Plies, scales and contour drawings

Singers warm up their vocal chords before a performance. Dancers warm up their muscles before a performance.  Writers often throw away the first three chapters of a novel after writing a hundred pages. When I paint en plein air, my first painting is tight, stiff and lacking fluidity of stroke.  It doesn't matter that I have painted for forty years.  I wake up a bit stiff every morning.  I need to stretch.  When i visit an unfamiliar country or landscape there is a period of adjustment.  By the second day my brush begins to dance. Spring Lake Park, Santa Rosa, California, en plein air watercolor. Sugarloaf Ridge, Santa Rosa, California, en plein air watercolor Mussel Rock, Pacifica, California, en plein air watercolor Paragliders at Mussel Rock, Pacifica, California, en plein air watercolor View from Matanzas Creek Winery, Sonoma Valley, California, en plein air watercolor
Plies, scales and contour drawings