a blog by Kim VanDerHoek

This was painted on location in Heisler Park in beautiful Laguna Beach, California. The gazebo is a popular spot for taking photographs and holding weddings. Just beyond the bluff is Laguna's main beach and Hotel Laguna is one of the buildings in the background.

This is one of my favorite beaches to paint at. Do you have a favorite beach? I'd love to hear about it because I'm always looking for new painting locations!

"Open Meadow" | 8" x 10" | Oil On Canvas Panel

©2012 by Kim VanDerHoek

This was a fun exercise I had my students do - we painted most of this view upside down. The lesson was how to simplify your painting into masses. Once everyone put the big shapes down onto their canvases most of the painting was complete. I actually heard a few gasps when we turned them right side up and they looked like landscapes. After that we added a few details to bring it all together. It was such a good lesson that I think I saw a few light bulbs light up over my students' heads.

This meadow is located in Sonoma, California and it is part of a nearby farm. It is a peaceful spot, just a short ways away from a very busy highway.

The challenge of painting this area is, knowing how to mix a wide variety of greens in order to create the illusion of reality and depth on the canvas. I did my best to let as many brush strokes show as possible, which helps give the painting a spontaneous and fresh feeling.

(You may not reproduce this image in any way without my permission.)

The week after Christmas my husband and I took the kids to Big Bear for some fun in the snow. We decided to go for a short hike, find a spot for lunch and take a little time to let the kids play in the snow while I knocked out a quick painting. You know what they say about the best laid plans, right? All went well until after lunch when I began setting up my easel (I call this the "easel phenomenon" and it happens a lot. Some of you are familiar with the cow story, right?). The clouds rolled in, the temperature dropped, my daughter got tired, started crying uncontrollably and it began to snow. My husband did his best to add layers of clothes to our three-year old to get her warm and to find fun things to keep her busy but, nothing worked. The peaceful setting was no longer peaceful. She was so loud at one point that a group of hikers came over to make sure she was O.K.

When I go out with my family to paint it's usually a compromise for all of us. They have to stay in one area longer than they would normally like to and I have to pick whatever view is handy and try to make a decent painting out if it.

On this trip I was about halfway through a pretty awful painting when the snow really started coming down. In a few minutes my palette was covered with snow and the oil in my paint began to seize up. Since I don't paint in the snow very often I didn't pack any medium in my backpack that would help get the paint moving again. So, with my daughter tired and crying, my son bored and my husband annoyed with the whole situation, I wiped off my canvas, packed up my gear and we headed back to the cabin for some warmth and some cookies (because cookies miraculously make all things better in my kids eyes...yeah O.K. they really make all things better in MY eyes).

My palette in the snow.

While we were leaving our lunch spot my son shouted that he could see the shape of the snowflakes as they landed on his jacket. I looked at my own jacket and sure enough, for the first time in my life I could see the shapes of the snowflakes as they landed. Now, I grew up in Big Bear and I don't remember ever seeing them. Usually, the snow falls in clumps but this time, the air was dry and cold and perfect for keeping the flakes separate. It was amazing and I can confirm that each and every one was different. Amazingly my iPhone was able to capture a pair when they landed on my gloves. Pretty cool, right?

Snowflakes on my glove.

All images ©2012 by Kim VanDerHoek

(You may not reproduce any of these images without my permission.)

"Poinsettia In Bloom"

8" x 8" - Oil on canvas panel.

©2012 by Kim VanDerHoek

(You may not reproduce this image in any way without my permission.)

I'm posting this after weeks of every member of my family being sick since the week after Christmas. All of us, with the exception of my husband (who has been sick for 4 weeks now), are on the mend! My sick man finally got tired of me nagging him heeded my advice and saw the doctor today so hopefully, he too will finally get better. He got several prescriptions (shhh, I'm not supposed to mention that because he really is a tough-manly man and doesn't need silly things like antibiotics to help him get better) and if he can manage to figure out how his insurance card works hopefully he'll get them filled he will be feeling better by the end of the week I'm sure.

This was a fun exercise I had my students do in painting class. I gave them a photo of the duck and asked them to draw three thumbnail sized value studies, each with a different composition. They also had to crop into the image, I cautioned them to avoid centering the whole body of the duck in the middle of their canvases and to look for opportunities to create interesting negative shapes. Here is my example painting for the class. It was a fun exercise!

"The Way Home" - $350 Framed - 6" x 8" - Oil on canvas panel.
Available at Debra Huse Gallery

©2012 by Kim VanDerHoek

For the first time the Debra Huse Gallery on Balboa Island, California has an art show featuring small paintings (8" x 8" or 6" x 8") in a variety of styles and subjects on display now through January. Randy Higbee was the judge for the show and he awarded my painting second place at the opening reception. I have to say there are a lot of real gems in this show, all are reasonably priced and with 60 paintings hanging the show it is easy to see and not overwhelming. If you are in the area I highly recommend seeing it!

Debra Huse Gallery

229 Marine Ave.

Balboa Island, CA 92662

(949) 723-6171

November 30th - January 6th