As California Hills Turn in Summer

California spring is spectacular but quick to pass. What comes after is not less spectacular but much slower changing: the colors grow in complexity and texture, the heat becomes hard to survive, the sounds of insects get louder, birds are quieter, and fragrances envelop you as you walk. This was probably my first summer outing to sketch, and I enjoyed my gouache adventures and great company immensely! 

Pride of Madeira

I went to sketch a dogwood tree in bloom (because according to my sketching calendar, it was time, but they were long gone! But California spring got completely mixed up, and trees are covered in leaves, and there is not even a hint of flowers!

Roses are in peak at the moment, and Pride of Madeira (Echium candicans) is getting there too - so I planted myself near familiar towers of purple-flowered inflorescence growing like humongous candles on a sage-colored bush, and started to paint. Soon, I discovered that I forgot my small brush for details, my original sketch was done with water-soluble ink, and an anthill was right next to me, plus it looked like it was about to start raining. But at the end, this sketch happened, and I safely made it home :)

Early Bloom: January in California

Everything is blooming a little earlier this year - and these decorative pear trees are first in my collection of California blossoms this year. It was a gorgeously sunny day. I used my printmaking kit and gouache - you can see process photos below - click on the image to see it larger.

Monterey Bay by Foot

After a gorgeous morning on the water, Monterey Bay offered many interesting activities and sights - I had a great afternoon, but sketched only two of them: a view from one of the coves:

And a breakwater beach, which is at the moment completely occupied by sea lions. Apparently, sometime in August, a colony of sea lions moved onto the beach, and now it is closed for all but tiny-eared, and as graceful in the water as they are not on land, pinnipeds. I sketched them for as long as I could stand the fragrance and level of sound and ran away. 

Kayaking in Monterrey Bay

I recently spent some hours on the water - kayaking in Monterey Bay. It was a day with a perfectly gray morning and temperature, and a very gentle swell. I forgot my binoculars this time (which possibly contributed to drawing more) and took my "water" sketch kit consisting of a PVC support board, stone paper sketchbook (connected to each other with a rubber band), and a plastic mechanical pencil with a chisel lead - on a string, also connected to my board. 

There were several beautiful pods of sea otters, lots of sea lions jumping out of the water (at first I thought they were dolphins), and quite a few curious harbor seals. Tons of birds: brown pelicans, oystercatchers, double-crested cormorants, pushing brandt cormorants off the rock,  and some snowy plovers up close! Oh - and seagulls, so many seagulls. 

There were several types of jellyfish - notably the Purple-striped jelly (Chrysaora Colorata) - needless to say that I kept my hands out of the water while we were nearby! 

Here are my sketches as they looked right there in Monterey:

I had more pages with some sketches so "abrupt" that I did not even take pictures of them - but ended up joyfully adding color later at home - this is how watercolor and gouache act on stone paper:

Peony Garden Adventure

Well, this was supposed to be the year when I finally made it to the peony garden up in the hills above Silicon Valley. I've heard about it many times, I tried to get to it several times (all funny stories of when I followed the directions of "just up the same road" and went on foot (turned around in 30 min). Then another time I tried to go by car from the Iris garden side and almost ran out of gas... Then I was late and the garden was closed. But this year I got some bullet-proof directions, checked that that it was still open, packed a backpack with colors I wanted to use, and almost remembered to get some gas.... and... well, I got in but basically I was late. We had a few very hot days right before and I think the season was over even before that. There were many petals on the floor and many green bushes with very few flowers and all were way past their prime.

As a consolation, I used a shadow from my car to look from the top of the hill to the hills and the rest of the farm. It was a great little trip!

Sketching on the Water - Kayaking in Monterey Bay

I had a wonderful opportunity to go kayaking in Monterey Bay and was excited to sketch while on the water - especially since the plan was to go around a small cove at a turtle-pace. The weather was gorgeous, and nothing could stop me from sketching for a good part of two hours! Except somehow either from looking for kelp crabs too intently (I found quite a few kelp isopods but very few crabs :) or from looking at the bottom of the ocean (the visibility was astonishing - I could count all the urchins on the sandy ocean floor!) but I got seasick and could not sketch as much as I hoped. 

Still - here are my two attempts - which are filled with memories for me but otherwise are a glaring example of how some sketching outings are not exactly successful on the art axes :) 

And some photos from an outing.

My tools were a trusty all-weather notebook from the Field Notes (with Yupo Synthetic paper) and one of the best black pencils I know - an extrasoft Nero pencils from Cretacolor.

Matilija Poppies are in Season!

Matilija poppies are a signature plant native to California and are a joy to find and draw. Also a bit of a challenge. Sometimes they are so tall that there is no way to see the actual center of the flower. The best bushes are usually on a highway or in the middle of the road or right under the construction crane! This is why when someone finds a good bush to draw and shares it with you it is a gift worth an immediate drive! (though I had other selfish reasons too). These sketches are from the outing to see @suhitasketch and her patch of poppies. It was such a gift to spend some time drawing these dancing flowers! 

Here is a look at Matilija Poppies which I drew through the years. 

First sketch below is done without any lines or underdrawing - a direct gouache/watercolor sketch. Second one is done with printmaking tools and third one is ink and watercolor/gouache wash. Which one speaks to you more? Scroll to see process shots! 

Lunch and Sketch Outing Under California Oak Trees

It is a time of rapid changes in color in California: greens are turning ochres, lots of fields are getting mowed, and a completely ahead of the fire season and new textures emerge in the process. This is a time when I rush to see some greens and one of these days a lovely lunch with friends was spent under a canopy of oaks with brushes and watercolors and a sandwich with the first strawberries of the season. 

Follow-Up on my Pink Bouquet

Last week I shared my sketches of a lovely pink bouquet that my friend gave me - and later realized that there were a few more sketches I did of the parts of the same flower and branch arrangement that I wanted to share. I learned the difference between different versions of the Cercis plant that people commonly call redbud. And I tried to capture the colors of the prickles of the Eryngium. Little notes on some neighborhood colors and tools and techniques that I was trying are all around these pages.

 

Changing Weather

California winter is super colorful and the weather has lots of moods and changes. My favorite winter moments are after the rain when the sun suddenly creates bright spots of light around objects and darker surroundings are making them pop. Or when I see a good winter shadow. Or a fog! Actually there are many more... here are a few that I sketched this December:

Angry Skies

Now that the spring is really here I went back and scanned some sketches that I did during the crazy winter month when we had a whole bunch of atmospheric rivers wash over the Bay Area. With all the water that we got California is enjoying a super bloom this spring and hills are wonderfully green all over the area. 

Top: gouache, bottom - gouache, color pencils and ballpoint pen. Royal Talens Art Creation Sketchbook.

Spring Hike in California: Painting Greens with Gouache

Spring in California is moving slowly but is gifting us some magnificent days!

I got a chance to look at the hills that are very green and paint them with gouache. I am slowly moving to a better gouache palette - but this super fast option still is the best solution for sketching on a hike!

I went to draw outside: California Poppies!

I did not have a chance to scan the pages of my sketchbook yet - but these photos taken with my phone will tell you about the amazing presence of color due to the abundance of poppies in my neighborhood now. I painted with gouache and used it both as watercolors wet-in-wet and as a solid, opaque medium. 

Sketching My Everyday Life.

Just a page with sketches from the other day: leftover inktober pear next to California Bear. By the way I checked - looks like the idea that the pear was supposed to be on the flag and then someone misheard and put a bear is an urban legend and also one of the places where we can exercise our ability to check facts and think about resources that we trust. I believe  the bear was supposed to be on the flag from the beginning. 

August California fires

This August brought devastating fires to California (again). Many are still burning and the smoke situation is now a part of our everyday life: apps to monitor air quality are installed on the phones again; I dust my plants from the ash in the morning; we close all windows when it gets too smoky outside and then rush to have our walk when it's better. But the sunsets are incredibly beautiful. Haunting, eerie, sometimes outright scary but beautiful. Here is a couple from last week:

Ink outside, color at home

Overlapping of seasons.

It's January.
There is a decorative pear tree near my home.

I found some beautiful leaves on the ground the other day and sketched them. Then I looked up and saw that bare branches of the tree are covered with the buds bursting with flowers. Sketched them too - one spread of the sketchbook depicting overlapping seasons in California.