East of Fresno, California there are many, many orange orchards. What I found fascinating is that the farmers trim the trees flat on all sides. I’m sure there is a reason for that but it’s an interesting landscape to see cubes of trees as far as the eye can see. Well, almost as far.
What is stunning in Winter is the deep blue sky and the snow capped mountains.
The two together makes for a curious fantastic view of Winter in California as I have illustrated below.
California Winter, watercolor 14″ x 10″, Arches 140 lb
I took this concept and made larger painting with a different look. Which one is your favorite?
Watercolor painting of converging orange orchard rows to focal point at base of snow capped mountains.
20″ x 25″ watercolor on paper. Landscape piece illustrates the rows in orchards of oranges ready for shipping back east before Christmas over the snow capped Sierra Mountains in the background. Framed painting is strong on perspective drawing the viewer into the scene.
As a landscape subject lighthouses are very popular. You’ve got oceans, cliffs, colors, and the romance of sailors at sea in search of land.
There are many lighthouses and many facts to go with the construction, use, and history of lighthouses. Many of them have seen their day to be replaced with digital tones (fog horn) and strobe lights. Sailors have satellite navigation now so lighthouses have become historical relics.
The great thing about painting is that you can modify the period by adding old ships, buggies, or a fresh coat of paint to remind us of yesteryear.
Just north of Santa Barbara, this campground and adjacent beach offers easy ocean access and some nice views north and south. While walking the beach I saw dolphins popping up near shore as they chased a school of dinner between them and the shore.
I like to walk at “magic hour” when the shadows are long and the light changes in dramatic ways. I chose this scene because of the exposed sedimentary layers tipped by uplifting forces underneath. In the sunset light the usually boring layers of earth were electrified in front of me.
Coastal Geology Exposed and Lit by Sunset
I came back the next day with pencil and watercolor paper pad to capture the composition. Because the light changes so fast in “magic hour” you can’t hope to watercolor en plein air. The painting below was composed on site in pencil but the watercolor was added later in my mobile studio while looking at the Sunset photo.
11″ x 14″ study of erroding cliff along the beach in Southern California. The painting began as a study in the late afternoon with the western sun shining warmly on the reddish soil causing an orange cast on the exposed layers of soil. Coniferous trees green in winter contrast with the orange light.
I tend to exaggerate colors especially where there is an interesting color or adjacency. The combination of sunset lighting and my emphasis on colors may be a bit much for some but I like it, for the present.
The end of magic hour is darkness. It falls fast so keep your camera going.
framed original painting of shore rocks at sunset from photo by the artist taken at El Capitan Beach in Southern California.
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