I had a great time at the markets, once again. I took Foxy to the Sunday market in Hillsboro. She was a hit and met children who also had little foxes. I sold one of my favorite watercolors – it’s a scene of Decision Point Lighthouse in Alaska. My flower paintings also continue to go to nice homes. I must paint more of them!
Oktoberfest – It’s that time of year again. I’m not in Germany this year so I’m going to the one in Mt. Angel Oregon (www.oktoberfest.org). I’ll send a photo!
I continue to meet wonderful people at the market. I am selling my travel watercolors (the washed out white spots on the left) and recent paintings (flowers & landscapes). People are also giving me ideas for new paintings (I have a notepad where everyone can write down their suggestions). Some ideas are London, Greece, and Italy.
What to expect:
New watercolor versions of places I have previously visited from the suggestion list.
New watercolors of Portland-area landmarks.
A few new flowers; in oil.
Workshops – I have received requests for classes/workshops. I will plan those as well. Possibilities are watercolor and drawing.I can do one or both. Let me know your thoughts.
Caio, Michael
Here is a sneak preview of a big watercolor I started today. This piece is kind of an “experiment.” I’ve never painted a watercolor this big (30x22in; 76x56cm). I’m also applying the paint in a way that combines watercolor and oil painting. Unlike watercolor,
I am not painting big areas of solid color.
I am mixing some colors on the paper (not before I use them).
My painting is standing upright instead of lying down.
The last point is interesting and has caused me to make some adjustments; mainly not using as much water as I normally would over a large area. All of this combines to give it a different “look.” We shall see what happens.
Just finished the 2015 Road Trip. Good, because 2015 is almost gone. It looks so small and cute in the photo – they’re all 7×5 inches. I will post the series in its entirety the first week in January (I have to wait for this one to dry so I can scan it). It’s the I-5 Grapevine hills north of Los Angeles.
I’ve painted 19. I have 5 that I will keep. I will continue to paint until I get one more keeper.
St. Sebastian Church in Rockenhausen, Germany. It’s about 30km north of Kaiserslautern. The church is imposing on the outside and impressive on the inside, very well kept, and the pastel hues of the sun coming through the square glass window panes is amazing.
Watercolor and Ink, 7x5in (18x13cm)
I was about to complain that my day job is interfering with my painting schedule. It’s pretty hectic this week. But then I thought … Hey, wait a minute, my day job enables me to live in Germany, travel around Europe, and paint in great locations. It’s better than many alternatives, so I am happy. ((insert smiley face here))
So I sketched St Sebastian church yesterday. I was going to watercolor it on the spot, but had an ice cream emergency. I was going to paint it today, but just couldn’t get to it. My sketch is below, still in my watercolor sketchbook. I’ll finish it tomorrow. ((insert rolling eyes face here))
A day in the life…
Watercolors today. A painting friend and I set out today to “paint outside”, flowers. The day was a mix of sun, heavy clouds, and wind. Not conducive to painting outdoors. I’m not a fan of painting in the wind. First stop however, was to photograph a view of the city of Leithof. I am thinking about doing a “building” series. I might have been persuaded to paint, but the wind …
On to flowers. We stopped and photographed some roadside wildflowers, but my friend knew of a farmer who has a small plot of ground planted with sunflowers and gladiolas. The sunflowers were wonderful. You can pick what you want and put money in a little lock box. We just wanted to paint, but the sunflowers were pointing the wrong way; no where to comfortably paint, and I wasn’t insipred to paint gladiolas, in the wind. Then we went to a cemetery in the country, hoping to find wildflowers along the stone fence. Nothing. Then we went to the town of Rockenhausen. We didn’t find flowers, but we found this wonderful church (see pic below). My friend sighed. It was impressive, but it wasn’t a flower. We drew the church, and then finally, in a moment of artistic satisfaction, we had ice cream.
St Sebastian Church, Rockenhausen (built 1915)
Me holding a white piece of paper and a pencil
