I did this plein air painting yesterday afternoon just before the sunset. I loved the way the light snuck through the valley and spilled out onto the river bank. It touched all of the yellow plants and turned them GOLD. Beautiful. I painted with Christ in The Desert Monastery to my back. When the bell rang for Vespers the light had changed drastically, so I packed up and slipped into the chapel to chant with the monks. What a beautiful way to end the day.
Resplendent Gold
September is a wonderful time in northern New Mexico, you can feel the excitement and anticipation of the changing of the seasons. The air is quite cool in the morning and evenings, but still warm and sunny in the afternoons. The Aspens, Chamisa, and Cottonwoods are all turning gold. I spent the day hiking with a dear friend outside Santa Fe, NM. We hiked through a Quaking Aspen grove and enjoyed crisp, sunny air, and the outstanding golds and yellow. The hiker is a delightful chap named Dick, from Connecticut, that we met on the trail.
“Let’s Go Dutch”
Fall is the reason to live in Texas. We spent a wonderful weekend camping, and much to our delight we stumbled on the Dogwood chapter of the Lone Star Dutch Oven Society. These chefs had amazing Dutch oven set-ups, and were making the most delicious smelling food. I received a crash course in Dutch oven cooking, and an invitation to join them for lunch! Camp food never tasted so good. For more information visit the Dogwood Dutch Oven Society
If you are a Dutch oven chef, I would love to hear about your favorite recipe.
“Playing in the Mud”
Stomp! Splash! Splat!
Fly Fisherman
This is painted from a photo which was almost all green. I started with a complimentary color underpainting…all pink and red, and decided I liked the energy. I painted the figures so they become part of the background.
Sunrise 24 August
Today is the last weekday I will have to savor the changing light in the mornings for a while. I love to sit with my coffee and watch the sun rise from my kitchen or back porch. Big giant pink sun peeking over the trees, and then the light show: pink, to peach, to yellow, and then to see what color blue the day will bring. Instead of savoring the light change, I painted fast this morning, for Monday will have me urging kids to stay on task and get out the door for school. Trying to capture the changing light, I was aware of how fast things change: the light of sunrise, or the growing up of kids. I am grateful that every now and then I can stop time and savor the moment.
“Juniper and Red Hills”
“Water Lilies with Reeds”
Water Lilies
“Fishing on Gunstream Lake”
paintandsimple 