"Almost Green"

5" x 7"

Oil on hardboard panel.

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Well, in spite of my schedule and the weather, I did manage to paint outside some this week. This was in the the foothills at the Hall Ranch near Lyons. Springtime is still in a state of flux there. The grass is greening-up, but the most of the trees haven't leafed-out yet. Seems to be a trend around here this year... on Wednesday it was around 80 degrees, and Thursday morning it snowed several inches. Today's been back and forth - it did spit a little snow between brief periods of sunshine.

"Morning Dream"

5" x 7"

Oil on hardboard panel

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I love to paint outdoors, but sometimes the necessities of work and homelife conspire to make that difficult to do on a daily basis. Right now is one of those times. I am working a night job to pay the bills in these lean times and spending time with my son is my top priority right now. Even though I'm stuck in my studio more than I would like to be, I still manage to get out to paint a little and take photos now and then.

Recently, I was looking through some old plein air studies in hopes of finding some inspiration, and I came across one that I did a couple of summers ago (when life seemed simpler), and I decided to re-work the idea a little. The thing I liked best about this little painting was the memories I associate with it. It was painted at Dream Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park when I had my ten year old son in tow. He slept all the way up to the trailhead and didn't even protest when we started hike before sunrise. We made it up to the lake and I was all set-up to paint when the sun came out and just kissed the tops of the trees. The changing light and my son's eagerness to move on meant I only had a short time to capture the moment, but it made me realize that it was the moment that was so special. If someone were to ask me why I like to paint landscapes so much, I'd probably tell them that it's to capture those moments, or to somehow convey to others what it's like to experience those moments, but the thuth is: experiencing the moment itself is reason enough... paintings, photos, stories to tell... those are just by-products.

"Foothills Homestead"

5" x 7"

Oil on hardboard panel

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This little homestead cabin is in the foothills near Lyons, Colorado.

"Downtown Jamestown"

6" x 6"

Oil on hardboard panel

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Historic Jamestown, Colorado - a postage stamp of a town tucked in the middle of nowhere - my idea of heaven.

"Creek View"

6" x 6"

Oil on hardboard panel

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This "creek" was the Big Thompson River in Rocky Mountain National Park.

"County Road 80"

7" x 5"

Oil on hardboard panel

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This is the road up to Button Rock Reservoir near Lyons, Colorado. I spent the day with my son up there and at the Hall Ranch nearby. All the trees are just about to leaf-out... another perfect spring day.

"Near Marshall"

5" x 7"

Oil on hardboard panel

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I've painted this little scene several times over the years because it's one of my favorite place to paint outside and it's easy for me to get to from home. I thought I'd set-out to do a quick study and try to be a little more loose and free with my brushstrokes. This one was done in my studio from some older plein air studies because we got two inches of snow this morning and trying to paint outdoors would have been a real mudfest.

"Afternoon Sun"

5" x 7"

Oil on panel

Another plein air study painted near Boulder.

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"Brush and Sky"

5" x 7"

Oil on hardboard panel

"Spring at Last"

5" x 7"

Oil on panel

This plein air study was done along Coal Creek near Louisville, Colorado.

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