It’s not quite full spring yet, but there are little signs around. The paths are still littered with leaves, but there are little bits of green coming up around the wet areas. The shadows are sharp and well defined by the higher sun angle. This is a path near the Charles River.

I thought I would work on some fire horses for the new year. I completed the first one in mid-January. Then, I had a trail riding mishap with a real horse and injured the thumb on my dominant hand. The first horse is drawn with my dominant hand. The second is my...

I thought I would work on some fire horses for the new year. I completed the first one in mid-January. Then, I had a trail riding mishap with a real horse and injured the thumb on my dominant hand. The first horse is drawn with my dominant hand. The second is my attempt at drawing with my non-dominant hand.

I did the sketch for this last year on one of the rare days of heavy snow. We're expecting a big snowstorm this weekend, so there will be more snow blanket paintings!This is gouache on Aquaboard panel. This panel is very forgiving! I didn't like the first painting so I completely washed this panel with water and re-painted this to make corrections. Some of the original color shows through in the left snow field, which I decided to leave. I pushed all of the colors a bit since the day was so cloudy and grey.

The first snow was in November this year. There were still a lot of browns and grays poking through in the field. Even some of the trees are still green. This is a gouache painting – 5 x 7.

To relax at the end of the day, I sit on the couch with my ipad, open Procreate, and do little sketches from photos I recorded on my phone. Procreate has a nice feature that displays a reference photo in the drawing area and I work from that. This sketch is from a walk at Cedar River, a Trustees of Reservations property not far from me. This is just at the beginning of November, when the deciduous trees are no longer dominating the color, but giving way to the calm blue of the sky and the river.

The December 4 moonrise with a sky that says winter is coming.

I did this painting in a class. I forgot my usual paper and a nice classmate gave me this sheet of slightly textured toned paper. Wow! I liked it! Changing materials can be very inspiring! This is a favorite walking place that can get very dramatic in late Fall.

This moon rise was from last year on November 15. The grass turns from gold to almost orange. I think there is a little purple color in there too. Done with a limited palette so things don’t get too complicated!

It’s November, but there are still more days in Blue and Gold season. This has been a beautiful October in the fields near my house. In a class, I tried a different surface – a toned multimedia paper. I like the effect, and it saves time as I usually paint an under layer.

I love North Hero in September. The lake has a different personality every morning, and every sunrise has cloud and color surprises. This is a view from the east side of the island at about 1:00 in the afternoon. I started this as an ink and watercolor drawing, but it wanted to be a gouache painting.

Every August for the past 16 years, we have been meeting with friends for a weekend-long party in Greene, RI. We talk, eat, and watch the kids run around. This year, I brought my painting gear and set up near the Moosup river, which runs through the property. No beavers this year, but it was a peaceful place with wildflowers and late summer sun.

I’ve been trying to teach myself how to paint outside. Should I go out alone or in a group? What is the best equipment? What are the best materials? Should I sit down or stand up? How to get quiet and concentrate.

These are the results of a Saturday trip to the Charles River Peninsula. I spent 2 hours on the first one. I did the second one in the studio with my favorite paper and materials – also about 2 hours. Two different results.

This land, called “Parcel B” is owned by the town. It is one of the more beautiful places to walk and sketch. The town just formed a committee to evaluate its development. A developer is luring the town into an agreement by promising to build a needed town building on the site. Which will win out – the push to develop it or the less tangible values of unspoiled space and peaceful vistas?

April showed up at the shelter when my mom was looking for a friend. For this one, I did a preliminary sketch as well. A square format adds composition challenges, but also really focusses attention on the expression.

Animals definitely have expressions. A Labrador Retriever can be particularly expressive when making a silent request for food or a walk.

Using gouache lets me plan a painting with light layers and add depth with more layers. If I make a mistake, I can wipe off a forgiving paper like Arches 140lb cold press. I do a sketch underneath to make sure the proportions are right.

What better way to start the new year than with an alla prima class!

Alla prima means “at the first” or “all at once.” The idea is to get the image down at the first try. Some definitions cite “wet on wet” but this is difficult with gouache as it dries quickly.

This is quite a challenge. It requires drawing, value rendering, and color mixing all at once with not a lot of adjustments! Because my usual method involves lots of studies, I challenged myself to make a painting in only three steps.

Tone the paper.

Make a drawing

Make a painting.

This little painting took about an hour.