Plein Air Painting

Hello Everyone,

Welcome back to my blog!  Besides painting, I teach so that I can make money.  And of course I work because "I owe, I owe, it's off to work I go...." Grad school put me in a bit of debt.  But, enough complaining.  Currently, I'm an artist living at home with my parents so I can save money. Pride has been thrown out the window a long time ago.  Now, back to ART!

I teach 4 times a week and will hopefully teach more as time goes by.  During the week I teach children oil painting at a place called For Art's Sake in Agoura Hills, California.  Let me tell you, teaching kids is not an easy task, especially in oil painting.  While it can be quite fulfilling and entertaining, they sure do keep me on my toes. For instance, one kid was eating Doritos and painting at the same time (I wouldn't suggest doing that.) After she finished eating, she licked her fingers, which many people do.  The problem was she had paint on her fingers as well.  Soon after, I am cleaning white paint off this child's tongue.  Not quite what I was trained for in grad school, but, it has been a great learning experience all on its own.

On the weekends, I teach an adult class through Conejo Valley Adult School, (age range 40's-maybe early 70's).  After having a week filled with children, this class is my relaxing class. I teach my adult students plein air painting.  For those of you whom are not artists, plein air painting is painting outside.  We paint landscapes from life.  It is lots of fun!  Of course, if the weather permits it.  I had to cancel class a couple weeks in a row because of RAIN.  Love rain, just not on Saturdays when I'd rather be outside and paint.

My students are improving a lot since we first began class, so I was able to paint something this past Saturday!  We went to Paramount Ranch in Agoura Hills, California.  If you live near the area and have never gone, you need to.  It's awesome and I plan on going back there.  It is used for hiking, movies, TV shows, and much more.  "Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman" was filmed in ranch's "historical town."  Now, the painting is a view from Paramount Ranch, not of the ranch itself.  But, fear not! I shall be painting the Ranch in the near future.  So, I had about an hour or less that I worked on this painting below.  Haven't figured out a title yet, I'm always up for suggestions.