DAY 23 GOING AROUND JUNE LAKE LOOP

               Carson Peak above Silver Lake | Pastel | 6x8

One of the special treats of driving Route 395 is taking June Lake Loop. A short 5 mile stretch passes by 4 lakes - 3 of them are among the prettiest of the easily accessible lakes of the High Sierras. My favorite is Silver Lake where Carson Peak rises up at 10,866 feet.  The lakes take on a deliciously intense dark blue color that emphasizes their great depth. 

Process:  The dock area was littered with kayak racks - a lovely kaleidoscope of screaming colors - and easily the subject of another painting, but what attracted me to this view is Carson Peak, towering 3000+ feet above the valley floor.  The passive gravel foreground with the dock leads the eye in while keeping the emphasis on the steep peak where a rock slide has scoured its flank.  This is painted on Wallis Belgian mist paper with a direct application of colors (no underpainting).

DAY 22 ANCIENT TREES

   Bristlecone Pine Trail | Pastel | 6x6

The Ancient Bristlecone Pine forest at +10,000 feet is inhabited by one of 3 species of Bristlecone pine - Pinus longaeva - the longest-lived life form on Earth. The oldest individual tree is more than 5,000 years old, making it the oldest known individual of any species!  These remarkable trees have endured the harshest weather and the worst soils.  True survivors, they take your breath away - or maybe it was the altitude that did that to us. A seemingly short 2.5 mile hike seemed like an endurance test!  Sleeping at this altitude was no easy task either!

Process:  Wallis paper again but this time the old Belgian Mist color. 

DAY 21 AMONG THE VINES

    Descending Vines | Pastel | 6x6

I LOVE painting in Winters, CA where the scenes are devine and the people so friendly! For years the Martinez family has allowed me to paint/photograph their lovely vineyards. Their icon of the vineyard is a huge oak. This view is just down the hill it sits atop looking west. I love the steep descent of the vines with the oak studded hills in the background.

Process:  Wallis white paper gets a strong rub in with local and complementary colors, then a thorough saturation from a spritzing of ISO.  To catch up with this 30 day challenge, I prepared three studies last night, drawing in and in 2/3 putting in the underpainting. I thought 1 painting a day was hard but due to a recent road trip, I'm behind and have to catch up because, as Karen Margulis quotes 'DO IT! There is no try!'  9 more to go!

DAY 20 THE GRANDEST VIEW!

    The Range of Light | Pastel | 6x8

There's a special place along Route 395 just east above Bishop, Ca.  Along the road to the Ancient Bristlecone Forest (a fascinating +10,000 ft high forest of the worlds oldest trees), there are numerous pull outs where one can experience the grandest view of the High Sierras. On a clear day, Mt Whitney is visible at the south end and the mountains around Convict Lake to the north.  We drove on dirt several miles past the Schuman Grove to Silver Canyon Rd. There we roughed camped with this view at 10,470 ft altitude.  As the sun descended, the aspen just below us lit up like they were aflame!

Process: A small panel of mounted Fisher 400 pastel paper was perfect for capturing this high color scene.  This paper was developed by a Brit who loves a superfine grit.  The paper is a pale sunny tone.  I made direct application of my colors with no underpainting. The scene, the paper, the mood - all were perfect this fine evening!

DAY 19 RIVER REVELLING

         Kern River Vista | Pastel | 5x7

Kernville, a town alongside Lake Isabella, used to be located in the lakebed until a dam and reservoir was constructed back in the '50's. Many of the buildings were physically moved to the new townsite on the northern most point of the Lake.  It is an interesting small vintage hamlet with the Kern River running thru it's center.  The top local restaurant, Ewings ('Dining, Drink and Views'), has this magnificent view up Bull Run Canyon!  And the food was every bit as good as it was advertised - Inch and a half thick prime rib on a Saturday night!

Process:  The substrate is Wallis white paper with the underpainting pastel brushed and spritzed with ISO.  I'd like to come back in with some more definition on the front left grey pines.

DAY 18 HEAT IN THE HIGH DESERT

           Mt Baker | Pastel | 9x12

We are visiting in-laws at Lake Isabella where the temperature made it over 100 degrees today. Even though this is high desert, it looks even more parched than usual. 

Process: The scene lends itself to using Ampersand Orange paper.  Painting rocky hills is a breeze just skipping the Patel across the background.  I started with two approaches to the underpainting- brushing some areas with ISO while spritzing others where I wanted the nubby bits to show through.

DAY 17 THE MEADOW

The Meadow | Pastel | 9x8

My favorite hikes in the Sierra's are ones where we are rewarded with a meadow after miles of walking through the dappled forest.  Watching the shadows elongate across a meadow as the day wanes is a joy to take in.  It is akin to a meditation, calming the spirit and making one be right there, right then!

Process: a black sheet of Ar Spectrum is a luscious surface to paint the richly contrasting values of the late afternoon.  Painting this made me feel as serene as I did the day we sat and looked upon this meadow after hiking miles up in the Sierra's.