Hillside Trail Video

The time spent in painting is about an hour, though it took longer to plan the major shape and value placements.

 Watching your own painting process can be a great education!

Chapel Stairway

Adding color to a value sketch or grisaille. Two sets of color transitions occur from distant to foreground. Areas of light proceed from yellows to reds, and areas of shadow proceed from lavenders to blues.  

China Ditch

I had two goals for this painting; one was to invent forms and show them by value / temperature contrasts, second to show aerial color perspective, so warm and intense in the foreground, and relatively cooler and less intense with distance. The photo I'm working from is kind of hazy, and near black & white, kind of a big job for a small painting.

5"x7", Acrylic, landscape

Two Trees

A painting composed from a sketch. Named for the difference in the "Two Trees", light against dark / dark against light. (a choice based on design, not observation)

testing my ability to paint from memory and imagination.

7"x11", gessoed paperboard, Oil

Winter Clouds

Painting Clouds with oil paint is really fun. This was painted from a photo Naomi took.


9"x12", Oil, Stretched Canvas

Mountain Sunrise

A nice place to wake up.



5"x7", Acrylic, landscape,

Recorded observation

Working from drawings (recorded observations). I've noticed that the number of things I look for has grown, and remember thinking a while back that If you don't look for it you won't see it, much less paint it.

Foliage Study

Just a try at painting edges and values.

Dark Skies

From a photo of Acadia Park in Maine.

Snow in the Owyhees

A painting of China Ditch Canyon.



5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

First Snow

This is Melba Butte near to where we live. Painted from a photo.


5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

Low Clouds

Naomi and I live in the Snake River Valley, this view is of the Owyhee Mountains. I've noticed that the mountains seem to generate their weather and form clouds. This place on the drive home is always interesting.



7"x5" Acrylic on canvas panel

Roadside Chapel

Well it was by the side of the road, until a new bridge and access road was put in. This is one of the collection of buildings at Cleo's Nature Trail where my wife Naomi and I are caretakers.


5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

Violet Roof

Well the roof is actually cedar shake, but I was looking for a complimentary color between the sky and foreground. Also the paint is a little thicker on this panel, but could be more if I was using a gel medium.


5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

New Brighton Beach 2

I took a second run at this subject. I wanted to pull the values together better, and had a plan to make the trees show some depth.

Also painted this with study and canvas on it's side. Thanks S.P.Goodman

5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

New Brighton Beach

The first study I did didn't have as much variation in the three trees. I'm sure that if I'd been thinking variation I would have actually observed it.

5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

Aspen Trees

The thin Aspen trunks were what looked interesting to me. I found a pallet knife edge worked best to make the thin lines of color.


5"x7" Acrylic on canvas panel

Yaquina Bay Bridge

I discovered a mix of color for the pines that was very enjoyable to use, burnt umber and blue with a little white.

Landscape Abstract

Mostly concerned with shapes, values,and color interactions,and thinking mildly about a landscape. This was really fun to do!
Thanks Carl for loaning me your book of Joella Jean Mahoney's Paintings.

Fence Line

Having some fun with color, blues and orange in the shaded white fence.