In October, I took a painting trip to Estes Park, Colorado and the Rocky Mountain National Forest, joining about 30 people from the Outdoor Painters Society. I had never been to Colorado before, and had a great time. My friends Mike and Karol Kay Harris offered to put me up (put up with me?) in their condo while I was in town. KK wisely vacated, and Mike and I were bachelors for the week.
Here are a few of the paintings I did that week. They were painted on oil primed linen canvas taped to hardboard. It saves time; if I'm happy with the painting, I can glue it to a panel once it's dry. If I'm unhappy with it, I didn't waste a lot of time preparing a panel. Another benefit is that these sketches take up a lot less room to store than a bunch or 1/8" thick panels do. Even though I waited a few weeks before I put them away, I usually put a piece of waxed paper between the sketches so they don't accidentally stick to each other.
 |
| Falls in the Rocky Mountain National Forest, 9x12" |
 |
| Timber Lake Aspens, 9x12" |
 |
| Big Thompson River, 9x12" |
 |
| Moraine Park, 8x10" |
In addition to the oil sketches, I had my sketchbook and some ink and casein paint for some quick drawings.
 |
| 8x5" Watercolor Sketchbook pages |
