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I painted this larger piece from a plein air workstudy I started at Bommer Canyon.  Here are my notes from that day:

"Today was a good day in the Bommer Canyon ranchlands.  I hiked up to a point where I have stopped before to gaze at a lone oak tree growing upwards and out over a rock ledge of sandstone.  I became enthralled by the strong cast of dark greens with the violet shadow hues cast.  There was a second scrub oak that stood in the background.  Beyond the large tree up the canyon was gulch beneath the top rim that was a variety of blue-grays and mauve greys with smaller green trees or shrubs dotting the ravine as it turned towards the sunlight. The sun lit up the trees with lighter, warm greens.  The field in front was a gleaming oat-topped pasture with scattered sagebrush. The outcroppings of the sandstone ledge added a balance beam of sunny warmth to counter the deep cool greens of the large stately oak tree.   The cool shadows repeated in the sandstone for harmony.  Being near the coast, these oaks are of the coastal live oak species.  The mist in the air in the morning from the coast tends to add the cool blues to the ravines in the canyon.  They burn off by noon and the blue-violets disappear.  I love the morning colors for this reason.   At the end of my stay a female coyote wandered into the field. Her attention moved towards me and then she sat just watching me with a contented look on her muzzle.  I took many pictures and did not finish my workstudy due to my fascination with her and hers with me.  Her warm rust and orange colors of thick winter fur stood out clearly againtst the fresh spring greens in the pasture."   I later chose not to include her in the landscape as she would be a tiny figure in this large pasture.  I will later paint a more intimate study featuring her in the wild oats and grasses with the sandstone.  

 

This setting is of Bommer Canyon, part of the old Irvine Ranch.  From Wikipedia on Bommer Canyon, "Between the late 1800s to the 1970s, the "Bommer Canyon Cattle Camp" served as the center of the Irvine Company’s cattle operations.  The canyon is part of the Irvine Ranch, which itself is a National Natural Landmark, the first California Natural Landmark,^[1][2] and part of the City of Irvine Open Space Preserve.

 

Below is the spot I chose to paint in.  I have been along this trail many times and feel connected to this location.  It has so much history, I can imagine the cattle that once roamed here. 

 

 

Below is an image of how far along I got after I saw the coyote.  I didn`t mind not finishing, I thoroughly enjoyed my encounter with wildlife.  I think that small dot is her in front of the sunlit sandstone bank near the oak tree shadow.  She was sitting at that time, just being my audience.  Curious about what I was doing with a brush maybe? 

 

 

 

Here is the coyote in one of her many poses.  I used a 270mm lens to capture this close-up image with my Canon dSLR.

 

 

Below here is an image of the beginning stages of the larger piece in my home studio.  Notice the workstudy taped to my easel above and the large monitor showing a digital, high resolution image to work with as references.  Also, how messy I am, but that is an artist.  There is method to my madness.  In this initial painting start, I block in the major color shapes and organize the composition with the shadow masses first.    From the Edgar Payne book, "Composition of Outdoor Painting"  I used the Steelyard form where one large mass is balanced on a fulcrum.  But I added the two shapes in the front, one being the sagebrush and the other was old mustard stalks with fresh bloomed mustard flowers on the right.   I wanted to make the observer feel as if they were standing in the thick of the pasture and feel like walking into it.  That is where I was standing and I felt the wild nature of all things. 

 

 

Here is the large painting complete:

 

 

"To be in the presence of protected species make my heart sing and I want to paint artistic tributes to the wild beauty before me."  

E J Williams

 

A close-up of the star of the painting:

 

 

To keep the oak tree appearing in the distance, I gently swished a brush loaded with a mixture of the blue-violet blend that I use as a mother or soup to bring the painting into a color balance.  It gave the tree a veil and kept it in the right perspective. 

 

The price reflects a framed painting with a wide dark wood frame from the King of Frames or Randy Higbee Gallery.  

 

 

 

This particular painting is a small work that I will be painting a large 36x24 from.  It is a commissioned painting.  I will allow prints to be purchased from it.  I will upload the large resolution image of this to ImageKind.com this link will open a new window. 

 

I went to Catalina Island in early March this year to paint this scene on location.  I felt the need to see this beautiful place and record to memory all the special feelings, colors and light it had on canvas first before painting the large work in the studio.  A workstudy can record all that and more. 

Here is when I began the painting:

 

Below is the first shape I placed in, the island bluff by the casino.  The casino with the reflected light was the center of interest in this painting.  Since the afternoon light was quickly disappearing from the edge of the bluff, I had to paint it quickly.  I liked that affect of sunlight kissing the rocky slope.

 

Below, I have blocked in the essential major shapes and points of interest.  I had only 2-1/2 hours to grab down what color notes and major shapes, design/composition and values here before the sun left the casino in complete shadow.

 

Once the sunlight disappeared behind the mountains, I had to quit.  My digital images would be valuable to complete this at the home studio.

Below, I show how far along I got:

 

This felt good to me since I established the angles of light and masses with a feel for atmospheric perpsective already taking shape. 

 

Below is my set-up, I had to breathe in a lot of smoke from golf carts buzzing by me, they were coming and going to the Wrigley Mansion up the hill.  Funny thing, I left my easel tripod at the hotel I was staying at.  So I used bungie cords to secure my easel to the guard rail.  They also were useful in attaching the umbrella pole to the rail as the winds were a bit blustery at first.  I brought some print-outs from home of the scene that my customers wanted with requests for certain landmarks to be included in the painting, like the Holly Hill house, the Chimes Tower and the landing pad.  Since the Holly Hill house was under construction, I found an image online that helped me to draw it out. 

 

 

 

 

Here is the final piece:

 

 

The link to ImageKind to buy prints of this and other artworks of mine.  It will open up a new window in your browser and keep my website open.

 

Commissions by EJ Williams

 

I do take commissions, meaning if you have a place, subject, portrait you would like painted, I may entertain that depending on what it is.  I prefer to work from life as the artist`s eyes see more than any camera can.  A camera will take a literal picture with all the details, an impressionist artist must be there to see the tonal gradations, light in the atmosphere and the subject matter along with absorbing the feeling of the place.  It is from all this and more that we abstract our artistic rendition.   The visual combined with the feeling of the location and the artist`s spirit create the most heartfelt works of art.  The best way to do that is by painting a workstudy en plein air (on location).    I can paint a refined plein air piece of your choice of locations for a finished, commissioned artwork if you prefer plein air over studio but they can not be too large, 16x20 is the largest I do for plein air.  Or I create a more painterly workstudy as a reference for a large studio piece, 16x20 up to 60x48 or larger even.  If it is a figural work, then I want to paint the person in the studio or at a location outdoors, weather pending. I began with drawing sketches and make notes to get a good feeling for the design qualities and composition, then paint a loose workstudy.  From there I move onto creating a larger piece.

There are monetary requirements to begin the process of fulfilling your commission.  25% down to start, 25% after approval of workstudy to begin the large studio work and the rest, 50% when the large work is complete and approved.  You purchase the frame and I can guide you on those choices. 

At this present time I charge $3.00 per square inch of painting space, for example, 16x20=320 x $3.00 per sq inch = $960.    For works larger than that I will reduce my per square inch to approx $2.50 per square inch.  For Example, a 24X36=864 x $2.50 = $2,160.  My prices go up approx 10-15% each year, so keep that in mind.  This is my 2012 rate for the whole year and it is half what a gallery price might be.

I could add so much more, but let`s make it simple so I can have the time to finish my other works I am presently painting. 

 

Meanwhile for commission inquiries, go to my contact page on this website and send an email with your request. 

 

Here is a commission piece and my explanation of the process:

"Cirque du Pond"  18x14, oil on stretched linen.  Private collection

 

To create this studio work of art, I went to the Mission San Juan Capistrano several times and painted small 8x10 to 9x12 workstudies.  I have painted and sketched on location there many times. 

On location at the Mission San Juan Capistrano May 2011.  The workstudy is created loosely but not a mushy mess of dashed in color notes, it is a compilation of the mood, the light, the natural colors and the focal area.  In different paintngs with unique compositions I many times re-arrange the waterlilies to enhance the focal point.  From this particular painting I took my 8x10 home for all the jewels of colors it gave me to go on.  I even worked on the 8x10 at the studio to refine it into a better finished piece since it was going to the collector along with the larger studio created work.  There is a special light affect at this pond where one side is dark behind the large fountain and the area around the fountain is high key, light streams through the reeds casting a unique gradated light across the lilies, pads and water.  It is a difficult scene to paint as the reeds cast swirly reflections on the water around the lily pads.  The Koi as they swim through the water cause light reflected ripples which indicate they are underwater.  Without those, they will look to be on top of the water.  My high quality SLR digital camera is fitted with a circular polarizer filter to cut down on glare, so I was able to use my digital images of swiming Koi as a great reference in the studio piece. 

"Waterlily Cluster" 8x10, oil on linen panel

 

I found in my sketchbook notes I wrote on the day after I painted the workstudy, it is originally from Edgar Payne`s book, "Outdoor Landscape Composition" 'Sharp contrasts of extreme dark and light cause an agitated feeling, while the more closely related graduations produce a restful feeling.  The analogous values and colors produce the feeling of restfulness.' 

There he talks about the 'feeling' an observer of the art receives from a painting.  It is up to the artist to create that mood to relay a feeling using blended color combinations in correct values and the arrangement or unity of the composition. 

 

The collectors are extremely content with this commissioned work as they own a koi pond and know what they wanted.  I have a small koi pond that was inspired by studying Monet for years.    It brings me many hours of peacefulness.  I only hope the painting does that too.

 

Thank-you,

E J Williams