Plein air watercolor landscape painting of a pond in a botanical garden
Plein air watercolor painting 10.5 inches x 7 inches
I painted this plein air watercolor painting in the same Naples botanical garden where I found all of the fascinating lilies. There were so many great views, it was difficult to choose one to paint. I will definitely be visiting this site again next year. Its a place to let your “inner color” explode!
Plein air pastel painting of water lilies about to open in the morning.
Pastel painting 13.5 inches x 9 inches
I’d never painted a water lily before last month. Suddenly, I am in love with them and can totally understand why painters through the ages have been drawn to them. Every leaf is interesting and unique and the bright flowers create a perfect focal point. But my favorite part is the endless variations of how sunlight hits the surrounding water, creating highlights and deep shadows.
The Naples Botanical Gardens has a huge variety of water lilies in their many themed “rooms.” I spent a few Tuesday mornings working on floral paintings there. This is the only pastel painting I did, but I experimented with quite a few watercolor versions.
Plein air watercolor painting of a pond with water lillies
Plein air watercolor painting 7 inches x 10.5 inches
Back from a wonderful, sunny month in Naples, Florida. We left frigid Michigan just in time–right before it was socked with two huge blizzards.
I painted quite a few pastels and watercolors when we were down there, spending a couple of hours every day looking for interesting sites. One of my favorite places was the Naples Botanical Gardens. Every Tuesday morning they welcome artists, easels and all, to paint on their beautiful grounds. I was fascinated with all of the gorgeous water lilies in the ponds at the park. I’d never painted them before, but was really happy with the way this plein air watercolor painting came out. I took tons of photos to work larger, possibly in pastel, back in the studio.
Plein air pastel landscape of a sunlit lake near Douglas, Michigan
Pastel painting 9 inches x 6 inches $100
Please contact me if you are interested in similar artwork.
Yesterday I drove over to the west side of Michigan to drop off 7 new watercolors to the gallery that represents me in the Saugatuk-Douglas area. Button Gallery has recently taken over the huge gallery space where Petter Gallery operated for years. They have refreshed the art and created a gorgeous space to explore paintings and sculpture. It feels almost like a museum only friendlier. They don’t currently have a website but you can find information on them here: http://saugatuckdouglas.com/button.htm
While I was there, I stopped in the quaint, arty town of Douglas and did this quick plein air pastel landscape of Kalamazoo Lake near the end of Main Street. The sun shining on the water intrigued me and the water lilies and weeds made for some interesting texture.
