Mist Over Mt. Tam

I just realized that the last three watercolors I have posted are all in shades of blue. I guess I'm exploring painting winter weather in all its forms. Mt. Tam is a very imposing mountain and one can see it from just about everywhere in southern Marin County. It dominates the landscape. The mountain is often shrouded in mist this time of year and has these lovely blue hues. This is a mix of ultramarine grayed down with Paynes Grey. I really like the various blues one can achieve with this mix. The sky has a hint of pale raw sienna and rose madder under the blue. I will take this watercolor to class this week and see what the critique will be.

Critique: I'm pleased to say that Jerry Stitt really liked this watercolor. He made particular mention of the dark, medium and light values, and the lost and found edges which he felt made the painting work well. For the first time since I have been attending his class, there were no suggestions as to "what would make this a better painting". Hope I can keep this up.

Black and White Plus Red

I recently joined the Marin Society of Artists located in the Marin Art and Garden Center. It has been in existence since 1927. They have juried exhibitions each month between February and December. The theme for February is "black and white plus red" - quite a challenge for watercolorists who typically never use black or white paint. I thought I would play around with the idea and this is my first stab at it. Not totally sure whether this will be my entry or not yet. I have a month to work on the theme.