Mandarin Muse

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This is a still life set up from mandarin oranges that I purchased at the grocery. I loved these oranges because they still had their beautiful leaves and stems attached. This piece is painted on a red toned gesso board.

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Please?

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I found the reference photo for this cute pup on the MorgueFile. His expression reminded me so much of our Labrador Retriever that died last year. He seems to be asking for something with those eyes, don't you think?

This piece is painted on a red toned gessoed board.

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Daydreaming

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The inspiration for this painting came from my daughter's cat, who I sometimes get to catsit.  When he comes to our house,  he roams from room to room,  telling everyone his troubles.  Once he settles down, he peers out the window and daydreams and sleeps the day away.

This painting is painted on gessoboard that was toned in red.

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...and Justice For All

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The inspiration for this painting came from an evening out with my husband. We were sitting on the patio of a restaurant as the sun was setting. As I turned around to look at the sun, I saw it glinting off a courthouse and the sun was peeking under some clouds. I caught a quick photo and the rest is history. Painted on a reddish toned board, you can see some of the red peeking through.  The diagonal  power line helps direct your eye to the focal point,  the courthouse tower.

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Mother and Child

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I spotted this cow and calf during a painting event in the midwest.  They were a sweet pair and the calf was definitely being sheltered by its mother.  It was a moment I wanted to capture.  I painted this on a wood grained panel that had been treated with a clear gesso.  I loved the look of the wood grain and decided to leave a portion of the painting unfinished to save some of the beautiful background.
I liked this look and may try to do this again in other paintings.

Her Favorite Earring

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Here is another cow, this one a dairy cow, wearing her favorite earring.  I painted this on a board that was gessoed clear, allowing the wood grain to show through around the edges.  The painting is cradled and then framed with a stunning black floater frame, adding dimensionality to the work.

When In Italy

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On a trip this summer to Italy, I had the great fortune to be able to paint with a great instructor, Joe Lombardo, from Columbus, OH. We painted in the Tuscan region of Italy and each day was very inspiring. One of the days was spent at a Ceramics school where we painted on site. At the end of the session, we were treated to a traditional Italian cocktail, the Aperol Spritz. Comprised of prosecco, Aperol (a bitter orange/rhubarb liquor) and soda water, it was the perfect ending to the session. It's a very pretty drink and a great subject for this painting.

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MUNCH!!

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During a recent plein air event, I was able to take lots of photos from the ranching communities where we were painting.  Since I was raised on a farm,  I have a very strong connection to farm animals,  and this cow caught my attention.  She was calmly munching grass and I caught her staring at me when I approached with my camera.  Great memories of farm life came flooding back.  I painted this on a gessoed panel toned with violet and you can see some of it peeking through.

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This is reposted from a previous post earlier in the year for the benefit of new readers and a new website.

AUTUMN GLOW

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Since our move to Utah, I have been doing lots of hiking. The inspiration for this painting is from a hike into Big Cottonwood Canyon near Brighton. It was a clear bluebird day and the colors of the surrounding trees and grasses were at their peak. I decided to paint on a black toned gessobord as an experiment and I like the result. This painting is offered on my auction page through Daily Paintworks.

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QUAKIES

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This is the time of year that those of us who love color wait for.  I was inspired to paint this by one of the hikes I took into the national forests in and around our area of Utah.  The Aspens were at their peak a few weeks ago and I have taken many photos of them.  The locals call them Quakies because their leaves shimmer in the sun and reflect their golden color.  

This was painted on a black canvas and I like how some of the black in the background shows through, giving the painting a graphic feel.  When I was working in colored pencil many years ago,  I often used a toned paper, sometimes much darker, as my support for the pencil, and I loved the look it achieved.

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VINTAGE TRUCK, VINTAGE TOWN

Fill 'Er Up Coffee Station

Since moving to Park City earlier this summer, we have become fond of a few of the smaller communities in our area.  Midway is a small town located in the Heber Valley and along the Provo River.  It is small and local with a Swiss heritage. I spotted this very cool old truck at a coffee shop along the main street of the town. Parked near a set of old gas pumps, it was a perfect subject, since I love old trucks.  I painted this on a prepared board with a reddish brown undertones.

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MORE MOOS

Munch X2

Here is another cow portrait, done just a few days ago.  These two beauties had their favorite earrings on and were posing for me- so curious to see what I was up to. The farm I grew up on had cattle just like these,  a mix of Hereford and Angus which usually results in a black cow with a white ace.

I really tried to keep it loose on this but got hung up in trying to capture those beautiful cow eyes.

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HOMESTEADER'S RANCH

BARN VIEW- BESENDORFER RANCH

This painting was also done at the plein air event in Midway, UT.  At another ranch, we met a rancher whose land had been in his family from the time of the homesteader's.  It was a very interesting location for painting since the rancher had a museum of sorts of all the old equipment that had been used in years past. This painting was done on a dark toned canvas which made me lay down a good amount of paint in the process.

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WILD FIRES!

SMOKY DAY AT THE PROBST RANCH

I recently attended a plein air event in my new home state of Utah.  Our state has been ravaged by wild fires this summer and on this particular day, the smoke showed up in where I was painting in Midway, UT.  It partially obscured my view of the mountains and gave the surrounding countryside a faded distant look.  This painting shows my interpretation of the smoke entering the valley.

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WHATEVER IT TAKES

ROUGHING IT AT OSH KOSH

Aviators are a hardy bunch and many of the ones attending the convention at AirVenture in Osh Kosh, WI camped.  The convention site has a camping area that has to be the largest I have ever seen.  

 The aviators camp in conventional campers but also have an area available to camp with your airplane.  I spotted this airplane and tent set-up on one of my wanderings around the convention site.

The airplane was doing double duty in the clean-up department with its propellor serving as a towel rack. This painting is done on a toned red canvas board.

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A Wonderful Summer in Transition

OSH KOSH FLOATER

 This summer has been a very busy one.  My husband retired, we sold many belongings, packed some for storage, then moved to Utah.  In between all of that, we went to Osh Kosh, WI in July for the annual AirVenture convention for aviation enthusiasts. Though I am not a pilot, I am married to one, and have shared over these many years in his passion for flying.  This is the first year that we stayed for the entire convention, even arriving a few days early to help with set up.  Because I cannily look at so many airplanes and watch so many airshows without getting BORED, I brought along my passion for painting.  Subject matter did not disappoint and I was able to get out several days to do some painting "en plein air."  This particular painting happened on a beautiful day at the sea plane base located at the southern end of Lake Wenebago.  I had a lovely day under the shade trees watching the planes land and getting in some painting time.

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MOTHER'S DAY

TULIPS FOR MOTHER

This painting is a studio piece that I finished in time to honor Mother's Day.  Though my Mom has been gone from us for a number of years now, I remember how fond she was of spring flowers, especially tulips. So this painting is in her honor, as well as for all mother's everywhere who give unconditionally of themselves for the betterment of their children and families.

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Spring at the Conservatory

CONSERVATORY PATH

This painting is a plein air study done at the Franklin Park Conservatory during a plein air painting session. Unfortunately,  about half way though the painting process, we were struck by a pop up thunderstorm and had to run for cover.  I did take a photo of my subject before the rain started so was able to finish this at home.  Hope you enjoy!!

NEW LOVE

Cedar Ridge Spring #2

This painting is another view from the same hike as the previous painting in an earlier post.  Another beautiful area.  For this one, I experimented with painting on a black gessoed canvas.  I was very used to working on a toned surface when I was drawing in colored pencil, so this doesn't seem as difficult as might be imagined, however, I found that I really had to push the lights and use more paint to get good coverage.  I like the feel of this painting and plan to experiment more with using a dark background.

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NEW WEST

Cedar Ridge Spring

This little painting is inspired by a walk into the hills surrounding what will soon be our new home in Park City, UT.  It's so refreshing to be able to get out into the countryside just by taking a walk.

I will be experimenting with new colors on my palette.  The rocks in the area are definitely going be a challenge to paint.  I've already begun identifying some of the plants and trees and will have to reference my bird book to figure out some of the new species I'm not at all familiar with in the midwest.

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SOULFUL

WINTER HAYFIELD

This painting is inspired by a snowy walk in winter in the midwest.  I love walking after a snowfall because all sound is muffled and the landscape is quiet and soulful.  These hay bales were resting in the field and had snow covered hats.  They reminded me of Frosted Mini Wheats cereal.   

The blues of the shadows were tough.  Getting the value right was the most challenging.  Because it was early evening, the sky still had a fair amount of light in it,  but the field was darkening.   I lightened the sky and background trees twice before I felt like it read right.

This is not one of those paintings that catches your eye because of contrast in light and shadow, but a subtle painting that depends on finessing the values to make it feel moody. I think I got it right.

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NEW HOME

CAN IT BE MORE BeUTAHful?

This is my newest attempt at getting a snowy painting to feel like snow.  This painting is inspired by a hike up behind our neighborhood in Park City, UT.  A bright shiny bluebird day gave me bright lights and purple/blue shadows. I did an underpainting in acrylic in warmer tones and these colors are peaking out in between the color tones, which I like very much.  I feel it gives the painting more interest and life.  

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