"Sycamores" ©

This group of Sycamore live in the Placerita Canyon Nature Center, just down the road from my home.  The California drought has been rough on all the plant life and this years rains have brought promise for wildflowers and some beautiful landscapes that have been absent for a long time.  

From the creating side of this piece, it's so difficult for me to decide "it's done".  I keep attacking the trees, pushing light here and there, adding limbs and tweaking here and there.  I stopped at this point and will let it rest for a few days, out of my sight and look at it anew.  Usually, only then is it really easy to see, what needs to be addressed to make it a good painting or possibly, decide it's truly finished.  

18" X 24", Oil

"Placerita Creek" ©

Green and gold mixed together as fall sinks into winter, is the story behind this painting.  Placerita Canyon creek runs though the nature center where I discovered this view last week.  The color is leaving more and more each day as the weather cools.  It's tough for painting,  short days and the briefest of daylight striking the ground from the south quickly approaching.  The good news is that it is too cold for snakes to be very active, the bad news is my new car was hit today.  What can you do, life marches on.  

Oil on Canvas, 18" X 24"

"Placerita Trail Head" ©

We had some clouds this evening, which is very rare.  Usually, if there are clouds or a summer thunder head by sunset they are blown out to nothing.  This spot is the back trail head to the Placerita Nature Center, down the road from my house.  I bought a new EasyL easel from Artwork Essentials and wanted to give it a whirl.  If you are an artist looking for a super plein air easel that won't set you back a set of tires, I would highly recommend an EasyL.  I have been using one for many years and the support that Peggy gives is above and beyond what any company should do.  Once I broke a piece and called her from Laguna Beach where I was painting and she delivered a replacement part the next morning personally.  What more can I say, other then these little lightweight easels make painting plein air a breeze.  It's hard enough to paint a painting in the great outdoors, without having to struggle with your equipment.  So having an easel you don't have to wrestle with is worth it's weight in gold.  

Oil on Linen panel,  9" X 12"