A Change of Pace

"Morning Light on the  C&O Canal, 12x16 oil on linen panel

      I mentioned in my last post that I hadn't been out painting as much as I usually am at this time of year and was spending a lot of time on cityscapes painted in my studio. Sure, I have been out with my sketchbooks but not with my full plein air gear. Last Sunday I was! I joined fellow members of The Washington Society of Landscape Painters at Great Falls Park in Maryland. In spite of the ominous forecast a large number of us showed up and we were glad we did as we were treated to a beautiful, sunny morning with a soothing breeze.
      I paint very often in Great Falls Park on the Virginia side and this was my first outing in the same park on the opposite side of the Potomac. Magnificent views of both the falls and the C&O Canal! I had a hard time deciding what to paint but the comfort of this spot won out. I was in the shade enjoying the breeze and the sound of the falls and the water rushing through the lock. Heaven! It is definitely time to get back to more plein air painting!
      The color in this photo is somewhat over saturated. For instance in the original the yellow of the path is more Naples Yellow than Cadmium which is to say more golden in hue. This is the painting as I finished it on Sunday and I will be making some minor adjustments. It is a keeper and I will be framing it for sale.

      On the easel in the studio right now is a new cityscape of Pennsylvania Avenue after an evening rain shower.  It is almost finished so it will probably be my next post. There are a lot of shows coming up this fall and I want to have plenty of paintings to choose from. The first exhibit will be in October at Black Rock Center for the Arts in Gaithersburg Maryland. I'll give more show information in a later post.