Architectural Elements in Pastel

This week I wanted to share some prints that I created using a pastel chalk technique. The three that I have posted all have architectural elements to them. I haven’t created many prints using this technique, but thought it did bring a unique look to the subject matters attached.

The first one is the door to the train station in Glendale, California (Los Angeles area). The train station was built in 1924 by the Southern Pacific Railroad using a romantic Spanish Colonial Revival style. The elaborate architectural details immediately becomes a visual focal point. The station now serves for both Amtrak and the Los Angeles Metro Rail system and was purchased by the city of Glendale in 1989. I liked the way this technique highlight the colors and architectural detail of this door.

Pastel Train Station Door

The second print is the Daniels and Fisher Tower located in downtown Denver along the 16th Street Mall.  The tower was constructed in 1910 as part of the Daniels and Fisher department store. At that time it was the tallest structure between the Mississippi River and California. Again, this technique highlights the color of the brick facade and compliments the architectural details

D&F Tower In Pastel Chalk

The third print is from Union Station in downtown Denver, Colorado. Behind Union station is the transit center where Amtrak, light rail and RTD buses come together. The difference between the first two examples and this one, is that this structure is is very modern in design, but again the subtle colors pop out with this technique complimenting the design element.

Denver Transit Center In Pastel

Thoughts?

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Abstract Sunsets

My post this week takes a look at three different sunsets that I created using an abstract approach to the subject matter with an impasto style of brush strokes. There are two things going on with these prints. First, I created the scene by making general shapes in various shades of color for the clouds and ocean. Next, I took those creations and did an impasto style of brush strokes. This type of brush stroke is bold and creates depth to the painting.

“Carlsbad Sunset”

In this first one I stayed in the orange and yellow family for color. I also added a coastline for the foreground. Carlsbad Sunset is based on a dramatic sunset over the Pacific Ocean in Northern San Diego County. The view point is a hilltop a few miles inland overlooking the ocean.

“Dusk on the Coast”

This second one represents a colorful sunset again based on an actual sunset in Northern San Diego County. The general viewpoint of both is the type of view we had from our house in San Diego County. What makes these prints even more impressive is that in the 18 years we lived there, these were some of the few colorful sunsets we had. Living close to the coast in this part of Southern California does have its advantages in moderate temperatures year round typically not getting either real hot or cold. That said, the ocean keeps the air temperature moderate, but also does create what is called a marine layer (low level clouds that are close to being fog if they were to get lower). Dramatic sunsets require high level clouds to reflect the colors from the setting sun and a marine layer blocks all of that.

“Cloudy Ocean Sunset”

This last abstract sunset is based on a look I saw from a Northern California coastal beach that had actual fog roll in just as the sun was setting. It created unique colors through the fog that I took into the blue and purple color family to make this a unique abstract print.

Thoughts?

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Seattle Sunshine

I want to extend my thoughts and prayers to all of those impacted by the wild fires up and down the west coast. I think of those who have lost their homes and/or evacuated from approaching flames to the fire fighters who have bravely been battling these fires.

My wife and I left Los Angeles August 31st for two weeks in Seattle (two of our daughters and their husbands live up there). At that point in time Northern California was battling significant wild fires and the smoke from those fires had migrated to Southern California. As we took off and started the flight north, there was a layer of brown smoke all of the way up the coast to Oregon. From Oregon on up to Seattle, the skies were clear and we were thankful to get out of the smoke.

Starting with our second week in Seattle, Oregon was now battling a number of fires and so was eastern Washington. Mid-week, the winds changed and the huge plume of smoke that had been blown out to sea from California and Oregon came inland and created the pictures I have attached.  I took these with my cell phone by one of our daughters house because I was blown away with how weird the sun looked. It actually got worse as the week went on with no sun getting through.

We returned to Los Angeles Sunday September 13th. On that day going to the airport in Seattle, the smoke was so thick you couldn’t even see the downtown high-rises as we drove right by them on Interstate 5 (the freeway literally butts up to downtown). Taking off from the airport was like rising through a thick layer of clouds that had a brown tinge to them. On the 2.5 hour flight coming south over Washington, Oregon and Northern California, looking out the window at 35 thousand feet, there was nothing to see but the brown cloud below us. It boggles my mind that there would be a smoke plume of that size. Think about any flight you have had of that duration and think about if there was nothing but smoke below you for the entire flight.

Seattle Sunshine

Street Scene

The air was so brown, these shots almost look like sepia photography.

Thoughts?

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Do Not Worry

From downtown Denver, we are popping over to the west coast for a sunset I took in Carlsbad, California located in the northern part of San Diego County. I added the quote from the bible as it seems an important reminder for all of us. I try really hard (and trust me it is hard), to take each day as it comes on its own merit. It doesn’t do any of us any good to worry about tomorrow as all that does is pull your attention away from the current moment. And the current moment is the only reality we truly live in.

Do Not Worry About Tomorrow

Thoughts?

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Abstract Tropical Sunsets

From the winter forests of the Pacific Northwest in last weeks post, I take you all the way down the Pacific Coastline to Carlsbad, California. Carlsbad is located in the northern coastal area of San Diego County. The two sunsets I am featuring this week were along the coastline of Carlsbad just south of the downtown village. Carlsbad is probably best known anymore as the home of Legoland. The actual irony is that the featured prints were created from a photo shoot I did in February, so I’m actually still keeping the winter theme going……

For those of you that follow me, you know I like color and abstract techniques in my creation of art prints. These two were created using an abstract watercolor technique that highlights the bold colors of the sunset.

For this first print I kept the sun behind one of the palm trees for a not so typical rendition of a sunset over the coastal ocean.

“Sunset Behind the Palm Tree”

This second one is more typical by centering the sun between the palm trees. I also added pedestrian walkers in the left portion of the scene.

“Sunset Between Two Palm Trees”

Thoughts?

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Central California Coast – Excerpts from a Photo Shoot

I wanted to share a couple of shots I captured last weekend on a drive my wife and I took along the Central California Coastline. There are a number of “pull-offs” scattered along the coastline and these captures were from one of those.

California Central Coast 1

 

California Central Coast 2

 

California Central Coast 4

Thoughts?

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LA Hills – Excerpts From a Photo Shoot

In Last Weeks Post (The Jacaranda Tree), I mentioned that we were in Los Angeles for Memorial Day weekend visiting our daughter and son-in-law, but more importantly our first grandchild (just hit the 6 month mark). I had also mentioned that I volunteered to do the daily stroller outing into the neighborhood each day while we were there (she loves to be outdoors enjoying the fresh air, sights, birds, etc.). I was always wandering up into the hills with her as the climbing was good exercise for grandpa and the views were spectacular for both of us. At that point last week I talked about the Jacaranda Trees, but also mentioned I would come back to the views of that daily outing. This week I have attached 10 shots I took during that daily venture.

LA Hills 1

This capture gives you an idea of the typical hillside neighborhoods that dot the Los Angeles hills. The streets are narrow, windy and go up and down quit dramatically. On one side of the street you have the height of the home facing the street and the other side, just the top portion of that home with it’s height going down the backside of the house.

LA Hills 2

The homes represent a variety of architecture and mix in size. Interesting architecture and look as the next shot shows the same house from around the bend and down the other side….

LA Hills 3

Every few steps the scene is totally different.

LA Hills 4

Because land is so precious, there isn’t any space wasted as you notice the garages actually start just feet from the road.

LA Hills 5

Love the variety of architectural elements and color in the homes.

LA Hills 6

Creativity is necessary as the hillsides are quite steep.

LA Hills 7

As I alluded to earlier, the views between the homes (the views they actually have over each other) that you can see from the street are spectacular. This view looks southeast over Glendale, California towards the San Gabriel Mountains.

L.A. Hills 8

This view is looking in the same general direction as the capture above (you can barely see this facility in the far right portion of that view).

LA Hills 9

This is a capture of downtown Glendale, California which is located northeast of downtown Los Angeles and south of Burbank.

LA Hills 10

Then to the south of this location behind another set of hills is downtown Los Angeles. The final approach pattern to LAX takes planes just south of downtown and with the air traffic coming into LAX, not surprising that I captured a plane in this shot.  Thoughts?

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Evening Sunset Along The Walk – Featured Art Print

Evening Sunset Along the Walk

Evening Sunset Along the Walk is a wall art print I created using an abstract watercolor technique of an evening sunset along the walkway. This technique uses abstract shapes and bold colors to create a clean modern look.

The setting is Carlsbad, California along the coast highway. Carlsbad is located in the northern part of San Diego County and is a popular beach town. In this particular area, there is a sidewalk up on the bluff overlooking the beach and surf of the Pacific Ocean. It’s a great place to take a sunset stroll and enjoy the cool ocean breeze. In this print, the sun is just getting ready to dip into the ocean for the night. The setting is beautiful with not only the sunset, but also the palm trees in the foreground of this print. Thoughts?

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Mount Shasta – Excerpts From a Photo Shoot

I was on a quick two day road trip this week with my son-in-law traveling from Phoenix to Seattle. We had a short time frame to meet, so we had two very intense driving days to get up to Seattle (the good news for me, I flew back to Phoenix, so only had the drive one way). Anyone that follows my blog knows that I never go anywhere without my camera….you just never know!!

Because we had such a tight timeframe, there really wasn’t much opportunity to stop and take pictures, but I was able to grab some shots of Mt Shasta when we stopped for breakfast in Mount Shasta, California. With the amount of moisture that has been hitting the western US (much needed for California), the amount of snow on Mt Shasta was incredible, as you can see by the pictures. Tidbits about Mt Shasta: It is a volcano that sits on the southern end of the Cascade Mountain Range in Northern California and has an elevation of 14,179 ft. It last erupted in 1786.

Upon arriving back home and reviewing the shots, I thought that part of the series I hurriedly took would make a great example of framing a shot either while you are taking a picture or afterwards if you have the right software.

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Mount Shasta One

This first capture I created using the zoom feature of my lens to frame the shot. I was standing in a parking lot right outside of the restaurant.

Mount Shasta Two

This capture gives you the look and feel of what I was actually seeing in my line of site…..again, the first shot was my zoom lens framing the shot above the Shell gas station (notice the tree branches that were in the first shot).

Mount Shasta Three

Another approach if you don’t have a strong zoom lens or just didn’t use it, is this method. This capture is from the second shot….I cropped it in Photoshop to eliminate the “street noise” of the other picture.

I think both methods created the final image that I was looking for. Thoughts?

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Abstract Sunsets – Featured Art Prints

The wall art prints I wanted to feature this week come from my Abstract Watercolor Gallery. It’s a series of sunset wall art prints that are inspired by the same sunset in the same location. This allows me the ability to showcase a couple of elements as it relates to these prints. The first element is the use of an abstract technique and the second is the color changes that occur within one sunset.

 

So, lets start with the abstract approach in these prints. Not everyone is a fan of abstract art and the beauty of art is “that’s ok”. We all react a little differently to various looks, colors and styles. I like abstract art because I appreciate colors and shapes. I don’t need an art print to depict a realistic scene all the time; sometimes I just appreciate the use of colors and shapes. I approached these sunset prints with suggestive shapes and bold colors that were as true to the beauty I witnessed in the sky as I could replicate.

That takes me to the second element. The sunset in these prints was over the coastal area of San Diego County a few years back. The perspective is from a distance looking over the land towards the sea just after the sun has gone down. When you see one of “those” sunsets, you know that the color palette of the sky changes continually as it turns into dusk. This series follows such a sunset.

Orange Ocean Sunset

The first one is called Orange Ocean Sunset. The sun has just set and the bright colors dance off of the high clouds over the ocean. The ocean itself turns a bright orange reflecting the sky.

Orange Hillside Sunset

The second one I’ve titled Orange Hillside Sunset. The sun has sunk lower, beyond the horizon, creating deeper colors. The foreground in this print uses a hillside as a balance against the brilliance of the sky.

Blue And Red Ocean Sunset

The third print is titled Blue And Red Ocean Sunset. The sun sinks even lower, creating darker hues of the numerous colors and the night sky starts to show as the deep blue towards the top.

Red Ocean Sunset

The fourth print is called Red Ocean Sunset. Dusk has set in and the light fades, but not without a final burst of brilliant red lighting the sky and the ocean.

Thoughts?

I invite you to visit my Abstract Watercolor Gallery to enjoy these prints and many more.

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