#portablepainter

Got myself a @portablepainter palette and set it up with a few colors that I think would work. That undersea green maybe need to be replaced with a dark earth color like burnt umber, but then I like the convenience of having that green so we will see? Choosing 12 colors were more difficult than I thought.... Most colors are from Daniel Smith, except two from M. Graham. #watercolor #palette #travelpalette #portablepainter https://www.instagram.com/p/BtCsGoYhhKC/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=10ezrm70ifou7

North Carolina for Thanksgiving, and the sunsets sketch after the Sun went down. Using comic book style heavy darks makes me so happy! #millspringnc • • • • • •#stillmanandbirn#portablepainter #watercolorandink #urbansketching #travelsketching #pleinairpainting (at Mill Spring, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/Clhpfvnrpqx/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Enjoyed watching the mad runners on the hills today, sketched some of the course down from the beacon and up sugarloaf. #sketch #watercolour #portablepainter #antonybridge #malvernhills #malvernrun #malvernrunning #malvernhillsrun #worcestershire #watercoloursketch #moleskine #limitedpalette #worcestershirebeacon #northhill (at Worcestershire Beacon) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cjdjp8kNZ-O/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

A nice place to paint. • •#birchpointstatepark #stillmanandbirn#portablepainter #watercolorandink #urbansketching #travelsketching #pleinairpainting #enpleinair #landscapepainting #stephangiannini #art #rocklandmaine #paintanyway #pleinairartist #newenglandartist #paintingfromlife #allaprima #creativeuprising#pleinairmag #paintedjournals #rocklandartcapitalofmaine#lymeacademy (at Birch Point State Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci2TBMUuBmj/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Since the last posting, I left big city Logrono, spent a night in a truckstop hotel near Najeera and then went on to Santo Domingo Calzado. This is La Riojas province, which you probably heard of from the wine you sometimes by. And indeed it’s a pastoral landscape filled with vineyards. Santo Domingo is a famous stop on the Camino Francis. Santo Domingo was a saint who specialized in helping pilgrims by improving infrastructure for them; hospitals and accommodations and bridges. The Cathedral here is gorgeous inside and out. I spent a rainy afternoon drawing outside, and the next morning I paid a five euro admission to go into the museum in church and walk up to the tower in the drawing. The church and museum are filled with beautiful artwork, and well worth a visit. I particularly enjoyed the carvings along the tops of the capitals. The tower has some exhibits on the bottom, but you can walk up about 150 steps to the bell tower, and observe the bells close up, as well as get an expansive view of the landscape around Santa Domingo. There’s a famous story here, about a chicken who came to life to prove a thief’s innocence, and actually within the Cathedral there’s a henhouse. (Here’s a link to an article with the whole story: https://caminotimestwo.com/2017/03/17/the-chickens-of-santo-domingo-de-la-calzada/ ). Unfortunately, I couldn’t see that, but I really wanted to! Not open to the public. There is rain predicted for the next two days, so we’ll see how that goes bicycling. Torre de Catedral de Santo Domingo de Calzado, 9 x 6” or 22 x 15 cm., Watercolor and ink. #santodomingodelacalzada #stillmanandbirn #portablepainter #travelsketch #caminofrances (at Catedral de Santo Domingo de la Calzada) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cc2gMmJMnj6/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

This is a view of the town church in Los Arcos, Spain. The fields are in bloom, and the view is essentially unchanged from what a pilgrim might’ve seen hundreds of years ago. While I was painting, a man on a horse rode by! I went to a service the night before at this church. All in Spanish, so of course I had no idea what was going on. But it was quite full with people, and the church interior itself is stunning, full of gold leaf and polychromed statues. Yesterdays ride to get here of about 25 km was through beautiful pastoral countryside. After I finished this drawing I left about noon and went about 30 km. to Logrono, which is one of the bigger towns on the Camino France. I passed her a couple beautiful towns: Sansol, Torres de Rio,and Viana. All much prettier places than where I ended up. Usually I’m traveling on the walking/biking trail, but someone had told me to avoid a certain stretch where there were a lot of difficult up and downs for bicycles, so I went on the road for about 10 km. I met a couple of Belgium guys who had biked from Belgium, all on road, averaging about 100 km a day. They were all decked out with expensive bikes and camping equipment. I had the impression, and certainly other walkers do, that bike riding was easier than walking. Of course, it’s faster, but I find that I put out more energy, especially going up in the hills where I often have to get off and push the bike. I don’t recall ever panting with effort when I was walking. And I see how riding a bike puts you out of the community. I’m meeting and talking to people, but I’m not seeing the same people. I’m a little too fast for the walkers, but not fast enough for the real experienced bicyclists. I actually don’t like being a bicyclist. Technically this route is both a bicycle and walking trail, but it really is more for walkers. And the spirit of the experience is a walking experience. I can however see how it works better in the service of the “sketchbook Camino,” giving me more time to explore. 6x9 inches or 15 x 22 cm, water color and ink. #pleinairpainting#watercolorandink #stillmanandbirn #portablepainter #losarcos #olivegroves (at Los Arcos) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccw9emzs-5t/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The main square in Pamplona Spain. The face on the side was just inspired by a woman who walked by with a really big smile directed at me. She seem so happy I was drawing there! 6 x 9” or 15 x 22 cm, watercolor and ink. #townsquare #pamplona #urbansketchers#stillmanandbirn #portablepainter #watercolorandink (at Plaza del Castillo) https://www.instagram.com/p/CcUlZ0HMPCw/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

First drawing on the Camino de Santiago. This is the Crucifijo Church in Puenta La Reina, Spain. 9 x 6”, or 15 x 22 cm. Ink and watercolor. #caminodesantiago #urbansketchers #portablepainter #stillmanandbirn #gamma#pleinairpainting (at Puente La Reina, Navarra España) https://www.instagram.com/p/CcKbnqwMkJS/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=