En Plein Air: David's Business (Acrylic, 10 x 16)

It was the Maloy Hay Company. I went there this afternoon. I had drizzles on and off quite a few times during the two hours.

Water Aerobics: The Coach and the Learners

En Plein Air: Owl Creek Boat Works (Acrylic, 10 x 16)

I went to the owl Creek Boat Works this morning and did this plein air sketch.

Sketches at the Miromar Shopping Center

Today we went to the Miromar Shopping Center. The chief shopping commander in my family officially began to exert her passion for holiday shopping. In the meanwhile, as the habit we have formed over the decades, I went to the Starbucks. With a cup of coffee, I sat outside under the cover and sketch the shoppers there.

En Plein Air: Road End (Acrylic, 9 x 12)

I went with the Lee Plein Air Group to the Harns Marsh this morning. Standing on the marsh, I saw, across from the canal, a warning sign pole on a dirt mound which indicated the end of the road. The street could be E 37th or E 36th Street. I was almost facing the sun.

Alla Prima Portrait: Camilla (Acrylic, 20 x 16)

Camilla is today's model at the VAC portrait studio.

En Plein Air: Roadside Weeds (Acrylic, 9 x 12)

Since yesterday, I have switched to acrylic in terms of the medium I used. I felt kind of like readapting to it. However, shortly after, I began to like it again. It is known to many artists that the problem with acrylic is the fact that it dries too fast to have a smooth color transition. I have never used any commercial tarders, but I learned from other artists online that the glycerine which you may get from the pharmacy works just the same. 

Alla Prima Portrait: Mary (Acrylic, 20 x 16)

Mary is a resident at the Winkler Court Nursing Home. Yesterday, I called my friend Kirsten saying I would like to go and paint portrait there today. She told me to go there in the afternoon when she was working the late shift. I usually set up to paint in the hall, right in front of Mary's room, so I was familiar with her. At first, Kirsten arranged for a lady named Connie to sit for me. Somehow, Connie seemed to have changed her mind and didn't want to sit. Since in this section, residents more or less suffered from Altheimer. I was not really surprised when things like that happened. Therefore, Kirsten asked Mary to sit for me. She looked a little stern as she said herself that she didn't smile very often. 

Sketch: Sharon

For my foraminal stenosis, I have to exercise my back. Recently I go to the community pool, a couple of times a week. This afternoon I took my sketchbook with me. By the time I finished my swimming workout, there were not many adults left. A granny was sitting by the pool watching kids play. So I sketched her. I didn't know she noticed what i was doing. When I finished the drawing and was about to leave, she stopped me and said, "May I see your drawing, please?" I let her see but was a little embarrassed because I drew her as she was with no prettification. Therefore, I said sheepishly, "No sure if I did you justice." She responded with a smile,"very nice." And then she introduced herself. Her name was Sharon.

En Plein Air: A View at the Prairie Pines Preserve (Oil, 12 x 9)

It was the first time I went to the Prairie Pines Preserve today. The Lee Prein Air group met there. I used a very simple composition. In order to break the boring straight line across the paper, I added an egret to it.

Alla Prima Portrait: Artist Susan (Oil, 20 x 16)

It was VAC's regular Portrait Studio day. Susan is a VAC artist. I painted her portrait before. This time I preferred to paint the figure instead.

En Plein Air: Tracks Crisscrossing (Oil, 12 x 9)

It is a local roadside view.

En Plein Air: The Owl Creek Boat Works (Oil, 16 x 10)

The Owl Creek is a boat-repairing yard. I went there this morning and they seemed to have a great business and there were quite a lot of boats that needed repairing. It was the first time that I saw boats were placed all the way to the road. 

En Plein Air: The Fall (Oil, 9 x 12)

This is the Harns Marsh. I went there this morning. Out there you could feel the fall in the air.

En Plein Air: Church Yard Sale (Oil, 9 x 12)

I meant to paint the farmers' market at the Alliance for the Arts parking lot this morning. When I was driving on Leland Heights Blvd, I saw there was a yard sale at the First Community Congregational Church. In fact, what I planned to paint was figures in the sun. So I told myself why I had to drive all the way to Fort Myers to paint while the yard sale could serve the same purpose. With that idea in mind, I made a U-turn and pulled into the church parking lot. I immediately settled down to paint the people there.

En Plein Air: Neighbors in the Temporary Heaven (Oil, 9 x 12)

I went with the Lee Plein Air Group to paint at the Sweetwater Landing Boatyard this morning. Two boats happened to dock by the drawbridge on the Caloosahatchee.  

Oil Sketch: Portrait Studio at the VAC (16 x 20)

Thursday, it was the VAC's Portrait Studio day. The model was Linda whom I painted before. I was kind of tired of painting the same portrait posture. Therefore, for a change, I simply painted some of my fellow artists. Just for practice.

En Plein Air: Dry Enough to Stock (Oil, 9 x 12)

I meant to paint the Fresh Produce Farmers' Market this morning. When I got there, my friend, farmer Tom was there by himself. He told me that he started the retail business later than usual. He was preparing to reopen the market for the coming season.  Therefore, I kept driving along Highway 80 till I ended up at the Meloy Hay Company again. The hay rolls had been left in the sun for quite a few days. Now David's grown up children were helping him get in the hay rolls. I guessed they were dry enough to stock.