This home sits today at Pioneer Town, at 7A Ranch in Wimberley. Pioneer Town is a mix of old buildings and old-looking buildings that give a flavor of what an old town looked like 100 years ago. This house is one that dates back before the turn of the century. Originally located in what is now under Canyon Lake, the house was relocated in the 1960s in an effort to preserve it before the land was flooded.
I'm becoming very comfortable painting at the Square on Wednesdays, when there are few people in town. Today I was standing at the corner of the parking lot under a tree and had a great view across the street toward Wall Street Western.
Jacob's Well is an artesian well that is the source of Cypress Creek, which runs through Wimberley before it flows into the Blanco River. The well itself is not flowing these days due to drought, but the park surrounding it as a great place to paint. This little set of ruts wanders through a lightly traveled area that I was compelled to paint.
Painting at a local ranch today - Fell in love with this little barn. Come to find out, it was originally built to house a family member and her kid in need of a temporary place to stay. Since then, it has been known as the saddle barn. I decided to do a black and white value study - It may turn into a full sized painting soon!
Painting at the Wimberley Square on Wednesday mornings is great. The Cafe is closed, and the parking lot is fairly empty, so the view is much better than normal! I was able to stand in the shade and capture this scene without too many distractions.
This old gas station is probably the most-photographed building in Hays County. It has been closed up since before I moved here, but as the area around it is developed and populated, I'm not sure how much longer it will be here. As I was painting (starting at 8:00 am), I was shocked by the non-stop traffic that paraded by til mid morning. Signs in the area suggest that there are hearing coming to consider more development, so we'll just have to see ...
The Memorial Plaza above Emily Ann Theater in Wimberley is a place that we often go to paint. The height gives a great 360 degree view of the Wimberley Valley. On September 11th it was arbitrarily selected to as our place to go. Little did I know, there was a remembrance service scheduled up there! I dropped below the crest of the hill and painted this lookout point, as I listened to the ceremony.
Dating back to the 1870s, Mount Gainor is a small community north of Wimberley. While fairly well populated at the turn of the century, it is now absorbed into the hills. This house was supposedly the home to house the principal of the nearby school. A great place to paint and learn a little history
Well, the summer is over, and we were able to get back into John Knox Ranch to paint. The 300 acre camp facility is pretty busy in the summer, but once school starts back, they let us come in to explore and paint. I have painted this cabin a few times in the past, but am always attracted back to capture it again.
This Airstream Safari was a fun but difficult one to paint. The reflective quality of the skin was ever-changing, but really made me study it as I tried to capture it.
Originally a schoolhouse, the building became a dance hall in the late 1800s. Although the outside may not look like much of an attraction, the architectural features on the inside have made the dance hall a popular attraction for music lovers, as well as a site for weddings and other events. Scenes from the Willie Nelson movie “Honeysuckle Rose” were even filmed at the dance hall.
Although we couldn't get in to paint the interior, I did found something interesting outside to capture.
Cypress Creek runs through Wimberley near the Square and offers a great shady place to walk. I have painted along there several times. Sometimes the water is included, and others like today, it is just people along the path
Anytime I can find a path wandering into the woods, I have to grab it for future reference.
A friend and fellow artist invited me to paint this great old relic that dates to the 1820's (there wasn't much in this part of Texas in the 1820's) Unfortunately, it is damaged beyond hope of repair and will soon be disassembled by the owners. I feel blessed to be able to capture it before it is gone
A fellow artist and Wimberley resident invited us to paint her home along Wilson Creek. On arriving, I realized that this is one of the homes that we helped to muck out after the Blanco River flood in 2015. Although she wasn't in the home at that time, it was fun to revisit the area and see the home in its renovated state.
Texas Wildflowers have been out of control this spring. Although I avoid painting them (everyone else does it so much better), I did include some in this plain air painting that I did at Blue Hole Park
Painted on location at Wimberley's Pioneer Town, this old stagecoach has enticed me to paint it - Finally broke down and did it,
The Dripping Springs Art League is good about hosting events for artists and tey recently put on a Plein Air painting event on Mercer Street in Dripping. Mercer Street is the historic part of town and has several neat old buildings and shops. It was a glorious day to paint. I did two paintings - One was looking down Mercer and the other was of the 'Barber Sho', which isn't really a barber shop
The Wimberley Parks and Rec folks are once again sponsoring the 'Painting with Parks' program to encourage the public to get to know their parks through painting. Three of us act as 'hosts' and are there to lead, instruct and or encourage as needed. Although Blue Hole Park is pretty strict about keeping the public on the trails to reduce damage to the environment, this month they allowed us off the trail. We wandered downstream from the park and found a nice flow os water (a rare thing these days) and an idyllic setting.
'Old Baldy' is one of two twin hills in Wimberley and is a destination for many people to get a view of the surrounding area. 230+ steps take you to the top, and many people add it into their daily exercise routine. While we have been there to paint before, today we were at the Memorial Plaza on top of the nearby hill at Emily Ann Theatre, where I had a great view of the morning climbers
We had a chance to paint at a new location - Treehouse Retreat. This is another location with an amazing 'long view' of the Wimberley Valley. Unfortunately it was once again foggy and wet - The incredible view was obscured, so once again, I turned and found a building to paint. Hoping to get back for the landscape one day soon
These two images were painted the same day - I was at a friend's house and was hoping to paint the amazing view from her front porch. Unfortunately, it was foggy and humid, so I turned and painted the workshop on the property. Once I got it blocked in, the humidity kept it from dying, so I started a second version. The second one is on some hand-laid paper that I had on hand, so it was different. Hoping to get back soon and take on the long view from the porch!
Mercer Street in Dripping Springs is a great place to paint - I have thought about painting this one for a while and finally got around to it. Unfortunately, it was cold and windy, so I ended up working from the front seat of the car. Started it on location and finished it up oin the warm studio
Took another trip to Carper's Creek Ranch to capture this Goat shed - It was a cold, damp day, but painting alongside friends makes it all worth it
Black Friday - I should have been at the mall, but instead I hiked to the observation tower at John Knox Ranch - What an amazing view of the Wimberley Valley! At first I was worried that the fog would obscure the view, but by the time I hit the top, was pleasantly surprised by what awaited me.
I've always loved to paint old rusty tractors, but haven't done any recently. Then an artist friend invited us out to paint at her ranch. 500+ acres of rolling hills, busted-down barns, livestock, and gorgeous Texas Hill Country vistas from the top of the property. 20 feet away from where I parked was this tractor - I didn't need to look any further.
Old Baldy was so named a hundred years ago, when this hill was actually bald. Since then, the Ashe Juniper (Cedar) has covered it. Still, from the top of the 200+ steps up, one can get an amazing 360 degree view of the Wimberley Valley - Doesn't get much better for painting!
I met a fellow artist recently who invited our plein air painting group to come out and paint on her property. It is a lovely piece of land that backs up to some ranchland. Although I was avoiding raindrops most of the morning (won't complain of that in the middle of an historic drought), it was a great day. This is looking across the adjoining ranch, as I waited for the cattle to come out and visit.
Several of us went out again to assist the Wimberley Parks and Rec folks in encouraging the public to come out and paint in the parks. We were out at Blue Hole Regional Park once again. Although the drought has severely affected the aquifer that feeds the creek, we wandered down a path and painted. It was a gorgeous day to paint trees!
Another day in Pioneer Town brought me to one of the scenes that I have always thought about painting, but never got around to. This is looking up the length of the main drag and really was a challenge (albeit a fun challenge) to paint.
Out for an early morning painting session in Wimberley. Mima's Kitchen is the perfect place to find a delicious breakfast, or lunch.
Today was the culmination of a great festival, and it started by dropping two framed paintings off for judging and display - Each artist had to choose two from what they had done during the week. After that it was back to painting with the "Quick Draw". Artists participating in this are given two hours to paint an image, and then have 30 minutes to get it framed and delivered for hanging. I think that were about 20 artists participating and we were strung along Main Street. At the same time, the Buda Arts Festival (of which the Plein Air Competition is part) was going on, so there were lots of people walking along and watching the progress. I did a painting looking into the town center from a block or so away.
After the quick draw, it was off to see the show. I was pleased to learn that, although I didn't win any cash prizes, I did get two "Honorable Mentions" for the two pieces that I entered - "Morning Mist" and "Waiting to Move". A great even and a lot of fun!
This morning was wet and foggy as I drove in. Right across from the cement plant that I painted yesterday, was this ranch covered in fog and mist. With a couple of cows grazing in the near field, I couldn't resist! The painting came together quickly and I scurried into town to capture the railroad trestle. I saw the trestle early in the week, but there were workers doing road work and I couldn't get to it. Today they were gone, so I jumped in as the sun was coming across the bridge.
On the second day of the Budy Plein Air Festival, I started the day by stopping to paint the cement plant on the road into town. I am often drawn to the parts of town that aren't quite as "pretty" as most people like, but they are still part of our world, and I love the challenge. Later in the morning, I moved into town and explored Garison Park, along Onion Creek. What a little gem this place is. Very few people (one other artist and a fisherman) and a shade covered trail along the creek. I found these two canoes tied up across the creek, and thought that the splash of color played nicely against the earth tones of the creek bank.
I started out this festival painting what I love most - Old buildings. The two cabins and the barn (along with a silo that I didn't capture) came off of a local ranch several years ago. They are sitting along Main Street, just outside the center of town with the I-beams used to support them in the move still installed. I guess someone had a vision to save them and do something useful with them, but there they sit. Hopefully the find a home soon!
The Inspired Minds Art Center in Buda Texas is hosting their fourth annual Buda Plein Air Festival September 12-16. This is my first year participating in this and am looking forward to it. I'll post daily with what I find to paint out there.
This is the back of a building near the Wimberley Square - I was drawn to it because of the great old construction of it.
We recently found this gem in Wimberley - It is within walking distance from the Square and is a wildlife refuge with walking paths, a bird blind and a pond that is made for painting!
We have painted here before, but there is always something interesting. Pioneer Town is an old-west experience in Wimberley. It is a collection of historical buildings mixed with new construction that makes up the 'town'.
What a great place to paint on a hot summer day. The spillway coming out of Canyon Lake feeds the Guadalupe River, a favorite spot for tubing in the summer. While it was hot in the sun, I was constantly refreshed by cool breezes moving through the stream bed.
