Hello there! How have things been going on your end? I have been a busy, busy bee over here. Lately, my life has been all about the Historic Homes in the town I love... Coronado.
This weekend is the Coronado Historic Association's Mother's Day Historic Home Tour. (Whew! That was a mouthful!) The tour makes for a really lovely day. Six beautiful homes are open to tour. Taking the tour with your mom is an extra added attraction.
In January, the tour organizers asked me to paint all six homes. Each painting will be a gift to the home owner. In the past, home owner gifts have been a photograph of the home. I think a personalized painting is extra special. And, if it's a painting by me... well! What could be better? ;o)
So, here are the lovely six...
"Crown Cottage" is so pretty, isn't it? I painted the painting with a different sky, and hated- H.A.T.E.D. the sky, so I did what any resourceful painter does; I cut it off! And I repainted it, then glued it in place. Can you see where I did my surgery? Follow the roofline of the house out on either side. The new sky works OH! so much better :o)
Crown Cottage is painted in watercolor.
This house is perched on the bay's edge on First Ave. Isn't the view just glorious? The home is a Mid-Century Modern style, and an original Coronado relic. I love that it is so untouched. The backyard has the view everyone will die for- you just don't see such a grand view everyday... well, unless you are these lucky home owners!
Bay View Home is painted in watercolor.
This sweet home is an original Coronado "Palmer" home. Built in the 1940s, the Palmer built homes were sprinkled all around Coronado. Small and efficient, I lived in a couple of these homes when I was growing up. The one I remember most fondly was located at 353 I Avenue. It's no longer there, but my memory of living in a Palmer will be with me always.
"431 J Ave" is gouache on paper.
"Preservation Matters" is the theme for this oil painting on collaged board. This gorgeous Tudor home was built in 1933. It doesn't actually back up to the beach... we call that "artistic license" :o) It's part of my signature style when painting these oil paintings.
Here's another oil on collaged board. This house is a 1915 Richard Requa in the Spanish Eclectic style,with the front door designed by Irving Gill. Requa is one of San Diego's master architects. The title of this painting is "A Beautiful History", for certainly, that is what this house has had.
"520 C Ave", painted in watercolor on paper, follows another of my classic designs, with the patchwork beach at the bottom, signifying the town's close proximity to Coronado beach. I love the classic Craftsman architecture, with it's generous and inviting front porch. Did you know that one could order a Craftsman home from a Sears and Roebuck catelog in the 1920s? It would be shipped by railroad, all materials included, and just needed to be assembled. The cost was just about $2000!
Here's what 520 C Ave looked like when I photographed it just a few weeks before the tour. Imaging my surprise when I delivered the painting, and was told the house colors had been changed... What??? (Urgggh)
Here's the new color scheme. Very handsome, and very Coronado-ish, yes... But it sure would have been nice for the home owners to let somebody know they had plans to paint their house. Really, people?
Fortunately, gouache is a wonderful medium for painting over watercolor with total coverage. I could fix the house without the necessity of repainting the entire painting. Whew....
I will have a Limited Edition of 6 historic home cards available for purchase during the tour. One of each, including 520 C Ave in blue. Card packs will be available for purchase at the CHA shop booth during the tour.
Hope to see you there :o)
xx
Val
