Shades of Yellow, Blue and Green

These photos were taken in the evening at the start of sunset at the cementery in Tombstone, AZ.

Local color is made up by the terrain, the foliage and the sky color. Colors were originally made from the ground and the foliage of the area. That is the nature part. There is color added by the inhabitants of the area also. The adobe buildings of the Southwest are needless to say very different from the colonial style buildings in Williamsburg, VA. Sounds simple enough doesn't it? Oh and don't forget the lighting affects the color. Sunset is very different than high noon in the desert, or any other location for that matter.

The land reflects light and color differently than do clouds and sky.

Cacti pictured here are very different from the trees in Ohio or the palms in Florida. Even though they bloom their blooms are different than the flowers I have painted before. The plant life is more like geometrical shapes than leaves. A new and different kind of challenge for this artist.

The flowers below are called fairy dusters, and are not like any flowers I have seen! What unusual and challenging are you encountering today? Notice the light and color and enjoy the beauty around you.

The Spirits Within

Well as promised the rest of the story.....

When I got back from our day trip to Tumacacori I was downloading my camera discs and enjoying sorting out what I wanted to paint. When doing the tourist thing it is easy to immerse yourself in the history and the feel of a place. It is also an element that involves local color and helps the viewer to place and feel the painting. The colors range in this case, and are very southwest, from whites through the earth tones all the way to umber and black. I am scanning through my photos carefully noting the colors making the rafters, bricks and plaster and mentally arranging the colors on my palette. All of the photos are pretty sharp and clear...except for one. One I can't even remember taking....

This is the photo. What do you see?let me know! But I think it is the spirit of this very old mission!

Exploring the Local History

Tumacacori held some surprises for the explorers. Of course I have even more that I want to paint now. But the adobe block buildings with exposed rafters and cracked plaster was spellbinding. As one wanders through the ruins one slips back into the past...

The heat requires that we travel out early. Tumacacori is a National Park that contains one of the oldest Spanish Missions. Of course there was a museum and bookstore. One good for history and the other for water! We learned of Father Kino and other Jesuits, and later Franciscan Missionaries.

I plan to return since the mission is located so close to Tubac where we are staying. I want to paint plein air here, but it is already too late and very hot. Besides I can review all of my photos and decide what to actually paint on location.

My next entry will be the surprise I found when I reviewed my photos. You won't believe it....

( To learn more about the history and the park visit nps.gov and on the map pick Arizona, go to the southern border and click on Tumacacori.)

OR::::http://www.nps.gov/tuma/historyculture/tumacacori.htm