Monument thumbnails

These are tiny 2" x 3" thumbnail sketches, done from memory and a photo reference. These are compositional tools: I'm making sketches like these to figure out how I want to paint this scene when I return to this spot next week. Normally I make thumbnails with pencil, but artist Christine Lashley (with whom I'm studying this autumn) suggests doing thumbnails with watercolor. What a nice idea! I think I like #1 the best.

Geoff Watson, "Monument thumnail 1," watercolor on paper, 2" x 3," 2017.

Geoff Watson, "Monument thumbnail 2," watercolor on paper, 2" x 3," 2017.

Geoff Watson, "Monument thumbnail 3," watercolor on paper, 2" x 3," 2017.

On the Potomac

I paid another visit to the Potomac River today. It was a partly cloudy, sultry sort of day, but it was still beautiful. A boater rowed right in front of me, and he asked if he could be in my painting. I am happy I was able to accommodate him!

Geoff Watson, "On the Potomac," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Sheba (in progress)

This watercolor portrait of Sheba is still in progress, as this was the first of two sittings. The likeness is already pretty good, but her features all need adjustment, and I inadvertently chopped off a bit of her chin. (I drew it correctly with my pencil but then blithely ignored my pencil marks when doing my first washes of watercolor.) This first image is after about an hour:

Geoff Watson, "Sheba," work in progress, watercolor on paper, 12" x 16," 2017.

And here is the painting after two hours. I added some skin tone, which looks okay so far, and also added some cool greens for transitional colors -- but I overdid it with the green, heh. I'll dial it back next week. I still need to adjust her eyes, nose, lips and ear. But I'm already very pleased with the likeness and the overall feel of the picture.

Geoff Watson, "Sheba," work in progress, watercolor on paper, 12" x 16," 2017.

Looking up

Today I spent a couple hours on my back porch looking up. In particular, I was looking up at the dormer or eaves above the porch, and at the windows and roof and gutter. The result is still a work in progress, but I'm happy with what I have so far.

Obviously I need to add a sky. Right now the gray background is the unpainted surface of my gray-tinted panel. I'm inclined to add a sky with no trees, to keep the composition clean and simple. I also have to refine the shapes and colors of the architecture. Alas, it's going to rain this weekend, so I may not get back to this for a few days. It's a good start, though!

Geoff Watson, "Looking up" (work in progress), oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Friendship Boulevard

The Washington area features all sorts of streets with distinctive names: Democracy Boulevard, Constitution Avenue, Independence Avenue, and the avenues named after states -- Wisconsin Avenue, Hawaii Avenue, Michigan Avenue, and so forth. But until today I didn't realize there is also a Friendship Boulevard, located (appropriately enough) in Friendship Heights. There are a number of Slavic places named Druzhba ("friendship"), but I don't know if I've ever encountered a Friendship street in the United States.

Anyway, Friendship Boulevard lived up to its name today! All sorts of friendly people stopped by my easel to chat. Kids always like to talk about painting, but plenty of adults came by too. Back when I started painting plein air, I was nervous about onlookers, but now I welcome them. Partly this is because I've grown more comfortable painting outdoors, and I'm proud of much of my plein air work. But even if the painting isn't going well, I'm happy to explain my plan to improve things. Za druzhbu -- to friendship! 

Geoff Watson, "Friendship Boulevard," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Giselle sketches

Giselle returned to model for the life-painting group I attend. She started with a couple of short poses, including this 10-minute pose. Normally that's enough time for me to get the basic shapes and do some shading, but in this case I focused on refining the proportions, particularly the foreshortened right leg. 

Geoff Watson, "Sketch of Giselle," graphite on paper, 18" x 24," 2017.

Then she returned to the pose I started painting last week (see my blog post "Giselle," Sept. 24, 2017). I had hoped to finish this today, but I got preoccupied with her hair and ran out of time. The hair was fun: she had it up in a bun for the sketch but let it down for the portrait. Also, I was having so much fun with the hair that I forgot to do the really fun stuff -- highlights! I didn't even remember to highlight her nose. On top of all that, the lighting had changed a bit, and I was a little indecisive about whether to change my shadows; I'll need to fix those too. So there's lots of work left. Giselle will return sooner or later, so I should get another chance at this one.

Geoff Watson, "Giselle" (work in progress), oil on panel, 11" x 14," 2017.

Newark Street

I was wandering around the Cleveland Park section of Washington, D.C., looking for a good spot to paint, when I came across this colorful tree guarding a block of Newark Street. I immediately set up shop and put down two brushstrokes (transparent red oxide, for you painting gurus out there). Just then one of my relatives happened to pull up to the intersection in her car, and we had a nice chat. After she left I had another dozen passersby visit me while the painting was in its ugly stage. When the picture finally started to look like something, I was all alone! But no matter: it was a glorious, breezy day, and the trees were wonderful company.

Geoff Watson, "Newark Street," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Standup Paddle-boarding

it was too hot to paint outside today, but I tried anyway. (What's up with the 90-degree heat and high humidity in late September?) I got a bit overheated, and I had some trouble concentrating, but the painting turned out well enough. Several of these paddle-boarders meandered by, but I never got a good look at the boats/boards they pilot. I did my best. As I was packing up, I was treated to a glorious red sunset!

Geoff Watson, "Standup Paddle-boarding," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Towpath

This is the towpath, the dirt road along the C&O Canal in Maryland. In its heyday, the canal operated boats pulled by mules, which towed the boats. (I've depicted one of the boats in an earlier blog post, "Waiting for the Mules.") But here I was most interested in the curious question-mark-shaped foliage at the end of the path, so I tried to focus attention there. I also liked the canopy of branches above the path, not to mention the hints of fall colors.

Geoff Watson, Towpath," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Giselle (in progress)

I started this painting Saturday; it was the first of two sittings. I've got the model's features in more or less the right place, but they need refinement, and right now her expression is a bit odd. Obviously I need to pay attention to her hair, too, and add more color to everything. But it's not a bad start.

Geoff Watson, "Giselle" (work in progress), oil on panel, 11" x 14," 2017.

Stop

The police officer in this scene is actually a bronze statue by J. Seward Johnson. The officer stands guard, day and night, over an intersection in Friendship Heights, near the DC/Maryland border. Reportedly local residents give him a scarf in cold weather. He also apparently deters some aggressive driving, or at least that's what the local police say.

I had hoped to depict more traffic and passersby, but the sun set, and I was still finishing the officer's hat in virtual darkness. I'd like to go back and do a more complete picture. It was still lots of fun.

Geoff Watson, "Stop," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Potomac Reflections

I found a shady spot by the Potomac River, near Swains lock in Maryland, and painted reflections from the far woods. I had on plenty of bug spray, but even so I was assaulted by a combined-arms force of stink bugs. Airborn bugs dive-bombed me while infantry bugs marched across my painting. Nonetheless, I managed to escape with a credible picture of the scene.

Geoff Watson, "Potomac Reflections," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Lily

This is a photo of the early stage of a portrait that I started using only two colors, Burnt Sienna and white. Here I'd just started adding hints of color, but I was already running out of time, so the image looks rather ghostly. It's still interesting, and the likeness isn't bad. It helped that the model, Lily, held her pose so well. I went on to add some color, but I didn't finish; I like this "brunaille" version better. I'm hoping I'll get another chance to paint Lily so that I can finish the picture.

Geoff Watson, "Lily," oil on panel, 11" x 14," 2017.

River Bend Watercolors

Today I painted five quick watercolor studies at River Bend Park in northern Virginia, on the Potomac. In each study I was experimenting with color and composition; I didn't bother with an underdrawing. Here are three examples.

Geoff Watson, "River Bend Study," watercolor on paper, 12" x 16," 2017.

Geoff Watson, "Seeing purple," watercolor on paper, about 6"x 8," 2017.

Geoff Watson, "Maryland, from Virginia," watercolor on paper, about 6" x 8," 2017.

Woodacres

I set up at Woodacres Park in Bethesda, hoping to paint the baseball backstop and fence, which were framed nicely by trees behind them. But time was short, so I settled for a quick study of the trees and resolved to paint the baseball diamond on another visit. 

Geoff Watson, "Woodacres," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Angler's Footbridge

This fall I'm studying with a well-regarded local artist, and today our group painted at the bridge spanning the C&O canal near the Old Angler's Inn. I liked the hint of fall colors in the trees. I especially liked how the white sycamore complemented the horizontal of the bridge. 

Geoff Watson, "Angler's Footbridge," oil on panel, 2017.

Church and Temple

I spent the afternoon at Carter Barron soccer fields, near 16th Street in Washington. D.C. I was originally drawn to the 6th Presbyterian Church, on the left, but as I started painting I grew increasingly interested in the temple on the right -- Chua Giac Hoang Buddhist Temple. As the day wore on, people filled the park, but I didn't want to distract attention too much from the religious buildings, so I sketched only a few folks.

Geoff Watson, "Church and Temple," oil on linen, 8" x 10," 2017.

The Potomac from Swain's Campsite

It was a glorious day of 70-degree sunshine, and I spent the afternoon at Swain's campsite, a free campground adjoining Swain's Lock on the C&O Canal in Potomac, Maryland. I found an open campsite, and it had this lovely view, framed by trees, just as I painted it. It was one of those plein air paintings in which I didnt really have to change much to make the composition work. The atmosphere was quite jolly, as campers and day-hikers strolled around the river-side, taking in the view. The lock itself would be fun to paint, as would the canal, so I'll be revisiting this wonderful park.

Geoff Watson, "The Potomac River, viewed from Swain's,Campground," oil on canvas panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Hubert Humphrey Park

I learn a lot about a place when I paint there. I've visited Friendship Heights -- an area on the D.C./Maryland border -- hundreds of times. But today was the first day I'd ever painted there. I didn't know this little one-block-square park was named Hubert Humphrey Park. I didn't know so many seniors lived here. I didn't know about the immaculate community center adjoining the park -- with a library, people playing chess, clean bathroom (a luxury for a plein air painter!), and friendly staff.

And I didn't know about the neat sculpture depicted here, by J. Seward Johnson. Like the nearby bronze policeman, she get lots of double-takes: she's pretty convincing! Me, I thought it was fun to make a picture of someone making a picture. Plus, this model never moves or takes breaks. On top of all that, the weather was perfect! It was a great day to be outdoors painting.

Geoff Watson, "Bronze Girl in Hubert Humphrey Park," oil on panel, 8" x 10," 2017.

Bridge over Massachusetts Avenue

Today I drove around in circles for a couple hours looking for a place to paint. Sometimes the scenery is great but there's no convenient place to set up. Finally I settled on this bridge over busy Massachusetts Avenue, in Maryland near the D.C. border. I wanted a bucolic feel, so I magically removed all the noisy traffic. 

Geoff Watson, "Bridge over Massachusetts Avenue," oil on canvas panel, 8" x 10," 2017.