daily painting | cota street chimneys

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Here’s another watercolor sketch from my week in Santa Barbara a few months ago to attend a watercolor workshop. Gosh I’m glad for that wonderful trip there; how amazed and grateful I am that I got to do that, as I came home to the brother brain crisis very soon after. This apartment complex, called “Cota Street Studios”, was designed by an imaginative, coloring-outside-the-lines architect who created quirky chimneys and wonky corners and amusing architectural flourishes that made us all smile with delight. Finding such colorful scenes makes life a wonder, don’t you think?

Well I wasn’t so thrilled with the wonders of life yesterday, I tell ya. After spending $1400 to fix my 2006 Prius last week, heeding advice of knowledgeable mechanics who tell me it’s a great car and worth fixing, it broke again yesterday (same symptoms, ugh). That’s when my dear pal Claire and I, after putting in a day of painting blinds for GGRO in the Marin Headlands, found out that tow truck drivers call that area, “The Deadlands,” as drivers don’t like to go out there. But someone finally did show up to truck us to the car shop in Berkeley and now I will await my mechanic’s next diagnosis. Sigh. Wish me luck. I know in life the tide comes in and the tide goes out. And jeez this muck is getting sticky and stinky.

7″ x 8″ ink, watercolor on paper

 

 

 

watercolor painting of old farm house by emily weil

daily painting | lonely house

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I have a delightful student named Harvey. We meet for private lessons and he brought me a photo of an old, isolated farm/ranch house (I think taken in the eastern Sierras); he had started a painting of the scene, and I did a demo painting of the snapshot to show technique (students either love or hate my loose style of painting; I think my approach to watercolors is growing on him). I’m posting this today as a kind of a test as my automatic RSS feed stopped working (that’s a fancy way of saying you who have signed up for emails when I upload a new painting weren’t getting the notices). So I’m wearing my IT hat today and hope the Mail Chimp issues have been resolved.

So many ups and downs these days — to be expected I suppose. I bounce from deep depression about my brother’s grave illness to joy at the love of the visitors for my brother. My darling niece Melody and her husband and two little girls visited the bay area from Seattle several days ago and without her mom’s presence — Kay had a very strong personality (she died 19 mo ago) — we could have a marvelous visit. Funny how death and life work themselves out. With pain and loss come gifts and unexpected blessings. OK we’ll see if the link to today’s posts reaches the inboxes of my fan club. Thanks all. Time to head over to Mill Valley to hang out with the bro.

7″ x 10″ ink, watercolor on paper

 

 

 

watercolor and ink painting of old farm house by emily weil

daily painting | cota street studios

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Feels like eons ago now but in early April I got to join a watercolor workshop in Santa Barbara and it was such a blast. And the timing! A week or so after my return, the crisis of bro’s brain cancer crashed into my family. I could fully enjoy my week in Santa Barbara without worry, thanks to the generosity of my dear friend Sue who gifted me the workshop (and also because my kind neighbor Beth took good and loving care of my guinea piggy).

Anyways, we had a wonderful afternoon painting at Cota Street Studios near downtown — a marvelous and quirky apartment building designed by an architect who definitely colored outside the lines — chimneys atilt, iron balcony railings full of wondrous twists and turns, hidden little alcoves built into the stucco filled with delightful surprises. Here is a door of one of the apartments; the entrances to the residences (each apt worth millions) are accessed from a wonderful and lush courtyard. Very peaceful and beautiful and quirky and lively (and yes I misspelled Cota). Here’s a link: www.jeffsheltonarchitect.com/cota-street-studios

7″ x 5″ ink, watercolor on paper