country for some plein air painting.  This time, unlike the last, it was a gorgeous summer day.  We were in the Gold Rush town of Mokelumne Hill, a quaint little town surrounded by rolling hills covered with oaks...and just the first sprinkling of pines.  We first set up just outside of town for some landscape painting, and then after lunch we relocated to paint a barn that Howard had discovered and was chopping at the bit to paint.  All of us had our struggles during the day....possibly due in part to the long lay off over the winter....but all agreed afterward that it was a great day to be outside painting. 

This was the morning painting.  I took a lot of liberties with the actual scene.  I think it makes a pleasant composition.  Peaceful and inviting. 

A Farm Near Mokelumne Hill   Oil on 12" x 16" Canvas Panel. 

 

Mokelumne Hill Barn  Oil on 9" x 12" Canvas Panel

And in the afternoon we painted this old barn.  I had problems with this one.  In fact, this is the second attempt at the barn.  The light was overhead and behind the barn which was nestled under a canopy of trees.  As a result, the barn was in fairly dark shadow with strong light in the foreground.   At first I used a black primed canvas, but that was hopelessly dark and I was already having problems overcoming the dark shadows.  I switched to a canvas primed with raw umber which was better, but I still had problems.  In the end, I settled for this little sketch.  I may play with it a bit in the studio.

7 comments :

  1. Looks great Bruce. What a fun day of painting.

    ReplyDelete
  2. J'aime dans vos deux merveilleuses peintures ces deux petites touches de rouges qui apportent je ne saurais dire quoi... peut-être la cerise sur le gâteau...
    Très joli travail avec une superbe harmonie de couleurs.
    Gros bisous

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you Martine-Alison. You are very generous and your comments give me energy to try again soon!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love both of them, next time call me too! I would love to hook up and paint with you!

    Vickie Chew

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Vickie! That's a deal! We don't have anything planned at the moment, since Ruth is busy with some art and family related matters, but we will be painting soon I'm sure. Email me at californiapainter@gmail.com

      Delete
  5. Beautiful vibrant colors and extraordinarily clean. Lovely scene and well done!

    ReplyDelete