Stopping for the Night

Posted on July 29, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

We were on our way to Burnt Hill Mesa in Colorado for our annual family reunion and stopped for the night at McPhee Reservoir. It had been raining and the scent of water and pine filled the air. We hiked over to the cliffs and looked down over the much depleted reservoir as the sun set. This scene would have made for a good sketch but I was without my sketching materials.

Before getting on our way the next morning, I sketched our camper nestled by the piñon in our campsite. I mostly used chalk markers, a new medium for me. I like the way it combines the opacity of gouache with the precision of markers.

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Cliffs Below Cabrillo National Monument

Posted on July 18, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan
The Cliffs Painting As Originally Completed

My cousin and I painted the cliffs below Cabrillo National Monument a few days ago. It was a foggy day with soft, muted light.

I don’t usually make many adjustments to my paintings when I get home, mostly because something gets lost in the process. But I thought the colors were too dull, did not like the diagonal across the upper edge of the sea, found the oval in the sky distracting, and wanted to indicate more of the foliage on the right side. This piece needed some adjustments!

Below is the changed painting, but as usual, I like the original version better. Even though this second version is happier and brighter, the focal area shifted from the cliffs to the foliage. Additionally, the overall mood of the first is truer to what originally struck me about the scene. Probably some mix of the two versions would be best.

The Cliffs Painting After Making Adjustments

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A Moment Near Mission Beach

Posted on July 16, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

My cousin and I painted near Mission Beach. A street that curved away from us toward the beach caught our attention, as did the gentle light from the foggy afternoon. It was busy with cars and pedestrians, but somehow the mood seemed dominantly peaceful. I placed a single person into the scene, thinking it would better capture the day’s spirit than showing more of the commotion.

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In the Mediterranean Garden

Posted on July 13, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

My cousin, who is a superb artist, is in town for a few days. We went up to the college today and spent the day painting there. In the morning, we stood at our easels by the edge of the mesa and painted vistas on large sheets of paper. By the afternoon, we were ready to sit and made our way to the Mediterranean garden. The garden is cool and shady, packed with succulents, and perfect for focusing on details. I used a 12-inch square sketchbook and sketched my cousin and the garden.

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More from Yesterday

Posted on July 9, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

These are two looser pieces from my sketching trip yesterday to the West Basin along San Diego Bay. It is the same subject matter of people and their gear, but I completed these more rapidly and with less planning.

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Cleaning up the Kayak

Posted on July 8, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

I sketched today at the West Basin along San Diego Bay. The water was full of people on paddleboards, kayaks, and such. But the color of the building across the parking lot caught my eye, so I turned my back on the bay. However, I happened to set up in a place where people cleaned their equipment before leaving. Before long, someone came by with his yellow kayak and began rinsing it down. I quickly put him into my sketch.

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My Friend Took a Nap

Posted on July 6, 2021 by Sarah Sullivan

Our Zoom model tonight was delayed, so my friend did a good deed and volunteered to pose. But sometimes if you sit still a minute, you just fall asleep. She got a nap, and the rest of us had fun trying to capture her relaxed arm and tired body language.

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