SOCALPAPA Quick Draw

Saturday morning SOCALPAPA had their plein air Quick Draw ahead of their annual Back Bay Art Show.  I had gone and painted a couple of times to paint in the weeks leading up to the event.  In preparation for the event I created a fairly extensive checklist of things to do.  The worst feeling at an event is to not be prepared or have all of your essential tools at hand.

I paint quickest in pastel.  My style seems more unique compared to the other mediums I paint in.  The surface I paint on is also unique.  I make my own surface from plywood, pumice gel, and acrylic paint. I believe this gives me an advantage in compositions because I am able to paint larger than my competitors.

Since I had painted this scene a couple of times earlier I was able to improve on my earlier efforts and take what I did best from each painting.  The practice pieces also helped me manage my time.  I worked basically from top to bottom and back to front.  I knew when to paint each part of the painting to catch the light I was looking for because the clouds broke at basically the same time on my practice rounds.

I finished the clouds as the sun broke down the June gloom.  I invested the most time in the background so that my ariel perspective read correctly.  The painting progressed in mark making from small to large.  As time was running out I moved to the foreground and finished in a flurry.  The foreground was so detailed and dynamic.  It could have been intimidating but it wasn't because I purposely don't give myself enough time to second guess my decision making at the end.  I build to a crescendo.

 "Morning Heat" plein air pastel on board 24x24.