Painting Away

Happy Monday after Thanksgiving!  I hope you all had your fill of Thanksgiving day festivities and Black Friday Sales.  I know I went to Michaels and got a ton of paint and canvases, something I was desperate for.  

This past week, I finished a painting (yay!) of Chinatown, a nighttime street scene which is relatively new to me.   As it's a bit of a cloudy day here in the studio, I'm having some trouble getting the right picture of it, which means I probably need to take it outside to snap.  It's still too wet to do that, so I need to wait a couple days before posting.  

I hope you are having an easy transition into Christmas and are turning up those Christmas carols, and stay tuned for more paintings!!!!

Friday Night on the Waterfront

Happy Monday!  Can you believe it's almost Thanksgiving?!  In preparation of Turkey Day, I'm working day and night to finish my painting goals for the week as I'm pretty sure I won't get much done during after eating my fill of turkey for the year.

After this blustery weekend, I think we've just about lost all of our leaves in the DC area, but that doesn't mean that I can't still paint them, right?!  Which leads me to the painting above, Friday Night on the Waterfront, an ode to Washington Harbor and the boats that dock there for happy hour and dinner at some of the wonderful restaurants there.  This 12"x36" oil on canvas is a scene of the Potomac waterfront, peeking through the trees onto the Key Bridge all the way to the Harbor, where the first boats of the night are lining up.  I really enjoyed painting this sunset, with its purples and oranges in addition to the colors in the trees.  Lots of bright, happy colors in this one!

I hope you have a most blessed Thanksgiving and find many things to be thankful for this week!

Ode to Sap Green

Last week I mentioned it was my goal to have a new painting up on the blog.  Well.  I can say that I will likely finish said painting today, but as I try to post my blogs in the morning, I don't think that it is going to make it on here today.  It's okay though!  Painting is an art, not a science, and I'm learning to accept that sometimes paintings take longer than expected.  That said, it was during this painting that I finished my very first oil paint tube that I ever bought, Sap Green.  Oil paint lasts for awhile, and a little bit goes a long way, so when I bought this large tube, I had no idea that 7 years later I would be just finishing it.  Crazy, huh?!  So I bid you adieu, Sap Green.  I don't even know if I'm going to replace you, as I've found it's a lot of fun to mix blue and yellow together to make your own greens.  We'll see!

Below is the palette that I have going on right now for my current painting...lots of earth tones as you can see.  Once the painting is done, I will post it...maybe a mid-week blog?!  Stay tuned!

City of Como

Happy Veterans Day everyone!  I'm always happy when I finish a painting, and today is no exception.  A few months ago, I began a painting of the City of Como, which after putting down the first layer, I ended up sticking back in the closet for some time.  Don't ask me why, I have no idea!  But for some reason when I went back to it the other day, I found my inspiration again and decided to go at it.

Last week I blogged about the painting mid-process at that point, so check out the second half below and the finished product!

Putting down the basic reflection. Very simple, not tons of detail

Sweeping a dry brush in a vertical direction across the water

Next, sweeping the dry brush in a horizontal direction across the water

Finally, adding streaks of white to make a ripple effect and filling in the foliage.  Voila!

Next, onto another painting which I had started and put away.  This next one is also from Como, and it's my goal to have it to you by next week's blog!

In the meantime, on a personal note, I visited my dear friend Susan and her new baby out in Texas this past weekend.  We got some great shots and ate a LOT of In-N-Out Burger, my absolute FAVORITE.  We don't have them in the DC area, which makes me pretty sad, although I think my waistline is pretty thankful for that.  As a tribute, though, I ate there three times in three days, so I am most certainly going to be going on a couple runs this week!

Baby Alex, aka Mr. Giggles

Oh, yum.

A very special shout out to all the Veterans out there, thank you for fighting for our freedom and making this nation what it is today!  You are a blessing!

Until next time, hope you have a week as bright as the smile on Alex's face!

Painting Away!

 Background filled in

Onto the middle ground!

Happy Monday!  This past week has been filled with painting, painting, and more painting.  The scene above  is more than halfway done and is of the city of Como, which sits at the Southwest edge of none other than Lake Como.  Como is a beautiful city, just like the rest of the towns that sit on the lake, so I'm excited to be in the process of painting it!  I am hoping I only have a day or two left on it, so I will hopefully have a picture of the finished product soon!

After that, onto another Italian scene!  I'm on a kick recently...not sure if it will be another Como but we will see!  Stay tuned and have a wonderful week!

Back to Bellagio

Hotel Splendide, 8"x10" oil on canvas

I have really been enjoying a change of pace with painting recently, focusing on Italian scenes.  This past May, my husband and I went on a great trip over to Europe, and everywhere we went we had camera in tow, taking more pictures than I can count.  You never know when you are going to get a great shot or not, but I'm happy to say that I got a few that have inspired me to pick up my brush.  That includes the shot above of Hotel Splendide, lcoated in the heart of Bellagio in Lake Como.  Lake Como is one of my favorite places to paint, there is just something magical about the lake region in Italy.  The weather there is temperate, the landscaping lush, and the buildings are beautiful nestled into the mountainside.  

In other news, we have a new "old" art car, a 1992 blue Volvo 240 wagon.  As our last one died, we were on the hunt and have always been fond of old Volvo's.  Since I am usually hauling many pieces of work at a time, I need something with lots of space, and as Volvo's are built like big rectangular bricks, they are a perfect solution for anyone trying to haul lots of stuff.  Yesterday was a bit cold so I took her to the car wash, and I had to laugh when the girl looked at my car like I was crazy to even think about spending $8 on Old Blue.  Ha!  Well, now she's all shiny inside and out and ready to hit the road!  Woo hoo!

Hope you have a wonderful Monday, see you next week!

Loosen Up!

This past weekend, the local arts group I am a member of (Northern Virginia Artists League or NOVAL for short) hosted an oil and watercolor workshop at ArtSpace Herndon.  We were able to get the lovely Vicki Blum, oil painter extraordinaire to teach the morning class and do a painting demonstration for us!  Vicki is a great teacher, very disarming, and just a lot of fun.  

After Vicki showed us how she does what she does, Vicki let us loose to paint our own scene on a small canvas.  The intimidating part?  We only had an hour and a half to finish the piece.  What?!  Listen, for some people, an hour and a half is plenty of time to complete a small piece, but for others (ahem), this is a near impossible task.  As you can see by some previous works, I paint in lots of detail, with very tight strokes.  So this was definitely quite a challenge and forced my brain to flex a little to practice the technique of using larger, looser brush strokes.  The results are quite different from the normal style, but I like it!  I mean, I love some purple with yellow highlights (I went to JMU for undergrad after all), so I guess in a way I couldn't go wrong!

This workshop was especially refreshing because, if I'm being completely honest, I really did not have a great week when it came to painting.  I worked on two paintings, both sketches I shared, and neither, NEITHER worked out at ALL.  How does that happen?  I should have known from the start, but alas, I have two canvases sitting in the trash because they just did not turn out the way I had hoped.  Oh well!  What are you going to do?!  It happens!

I hope you are having a wonderful Monday so far and that you have a great rest of your week!

Arts Crawl!

Happy Columbus Day!  Today many of you are celebrating this holiday...or are sitting behind your desk lamenting the lack of holiday.  Well, whether or not your company observes Mr. Columbus, I think we can all be more than pleased in the DC area to say that the sun is shining!  After beginning to feel trapped under all of this rain, we finally have some relief!

Last week, I participated in the Third Annual Herndon Arts Crawl.  I had a great time setting up shop at Jimmy's, where people drank, ate, and merrily looked at art throughout the course of the evening.  I had a blast, and the staff at Jimmy's was fantastic.  So if you're ever in downtown Herndon and want an awesome spot to eat some great food and have your favorite beverage, be sure to check out Jimmy's!

Before shot.  Jimmy and his crew set up special lighting and everything!

After shot.  Believe it or not, all of this fit into the Beetle!

Okay so next up, a small painting of Venice.  I know what you're thinking, whoa, Venice is not in DC?!  Well, I'm taking a break from the DC collection briefly to focus on some European coastal scenes.  It's been way too long so I figured I would take a quick break from the city!  I just finished sketching out the latest, so take a look of the before and I'll show you the after next week!

Happy Columbus Day!  Hope you are enjoying the beautiful Fall weather and wonderful sunshine!

Come on Out! Arts Crawl at Jimmy's Old Town Tavern

Photo Courtesy of virginia.org

Come on out this Wednesday starting at 5:30 p.m. for the third annual Arts Crawl in Herndon!  Sponsored by the Council for the Arts, Herndon area artists display their work at one of four local restaurants:  Ice House Cafe, O'Sullivan's Irish Pub, Jimmy's Old Town Tavern and the Mediterranean Breeze.  I will be present, displaying my work at Jimmy's, which is located at the corner of Elden and Spring Street, and there will be original works as well as prints, in addition to appetizers and the atmosphere that only Jimmy's can bring.  Be sure to come on out, it's a wonderful fun, free event for the family!

In other news, it's been a whirlwind weekend with ValeArts now coming to a close, and it was a really great weekend.  God gave us a wonderful, warm and sunny weekend to display our works and there were people from all over the Northern Virginia region and beyond to see the pieces and do a little shopping! 

Photo courtesy of ValeArts

Shoppers checking out the smaller works table.

Photo courtesy of ValeArts

Friday night reception, replete with twinkling lights!

Hope you are having a happy (albeit a bit rainy!) Monday!  Until next week!

Paintings, ValeArts, & Peter Max!

Springtime at the Capitol, 12"x24"

This past week was a bit crazy for a few different, but great, reasons.  First, I finished a painting, which I have to tell you is just a great feeling.  It can be a little tough sometimes to decide when you are finally done with a painting, as you can keep working and working over it, sometimes to the detriment of the painting itself.  There are times when I need someone else to tell me I'm done, while other times, I can say "done!" myself.  This painting is one of those where I could make the final decision (woo hoo!).  Springtime at the Capitol is a 12"x24" oil on canvas, and I loved using such a soft palette.

Photo Courtesy of ValeArts.com

After I finished the painting above, I began working on getting ready for the ValeArts show which is THIS WEEKEND!  The show starts on Friday morning, opening at 10 a.m.  Friday night there will be a reception with food and drinks beginning at 7 p.m. and running until 9 p.m.  It will be a GREAT time so please come on out!  If you can't come to the Friday evening reception, please be sure to come visit at some point throughout the weekend.  I will be working from 10-2 p.m. Friday and 2-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The best part is that admission is free and open to the public!  There is even a kids crafting table outside so there is sure to be fun for everyone!

This week was also busy for another great reason...Peter Max was in town!  Peter is one of the incredible artists represented at Wentworth Gallery, and if you aren't familiar, is known for his psychedelic shapes and bright color palette.  He also just so happened to have a show opening in Bethesda, Maryland on Saturday afternoon.  My husband, Patrick, and I were in attendance to meet this amazing artist and were even able to get a photo op with him!  On top of being a true talent, he is charming, charismatic and just an overall great guy.  He told us that the first time he saw his wife, he told his buddy he was going to marry her.  You can tell he's just as in love with her today as he ever was, as he pointed out that everything from his socks to his jacket was picked out by her.  Love it!

If you want to see Peter Max's work in person, you can check it out at the Wentworth Gallery in Tyson's Galleria or at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda throughout this month.

And on a personal note, this week was also a bit crazy because I helped to plan our high school reunion this past Saturday evening.  It was a lot of work but at the same time it was a ton of fun and just a really nice time.  Our principal even came (he is a really cool man), and it was just a reminder of how incredibly fun our class was as a whole.  

Okay so I think this counters last weeks "nothing new to report" post.  Ha!  Hope you are having a happy Monday and enjoying another gorgeous day!

Happy Fall!

I guess in any job there are weeks when you feel like you have a ton going on to talk about, and other weeks, you feel like everything is just the status quo and there's nothing really to report.  This first week of Fall is one of those status quo weeks for me.  Fall is generally a pretty busy time for an artist in the DC area (or at least what I've come to find), but this week is going to be a straight up painting week, as I am only two weeks away from the ValeArts show and I need to keep painting for it.  I'm really set on painting a few more DC scenes to build up my collection, so in the next couple weeks expect a few posts on that, as well as more notes to mark your calendars for the Vale show!  

I hope you all are enjoying this lovely, cool weather.  I have already bought my pumpkins for the season and put out my scarecrows on the front stoop, which then successfully scared me later that evening when I went to turn the outside lights on.  Ha!

Have a GREAT week filled with pumpkin spiced lattes and apple spice candles!!!

The Painting Process! Summer Afternoon in Georgetown

Last week I wrote about the Art Walk at the Mosaic District, where I set up shop outside and did a painting demonstration!  I was working on a painting at the time called Summer Afternoon in Georgetown, a 20" x 24" oil on canvas.  While I spent most of my time talking, I finished it up at home, and took some pictures of how I painted the reflection of the water.  Check it out!

Below, I begin by blocking in colors.  As I mentioned in The Kennedy Center post, the water reflection is always darker than the thing it is reflecting.

I changed rooms to paint, so you can see the colors are much warmer in the picture.  I didn't adjust the colors, I just painted in warmer light!  Here everything is now blocked in.  I left the spots closest to the shore line, as well as the rocks in the foreground, untouched for now.

Next, I smooth out the color blocking.  This needs to be done while wet. I blended the colors together by simply going over them with a dry brush vertically, and then horizontally, left to right.

In this picture, you can see the shoreline is filled in.  This water is more "rippled" and therefore reflects the blue sky.  I also added additional ripples in throughout the river, which you can see with the whitish blue lines that now streak across the water in the foreground and middle ground.  This helps to give movement to the river.

Voila!  The rocks are now filled in, and the painting is complete!  To see the final image in more detail, check out the gallery page here!

Hope you have a great week!

Art Walk at Mosaic District!

This past Friday was the perfect night for the first ever Art Walk at the Mosaic District in Merrifield, Virginia.  Artists took over retail spaces and displayed their work for shoppers and passerby.  I had a great time displaying at Langford Market, a women's boutique that offers cute and affordable clothing for ladies of all ages.  So I didn't get paint all over the clothes, I set up my easel outside and painted for those who walked by.  It was the most beautiful night outside; cool, no breeze, and enough lighting to work into the evening.  It was great to have people stop and ask questions about the painting process, and while I can't say I got a ton done during those few hours, it was well worth it to be able to chat with everyone!  Below are a few more shots of the night!

Prints and paintings set up inside

The pinks in these paintings matched the pink mannequins!

Talking to a couple about the painting process.

Hope you are enjoying this cooler weather...until next Monday, have a happy week!

Art Walk at The Mosaic District

Photo Courtesy of www.mosaicdistrict.com

Happy Labor Day!  Come on out this Friday, September 6th, from 6-9 p.m. to check out the very first Mosaic District Art Walk at the Mosaic District in Merrifield.  I will be displaying some of my DC scenes as well as prints at Langford Market, which is right on District Avenue.  To learn more, click here!

Hope you are enjoying your beautiful day off and loving the beautiful sunshine outside!

The Painting Process: The Kennedy Center

After finishing a 12"x36" nighttime scene of the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC,  I realized that I cataloged a few pictures of it from start to finish, so I thought I would walk you through the process from start to finish in the next few shots.

First, I start with the base, which in this case was blue.  Call it a Shark Week inspiration, but this nighttime scene really captivated me when I saw a picture of it, so I figured I would give it a shot!  Note the two different colors, lighter up top and darker below.  The spot where the color changes is the horizon line, and everything above represents the sky, and everything below is the base for the buildings and water.  The reason for this area being darker is that reflection on water always appears darker than what it is actually reflecting.

Mid-process, putting in the base layer of lights, and beginning to fill in with more detail.  You can see here that besides the Kennedy Center building itself, there are few highlights and no detail in the buildings.  This is just basically to fill in the location of the buildings and the lights, and once this is dry, the detail can be added.  Note there is no reflection in the water yet or foliage in the foreground.  

Finished product!  You can see now that there is more detail in the buildings, and last but not least, the reflection of the water.  In addition, I added highlights to the lights, making them more colorful and brighter, especially in the traffic blur in the lower left hand corner.  Voila!

I hope you are having a wonderful Monday and that you enjoyed the process from start to finish!  See you next Monday!

Free Shipping August!

For the month of August, receive free shipping on the Surfin' Bird prints!  You can get it through my website, and it comes in two sizes, 11"x14" or 22"x28".  As always, these prints are standard frame sizes, making it easy to buy and fit into a pre-made frame at your local arts and crafts store.  This makes a perfect birthday or Christmas gift for those of you who like to get shopping done early, so make sure to pick one up! 

New Paintings!

Sunrise over the Tidal Basin, 12"x36", oil on canvas

I have to admit, my hand is starting to hurt, as I jumped from one painting into another very quickly.  I am glad I did, though, as it's always fun to feel productive, and for me, one of the best ways to feel productive is to finish a painting (and, of course, the laundry!).  I remember when I first started painting full time, I told myself I would finish paintings really quickly because I had all of this uninterrupted time.  Ha!  I quickly came to learn that being a full-time artist comes with a lot of work on the side, which has very little to do with putting brush strokes on a canvas.  The business side is a great excuse to take a break and rest your hand, but at the same time, I never knew how much time you could actually spend being an artist not painting.

Now that aside, I am really happy to have completed two paintings recently that I can share with you. It's not that the latest pieces were finished in record time or anything, but it has been a little bit of time since I shared paintings on the blog and I'm happy to say I have more than one to share!  The first is a snowy Capitol scene, which is a 20"x20" oil on canvas below.  I was inspired by the beautiful curvature of the sidewalk and the serenity of the freshly fallen snow.  I love painting DC as you might not normally see it, especially in tranquil settings like the one for this painting.  

After the Snow, oil on canvas, 20"x20"

Next, I just finished (read: still wet!) a scene of a sunrise over the Tidal Basin, overlooking the Jefferson and all the beauty of the cherry blossoms, which is at the top of this post.  It is a 12"x36", and while this one is obviously very different in dimension than the snowy scene above, it was similar in that it was a different size to try out and I really loved it!  Again, I was really inspired by the peaceful view, as the sun peeks over the horizon but before the hustle and bustle of the day begins.

Next up on the easel, a view of the Kennedy Center at dusk.  Praying for lots of productivity!

Hope you have a SPLENDID week!

Coming Up! ValeArts Show October 4th-6th

Photo Courtesy of ValeArts Member Diana Eichler

While it's been in the works for some time, I am excited to officially announce that I am going to be a guest artist at the ValeArts Fall Show!  This is a really exciting opportunity and I can't wait to hang my art next to these ten incredibly talented women (as well as guest artist Carie Cole!) that make up the ValeArts group.

So for those of you not familiar, ValeArts is a group of artists who meet and put on shows in the Vale Schoolhouse, a one bedroom building built in 1888 at the corner of Vale and Fox Mill Road in Oakton, Virginia.  The group formed in 1996 and has been putting on shows ever since, one in the Spring and one in the Fall.

For every show, they invite a couple of guest artists to join them, and I was invited to show alongside them this Fall.  Super exciting, right?!

While the show goes on for three days, there is a show opening on Friday, October 4th from 7-9 p.m.  See all the details below!

Photo Courtesy of ValeArts.com

Where: Vale Schoolhouse 

3124 Fox Mill Road, Oakton, Virginia 

(Corner of Fox Mill Road and Vale Road)

When:  October 4th, 5th, & 6th

Hours:  Friday, October 4th: 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Saturday, October 5th & Sunday, October 6th: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Opening Reception: Friday, October 4th, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. - Food & Drinks Provided!

I really hope to see you there, and in the meantime, if you would like to learn more about ValeArts, click here!

Until next week, hope you have lots of sunshine and warm weather!

Sunset at the Capitol

Sunset at the Capitol, 20"x20" oil on canvas

I guess at this point it's pretty safe to say that I have unintentionally found myself working on a study of the Capitol, as this will be at least my fourth painting of this majestic building.  Besides all the architectural detail, I love how different it looks in each season and time of day.  The palette (read: colors) ends up being so different each time and the visual and emotional impact ends up being unique as well.

Going off of the painting above, now that we are in the thick of summer (yay!), how beautiful are the sunsets right now?!?  I am always looking for beautiful skies to paint, so what better way to find it than to look outside the window?  My mom always jokes when the sky is really beautiful that if it were painted it would look fake.  That's why I say that God paints skies prettier than anyone else! :-)

Here is a picture of the sunset a few days ago.  It was a really hot day and the clouds were just gorgeous.

So taking a turn from summertime sunsets, I am finishing up my last Capitol painting (for now!), which is currently on the easel.  This time, though, I'm going back to snow!  Two Capitol's back to back, and then we'll see where to next!  Stay tuned!

A "Hot Letter" to My Canvas

Image Credit:  Gary Larson

I sit here, not on a Monday, my newly minted posting day, but on a Thursday, writing for my Monday post because I, like the artist above in Gary Larson's hilarious cartoon, am struggling with a brief bout of artist's block.  I guess you could say it's similar to writer's block, or in the corporate world, the 3 p.m. lunch hangover.  You know what I'm talking about...lunch is over, you're nowhere close to the end of the day, and you sort of wish you could pull a George Costanza and put a mattress under your desk and take a nap for awhile.  You WANT to be productive, but you just can't bring yourself to it. 

It all started yesterday, when I finished a painting I had just labored through.  I mean labored.  I picked the photo, the size, the palette, everything, so nothing was forced.  Until I started painting it.  At first all was good and moving along, but slowly it morphed and then quickly spiraled downward.  The brush just didn't flow, I lost patience, forced my way through it, and a week later, I am staring at it thinking how I never want to look at it ever again.  If I were the guy in The Far Side cartoon and my painting were the headless cow, I would have painted a chicken head on it.

While I don't especially want to even post the picture above, I think it's only fair to show you at least what I was attempting, when it was about halfway complete.  The final product is now hidden away in a dark closet.

So what now?  I put down the base layers for two new paintings, but both are still wet and therefore untouchable.  I could start another, but I'm stuck.  I don't know what I want to move onto and paint next.  What do I paint next?!  And I could just pick up a brush and just choose something, but I can't bring myself to it.  And I don't know why!  I just don't feel like it!  Argh!  Thus, artist's block.

My mom, full of sage advice, suggested I do something that totally refreshes my mind, even if it's a guilty pleasure (in the corporate world, this is called Facebook, or in some cases, Starbucks).  Being that I work by my lonesome, I decided that maybe I would take a little time and sit outside, since I love summer and sunshine.  It was great.  That is, until a massive yellow jacket saw me.  I am pretty convinced that most yellow jackets recognize humans as "those things that drink soda," and then wait for the opportunity to crawl into the can undetected, unbeknownst to said human.  Being that I don't really drink soda, we had a standoff for a couple minutes.  I thought I was fine, until I looked down at my seat and realized that a fuzzy spider had decided to make his webby home on the arm of the chair.  He was all curled up, and I could tell he was as bothered at my presence as I was at his, given that we had invaded each others rightful space. 

With that I decided to go ahead inside, and channeling my inner Abraham Lincoln (known for his "hot letters," emotional notes addressed to those he was upset with that he would never send), decided to put words to my frustration with my canvas.  I think when I started painting full-time, I assumed I would be constantly nose-to-canvas, hand-to-brush, no room for a tired mind or body, or creating anything less than a masterpiece.  Now I realize that it's not quite like that all the time, and that's okay, and part of the process.  

And when all else fails, make a hot letter.  Indoors, of course.

Artist friends, do you get artist's block?!  And to the rest, what gets you blocked sometimes?!

Wentworth Gallery: Elena Bond Show

In addition to painting, I love appreciating good art.  So this past Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending a show at Wentworth Gallery in Tysons Galleria for Elena Bond, a beautiful palette knife artist based in Miami, Florida.  Elena works on both canvas and paper, and her subjects range anywhere from colorful, rainy street scenes to beautiful ballerinas (her youngest daughter is a dancer).  I personally love her work because she uses color impeccably well to evoke emotion and her paintings just transport you.  And to top it all off, she is just incredibly kind as I inundated her with questions about her process as an artist and she answered everything gladly.  It was such a joy and made my weekend!  Here are a few pictures below of the show, I hope you enjoy!  And if you're in Tysons Galleria, be sure to check out her works at Wentworth Gallery, located on the third level near Neiman Marcus.  It is not to be missed!

Elena (left) and I with one of her beautiful ballerinas.  I love the contrast of the red against the neutral background.  This particular piece was painted on paper and was (not surprisingly!) sold to a couple that night.  

So many pieces to admire.  On the easel is one of her gorgeous street scenes.

My dear friend Natrisha and I picking Elena's brain.  Her disposition is just as gorgeous as her paintings, what a wonderful artist!

Okay so in the studio, I am continuing a study of paintings of the Capitol.  Below you can see the base layers for both...one a very light blue, the other a very warm sunset.  Two very different backgrounds for similar subject matter, you have to love DC for its diverse weather!

Stay tuned to see the final product!