Changing Season by Julie Trail

The change of season in Northern California Foothills is an artist's dream. I love nothing more than the bright hues of November. The air is crisp. The birds are migrating. This stand of brush in the Shenandoah Valley inspired me!

A Landscape Painter's Bliss

Seeing the Landscape with a paintbrush deepens my experience in the wild places that surround my home in the foothills of Northern California. From the corner near my house, where thistles strangle a cattle rancher's fence line, to the granite expanses of the Sierra Nevada, an hour's drive east, I discover over and over again the joy of recreating what I see on paper or canvas.

It's the painting of a landscape that I love, either watercolor or oil! But I also teach watercolor techniques twice a week to a changing group of painters, beginners to more accomplished artists. By teaching the skills I use, I reaffirm my discoveries in this amazing world called Art.

Nothing surpasses the immediacy of painting en plein air, on location, the sun at my back, the wind in my hair. I get lost in the experience and feel transported, somehow, to a heavenly place where nothing matters but trying to capture the beauty before me. What joy it is!

Then, returning to my studio, I recapture the essence of my days outdoors by referring to the sketches I made and the photos I took , as I create a new, larger painting with more time allowed for accomplishing the goal I've set for myself. In the studio I can tweak and play, no bugs biting, no wind blowing, no sun blinding!

Join me in this rapture, the joy of seeing the landscape through my eyes. I share with you examples of my work to tempt you into this star-blessed life I've discovered. Enjoy the journey!