Marceline Wine Stroll

Painting this historic street has special meaning for me.  My Dad's mother and father grew up here, met and fell in love here.  I can imagine them walking down this street with siblings and friends from school, sharing their days and making plans for the future.  I wonder what these buildings were back then, and Walt Disney was just a boy in class and the families knew each other.  Mom is with me this weekend, and for the first time we are staying overnight.  It will be nice to not worry about the drive after such a busy day.  Painting number 5145 in 5145 days. 

Main Street USA

 

I LOVE painting Main Street USA - where my paternal grandparents grew up 3 generations ago. Each of their families lived in this town, where siblings grew, married and started families.  As I stood in the park sketching this street scene, I wondered about those family members shopping in these beautiful buildings when they were new.  It is always lovely to return to a place with so many roots, even when those roots were tramsplanted many years ago. Wish I'd remembered to take the on site photo!  Day 5 #stradaeasel challenge, and painting number 4325 in 4325 days. 

South Main Street

Starting this very detailed ink drawing late in the event, it took me longer than normal to get all that information down. Once my ink work was done, I started in with the watercolor, working all masses of like colors at the same time.  Short on time, this is a real time saver.  I went back in with the ink a couple times - when I realized I missed a sign or a window - no more than a tiny mark, but necessary to the whole story.  Watching my time closely, I pushed it to 7 minutes left, then quickly packed, got to the car, and framed with 1 minute to spare!  Then I went in for my tag to place in the back!  It reminds me a bit of the old days when it took me all day long to finish a painting, and I still couldn't seem to turn in until the very last minute!  Haha!  The difference now is that this was my fourth painting of the day, instead of my first!  There is something to be said about persistence!  Painting number 3155 in 3155 days. 

Wine Stroll on Main

The Wine Stroll in Marceline is so well attended, and a lot of fun to participate in!  I had turned in my last painting for the plein air event when I walked out of the gallery to see this scene.  What grabbed my attention was the bright turquoise VW Bug - but it was soon blocked by festival goers!  So, I got in what I could of the bug, and filled in the rest of the scene while it was completely blocked!  LOL - at least it didn't drive away!  Painting number 2466 in 2466 days.