When I stayed with my friend Karen in southern California for a few days earlier this month, I was amazed that we could go out into her yard and pick all sorts of tropical fruit right off the trees that grew on the slope below her house. Every morning I had fresh grapefruit for breakfast […]
Category: Sketchbooks
Casa Romantica Gridded Sketch
Earlier this month I taught a two-day plein air sketching class called “Sketch Your World” in San Clemente, CA, and on the second day we visited Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens. The Casa was closed for the day, but they allowed our group to come and paint, so we had the place all to […]
Step-by-Step Sketch – Mission San Juan Capistrano
My how time flies! It’s been almost a month since I returned from gallivanting around Sicily and England, and I’ve been longing to share some pictures with you and work on finishing up my travel journal, but I’ve had to put all that on hold while I put the finishing touches on the two classes […]
The Evolution of a Time-Lapse Sketch
I’ve been experimenting a little this summer with using toned paper, in preparation for a new class I’ll be teaching in San Clemente, CA, in November, and Keeton’s Art Supply in Bradenton, FL, in February 2019. I’ve tried Caran d’Ache colored paper, Strathmore toned paper, and Stillman and Birn Nova sketchbooks. My most recent attempt […]
Summerhill Sketching: What Really Goes on at the House on the Hill?
Would you like to see what it’s like to take a painting class at Summerhill? I snapped some photos during the “Sketching at Summerhill” workshop I taught yesterday to give you an idea of why so many people make the trip out to my house in Prosperity, Pennsylvania, just to paint for a few hours. […]
Maine Pebble Sketch with Step-by-Step Tutorial
One of the things I enjoy most about Maine is the rocky beaches filled with stones of varying sizes, colors, and textures. This year, for the first time, I thought I’d try to capture those colorful pebbles in a sketch. Here’s what I came up with…. Ink & watercolor in a 9″ x 6″ hardcover […]
Sketches from Maine!
Maine was WONDERFUL! The lupines were in bloom, the weather was close to perfect, Primrose Cottage was as cute as ever, and the students who joined me for the painting retreats were an absolute joy to be with. Getting to spend two weeks there this year was the icing on the cake. I fell in […]
France Sketchbook – Day 6 – Roussillon
It’s been a busy spring here at Summerhill, and I’ve been doing more planting and mulching than blogging and painting lately, but before I leave for Maine tomorrow, I want to share with you a few of the pages from my Provence sketchbook that I haven’t gotten around to posting here yet. When I last […]
April Calendar Sketch
I had so much fun last month keeping a daily sketched calendar that I decided to continue with the month of April. (Read about my March 2018 calendar here.) Click to enlarge Never one to get stuck in a rut, I changed my layout to reflect the essence of April. It’s a month of high […]
France Sketchbook – Villa Glanum + The Thinking Process Behind Page Design
After a morning spent sketching at Saint Paul-de-Mausole monastery, my students and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch at our hotel, then we gathered for class outdoors under the shade trees in the courtyard. (This post is a continuation of my travel journal postings from a trip to Paris and Provence. As I finish up the […]
