Go By Train-PDX train tower

Another symbol of Portland, Oregon is this train tower where the Amtrak pulls into the City of Roses. In this Oregon series, I was using only watercolor, but somehow I forgot about that this time and this turned out to be in gouache. Another fun painting to add to my Oregon landscape series. 

St Johns Bridge, Portland Oregon

Recently, a friend and I were spending a sunny afternoon in the St Johns area of North Portland browsing the shops. In one shop were painted pictures of the iconic St Johns Bridge, and she noted how she would love a painting of done by me. I've painted this bridge before in watercolor, so I thought it would be fun to add some electric color to it (by electric I mean flourescent paint). Normally I do a pre-sketch of these types of paintings, and I'm quite pleased with this rough draft done in watercolor pencil.

This took me awhile to find that right perspective, and I ended up using Google Earth to do this. The finished painting is done in gouache mixed with flourescent acrylic paint using the black and white outline method. I was very proud to gift this to my friend!

 

St John's Bridge, Portland Oregon

Portland is known as Bridge City because we have so many. The most beautiful in my opinion is the St John's Bridge in NoPo (North Portland for you non-locals). This long sketchbook is a new experiment in drawing iconic places in Oregon up close. After painting 20 quick landscapes in my memories journal, this one will have more detailed sketches. I am trying to use fewer colors but still capture the image I have of the landmark. It's definitely a new learning curve, and has got me thinking it may be time to take a formal watercolor class next year. 

Memories Journal #5

In 1987, my family moved from southern Oregon up to Portland to find steady work. It was a very low point in my life, but I understood it was necessary even at age 14. While the bigger city had malls and a much better selection of things for a teenager to do, it did not have the same feel of home as southern Oregon had. The Portland Oregon area has remained home for nearly 30 years since.