Not quite on location: Concorde flyover...of course not

I was reworking a previous painting into digital form when I thought...hmmm...empty sky, bet Concorde is going to look good flying across it! And so this happened. 

Setting is based on Napa Valley.

Rain anyone? Graduation season in Philadelphia

 Hopped across the continent to attend a friend's graduation at the University of Pennsylvania

(Newark Airport - 2 days till graduation) Flew out of San Francisco before dawn (maybe after, but it was cloudy and gloomy anyways), so the bright sunset was a refreshing change after a long flight. I was stuck in the airport waiting for the next train (which wouldn't come in 2 hours), so I just pulled out my drawing supplies from my suitcase! Some pilots waiting for their shuttles were throwing some curious looks at me, who was just chilling and drawing on the pavement

Quickly did another one while waiting for my train on the platform. For some reason I always smell burnt plastic when train passes through the tracks...

 (Fisher-Bennett Hall - 1 day till graduation) It started drizzling shortly after breakfast, so I settled in a covered corner outside Starbucks (which is across from the campus) There were tents set up for graduation reception inside the campus, so I couldn't find any good unblocked views of the buildings.

I started another one after lunch, this time finding a bench where I could put my stuff down (my wrist was beyond repair from holding...everything in the morning session) The building (Irvine Auditorium) in the background apparently has a very long history of hosting important performances

Not quite on location: If only San Francisco is a little closer

Based on an actual overpass close to where I live. Just walking by during sunset this evening and thought, it'd be nice if I could see cityscape in the background! In reality though, SF is more than 1 hr drive away, so all I saw was the highway, cars, and little hills...

All shades of green! at Napa Valley, CA

View up a hilly trail in Westwood Hills Park. By the end of the sketch, a caterpillar has found its new home on my water jar...;A;

The view at top of the hill down into the valley. The clouds were quite interesting too (as opposed to usual California cloudless skies)

All the usual winery places are packed with people, so I ended up at this abandoned (I think, since there were twigs everywhere) vineyard near the end of a driveway. Saw quite a few people walking their dogs lol. The grapes are still growing alright though!

Was strolling around downtown Napa and came across this nice scene. Plus I could enjoy my peaceful time kneeling on the grass while listening to the drunk young delinquents shouting in the background and two guys trying in vain to get a drone to fly in the foreground!

Not quite on location: SF Ferry Building at Sunset

Partly from imagination, partly from memory...since all the Ferry Building has in front of it are palm trees.

Full 2 days of sunshine in the city!

 I rarely get to spend 2 full (Sunny) days in SF (usually need to catch the shuttle to work before the mist is lifted), so it was great to spend hours standing in the sun sketching the crowd! Since security refused to let my glass water jar in (she basically said, you can't bring this in, chucked my jar in the trash can, and carried on checking my bag. To which I responded, may I have my jar back, I will not go in. Imagine the surprise on her face) But there's plenty to sketch outside, especially since the main entrance of AT&T Park has always been a challenge in the back of my mind.

Lefty O'Dowl Bridge next to the ballpark. The two pieces of concrete were always a bit of a mystery to me, turns out it is a drawbridge, and the concrete blocks are counterweights. Added the statue of the pitcher in the end to act as reminder that this is next to the ballpark ;P

 Missed my Caltrain connection by 10 minutes because of the never ending N-car tunnel work. Since it is a nice day out, I promptly started working on another painting (since one never runs out of stuff to draw in SF) After some googling later, I found that this building, Townsend Building at 123 Townsend Street, was originally built in 1903 as a coffee warehouse and now houses several offices. Great looking building, especially in the sun!

Back! in California!

 After 3 weeks of bone chilling weather and smog filled air in China, all the sunshine and lively plants felt really surreal. Spring always arrives early in California. I found this nice looking yard while biking around scouting for places to draw. The owner of the house actually drove out of their garage while I was there...hopefully I didn't look suspicious with my helmet, sunglasses and all, staring intently at where children usually play...

Another tree I quickly scribbled before heading to get my groceries before sunset