"Sailboat, Hurst Harbor" 12x9" oil

I've been trying to keep things simple, in an attempt to
focus on the essentials in the landscape and have this
idea read in a painting.

The harbor was really crowded with docked boats, so I ended
up omitting the rest, to focus on one that caught my attention.

"Lost Mine Peak" 14x11" Oil

I had finished my hike at around 7550 ft, where
I was able to contemplate the vista, and suggest
the view through all the mountain air.

Howard Roark

"Through out the centuries there were men who took first steps down new roads, armed with nothing but their own vision. The great creators, the thinkers, the artists, the scientists, the inventors, stood alone against the men of their time. Every new thought was opposed. Every new invention was denounced. But the men of unborrowed vision went ahead. They fought, they suffered, and they paid - but they won." -Ayn Rand

"Pedernales, Boulders in Sunlight 12x9" Oil

It was fun and challenging for me to set the context of
the water for the boulders, especially with the wind
creating so many possibilities in the scene.

Overall a good opportunity to compose patterns
and try to unify the whole.

"Pedernales, Boulder View" 14x11" Oil

"Lake Travis, Giles Shore" 14x11" Oil

As the Lake level lowers, opportunities to paint new scenes rise:

"Reimers Ranch" 12x9" oil

"The Pedernales Falls" 24x18 oil

This is how I want to remember Pedernales Falls, when it was
most dramatic and powerful.

"Lake Travis View" 15x8 Oil

Went back to the same location, this time with
more anticipation of how the scene would play out:

"Lake Travis, Taylor Cove" 12x9" oil

Across Lake Travis, from my vantage point
along Taylor Cove, I watched as the light
played along the distant bluff:

"Lake Travis, Giles Rock" 12x9" Oil

After finally finding a path along the
cliff wall, and down the rocky shore
I was ready to paint this unique area
of Lake Travis:

"Cypress Shadows" 12x9" Oil

"Placid Waters" 14x11 Oil

Found a pleasing area of the river towards evening,
the sky was bright, like light through ground
glass and the water was calm and peaceful.

Enchanted Rock-"East Vista" 15x8" Oil

I normally don't favor noon as a time to paint outdoors
because of the white hot sun saturating the ground, not
to mention the incredible heat, but today I thought I'd
give it a shot. It is challenging enough for me to try
and get the essentials down of a scene, and it doesn't
help to have strong gusts of wind battering the easel
while the sun beats down, but perhaps these things
remind me to get the important idea down, fast.

"Pedernales, Boulder View" 10x8" Oil

Spent the afternoon down at Pedernales, at a pretty
bend in the river with a few distinct boulders to
study. Since the water level is so low I was able
to setup my gear right in the middle of where a
strong current had once been. A good vantage point:

Oh, I had painted this scene with my canvas in full
sunlight(as opposed to painting in the shade which I
try to do) so I decided to photograph it as I had seen
it, right off the easel, so please excuse the glare from
direct sunlight:

"McKinney, Cacti" 10x8" Oil

"Pedernales, Cypress Along the River" 15x8" Oil

After a long hike through the woods I came across
a refreshing scene of the river:

"Hancock Bridge" 12x9" Oil

Spent my late afternoon at the Hancock Park, trying
to capture a pleasant area of the golf course:

"A Sense Of Place"

"Imagine a painter who sets up his easel and spends three weeks on a meticulous rendering of a small town. Another artist comes along, does a sketch in an hour and leaves. Both paintings are shown in the village, and our careful painter scoffs at the sketch: "It's not even the village," he might say. "He's left out the hen house, heightened the mountain, and cut down the trees!" Yet the townspeople immediately identify with the sketch. One painter gave them a blueprint of the village; the other, a sense of place." - Paul Strisik

"Pedernales, River's Bend" 15x8" Oil

I had spent this afternoon down by the river,
trying to compose all the beautiful elements
into my painting for the day:

"Lily of Mayfield" 15x8" Oil

I had found a peaceful area to set up my gear
and paint alongside a lily pond in Mayfield Park.
I started painting around 3:30p.m., and not
more than 40 minutes had past before the lilies
started to close up for the day. I had anticipated
this though, since I had studied their character
the day before.


As I watched what had initially caught my interest
start to seal shut, I again was reminded that painting
isn't about copying nature, petal by petal.


In this photo down below, my focal points, offering
the most contrast by displaying themselves above
the murky pond water,are now wrapped up awaiting
the night.

"Mayfield Lilies" 10x8" Oil

The beautiful lilies were enough inspiration for
me to paint, and I wanted to capture them early
on in the painting, but I had to remind myself
that there must first be water for the lily pads
to sprout, followed by the flower itself.

The flower was my driving idea, the thing that I
would execute with accents and such, but that
idea was suspended until further in the painting
process.

Just as if there would be no flower in the garden
without the context of water, in my painting I
don't think I could represent a light shape without
first having laid in a dark shape.

"Cluster of Rocks" 10x8 Oil

Earlier today I had studied down by the Pedernales
River:


After creating a painting I often take a photo in black and white,
for better understanding and to see if my idea was clear(I had
wanted to bring attention to two rocks in particular out of
the whole cluster)

"Riverbank Tree" 10x8 Oil

"Bull Creek Passage" 10x8" Oil

Areas of the once flowing creek are turned into hiking trails,
offering new vantage points to paint from:

"Greenbelt Creek Bed" 10x8" Oil

The scorching heat combined with moving shadows
across the stage was enough to keep me painting, and
fast. I enjoy painting at a quick pace anyways, in that
I value what I see very much and it is exciting to try
and put into paint what I had as my driving idea.

"It would be impossible for me to paint outdoors
even if I wanted to. There is nothing immobile in our
surroundings...But even if everything were fixed, it
would be enough just for the sun to move in order to
give a different appearance to things. One must paint
quickly because so much is lost in an instant."
-Sorolla

I value every instant when I'm creating, so much.

"Greenbelt Cliff" 12x9" Oil

This morning I had wanted to initially paint this
cliff side but I had not anticipated the lighting,
and upon hiking to the cliff I had remembered
that the sun does not set the stage for this area
until later in the afternoon. So, I had decided
to paint a scene of several boulders instead,
and wait for the sun to set the context for later.

This location in the greenbelt is the place
that I was introduced to plein air painting,
almost three years ago. I decided to take
another visit now that I'm more experienced
at painting. I've tried painting this cliff area
several times in the past but the results
weren't too pleasing. This time I'm happy
with my attempt.

"Greenbelt Boulders" 10x8" Oil

As I was walking along the creek bed
I saw the morning light being cast onto
the trees and ground, not yet having
reached the boulders; simple enough
to setup my gear and paint.



Soon after I had begun, not more than
30minutes into the painting, I saw
that the sun had started to caress
the boulders and eventually wash
out the whole scene with that
saturated light of noon. I'm often
reminded that landscape painting
isn't about copying the scene,
but rather trying to make a
meaningful statement in paint.

(In this photo, the light saturated
everything. My original idea can
be seen on the canvas, not in the
scene before me anymore.)

"Pine View" 12x9" Oil

Out of all of the pines, one in particular had
caught my attention:

"Rivers" Gallery show at the Workman Gallery

'Rivers'

Drop me in the water

By Robert Faires

One of my plein air paintings, entitled "Bull Creek"
was mentioned in a review written by an editor for
the Austin Chronicle named Robert Faires, for an
upcoming group show at the Wally Workman Gallery,
called "Rivers".

"Woodland Path" 8x"10 Oil

Today I took a walk through the woods, with
composition and variety in mind:

"Piney Ridge" 12x9" Oil

"Cliff Side, Above 360" 14x11" Oil

Wanting to express a scenic view
looking towards the east, I had
decided to hike the cliff side
above 360:

"Bull Creek View" 12x9" Oil

Under the shade of an old oak,
I watched as the light played
across the boulders of Bull Creek.

"Creek Wall" 9x9" Oil

"A River Calm" 15x8" Oil

I was glad to see the winds fade
as the water calmed during a late
afternoon trip down by the Pedernales
River:

"Shallow Waters" 12x9" Oil

These rocks of the Pedernales River, usually submerged,
were warmed by the late afternoon sun as they stood
in shallow waters.

"Evening Cove" 15x8" Oil

I loved watching the shadows gradually spread across
the landscape while the sun lit the rocks in an orange
glow.

"Riverside Rocks" 12x9" Oil

"Sunlit River" 12x9" Oil

"Turkey Peak" 14x11 Oil

"Echo Canyon" 14x11 Oil

Here is my attempt to withstand the sun and wind:

"River Ridge" 14x11" Oil

"Hollow" 14x11 Oil