Sierra Winter

 I am honored that this painting was accepted by juror Carolyn Lord into the California Watercolor Association's 54th National Exhibition.  Sierra Winter was created using watercolor and diluted Sumi ink on damp, crinkled Masa paper mounted onto watercolor paper.  Image is 21" by 29".

CWA's 54th National Exhibition can be viewed at www.californiawatercolor.org.

Marin Headlands--View of the Golden Gate

 The Marin Headlands provides one of the best views of the Northern California coastline and the Golden Gate.  Our plein air group has had the good fortune to be able to paint from atop these cliffs often.  Image is 10" x 14".

Diablo Wildflowers

 Diablo Wildflowers was painted en plein air in two early morning sessions and completed in my studio.  The flowers seemed to be waving to the mountain and welcoming Spring.  Image is 11" x 15".

Upper Yosemite Falls

 This year, Yosemite's waterfalls have reached proportions not seen in years as the immense snowpack in the high Sierra began to melt.  This painting was done with Sumi ink and watercolor on damp, crinkled masa paper mounted onto watercolor paper.  Image is 17" x 23".

Red Trees

 

A view near my home in the East Bay Hills.  This painting is currently on exhibit in the Valley Art Gallery, Walnut Creek.

Mount Diablo After the Rain

 Majestic Mount Diablo seen from the East Bay Hills.  The Spring rains make everything come to life.  This painting is currently on exhibit in the Valley Art Gallery.

San Francisco Hilltop

 

This scene is typical of the beautiful, foggy views seen in San Francisco.  This painting is currently on exhibit in the Valley Art Gallery in Walnut Creek.

Mount Diablo Foothills

 This is the view of Mount Diablo near my home in Walnut Creek and is always an inspiration.  The shapes in this painting seemed to fit together almost like a quilt.  This painting will be on exhibit at the Creekside Gallery until December 5th.  It was sold in the first few days of the exhibit.

Spring Morning on Mt. Diablo

This painting of Mt. Diablo was juried into the Slopes of Diablo 2022 exhibit at Valley Art Gallery, which runs through June 25, 2022.  

View From My Window, Juried into the Creekside Gallery

 

From my living room window I often watch people walking on the hill outside. Sometimes  they almost look like flowers blooming on my plant.  The play of light, warm inside and cool outside and the warm and cool colors in the plant itself were the inspiration for this painting.

Two new paintings juried into the Valley Art Gallery

Lake Tahoe Blue
The Sierra snow is beginning to melt and Spring is coming. This scene is from the North Eastern shore of Lake Tahoe, looking Westward.  14" by 28.5"

Maria Rosa's Dress

This scene from an alleyway in Bellagio, Italy, held the story of a beautiful dress and its owner. I could only imagine what the story was, but it reminded me of the dresses of my dear friend Maria Rosa, whom I met many years ago when I lived in Italy for a year and studied at the University of Padova.

                                                                    29" by 22"

 Three New Paintings Juried into Valley Art Gallery's Spring Exhibit

Mt. Diablo Spring  11.5" x 15.5"

Majestic Mt. Diablo rises above the East Bay hills on a Sunny Spring morning.

Diablo Hills   11" x 16.25"

The path to Diablo Hills, framed by the trees and shrubs atop an East Bay foothill.

Roses for Lilly   14.5" x 10.5"

These roses are called "Double Delight" because they are both cream-colored and red, but also because they are both beautiful and wonderfully fragrant.

   

   

Breakfast with Tiffany

 

Breakfast with a friend.  A simple pleasure taken from us during 2020.  I am grateful to our scientists and our country for providing us with vaccinations and treatments to protect us against this virus.

City Patterns, Juried into the CWA National Exhibit, 1/11/20 - 2/22/20, Harrington Gallery, Pleasanton, CA.

This scene was originally intriguing to me because of the overall pattern of dark, organic shapes juxtaposed against the light-colored man-made buildings and streets.  Other patterns emerged, too, that were of interest in their own right--the pattern of the facades seen from a side view, the pattern of the movement of the people and vehicles.  This painting is a happy one for me--the figure is leaving a downhill journey and heading uphill into a colorful, lively street.  28" by 20"

Juried into the Valley Art Gallery

 Half Dome from Glacier Point, 9.5" by 12.5"

 Mt. Diablo Valley, 14.5: by 21.5"

Sonoma Valley Vineyard, 11 by 15.5"

Barcelona Moon

Based on a photo taken several years ago in Spain.  29" by 21".

Jan's Flower Pot

Jan has a terrific view of Mt. Diablo from her deck, and invited me to paint it.   The gorgeous patterns made by this plant on her patio table were equally paintable.

Gifts from Lake Tahoe

These paintings are of beautiful Lake Tahoe, based on views from the Northeast side of the Lake.  Water, land, mountains, trees, rocks, and ever-changing skies.  Lake Tahoe has it all.

12" x 31"

12" x 16"

12" x 31"

Wellspring

Wellspring is a painting of rapidly moving water about to flow under the bridge at the foot of Vernal Falls in Yosemite.  "Wellspring" refers to "the source," as water is the source of life and passes through this cycle every year.  My family and I have visited Yosemite every Spring for the past 30 years or so and Yosemite has always been a wellspring for us, a source of renewal and inspiration.

Over the Mountain

Over the Mountain was painted en plein air on several early mornings.  The focus was on the beauty of majestic Mount Diablo, rising above the colorful hills and milky fog in a scene that was as transient as it was inspiring.

Yellow Taxi

The yellow taxi and colorful city street were the focus.  This was also an experiment with reflections, lost and found edges and a narrow, vertical format.

John Salminen's Inspiring Workshop

In February 2017, I had the wonderful opportunity to take John Salminen's workshop on Painting the Urban Landscape and to meet him and his wife, Kathy.  He generously shared his insights on many aspects of art and watercolor painting, as did Kathy, an accomplished artist in her own right.  Everyone in the class completed a successful painting on a full-sized sheet of watercolor paper!  This is mine (with guidance and new techniques learned from both John and Kathy).  Thank you, John and Kathy, for an amazing and inspiring week of instruction.

La Maison à Nice, France, 30" x 22".  Based on a photo I took when I was there several years ago.

Window on Another Time--China Camp

This is a lovely place with a real sense of history.  You can feel the presence of the fishermen and their families who made this their home so many years ago.  The fog, the movement of the waves, the damp mornings, still remain the same.  (21.5" by 27.5")

Spring Rain on Mount Diablo

Juried into the "Slopes of Diablo 2015" show in the Valley Art Gallery, Walnut Creek, by juror Randall Sexton.  13.5" x 20.5" Exhibition Dates:  May 9th - June 13, 2015, 1660 Botelho Drive, Suite 110, Walnut Creek, CA 94598.

This painting was done almost completely en plein air near the Northgate High School in Walnut Creek.  "Natural substances, obeying their own laws, create beautiful things."  This is a statement made by Cheng-Khee Chee in a class I took from him many years ago.  When painting in watercolor, I try to remember this statement and try to place the paint and water on the surface of the paper in such a way that they can move freely to create beautiful things.  The rocks, land, water, trees, and clouds were the inspiration.  They were also natural substances obeying their own laws and creating beautiful things.