Daily Painting

More Baltimore

More watercolor paintings of the Baltimore skyline.

Value/color study of Jmaa el Fna at night, seen through an open window

These are some teaching notes for working from a photograph. A loose value study on the left in pencil and a color study on the right in watercolor, with my attempt at writing Jmaa el Fnaa in Arabic (woefully incorrect but I maintain that the reward is in the effort.) I used the same reference photo for this painting last year. Which is currently on display at Tea in Sahara. I am looking forward to the Wednesday watercolor classes which will resume there this week!

Marrakech, Berlin, Newark

Above is a dawn sketch from yesterday morning, looking North East on the Alt-Moabit; google maps tells me that is the Heilandskirche spire.
In the other direction I doubted my eyes as thought that I saw, in the distance, a winged figure on a column. I discovered at brerakfast that it was, in fact, the Seigessaule, a Nike-like statue. There was time to take a peacful walk a walk along the Spree river (5 swans came gliding along!) and have a lovely breakfast before catching a bus to Tegel airport. 

This is a nightsketch of the view from my window done from a photo on my laptop on the plane. The unlimited time made for a lot of paint. (The greens were my way of grappling with shadows but here they have become plants.)

On Saturday's flight from Marrakech a new friend from Moroccan Sketchbook 2013 gave me my first German language lesson. Did you know that flugel is the word for a bird's wing, a scapula and a piano? Thanks Monika!

My travels were made much finer by the meditation room at Newark airport. It was comfortable and quiet and completely turned around my layover blahs.

I like this little afternoon color study from my window in Berlin.

Here are a couple of Moroccan sketches done on the plane as well.

Kitchen/living room

Sketches from our living room last night, watercolor and pen on watercolor paper, approximately 3"x7".

Even smarter than you thought

My father and I made a date in Baltimore. Just the two of us, pretty smart, eh? The view is mesmerizing. Evening and after dark sketches.

Yes those are rain drops

 A little night picture, 8"x6", with raindrops.

Memory of a Bridge

A little corner of Narragansett Bay after dark, (which is happening earlier these days).   7"x5", oil on panel.

Statehouse at Night

Last night Providence looked beautiful as we drove home.  The streets were quiet as everyone had settled in for fireworks while my little family sped home to our beds. Here is a rough, sangria influenced sketch of the statehouse. Oil on 4"x6" clayboard.  (sold)

Better

Got a chance to do another and I think it coheres a bit more than the last one.  4"x6", oil on clayboard (immediacy of watercolor or acrylic, depth of oil) with blue ground tone. That is a Mosque at left on the horizon, not sure which one, against the Atlas mountains.

Wrestling with the dark

Whistler I am not but I do give myself credit for trying something that feels impossible to pull off.  I'll keep working at some sort of harmonie du soir of my own.  24"x24", oil on canvas.  A smaller scale would help but for some reason I yearn to make large night paintings right this minute.  (I often work backwards going from big to small rather than the other way around.)  Marrakech.