Reflections On Woods Canyon

Reflections on the creek running down Woods Canyon, Sedona - another page from my Arizona travel sketchbook.

Devil's Bridge

Devil's Bridge is very popular because of it's scenic views and photo opportunities. 

Red Rock Beach

A travel sketch of boulders and sky reflections at Red Rock Beach. This is in the lower section of Sedona's Woods Canyon Trail. 

Woods Canyon

A quick sketch this morning of one of my favorite places along Woods Canyon Trail.

Walk Around Airport Loop

Another page from the Arizona travel sketchbook - the walk around Airport Loop in the center of Sedona.

On The Way to Chicken Point

The view on the way to Chicken Point.

The palette, a simple piece of aluminum foil used with Sakura Koi watercolors tubes.

 

On Submarine Rock

In this foreshortened view of Submarine Rock, looking toward west Sedona and Coffee Pot Rock, that pinky-orange color known as "Sedona Red" got lost.  Tough to capture, camera and watercolors tend to go too far in either direction, between red and yellow. As for the foreshortening itself, to get a sense of scale, imagine the greenery on the rock to be the height of an average human.

Submarine Rock

The first view of Submarine Rock, emerging from a sea of pines.

Broken Arrow Trail

The Broken Arrow Trail is heavily traveled and parallels a jeep road out to Submarine Rock and Chicken Point. The popularity of this route is deserved, given the continuous scenic views interspersed with intimate passages through the forest. This is the second Sedona scene from my Arizona travel sketchbook.

Bell Rock Loop at Sunset

After four days of hiking, scenes from Sedona are beginning to make their appearance in my Arizona travel sketchbook. In this view at sunset, the foot traffic around Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte have been chased away as blue shadows pool across the flats and begin to flood the high ground.

North from the Fortress

A watercolor sketch of the view looking north from the highest point on Elephant Mountain Trail, Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area, Cave Creek, Arizona.

Elephant Mountain North

Climbing the trail up the north side of Elephant Mountain, the trunk being the peak in the upper right corner, this is yet another page out of the travel sketchbook. 

Desert foothill hiking on overcast days is very comfortable, but the real treat is when sun breaks through the clouds* sending patches of light that scan across Earth's contours, as if an almighty being were seeking something with its celestial flashlight.

*"Sun Through Clouds" piano instrumental by Matthew Morgan - thank you for the inspiration.

Sketch of Solar Oasis

A sketch of the Solar Oasis at Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area, where both humans and wildlife find relief from the sun, dust, and heat.

Travel Sketch from Sidewinder Trail

This is another sketch from my AZ travels - a view from one of the higher elevations on Sidewinder Trail in the Sonoran Desert Preserve.

Desert Broomrape

This travel sketch is from a February 2014 hike in the Spur Cross Ranch where Cooper's broomrape was found peeking out of the rocks along the trail. The four variations of Desert broomrape are all leafless, parasitic plants that live on the roots of native flora and are sometimes known by the more descriptive name of "burroweed strangler".

Elephant Mountain from Tortuga Trail

Today's offering is a sketch of the view of Elephant Mountain from Tortuga Trail in the Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area. The Aravaipa Running club has two long distance events scheduled for these trails on February 20th.

Wilted Datura

Another page out of the Arizona travel sketchbook, this time portraying a wilted Datura blossom along a trail on the Spur Cross Ranch, a part of the Desert Foothills Land Trust.

Traveling Sketches from Arizona

Thanksgiving in Arizona, spending time with family and hiking in the foothills carrying camera, sketchbook, pencil, and watercolors. The first page of the book is a view of Spur Cross Road, traveling north into the foothills, where conservation groups and land trusts have managed to preserve some of the best hiking trails in the Phoenix area. 

Sugar Pumpkin Baby

Happy Halloween!

. . . a sugar pumpkin from the local organic farm, Shortt's Farm and Garden, in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. Pulled out my old carving tools this morning and let the paint brushes sleep in.

Celestial Safety Net

Celestial safety net of clouds
a billowy comforter,
bestowing sweet dreams
upon earthly beings.


Back to Goose Island, on the Connecticut River, in Old Saybrook, the same glorious sunset that's appeared in the last several paintings. This painting is smaller, 12 3/4" x 10 3/4", created to fit a bodacious frame gifted to me by a very good friend. 

And a sneak peek of the frame, before the years of gray were cleaned from it's gold leaf details . . .

Questions, comments, and inquiries are welcome!

Goose Island September Sunset

I'm continuously amazed at the interactions of light and water, especially light expressing itself as color through the vapor of clouds, or sliding over the convex/concave play of surface contours. Even the way frozen water refuses or ignores light, throwing back blinding white or revealing soul-chilling abysmal black.

This painting, finished and signed today, is a 22" x 29" acrylic on cold pressed watercolor stock. Reference photos were taken during a mid-September kayak excursion around Goose Island, on the Connecticut River, off Old Saybrook. 

If you have questions, comments, or are interested in any of the my work seen on the blog, I'd be be honored to hear from you. Please leave a comment below to get in touch with me.

Thank you for taking the time to view my "gallery" of a blog. I hope you enjoyed what you saw and were able to glean a bit of inspiration from the experience.
 - Nancy Boudreau

Swarming Swallows

Remembering an evening on the Connecticut River watching the "Swarming of the Swallows" under a full-palette sky.

This is an 18" x 24" acrylic painting on paper.

Goose Island

A glorious evening in September kayaking around Goose Island, celebrating the last day of summer watching the murmuration of tree swallows.

This is an 18" x 24" acrylic painting on paper, referencing a recent kayaking trip to an island on the Connecticut River off Old Saybrook.

Charon on Ball Pond

As night approaches
a lone boatman 
ferries across Ball Pond
the end of day
and summer.

This is an 18" x 24" acrylic painting on paper, depicting nightfall on Ball Pond in Danbury, Connecticut. The lone boatman paddling across the darkening water, reminds me of Charon of the Greeks Myths, ferrying souls across the River Styx.

Is That You On The Bantam River?

Not sure who these paddlers were, but that smile could  be seen a mile away -  a smile to make a dentist proud. Remembering a happy day paddling on the Bantam River this past summer. Gonna miss those days.

This is an 18" x 24" acrylic painting on paper.