Allure of Napa Valley

Beverly and Hal Bartholomew are wonderful friends and collectors of both Jack’s and my paintings. They also have a vineyard lined with the most beautiful roses. These fragrant guardians of the vines sparked the idea for this piece.

I start the roses by blocking in the blossoms with mixes of Permanant Rose + White and Alizarin Crimson + Cadmium Red Light + White.

Then the leaves are painted around the flower color. Following this sequence allows the pinks to remain crisp and clean. If the greens were painted first my brush would pick up some of the leaf color when blocking in the flowers and muddy them.

The California Poppies in the foreground are painted in the same order: Flowers First, Leaves Last. In the picture above I do have to paint some of the orange blossoms over the distant vineyard. I carefully “Lay” the paint over the green so I don’t pick up any of the underlying color and dirty the flowers.

The foliage of the California Poppies is painted and thin stems are added with my fine liner brush. A few brush strokes of Pthalo Blue + White are added into the leaves to give the feeling of depth. I sign the piece in the wet paint of the leaves with Cadmium Red Light.

Allure of Napa Valley    24″ x 30″   Original Oil Painting

After finishing the foreground I decided the vineyard in the valley was too bright and warm. Look at the previous image, you can see what I’m talking about. I cooled the vines and let a shadow fall across the field. Now they drop back into the valley.

Don’t you love the vineyards of California? The Allure of Napa Valley tempts you to stop to drink in the fragrance of the roses and then wander down the curved road, discovering what mystery lies beyond. I’ve enjoyed having you follow along, hope you’ll come back soon. Have a wonderful evening. Smiles and Hugs, Mikki Senkarik

Website: www.senkarik.com