Tarzana Sunset - A Small California Evening Landscape

Tarzana Sunset © Marian Fortunati 6" x 6" Oil on Wood Panel

 I am often greeted by spectacular sunsets and cloudscapes as I step outside my house and look across toward the Malibu Mountains.  On this particular evening, I was driving down the hill from my house on my way to visit with my Dad.  As I drove along, I glanced to the side and just had to pull over.  The sunset was one of a kind.... breathtaking.  I just had to stay there for a while and take it in.  It was yet another gift to those of us who looked,  from the most perfect of artists.

This is an interesting time of day.  It's not really night, but the day is really over.  It is that sort of half light that is between the two.

Painting small can be interesting and can present a different set of problems and issues than when painting large.   I think I'll work on a large painting next.   Our wet and slushy rain / snow is keeping me inside so we'll see what I can come up with.

Enjoy your moments.
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California Art Club Paint Out at Peter Strauss Ranch

Cold and Crisp With A Hint Of Clouds © Marian Fortunati 12" x 9" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel

A Break Between Storms
We are experiencing a short break between California winter storms.   It rained most of last weekend and tomorrow it's due to rain again.  The weather reporters are saying we MIGHT even have snow in the lower elevations... something very rare here in Southern California.  But although it was cold (for us) it was bright and crisp and clear on Wednesday when the Malibu/Ventura Chapter of the California Art Club met for its monthly paint out.

Ventura / Malibu California Art Club Chapter
A year or so ago when Sharon Kaiser first encouraged George Malone to schedule monthly paint outs for the chapter, there weren't many painters.  But now we can count on a nice sized group of people, which always makes it more enjoyable because we have a chance to chat during lunch and we usually can walk around to see the wide range of painting styles that we each bring to the table when we paint outdoors.  It's not only fun to get to know fellow artists, but it's instructive to see how they approach similar subjects as well.  My friend Sharon Weaver, and I drove to Peter Strauss Ranch together.  We were the first ones there, and after exploring and finding the restrooms, we gathered our gear and headed to spots that had attracted us.  On my way I chatted with Rodolfo Rivademar, Joe Napolitano and Kathy Ikerd.  

We all painted away.   I was entranced by my view.  I tried to capture the reflections of the tall eucalyptus and the new-growth bushes as well as the puffy clouds in the calm water of the stream.  The stream was full because we had recently had a lot of rain.  Occasionally the clouds would block the warm sun and the breeze would come up.  Brrrrr! I was really happy that I had worn four thick layers to keep me warm.   Diane Nelson-Gold came over and painted with me and when we broke from lunch I chatted with George, Dyane Jackman, Janet Papkin (happy birthday Janet), Diane, Sharon and Kathy.  We also met two new painters.. Sharon and Jill.

Combining Brushwork and Palette Knife Work
Sometimes you get a really good feeling about how a painting is coming along.  It's rather exhilerating.  This was such a case.  After I had blocked in most of my painting, I began to develop some of the areas with the brush, but I also had a chance to pull out my palette knife and practice with some different strokes to add interest and detail.   I had a GREAT time was pretty happy with this piece especially when remembering what Rodolfo mentioned as the day began.....  we are going to do a study.

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Playing With Light

Point Mugu Coreopsis © Marian Fortunati 16" x 12" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel

 I've been doing a lot of thinking lately (which is always a dangerous thing to do).    I love to paint and I especially love to paint outdoors.  Those paintings begin to add up.  Recently on two different occasions, I had reason to search through my stacks of paintings to look for specific paintings that someone has requested.   I realized a few things while pawing through the piles:

• I REALLY have a lot of paintings stacked up.
• I REALLY need to clean up and begin to burn or dispose of many, many paintings...  something I have been reluctant to do and thus have become overrun with stacks of paintings.
• I've become a much better painter over the years... Even though some of those old paintings are still among my favorites, the ratio of dogs to ones I like is getting better.
• As my skills have developed, I'm realizing that some of the work I liked when I was painting several years ago, I no longer think is very good.
• I need to paint for myself instead of painting for shows.   If a show deadline is approaching and I have good work to enter (AND the show will be beneficial ... not just another show), then GREAT!... If I don't ... forget it... It's not the end of the world.
• I've come to the point where I don't need to finish a painting as frequently just so I can post a blog.  I don't want to post my "dogs" any more.  I'll post if I complete a painting I'm happy with.  It may not please everyone else but if I like it or I learned something from it, I'll do a blog post.

Happily on Friday, I received word that my work will be in two shows that I've been hoping to get in to.   Additionally I got a call from the gallery where I have several paintings and they sold two more of them.   Yippee!!

I created the painting in this post using a photo I took when I was at Pt. Mugu painting with David Gallup and his other students.   We painted in the studio again last Monday and this is what I chose to work on.   Although David is able to design paintings from memory and uses photos only to help spark ideas, I tend to rely on them for composition.   I sometimes move things around, too.   Since it was the play of light across the tops of the coreopsis that attracted me initially, for this painting I did a value study at home to sort of practice ahead of time.   I used a board with a reddish ground and blocked in the dark values to begin.   As I worked, David reminded me to try to connect the darks into large shapes changing the colors but not the values, thus better unifying the painting and allowing the viewer to enjoy different parts as the eye roams around.  He said to graduate the color but keep the value the same to preserve the large shape.   He talked about using the values to round out the form of the coreopsis' feathery leaves.   The time just flew by.

One of the fun things about being in a class is to watch the other students as they work.  We have some fabulous artists in that group and it is a joy to see their work.  Although we are all very different in our styles, I try to listen when David talks to them about their work as well.   I enjoy this class a lot.

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Daffodil Daydreaming

Daydreaming Daffodils
© Marian Fortunati
8"x10" Oil On RayMar Linen Panel
.
 Click on the link above if you are interested in purchasing
this painting.

"Daffodils" (1804) I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud  That floats on high o'er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. Continuous as the stars that shine And twinkle on the Milky Way, They stretch'd in never-ending line          Along the margin of a bay: Ten thousand saw I at a glance, Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. The waves beside them danced; but they Out-did the sparkling waves in glee: A poet could not but be gay,           In such a jocund company: I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought What wealth the show to me had brought: For oft, when on my couch I lie In vacant or in pensive mood, They flash upon that inward eye Which is the bliss of solitude; And then my heart with pleasure fills, And dances with the daffodils. By William Wordsworth (1770-1850).

My home is on a hill and the lot where the house is level and flat but the hills slopes up on one side of the house and down on two sides.  I planted bulbs on the "up" side on the slope and each spring I look forward to the beautiful flowers that pop up to greet the season.  I've got purple irises...  no fancy bearded ones  (although I love those)... simple irises and lovely yellow daffodils or narcissus. 

When I walked outside the other day before the storms came through I noticed that the daffodils were blooming.  

Today, since we had a break between the storms, I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous crisp February weather and go outside into my yard to paint my daffodils.  

These are yellow narcissus daffodils.   Narcissus was said to be so handsome that he fell in love with himself.    I will say that these flowers would be hard not to fall in love with them!

Pretty aren't they?

The set up... sitting on the wall

 

My backyard in winter

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We're Going To Paint ... ............WHAAAAAT???????

Light My Fire
© Marian Fortunati
11"x14" Oil on canvas panel

This is my sixth week of taking David Gallup's Advanced Painting Class.   It's billed as "advanced" because half the time the class paints outside en plein air (considered more difficult) and the rest of the time we're in the studio.  David "calls it" the day before the class depending upon what the weather forecast is.  I absolutely LOVE painting outdoors.  I also have to say that even when we have been scheduled to paint at his studio, I have really enjoyed myself not only because I am loving learning from David and seeing all the great photos and books he uses as examples to illustrate points, but because I had a project to work on...  making one of my small studies into a larger painting.

I have to admit that I was a little disappointed last night when I got the email saying we would be in the studio today.  I didn't have something in mind to paint and we wouldn't be outside.  He told us that we could work on something we brought or do a still life.  In the past, he had set up a small floral still life.  They are pretty but still lifes have never been my favorite thing to do.  I sighed to myself and told myself that it would be good for me.

However, when I got to class and saw the still life set up, my heart sank.  Good Lord...!  Not only was it NOT pretty to look at, but it looked darn hard to draw.  (I'm beginning to learn that he diabolically decides what we need to work on and sets challenges for us to see if we can do it.)   DRAT...  He was going to discover that I can't draw!  OMG... (Maybe he already knew... and THAT'S why he chose this set up.)

Well, I gave myself the little illustrated talk with slides (inside my head) and decided I would give it a go.  SURPRISE!!!  It was actually fun!   And miracle of miracles, it didn't turn out half-bad.... for a bunch of kindling.

David talked and demoed a bit about edges.. when they should be softened (when things are going away from you) and one way to make it happen.  I know there will be more on that.  He painted alongside us (and I watched over his shoulder).  Along with all of the rest of it, I noticed that his background was really a lovely combo of colors which together made a neutral just like the cloth behind the firewood.  He said it was all about color theory which is sort of his specialty.  I'm hoping to learn more because his really did look wonderful ... not just neutral blah like mine but a lovely neutral.

The upcoming week is promising to be wet.  It will be good for our Southern California plants and help ease our drought.  But I guess it also means that I won't be going up to Santa Barbara to paint and see my daughter after all.  Oh well...   We'll all make the best of whatever we get, won't we?

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY......    HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

Sunshine and Smiles

California Coreopsis   © Marian Fortunati 14" x 11" Oil On RayMar Canvas Panel Click on the link above for more information and how to purchase this painting.

Plein Air
One of the things I love about painting with David Gallup is that he has been taking his class to places I've never painted before.   I always love painting outdoors and exploring new places.   Monday's class met at Point Dume on the coast just below Oxnard.  It was a fabulous day.  There were many beautiful scenes to paint but I had gone with the intent to paint the coreopsis in bloom.   David sends out a newsletter and his painting of a coreopsis plant in the header just captured my heart.  I wanted to see if I could paint coreopsis too.   Although I have painted among the coreopsis before, I hadn't attempted to paint an actual plant before.  Monday was my day. 

David reminded all of us about planning out our painting ahead of time to help delight the viewer.   The quote of the day to remember was, "Paint the inspiration of the thing... Don't paint the thing."  ... or something along those lines.   I may have to hear it for another 50 times before it sticks in my poor brain.  He came over many times and reminded me not to repeat my shapes or to place them too evenly.   He talked about unifying the darks so that they carry the viewer through the painting.....  even if the darks weren't actually part of the "thing".

The day was gorgeous and we were able to see a HUGE pod of dolphins traveling north along the coastline.   They were about 1/2 mile out, so you couldn't see the individual animals, but you saw the path they left and tiny little spots of spray as they jumped and played at the head of the pod.

My only complaint was that the glare was so bright that I felt like I was going blind.  It was too breezy to really use an umbrella correctly, so I was trying to use my knees to hold it over my shoulder and behind me while I painted so it would shade my palette and the canvas.   However, each time I looked up and out the brilliant sun and vibrant colors just about blinded me.   No matter... I still had a terrific time.    I had decided to paint on a 14"x11" canvas, so the other artists who were doing smaller work managed to do more than one.   I was happy with one.  I may use some of the reference photos I took to try to capture some of the other beauty of the place.  David painted the light hitting a jumble of rocks and one of the other painters' dog.

Coreopsis gigantea (Giant Coreopsis)
This species of coreopsis is a woody perennial plant native to California and Baja California. The stem is a trunk 1-2 m tall, 4-10 cm diameter. Bright green leaves and flowers are on the top of the trunk, the rest of the trunk is bare. The flowers are yellow, daisy-like, 6-20 cm. It is summer deciduous, leaving a bare trunk in summer.

It is distributed on the South California central coast, north and central Southern California coast, the California Channel Islands, and further south.

I had an absolutely glorious day out painting coreopsis on the coast of Southern California near Point Magu.   I absolutely love these strange-looking plants which have a short blooming period but which burst out in glorious color and light up the coast.   Some of my happiest days out plein air painting have been when the coreopsis is in bloom.

A Quickie

Limekiln Creek Study © Marian Fortunati 6"x8" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel

On Friday a week ago, my friend, Diane Nelson-Gold, called me up to see if I wanted to join her painting.   I was down at Gelson's enjoying my "reward" part of my regular walk from my house and back.   I'm sure the calories in my "reward" are far higher than those burned up when I walk the almost four mile round trip down the hill and back up, but I always love my bagel and cream cheese.  ... And anyway the walk can't hurt.

Since I was down the hill, I still had to walk back up before I started out, but I quickly headed home to get my painting gear and then drove out headed across the valley to paint with her in Limekiln Canyon near her home.  We have a mutual friend, Beth Summers, who paints there with her palette knife often.  I've been intrigued ever since seeing Beth's colorful paintings and have wanted to paint there, so despite the very short time frame, I went.  It was a lovely area. 

I only had about an hour and a half before having to pick up Tyler, so after walking in with Diane, we settled on a spot near the creek and I began to block in my little 6x8.   Time flew by.   Knowing that the plein air police wouldn't care, I finished it up later while listening to the Super Bowl....  Does that make it a super study???  LOL

Contact me HERE if you are interested in purchasing this small painting. 

There were many other people in the area enjoying the beautiful weather and scenery but we were having fun just painting.  I had to leave before finishing but I think it will be a place I'd like to go back to.   You can see my sketch above.   I imagine that Diane may have posted hers as well.

Painting Pansies

A Medley Of Pansies © Marian Fortunati 8" x 16" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel

(Please click on the link above for additional information as well as purchasing information.)

I don't know what it is about them, but pansies have always been among my favorite flowers.  They're not the kind of flowers that go in bouquets...  They go in your yard.  They are small, perky and have a wonderful variety of colors.  They sort of remind me of lion faces, but I really can't tell you why.

Anyhow I didn't paint outside this week... for lots of reasons.. but I still painted.  I decided to visit my local nursury to buy a flat a pansies so I could plant them along the entrance to my house.  But rather than plant them immediately, I wanted to paint them first.

the start

After I arranged the pansies in a way that pleased me, I put a wash of cad red and ultramarine

close up

on the canvas and began to rub out areas of light the way I had seen David do several weeks earlier when he demoed a still life.

I began adding paint and soon lost myself in playing with values, colors and texture.

another close up

Taking Advantage of a Warm, Sunny Day

Matador © Marian Fortunati 9"x12" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel Click on this link for information about how to purchase this painting.

A week ago on Wednesday, it was a gorgeous warm sunny day.  SoCal was experiencing a pleasant break in what had been several cold wet weeks.   Realizing that I needed to seize the moment, I headed out toward the beach.  I had passed El Matador State Beach on my way to Leo Carrillo when I met my class the previous Monday.  Matador is a beautiful beach with wonderful rock formations and not a lot of people.  It also has a very steep trek down the cliff, but the stairs offer the hardy beachgoers more safety than actually climbing the rocky cliff.  Going down with painting gear isn't so bad, but coming up is always something that makes you wish you were a bit more fit.

Looking north at El Matador State Beach

It was fairly windy inland and when I arrived in the parking lot there was a brisk offshore breeze as well.  I was afraid I would be plagued by blowing sand.   However when I got to the bottom of the stairs, it was sunny and warm and calm.   At first I thought I would stand, but after looking at the view from all angles, I decided to sit down in the warm sand and paint from a low angle.

The rock formation I wanted to paint is called Elephant Rock.   To me it looks like a giant, lumbering beast trying to escape the land and head back into the water.  There are several sea caves which offer glimpses of water and light from the other side and I wanted to catch that light.

I tried to keep David Gallup's "playful paint" in mind, and off I went into "the zone".  I had a great time.  Sometimes it's just like that.  I was able to paint almost uninterrupted.  A few other visitors dropped by and made nice comments but were quickly engaged with the waves and the warm sun and the beautiful scenery. 

There were some clouds skittering along in the sky, but they didn't dampen the sunny day.  By about noon, the wind had started to pick up, the sun was making me a bit sticky and my stomach was ready for lunch.  I packed up, hiked up the hill and headed home to have lunch with my husband.

Now THAT was a perfect SoCal day! 

Today the rest of the country is suffering under life-threatening blizzards and we're complaining about cold winds.  Not great beach weather, but pleasant in comparison.

Windswept Waves II by Southern California Artist Marian Fortunati

Windswept Waves II © Marian Fortunati 14" x 18" Oil on RayMar Canvas Panel

When I was in Laguna Beach, I painted a small 6"x8" study of the wild windblown waves crashing against the rocks off shore.  You can see my previous blog post HERE to see the study and my thoughts while painting it.  I posted it on my blog and several different people suggested that it would look good as a larger painting.

I decided that it might be nice to try.  I started it on the first day I began studying with David Gallup.    Today when I was finishing it up, David talked and demonstrated a lot of different concepts and it was difficult to see if I could understand and / apply the things he was trying very hard to get through my stubborn mind.   These are some things he was trying to teach me:

• Always leave a "person sized hole" in your painting....    Basically this means don't spell everything out for the viewer.  Trust the viewer and let him/her bring their own meaning to a painting.   Let them fill in the hole.
• David doesn't like focal point paintings.   He recognizes that most painters do use focal points but he feels that when we painters use a focal point it assumes that the viewer doesn't know where to look so he/she has to be "told" where to look.  He wants the viewer to wander through the painting and enjoy the journey through and around it.

  Close up showing changes in texture, color and value

• David explained that values can be seen from a distance so one should make interesting value shapes and changes in values within a shape to create interest from a distance.
• The use of colors of similar value create interest upon close up inspection.    Using a variety of color of the same value for example within a dark shape helps the viewer find delightful spots of color that are not visible from a distance.
• Texture is another way to create interest for the viewer.
• Paintings which are extremely realistic never change.  Those which have different aspects of interest from a distance, from mid-distance or from close up offer the viewer a painting that is always interesting and always has a new aspect for the viewer to explore.

Anyway, I'm afraid I'm going to be one of David's tougher students, but I really enjoy painting with and learning from him and look forward to painting both inside the studio and outside en plein air.