In The Barn II

In The Barn II, 6x8

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Saturday evening, after a couple hours of painting, Plein Air Austin had our end-of-year party at Westlake Beach and Marina.  The weather was perfect and lots of family and friends showed up for the catered picnic. The scene above is not actually of Westlake Beach, but of the adjacent marina, the name of which I didn't notice. I was attracted by the clear skies and the bright, late afternoon light on the boats.

Lake Austin Piers

Lake Austin Piers, 5x7

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Our friend and fellow Plein Air Austin member, Cindy Ridge, hosted today's paintout. Her shady Lake Austin property was one of the few cool outdoor spots around Austin today. Torrential rains earlier in the week and today's sunny skies made for a hot and extremely humid day. Luckily for us the water temperature in this part of the lake is around 70º at the moment, thanks to a release from Mansfield Dam, upstream. The water temp and a slight breeze kept Cindy's shady yard nice and cool. When can we come back, Cindy?

Holding Back

Holding Back, 9 x 12

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This painting was a long time in completing. The subject is from our last Plein Air Austin paintout of April, at Mansfield Dam. I blocked in the main shapes and colors and not much more while on site and hadn't gotten back to it until today. I think I knew I had a big challenge ahead of me to make this complex structure both believable and compelling. Overall, I'm happy with how it turned out and something close to elated to have it behind me.

Too Busy To Sit

Too Busy To Sit, 8 x 88
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This afternoon, the Plein Air Austin paintout was at Martha Ruth's house, just a mile or so below Mansfield Dam, on Lake Austin. It's a beautiful spot and Martha and her husband, Gene, were terrifically hospitable to have us there.