An Apple a Day...

Abstract Apple
8" x 8"
Oil on Panel

I bought a huge bag of Red Delicious apples, which are really the only apples that I find consistently tasty. But they were the darkest apples that I had ever seen. I first tried a realist painting approach, but the apple looked more like a dark plum to me. I ended up rubbing that painting right off the panel.

One more attempt delivered virtually the same results.

Next, I decided to go with this abstract approach. I am pleased with the colors in this very simple design. However, it seems I am still battling the glow of the oil when it comes to photographing the art. I plan to resolve that this weekend...I am on a mission!

Little Lady Lucy

Last night I tried to figure out a way to photograph this 12" x 12" oil painting of my boxer, Lucy, so that the glare from the oil would not distract from the details. While this attempt is better than yesterday's effort, there is still glare.

I am simply going to have to use all natural lighting. These expensive "daylight" bulbs are not doing the trick when it comes to photography. My light box didn't prevent the glare, either.

Obviously, photographing my paintings is a journey, not unlike the actual painting process. I shall just keep trying until I find a method that works for me!

As for the painting itself, I worked from a photo that I took of Lucy on a trip to Florida last year. As I painted, I became very aware that my doggie has gotten quite gray in the face, where she previously had worn a "black mask". I guess it happens to all of us, sooner or later.

My Mom loves the picture, since Lucy looks as though she is smiling...people are always telling us that Lucy is smiling at them, so it seems appropriate to capture the expression in oils. This painting was especially fun for me!

I will be back soon, with another daily painting.

The Red Cup

Happy Monday! I had such a productive weekend, I am surprised at myself. I completed 2 oil paintings, cooked a turkey, packed moving boxes, and watched the Super Bowl game...for me, that's a big weekend!

For my daily painting, I completed this simple red cup with spoon, a small oil painting. I deliberately used large brushes and kept the strokes loose. I did the opposite with my second painting, as I truly wanted to catch the details in the face of my ten year old boxer, Lucy. Unfortunately, I am still dealing with the glare that I am getting off of the oil whenever I take my photos. It was cold and damp outside, though, and I couldn't use the natural light. I will attempt another photo of the "Lucy" painting prior to posting.

I am still trying to decide which style I enjoy the most - whether the loose, minimalist, painterly approach, or the tightly rendered realistic approach. I know that most artists make a choice, but I honestly enjoy both styles, and choose the one that fits my mood when I stand at the easel.

I hope that you enjoy these paintings. I welcome your opinions!

Pretty Potted Purply Pansies

The groundhog didn't see his shadow? But it is so cold now! What about now?

Actually, I am really fortunate to be south of most of the cold weather. I decided to get out the oil paints and paint some cold weather friends...Pansies! These delicate, lovely flowers are among my very favorites. It really makes me smile to see them peering out from under the frost every morning, defying the cold weather. (Of course, here cold weather means any time it falls below 40 degrees).

Bright Pansies

10" x 10"

Canvas Mounted on Panel

Still, I enjoy these multicolored blooms every year, and was inspired to record them in this small daily oil painting.

Thanks for looking!

Another Daily Painting

I love to paint horses. I know that is no secret for anyone who knows me or reads my posts. But typically my horse paintings are quite large. Perhaps that is why creating "The Sad White Horse" was so satisfying for me - it is only 8" x 10", and it was completed in a single session.

Initially, I thought that the horse looked scarier than sad, but sadness trumped because I was reluctant to take credit for "The Scary White Horse".

I enjoyed the looseness of this oil painting. I think the brushstrokes and colors make for a moody painting.

The Sad White Horse
8" x 10"
Oil on Panel

Please keep watching. More daily paintings to follow...

Chasing the Light

I went on a mission to find some bottles that I could paint. My goal was a detailed study of reflective light. Unfortunately, all I could find were these clear bottles, and none of them were actually empty.

Chasing the Light
12" x 16"
Oil on Panel

But, I settled for this arrangement. Now I wish that I had klept on looking, because the reflections that I captured were not quite what I intended. I realized during the process that I had way too many light sources. This made for much confusion, especially after the sunlight decided to wane.

Eureka! This actually turned out to be a positive experience...I was finally motivated to create a light box to enable me to control my light sources. I love it. Over the next few days, I will show you several small new paintings that I have created with the use of this light box.

Thanks for looking!

Cure for a Case of the Mondays

Sunflowers and Hydrangeas
12" x 16"
Oil on Panel

Gloomy day this Monday morning. Cold and rainy. Probably why I was motivated to paint a "Happy" picture.

I have always enjoyed painting flowers, but I am particularly fond of hydrangeas - any color - whether blue, pink, purple, mixed, or even the beautiful limelight hydrangea that has become my latest floral obsession. (So far I have killed only one, but my second one is really struggling...come on hydrangea weather!!!)

As you may have guessed, this oil painting was painted from photos. I did this on a hard panel which can be framed in a standard picture frame. It really is more detailed than I originally intended, but it served well in curing my doldrums.

Stay with me as I continue my efforts in daily painting, as I complete and post a new oil painting to this blog almost every day!

Back to the "Drawing Board"

Hello, again.

For the last several months I have been painting voraciously! Particularly, I have been enjoying the experience and creative maturity that (I hope) I am acquiring in painting a plethora of smaller, loosely rendered oil paintings.

I think that, after too many years to mention, I have finally fine-tuned a formula for an oil medium that suits my painting style. For those interested in creating their own "mini masterpieces", I seriously recommend experimenting for yourself with different blends of linseed, stand oil, turpenoid, etc., until the find what suits YOU as a painter.

I have NEVER opened a prepared "medium" and loved it. But, I have finally spent time perfecting a concoction that I use for looser paintings, with large brush strokes. This simplifies the process and mixing for me, and allows me to mix up a large amount beforehand, which I can use for several paintings, thus saving me valuable paint time.

Contrarily, I prefer the oil paints straight from the tube (usually) when I am working with a palette knife, or plein air. No mixing necessary, and this is again a time saver.

Also, I have learned that not all oil paints are created equal. While this may seem simpled and obvious, it is not always so. This is because there are quality oils available at reasonable to medium prices, while some lesser quality paints may be high priced. So please note that the price is not always indicative of the quality!!!



The painting seen here was created as a gift for a dear friend. I used mainly primary colors, and had fun with the creamy oil paint textures.

Little River in Autumn
16" X 20"
Oil on stretched canvas

White Horses

I actually DID work on the Three Dancers again, but it is not quite ready to post. I am having somewhat of a dilemma trying to decide just how closely I want the dancers to resemble one another. I do not want this to look like a "cookie cutter" painting with just a repetitive figure; rather, I want each dancer to have her own unique features. At least, that is my goal.

Fall is around the corner, and the weather is soooooo beautiful right now. Plein aire painting in the mountains would be great at this time of the year. We'll see.

Anyway, I am starting another large horse painting, featuring grey and white Arabians. Just getting the sketches done, but I am excited about this one. (I know, I know...I always say that.) Will post the work in progress within a couple of days.

See ya!

A Personal Break Through???

Okay. Here's the thing:

Two thousand years ago when I was in school, I was encouraged (by my high school art instructor) to submit into an art show an "unfinished" piece, along with several completed works. Specifically, it was my version of a "sun god" sculpted from clay. The large piece was completed insofar as the sculpting, but was technically still "green ware" as it had been neither fired nor glazed yet.

Following this juried show, I received what I considered to be mixed reviews from the judges (who were respected art professors from the university). I was praised and awarded for my batik art pieces, along with a pen and ink drawing. But to my personal horror, these much admired geniuses of the art world (my perception of them as a seventeen year old), mentioned in their printed article regarding the Show that they were "surprised at the number of unfinished pieces that were included in the exhibit". ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! I AM RUINED!!!

Of course, they could only have been talking about me...how embarrassing...would I survive this??? At least they didn't mention me by name, I thought to myself, trying to grasp at straws and to the tiny speck that remained of my self-confidence. (It would be years later that I learned the truth in the theory that in order for a person to absorb and learn from a criticism, they must receive and accept 4 or 5 positive comments first, in order to properly absorb the shock...but perhaps the calculation is ten-fold when you are a shy, insecure teenager).

To make a long story short (ha!)...

I have never posted or presented artwork that was unfinished. Now you know the reason. But to show how much I have grown (now an insecure adult???), I have thought about it and have come to these conclusions:

(1) I enjoy looking at other artists' blogs who show the actual painting process, with "before" and "after" photographs of their work.

(2) I believe that it is helpful to other artists, and perhaps interesting to the buyer of the piece, to view the actual art in its progression, from a concept to a finished canvass.

Toward that end, I am (gasp!) going to show some of my artworks now in progress, in hopes that you will learn, or perhaps be entertained, by the process. (But, please don't tell those university art professors that I am posting unfinished work. It will be our little secret).

I have been working several days on this fun little painting/sketch that I may be calling "The Three Dancers". Yeah, I know. Not much to look at yet, but I think that I have gotten the basic sketch pretty much like I want it. Details will come later, and the background will, more likely than not, go through a multitude of changes in both color and texture.

We'll see. Stay tuned...