This poppy peeping trip was up North Fork Drive out of Three Rivers. It was with one friend in a Mustang convertible that her Mom bought on her 88th Christmas. (No, my friend isn’t 88 – it was her Mom who was 88). It was a great top-down day, and sometimes I just stood on the seat to get the right photos. Handy set up.
There were poppies, (early) redbud, lupine, the North Fork of the Kaweah, sycamores, oaks, and cows. Lovely time, truly enjoyable companionship, beautiful drive.
Did you think I was going to leave you hanging as to how the Tanzania mural looked?
Customer called to say the cape buffalo needed about 1/2 hour of work. I was relieved to hear from him, because my final day working on them was without his expertise. I’ve never seen those animals, except in photos (and there was that one stuffed head staring at the back of my head while I painted).
So, I headed back down the hill one beautiful spring morning.
He has a good eye and was very helpful.
Before: 
After: 
Yes, the differences are subtle, but my goal is customer satisfaction.
Then, Customer looked at me and said, “You left something out of the other mural.”
I said, “Shoot. I was hoping you would forget.”
He just tapped the side of his head. Then he waited for me to tell him what he wanted, so I smiled and said, “Buzzards!”
Using masking tape torn into little pieces, I stuck some buzzards shapes up in the sky. We scooted them around and discussed relative sizes and shapes. Then, I painted them.
As usual, Customer was right: 
This photo of the finished Tanzania mural isn’t the best because the morning sun comes through the window and overexposes the one side. However, this photo beats the one with the scaffolding in front, and the slightly wonky buffalo.
Can you pick out the buzzards in the Missouri mural? Tiny, but they add the right finishing touch. This mural keeps amazing me, because the photo was so meh.
On the way home, I couldn’t just blow past Dry Creek Drive, knowing it was just filthy with poppies and lupine.
When the poppies are out, there is no time to be wasted! Get out and see them, now!
2008 was a spectacular poppy year for all the foothills in Central California, and it was a source of great inspiration to this Central California artist.
2016 is looking almost as good.
A few friends and I took a drive up Dry Creek Road for some poppy peeping on February 26. Have a look:
Who can resist a ride in an open-top red Jeep toward the siren pull of those golden hills? Not these bandana-headed chicks! (“You look like you oughta be somebody’s wife somewhere”. . . a little Meryl Haggard, in case you were wondering)
“Four Little Poppies” sounds like the title of a book I loved as a kid called “Five Little Peppers (and How They Grew). It’s sort of a given that a California artist would paint California poppies.
This little 4×4” oil painting of poppies needed something more, so I added blue.
It wasn’t enough, so I added 3 more paintings.
Did you know that California is called “The Golden State” because of the poppies on the hillsides? That might be a myth. The hills turn golden in the summer when the grasses dry up from the abundance of sunshine (and lack of water.), so perhaps that is the reason for the descriptive title.
As a Central California artist, there are certain subjects that dominate my painting life.
If you have read this blog for any amount of time, I bet you can guess.
If you are new to this blog, welcome! You don’t have to guess because I am about to show you.
These two 11x 14″ paintings, citrus (or oranges, if you prefer) and poppies (or poppies and lupine) are drying on the wall in my painting workshop. I think the poppies painting wants more foliage. I could ask it, but instead, I’ll ask you. My chances of hearing something useful are better coming from you.
The commenting process on this blog is annoying. I think if you comment, it will tell you it didn’t go through. This is because it lands in a spam folder and then I have to “moderate” the comment.
Anyone want to try?
Thanks!
Poppy I, oil on wrapped canvas, 4×4″, $35
Poppy II, oil on wrapped canvas, 4×4″, $35
Poppy III, oil on wrapped canvas, 4×4″, $35
Poppy IV, oil on wrapped canvas, 4×4″, $35
Last week I had an explosion of California poppies in the painting studio. They landed on top of my stereo. (Yes, that is duct tape on the stereo – You can ask Retired Road Guy, but I doubt he’ll remember.)
Who knew that canvases came in 2×2″? They are so cute, and can be painted quickly. Of course I need my mega-strong magnifying glasses to see what I am painting, just in case anyone under 45 years of age looks at them.
Do you ever surprise yourself with forgetfulness?
Last week I did a little painting of a California poppy. After it was finished, signed, photographed, varnished and dry, I added it to the growing stack of little paintings. (An artist who sells needs to keep up her inventory.)
Well, oops. Guess I already painted that poppy and forgot. SOMEONE needs a better filing system for her photos. Check this out:
Do you prefer the softer colors of the upper poppy or the stronger ones of the lower painting?
This is another painting of California poppies, working from a photo supplied by my thoughtful and generous mailman. I painted it as an 8×10, loved it, and decided to repaint it 16×20. Practice makes perfect, someone said. It is not a commission. The 8×10 hasn’t sold yet, so maybe I am just getting ahead of myself. (Sometimes I’m just dying to paint something, and then no one else thinks it was such a good idea.)
This is after 3 layers. When this dries, I’ll add lupine.
Stay tuned – I’ll show you when it is finished!
Here is the 8×10 version:
Great Year For Poppies©2012, oil on wrapped canvas, 8×10, $90
. . . it’s yours!
Some artists don’t like to do commission work. Maybe they don’t like to eat, either. Or maybe they aren’t very good at understanding what other people want. Maybe they are rebellious adolescents trapped in the bodies of adults.
I like commissions.
It is a fun challenge to make a visual representation from a person’s verbal description. It is very gratifying to have a happy customer at the end of a job. It is a wonderful thing to have a sale without all the will-she-won’t-she.
During the Three Rivers Artists Studio Tour Ten, several folks asked me to paint specific things for them. As a California artist, naturally I was thrilled to receive confirmation that California poppies and giant Sequoias are always a popular subject.
These poppies were unfinished, sitting on the easel, looking like little butterflies when Amy spotted them. She asked if she could buy it before it was completed. I think I said, “Um, sure!” (Hopefully I was more polished that that.) This was painted from a photograph that my very generous mailman brought to me; he’s just thoughtful like that.
Christine asked me if I thought I could get inspired to paint a Sequoia in the snow. I said, “I’m always inspired if someone wants something.” (Hopefully I was a little more polished than that.) I went through my photos, picked one, and happily dove in, well inspired and eager to do my best for Christine. She now has it and is very happy.
That’s the goal of commissions in my little business.