Virtual Paintout is in Ecuador this month and without even realizing it I chose the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Cuenca. It's fitting that I chose this particular church just before Christmas. But I didn't even know the name of the church until after I'd finished the painting and looked it up. Anyway, I'm quite happy with how this one worked out, though the perspective is odd since the right side of the building is almost perfectly in line with the viewing position. It looks like a flat Hollywood false front. And, of course, Google's photos always play havoc with vertical perspective, which I try to correct in Photoshop and again when doing the initial drawing. Still, I don't always get it right.
Another one from this year's trip to Charleston, SC before the flooding in October. I was drawn (no pun intended) by the shadows of the utility lines on the white door.
This is an older piece I discovered I hadn't uploaded here. It's a piece that is started and finished as a complete charcoal drawing. Then I fix the charcoal to keep it from rubbing off and paint over it with watercolor. The charcoal becomes a great underpainting and gives those deep shadows. I've done several pieces this way, though it's been a while since the last one.
Spent a weekend in Charleston, SC this September just a couple weeks before the historic October flooding. There's a lot I like about this one, though I wasn't sure at first. I had done the background buildings too dark at first and had to rinse them out to lighten them sufficiently. I think I got a good morning haze/aerial perspective effect from an apparently happy accident. It isn't always about whether or not you make mistakes. It's also about how you handle and learn from them when they show up. Happy Thanksgiving!