Plein Air @ Elim Assembly of God Church Santa Clara CA 加州風景寫生
Dec. 10
I was excited to receive my orders from China - a new set for outdoor painting which I waited almost two months for. Went to paint this church, a gothic revival structure built in 1904. The winter afternoon light made it look so unique and interesting. The new painting set is much lighter in weight, but I have to get used working on two levels to paint. It is supposed to have more space, but felt like not enough space for keeping my stuff handy. The sun set before five pm - too early, so I only had a chance to lay down the first layers of color before I had to wrap up and leave. I checked my work through my smart phone's black/white photo feature and surprisingly the contrasts worked well. By the time I got home, it was already dark.
The next morning, I resumed work on the painting, adding more details and darkening certain areas. Really liked working on solid, stable table to draw the light posts and lines better. After the painting was finished, I realized that I didn't like the lines I drew in afterward. They lacked the dashing energy of nature. I guess that is the reason so many artists enjoy painting outdoors, so do I.