I left Phoenix and drove across the desert today, stopping near Yuma to visit my friend from college. It was getting dark when we went up on her rooftop to watch the sun drop below view. It was so gorgeous that we both had to sketch. This is the view looking east away from the sunset. The mountain has very little foliage and it reflected the color of the setting sky.
Yesterday morning I sat in my sister’s yard and worked at capturing the lushness of her plants and the eagerness of the birds at the feeders.
Some people think of Phoenix as an arid and barren place and when I come through here in July I am inclined to agree. However, Phoenix in April is full of flowering plants and trees, the skies are a clear blue, and purple mountains edge the view in every direction. Spring is definitely Phoenix’s season.
My sister hosted a baby shower today for our nearly arrived grand nephew. Her house and garden were gorgeous and it was so much fun to visit with everyone. Afterwards we sat on the patio and talked about it while my sister posted photos to social media. I got a sketch of her in the process and then later imported it into Procreate where I finished it.
I haven’t sketched since leaving Hawaii for San Diego and then Phoenix so it felt really good to do a quick sketch of my sister this evening. She was working on a project at the table and I liked the shapes of the chair and her body against the darkness of the sliding door.
It was a stormy evening and I sketched my grown kids as they played in the waves. I liked the way they leapt into the swells, raising their arms, and shouting. It was good to see them having so much fun.
This is a sketch of the beach along Waimanalo Beach today. It was wonderful, windy, and wild, and the waves came way up on the shore.
Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve in Oahu Hawaii is a snorkeling park full of sea life and coral. It also had a very cute family that I had a chance to sketch as I sat behind them on the beach.
I painted today from the corner of the lanai, or porch, that wraps around the side of the rental where we are staying here in Oahu, Hawaii. It offers a mesmerizing view of the sea that is set off by ironwood trees and shrubbery. I like the contrast between the verticals of the tree trunks and the horizontal sweep of the sea and shoreline.
This morning I got up early and walked down to the beach for this sketch. Yesterday I painted the view along the beach looking south. Today’s sketch is from the same spot but looking north.
We arrived at Waimanalo about an hour before sunset and walked down to the beach for a first look. This is a very quick sketch in a very small sketchbook, a first sketch of the week, to help me begin to become familiar with the colors and shapes of Waimanalo.
