Your Central California artist bumbles along on one Tulare County oil painting, almost finished another, and finished a commission. Let’s start with the bumble. The differences are subtle between the before and the after version. In the after version, the lower left corner makes more sense, and there are more branches on the trees. A […]
Commission, Cat, Correction, Challenge
Someone, let’s call her JL, bought this 8×8″ painting, “Hiking Mineral King” at Kaweah Arts as a Christmas gift for her son. He loved it and requested a second 8×8″ painting to go with it for his birthday. JL isn’t familiar with Mineral King, so I made a couple of suggestions. The son chose Sawtooth, […]
Drawing in Pencil for the Joy of It
A few months ago I started this pencil drawing, simply for the joy of drawing (and to prove to my drawing students that I can draw). I worked from photos that I took in Mineral King last fall. The light, Audra’s hat, the lack of dealing with a face or an actual complete horse all […]
Mineral King—Painting the Details
If you receive this in your email and want to see the photos, click on the title. When we last saw this most popular Mineral King scene on the easels, it looked like this. A little more work brought it to this stage. That big juniper tree needed attention, as did Vandever (the peak). Next, […]
The Most Popular Mineral King Oil Painting Subject
Five steps closer to completing a new painting of the classic Mineral King view, but still about 60 steps from actual completion. Remember this? It is 30″ high, and I can’t reach the top very well. That’s okay, because it is movable. The cabin is too wide. Better. I’m not trying to be exactly true […]
Quickety Update on Calendars (and a Little More)
Please excuse this interruption in your day. 1. The 2024 Mineral King calendar is still available. At the time of this post, there are 8 left, available through my website or if you email or call me. The Three Rivers Historical Museum no longer has any. 2. I spent 1-1/2 hours on the phone with […]
Quickity Peek at the Mineral King Road
Trail Guy, The Farmer, and The Supervisor (retired) worked on the Mineral King road this week, clearing culverts and cleaning gutters. This was all volunteer work, sanctioned by the Park. The contractors repaired the damaged parts that were marked by Federal Highways; our guys did preparations for the winter, with rain predicted up to higher […]
Finishing a Big One
I am referring to finishing a large (12×24″) oil painting that I started in August, and then left to gather dust and spider webs while I worked on smaller paintings. Smaller paintings provide something closer to instant gratification; larger paintings build character. These photos were taken in August. These were taken in October, a progression […]
Breaking the Silence—Mineral King in Early October
It is normal for us to close our cabin in mid-October. We closed a little earlier this year due to impending road construction. There was a weird phenomena along the road: white stuff that looked like thick spider web material was stuck in grasses and shrubs almost all the way to Conifer, the upper gate. […]
Breaking the Silence—Mineral King
This will be one of just two posts about Mineral King because I don’t want to gloat about enjoying it this summer while the public was barred from visiting. However, I know you are curious, so here is a brief look. This year everything was delayed in Mineral King, due to a heavy winter. Normally, […]