I was invited to paint on location at the 694 acre Mountain Gate property some weeks ago for the
Escondido Creek Conservancy in Northern San Diego Country. My friend and I along with other painters hiked a bit to find our spots to paint.
The land is endangered with the threat of development. I was glad I could help in a small way to promote the site so that the
Conservancy can obtain the property.
This was my selected spot....I loved the lighting on the Yucca and rocks but I knew I needed to add the distance hills so I made my own panoramic ...so to speak...and added the land to the right.
I started out with a brown Tombow pen which is great to use for a value underpainting. I wet the pen lines to create the values. Then I started to paint the background with washes and dropped in color.
I still had issues with the composition. Too many focal points and not enough darks......
so.....I ended up finishing up at Starbucks with my friend Susie...she helped me change a few shapes...the colors are off in this photo...I took it in a shady place....
