selected

I just found out that this piece was selected for a VT Watercolor Society show.  The show will be at the Chaffee in Rutland, opening July 28th. This lovely lady is titled "Ceremonious" (22"x15") and was painted from a photograph I took of traditional Turkish dancers.  By the way I still have a few spots available in my peony painting workshop this Saturday and upcoming Tuesday...let me know if you want to paint with us :)

Early season

This piece is 22"x10" and will be in my upcoming show.  Poppies are out everywhere here already...this is an early bloom season...can't believe it's still May and the irises are almost done, lilacs have faded and the peonies are out!  Yikes. Better get the camera and start taking some pictures!

Summer show

I have a show coming up where I'll be the featured artist in a summer group show.  It will be at Furchgott and Sourdiffe Gallery in Shelburne and will open on June 8th...I'll post times when I get those.  I'll have some florals and roosters there...come on by to check it out! (this is "True colors" 7.5"x7.5")

glitches

This is a test post, since my computer is acting funny...my blogger windows are all squished and they are saying my browser is no longer supported...so here I go spending a bunch of time trying to fix things to make computer life work easier...hmmm. anyway a cold and wintery image to support my cold outlook on this computer glitch :)

Upcoming poster

This is an image I just finished that will be on a poster for a local Dragonboat festival this August.  I also like the fact that this year is the year of the Dragon and the front of one boat is poking out in the lower right hand corner.  The boats are so colorful and they fill our waterfront with excitement and action on that day.

Natural complement

Here is another portrait I did a while ago and thought this lady was so interesting with her colorful cowboy hat and wonderful jumble of beads around her neck.  Not to mention her magnificent head of hair!  A naturally complementary colored lady!

change it up

Cockadoodle doooooo!  The return of a rooster post!  It's been a while..but they are still part of my repertoire.  Like anything changing up subjects to keep things interesting is always good.  That way studio time remains fun and you stay on your painting "toes".

card sets

Here are two other card sets that I have available...Each consist of 8 cards, two of each image, beautifully packaged in a clear box.  They sell for $21.95, plus $3.05 s/h.  Send me an email or comment if you are interested.  By the way there are spots available in my peony workshops in June...want to paint with us?

new series

Number eight in the series...I need to come up with another idea that ties a number of paintings together... I guess that could be anything...I might revisit my kitchen sketch journal...I have 3 or 4 pages left blank in that journal..so I think it's time I complete that.

texture

This is the second to last of my 8x8 series....after a while the skies and in this case the walls became all about texture and how to achieve it...I concluded that it's about layering, hard edges and letting previous washes dry completely so I could get those edges...a little splattering in the foreground was also helpful.

rooster, too

In this piece I managed to get a rooster in as well!  Thanks for all your comments lately...it's nice to know you are out there checking in on what I'm doing...I'm working on two upcoming shows...they are both group shows and one is specific to Flowers...I'll post dates and links when I have them.  Also a reminder that I am teaching a floral workshop in New Hampshire next month...check my sidebar for my workshop link.

warmer climes

It's a gray rainy day here in the Northeast...so this image is a reminder of warmer and more carefree times.  I can almost hear the steel drums now!  This was a difficult image to paint..trying to organize all the shapes and figures, plus shadows and I invented the palm shadow and water in the background...

excited to paint

Next in line...boats all lined up...well sort of...they are quite jumbled...but the colors are what attracted me to this scene.  Painting something, whatever it may be, starts with a gut reaction.  A reaction to the contrast of lights and darks, the striking composition, the colors, the emotional connection to the subject..etc..etc.. find that special something that pulls you in and makes you excited to paint! (by the way I was interviewed on blogtalk radio yesterday...here is the link.)

Decisions

Number 3 in the series..I really like the juxtaposition of the umbrellas and their jumbled colors. It is sometimes hard to simplify a scene, especially if there is so much information.  What to edit and what to include? Decisions, decisions.

Shadow dancing

My second in the 8"x8" series.  I'll pass along a bit of advice that has made its way into my brain over the years...a shadow on anything is a darker color of the surface it is cast upon...like the shadows created by these shutters on the yellow building...sometimes the tendency is to generalize and make every shadow a blue or purple or gray.. so paint what is there, not what you think is there.

size series

I did some small 8x8 paintings on a recent trip and I'll post those the next several weeks...all with a sunny, warm and colorful look to them.  That is another way to work in a series...cut your paper to all be the same size and then once you have 10 or 12 little paintings they become quite the collection.

Art show visit

I visited the American Watercolor Society show this weekend in NYC...quite the collection of paintings in such a unique setting.  I had never been to the Salmagundi Art Club where the paintings are on two floors for the AWS show.  It's nice to see such a grouping in person and really get a close look at the art...it always trumps seeing images reproduced in magazines or on the computer!

Trying something new

These are my one minutes warm up sketches that start off the figure sessions.  This time I divided my paper in rectangles prior to the poses being struck..so I gave myself some new borders to work within.  Always trying to try something new...what do you do to stay or get re-inspired?