Lake Tahoe Rocks

Sketches for

Lately studio work has consisted of working on proposals for commissions.  Three projects are accepted and will now be painted.  Thought you would like to see the sketches.

This triptych will be composed of three canvases.  The middle will be 48 x 60 with the two flanking at 48 x 27.  

Kayaking Into The Rocks II will be 48 x48

Tahoe Serenity II will be 30 x 48

The canvases are under construction and painting will begin almost immediately.  Check back to follow the process.

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Completion of a Commission

Done And Delivered

Tahoe Serenity

32" x 48"

Many hours during several weeks this canvas has been sitting on my easel going through the process of creation. With frequent trips via kayak, stand up paddle board or in my rowing shell I have continually visited the area that inspired this painting.  To be able to do this while working on the painting brings additional depth and feeling to the work. Below you will see a series of photos taken during the process.

Tahoe Serenity

32" x 48"

Original Acrylic Painting

Tahoe Serenity completed and delivered today.  A small blank canvas went up on the easel so check back to see what happens.

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End of Summer Commission

We All Love Summer

View from the kayak

Research and painting.  That's what makes up summer for me, and I am in heaven.   Spending time on Lake Tahoe, in kayak and rowing shell or on my SUP, I weave my way through the massive boulders that decorate the shore of Tahoe bringing back to the studio mental images of those granite monoliths that become inspiration for my paintings.  

It has been a summer of commissions and the newest is currently on the easel.

Presented and Selected Palette

Presented and Selected Painted Sketch

The Beginning of the Painting

Under painting some of the shadows

The Rocks begin to take form

More above the water line work

Continuing the work on the rocks

How the painting looks today.

This is the beginning of the commission, with more to accomplish during the daily painting time in the studio.  I am still out on the lake enjoying the never ending research, observing the beauty of Tahoe so that I can bring it back into my studio and interpret what I see.

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The Influence of Lake Tahoe

Painted Again and Again.

Unaffected Balance

48 x 36

3500.

How and where we get our inspiration can be a mystery, but there is no doubt there are places that influence an artist's work.  Spending hours on Lake Tahoe in the summer paddling and rowing past and through massive boulders that decorate the shore and shallow water areas is inspirational. One of my favorite areas is directly off the Crystal Bay Point on the north end of the lake where there are stacks, groupings, and piles of huge granite boulders that have been portrayed in my compositions over and over again.  

Other artists, such as Georgia O'Keeffe painted the same subjects again and again. In her case, a view of the Pedernal, from her home in Abiquiu, NM inspired her to paint and repaint this mountain. There must be over 100 paintings created by O'Keeffe of this subject.  She is quoted as saying, "It's my private mountain", and I understand her feeling.  I have a similar connection to Crystal Bay and the boulders there.  

 

Pedernal with Red Hills (Red Hills with the Pedernal), 1936. Georgia O'Keeffe (American, 1887 - 1986) oil on linen, 19 3/4 x 29 3/4 in. (50.2 x 75.6 cm)

Last week when it was time to begin a new painting I found myself drawn to painting, what I call, Balanced Rock. Though it won't be for the hundredth time, it will be the seventh or eighth composition influenced by this formation.  

Photo of Balanced Rock with high water levels.

Acrylic Study for Balanced Rock with high water levels

Pamela Hunt Lee

Balancing Rock III

48 x 30

sold

Photo of Balanced Rock 2013

Notice the water levels are lower than in the photo above.

Balance Maintained

48 x 48

sold

Photo of Balanced Rock with low water levels 2015

Notice all the exposed rocks that were under water in the photos above.

Not only the influence of the rock formation itself but the changing environment with the lowering water levels inspired the desire to paint this composition again.

Unaffected Balance

48 x 36

3500.

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It's a new web site, so come take a look and tell me what you think.

Boulder Bay.

And Unexpected Delights.

Again and again, unexpected delights surround if you just open yourself to the possibility.  Do you recall a few of my blog posts this past spring that talked about being open to new and unexpected situations? I talked about Shirley Moore and her book, You Are So You.  Here we are, months later, in a week that was filled with unexpected twists and turns, visions, and delights.

When I picked up my mail, the current issue of Perspectives, the Placer County Arts magazine was there.  The cover is a reproduction of one of my Lake Tahoe Boulder paintings. Not only an honor to have this painting selected for the cover, but also a unexpected delight.

Then, while out sketching among the boulders in the bay, Crystal Bay, I rounded a corner and came upon a field of rock cairns which were tucked back in a cove.  It was magical and unexpected.  Due to lower water levels there were multiple rock platforms for the cairns which someone had used to create a unique visual display.

While sitting in the kayak, observing these sculptures, the water lines on the rocks came into focus and unexpectedly influenced the sketching.

After all, this is the fourth year of drought conditions in California and Lake Tahoe water levels have dropped significantly.  This has happened previously leaving water marks on the boulders, and with this current low level many of those stains are visible. 

When I returned to the studio, with brush in hand, the water lines became a strong design and composition element in my current painting.  This was a completely unexpected turn and brought my thoughts back to Shirley Moore's attitude about being open to unexpected delights.

Lowering Water Levels In Boulder Bay 2015

Acrylic on Canvas

20x20

800.

Be open.  Be aware.  Be ready.  Something delightfully unexpected may happen.

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