4.28.2011

Paint Out Wednesday

Sue McCullough, David Montgomery and myself are the official Southern Colorado arm of the PAAC (Plein Air Artists of Colorado). We even have a painting schedule on the site - click the PAAC link to find out where we will be on any given Wednesday.
So yesterday we had planned a visit to the Old Dairy north of Alamosa. Great views in every direction and it looked like the wind would not be a problem. I checked the thermometer before leaving the house and thought : "40 degrees, Yay! Spring is really here."
Spoken a little too soon.
If you look in the photo here, right above the tree line you can see the Great Sand Dunes National Park and the snow on the dunes is very clear. Brrrrr. Snow on the dunes is rarely seen in the dead of winter let alone April; I knew we were in for it. The slight breeze blowing down the valley from the north was bone chilling..
In the Winter we stand in snow and paint in serious cold, but once Spring baits us with a couple of warm days - there is no going back. Of course, we were suckered into thinking it would be nice so didn't go out with all the cold weather gear. This is the Spring dilemma - you have to prepare for freezing weather and hope to get hot while you paint.

Last week we painted on a ranch by the Rio Grande, looking east toward Mount Blanca on an overcast morning. This is not a colorful time of year but we found a bit of green near the river
- and I mean a bit.

4.27.2011

Class Notes: David Montgomery's Class Demo FINISHED

A few weeks back David Montgomery did a painting demo for my class. As he painted, he explained his process and technique, color mixing and painting philosophy. The time was entertaining and informative, and though saw we much of the process - as shown below - we never saw the piece actually completed.
Here it is - the finished
and framed 8" x 10",
and of course, for sale; a perfect Mother's Day gift.

SQUARE Show Sales



The SLV Painting Group Square show is coming down this week. Congratulations to everyone who participated and "Hoorah" for all the sales. I received more comments about this show than anything I have yet seen hung in Milagros, so we were favorably received and sales proved that.
Thanks everyone.

Shown here are the paintings that I sold and all are were painted as class demos.