Naturally I'm talking about the year 2020. To yammer on too much about it would make me sound just like someone's uncle, and that's not quite my style juuust yet, so I'd rather just say I'd be happy to wrap this year up and move on to better times. But hey, it's not up to me, so instead I'm praying for a good 2021.
Last time I said I've been painting roadside monuments and abandoned places at night. I've explained how nocturnes have made an impression on me, are you drawn to the way the world looks by the light of the moon as well? Shotgun Shack, the piece above is from a spot on the way out to a place called Lake Los Angeles, which is neither a lake, nor a Los Angeles. All kinds of ways a place gets a name I guess.
Poking around in the California Desert can be a lot of fun. An afternoon in Randsburg, a ghost town perched in the hills south of Death Valley turned out a decent plein air sketch. The town had been taken over by bikers that afternoon but nothing crazy happened. Sometimes people just let you down I guess.
The next leg of that trip sent me racing to catch the Trona Pinnacles before I ran out of light. I'll be coming back to the pinnacles on Thanksgiving weekend, so by the time you read this I'll have been there and back again, shooting and sketching, taking names etc etc. I'm also hoping to take a detour to the town of Ballarat, a lonely spot with a population of 1. There's a guy there who they call "the Mayor of Ballarat" and there's a really cool documentary short about him.
Hopefully you had a good Thanksgiving, and I pray you'll have a great Christmas with family and friends surrounding.
I'll be out painting.
Damian
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6 - That's what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown.
