Evening's Blanket

On bright summer's days, the sun doesn't so much as set, as the evening encroaches and covers the day in its blanket. This is so evident as you see the shade creep up the trees, their golden tops still aglow and the shadow starts it's ascent up the mountainside.
I used to pass this tree on my way home. It leans against the embankment, its branches hanging over the path protecting the hikers below.

To bid on this piece: http://www.dailypaintworks.com/buy/auction/449866

Blue Sky Drive

Blue Sky Drive - 6 x 6"- Oil- Opening bid $65

Here it is. What the people of Southern California have to put up with day after day. Blue skies, day in, day out.

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Actually I've had quite a good start to this daily painting thing. I am more than slightly addicted. I've posted a couple of dozen small daily paintings and I have to control the urge to check the stats and see if they are gathering interest. My biggest quandary is, should I paint only one subject matter? Or at least concentrate on mainly one thing? Perhaps I should reevaluate that in another month.

Artist's tip:
When 'plein air' or landscape painting, do the lay-in of the big shapes in one shade of a neutral color. ( I used ultramarine mixed with a terre vert type green.) Your painting will have a unified quality to it. Over the initial lay-in you can then add various colors and you'll find the original lay-in color influencing what lies on top.