British Columbia

I recently took an incredible trip to the Northern tip of Vancouver Island in British Columbia to do a little fishing as part of an annual family trip. The fishing was the best in years (me with 70lb. halibut pictured) and the wildlife sightings were incredible. Several future paintings will definately come from this trip as I saw plenty of black bears, numerous whale species, and lots of bald eagles and sea birds. The picture below is of a humpback whale breaching. He did this several times not too far from our boat.I had a chance to get a couple of plein air paintings done as well. The painting below is a secret spot off an island chain in Queen Charlotte Strait which is near a fantastic salmon hole. The lighting was continually changing because of some overhead clouds as was the pattern created by the breeze in the water so I had to paint fast! These paintings are fun, challenging and allow for a much looser style than my studio paintings.http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Plein Air Paintings

On a recent trip to British Columbia I had the opportunity to get some plein air paintings done. These are quick impressionistic paintings of an area and usually capture truer colors than my camera, plus they are excellent practice.

Generations Nearly Finished

This painting is getting close to being finished. It is of my son and my dad going on my son's first duck hunting trip. The painting is called Generations because of the tradition that is being passed down. This is the same area that I grew up hunting and it was really special seeing my son walking the same road with my Dad that I had so many times. There is an earlier post about the progress of the painting in a May entry.
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Metolius River Camping Trip

Over this past weekend I was able to get out and get some reference shots while camping along the Metolius River in Central Oregon. This is a beautiful and unique river that emerges right out of the ground at the base of Black Butte. The weekend also included some flyfishing, a trip to the fish hatchery with the kids, and some great company. The above picture is of a merganser brood swimming upriver.

This yellow warbler made for some great shots as I was able to get fairly close in some good light. A future painting may evolve out of this one.

This mule deer doe was an adventure for my daughter and I as we spotted it from about 300 yards and snuck up to about 40 yards without disturbing her. She was absolutely thrilled by getting so close and sneaking through the grass.

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Have a Happy and Safe Fourth of July!!

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