South California

                                                                   watercolor 6x6
                                    Painted in Oregon before my trip to the Coachella Valley.
I left my home state of California so long ago I never miss it. Until I am there. Our visit to Palm Springs brought back some happy memories. I briefly lived there 34 years ago and I grew up 60 miles away. It was so sweet to be near the hulking giants San Jacinto and San Gregornio again. These were icons to me as a kid. Visible only when the Santa Ana Winds blew the smog away. California has cleaner air now and I think is a better place than when I left. Walking in the foothills, canyons, oasis, and washes of the desert was like being with an old friend. See what I saw;

Cambria

This was the demonstration painting for the class I taught last Saturday. I asked everyone to work from a drawing. I chose one I did last year in California. After walking on the bluff above the ocean, I came indoors and did a sketch imagining the cliffs from out in the water. I believe when I draw my subject first, there is often more insight and understanding of it when I begin to paint.
This coming Saturday we`re going to work from something actual, like a flower or some other still life. We all have great cameras in our pockets with our smart phones. I`m very grateful for this but there is a real risk we won`t slow down enough to closely study something.
watermedia on paper 20"x16"


available work in my studio

Palm Canyon - Vintage Tipton for Sale!

The winter of 1979-80, I spent in Thousand Palms California, a working class suburb of Palm Springs. Though it doesn`t seem very well known, the hiking in that area is outstanding. The palm canyons that are part of the  Agua Caliente Cahuilla Tribal Reservation are particularly beautiful. I painted this that winter as a Christmas gift to my parents.
My mother is now moving into a retirement home and it`s too big for her apartment. I offered to try to sell it since I didn`t want it back. The homes of all my family members overflow with my work. It`s time to set this one loose.
'Andreas Canyon' acrylic on canvas 42x48, framed* 50x56, $3000

*photo of frame on request