Friday, May 31, 2013

Day 190 Rhodies on Gray

 
Rhodies on Gray
Oil on canvas
5 x 7
 
Okay, one last close up of rhodies. This is a fun variety to paint
since the buds are much, much darker than the open flowers
providing some nice contrast.





Thursday, May 30, 2013

Day 189 Another Rhody Close Up

 
Rhody Close Up 2
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
Taking another stab at painting individual rhododendron flowers.
Hmmmm, I think it's time to move on..... 

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Day 188 Rhody - a Close Up

 
Rhody - a Close Up
Oil on Canvas
6 x 6
 
A cluster of rhody flowers can be very difficult to paint.
So I decided to paint individual ones instead. These are from
a plant I adore in my front yard. The buds are a rich dark pink-almost
magenta. The open flowers are creamy white inside with a lovely touch
of pink on the edges.
 
 
Daily Paintworks is having a fundraiser for victims of the Oklahoma
tornado. I have posted my painting "Double Cherry Blossoms" there.
100% (less shipping) of the sale will go to the American Red Cross.
Many artists from the website are participating.
You can check it out here.
 

Day 187 The rhodies are in bloom!

 
Rhodies in Pink Glass Vase
Oil on Canvas
5 x 7

I plain, flat out LOVE rhododendrons. I love the fact that they
are big and bold and everywhere in Western Washington this
time of year. There is an old rhodie in Everett that has to be
twelve feet high by fifteen feet wide. When it is in bloom it is a solid
mass of bright pink - spectacular!
 


Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Day 186 Apricots with Brass Pitcher

 
Apricots with Brass Pitcher
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
I had a great time painting those apricots. They are now high on my
list of potential fruit props. Certainly one perk is when I'm tired
of painting them they are a great snack!

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Day 185 Plein Air in Snohomish

 
Spring in Snohomish
Oil on Canvas
8 x 10
Plein Air
 
 
This is a very charming 100+ year old home in downtown
Snohomish. I've had my eye on it as a plein air subject for
awhile now. One bright spring morning I got my chance.
Unfortunately, I forgot my umbrella. I set up in direct sunlight
thinking it couldn't possibly get too hot this time of year.
I was wrong. This was as far as I got before I could roast no longer.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Day 184 Apricot, Pear and Pitcher - a close up

 
Apricot, Pear and Pitcher
Oil on Gessobord
5 x 7
 
I have recently discovered the joys of painting over
old disappointing paintings. There is something very satisfying
about it. Hopefully the new effort is better but if it isn't, that's okay.

Friday, May 24, 2013

Day 183 Apricots and Pear

 
Apricots and Pear
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
Friends and family realize that their flowers and antiques
aren't safe from my pleading eyes. Well, I'm here to tell
you that their fruit isn't safe either. Thanks so much
Melissa for letting me run off with your pear. :)

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Day 182 Apricots, oh yes!

 
Apricots
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
While walking through the produce department at the grocery store,
these little gems caught my eye. They practically glowed underneath
their soft fuzzy coat. Positively luscious!

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Day 181 Pansies, Creamer and aThank You


Pansies and Creamer
Oil on stretched canvas
5 x 7
 
You know it's just occurred to me that I've gotten a lot of mileage
out of those little purple and orange pansies. They are a
great little accent.
 
 
I am celebrating six months of daily paintings today! It's hard
to believe I've been doing this for six months already. It's also
a little hard to believe I've got another six months to go. :)
 
 
As part of my celebration I've put together this collage of
some of the daily paintings I've sold. A huge, HUGE thank
you to everyone who has purchased a painting. And also a special thank you to everyone
who takes the time to follow my blog. Your support is deeply and sincerely appreciated!


Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Day 180 Ginger Jar with Yellow on Red

 
Ginger Jar with Yellow on Red
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
My favorite ginger jar with my favorite color. And even
though the world is exploding with flowers, here I am
painting vases and fruit. Go figure. :)

Monday, May 20, 2013

Day 179 Ginger Jar with Yellow

 
Ginger Jar with Yellow
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
Nothing catches my eye quicker in a thrift store than a ginger jar.
They are short and round, kind of like me, with exotic designs far too
complicated to render in a daily painting. (Sorry, no exotic designs on
 me) I'm beginning to acquire a decent collection of those
voluptuous little jars.

Day 178 My Tulips!



My Tulips!
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6

Finally! A chance to paint tulips from my own garden. I purchased
a bag of 50 tulips from Costco last fall. Few, that was a lot of bulbs
to plant. They were certainly worth the effort.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Day 177 Nancy's Lilacs


Nancy's Lilacs
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6

Another painting in the "Flowers from Friends" group. I met Nancy
through PAWA (Plein Air Washington Artists). She is a terrific
plein air painting buddy. Thanks Nancy!


Nancy painting at Beacon Rock State Park

Friday, May 17, 2013

Day 176 Double Cherry Blossoms

 
Double Cherry Blossoms
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
Blossoms from my very own cherry tree! I dreamed
of having a tree like this for years. After having to
remove a cedar tree from our front yard a few years ago,
my dream came true.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Day 175 Another Plein Air from Beacon Rock State Park


Beacon Rock State Park 2 - Plein Air
5 x 7
Oil on Gessobord
 
Whereas painting at the ranch was hot, very windy and dusty,
painting here was cool, calm and quiet.


Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Day 174 A Couple More Columbines

 
Columbines #2
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
My first attempt at columbines. Ideally, I would
keep the colors of the petals transparent. Under
proper lighting they almost glow. Without proper lighting the
colors are very flat. Since most people don't put paintings
under spot lights I felt it was best to use lighter colors for
 the lighter values rather than reflected light. What do you think?

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Day 173 Red Jar and Small Vase

 
Red Jar and Small Vase
Oil on Gessobord
5 x 7
Sold
 
It's been a tough week in the painting department. I feel
pretty good about this one though. There certainly are peaks
and valleys on the road to becoming a better painter.
I'm done with this valley and hoping another peak is around the corner. :)

Monday, May 13, 2013

Day 172 Columbines

 
Columbines
Oil on Gessobord
5 x 7
 
Columbines are a fascinating flower. It's that little pocket
at the inner part of the petal I find so intriguing. I'm happy
to have the chance to paint some. I bought my
very first columbine plant to supply these models. Hopefully
it will bloom for awhile.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Day 171 Beacon Rock

 
Beacon Rock State Park - Plein Air
8 x 10
Oil on Canvas Board
 
This is a really lovely park on the Columbia River. It's a great
place to paint. There is a beautiful vista just about every way you turn.
Several people in the plein air group voiced the opinion that we
must come back again. I agree.
 
I hope all you wonderful moms out there had a great Mother's Day.
I know I had an excellent one. A huge thanks to my family for a
day full of pampering! What a lucky mom I am. :)

Friday, May 10, 2013

Day 170 Mt Hood

 
Mt. Hood - Plein Air
Oil on Gessobord
6 x 6
 
Just across the street from our hotel in White Salmon was
the most amazing view of Mt. Hood. How can a person pass
up an opportunity to paint a view like this? I squeezed this
painting in early Sunday morning while the lighting was still
soft and mellow. I hope to go back and give it another try sometime.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Day 169 Ranch on the Gorge

 
Ranch on the Gorge
Plein Air
8 x 10
Oil on Canvas Board
 
Another painting from the Gorge paint out. This ranch is a part
of the State Parks and is above Horsethief Lake. There are several
great old buildings here one could use as a subject. It was a little
difficult painting in between huge gusts of wind. Also a few people
drove by way faster than they needed to, kicking up big clouds of dust.
Nancy kindly let me use her car as a bit of a wind break, sadly it didn't help with the dust.
 I'd be happy to paint here again-in the morning though when it's not so windy
and fast drivers are still asleep. :)

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Day 168 Bleeding Hearts



 
Bleeding Hearts
5 x 7
Oil on Gessobord
 
Another contribution from Elizabeth's garden. I've always
been enchanted with this plant- its uniquely shaped buds cascading
down its branches. I didn't realize until I got home how hard it would
be to find a pleasing composition to paint. One more excuse to paint red. :)

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Day 167 Horsethief Lake State Park

 
Rock Outcropping in Horsethief Lake State Park
Plein Air
Oil on Gessobord
5 x 7
 
One of my favorite paintings from the paint out this weekend. I finished
it just before the wind really started to blow and I mean blow!
There was a reason they told us not to use umbrella's on this trip.

Monday, May 6, 2013

Day 166 Back home again

 
Red and Blue Still Life
6 x 6
Oil on Gessobord
 
You may have already guessed that I love painting with red.
Well, imagine my excitement when I stumbled upon a gorgeous
brilliant red ceramic jar at, you guessed it, a thrift store.
Of course it had to be mine.

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Day 165 One more painting please!

One last painting of the Gorge before we head home. I forgot to take a picture of my painting so instead here is the amazing artist and lovely lady, Emiliya Lane. We all got one quick painting in before the wind kicked up.

Saturday, May 4, 2013

Day 164 Horsethief Lake State Park

A hot and VERY windy, but still enjoyable, day of plein air painting. Lots of beautiful wildflowers to be found around the park and no shortage of grand vistas.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Day 163 Beacon Rock

Wow, what a day! Amazing weather, a fantastic location to paint at and lots of great company. I'm a happy camper or should I say painter. :) if you've never been to Beacon Rock State Park before, I'd highly recommend a visit.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Day 162 The Columbia Gorge or Bust!

Lucky me, I'm on the road with some great gals from the PAWA group. We are headed to the Columbia River Gorge for a paint out. I haven't been to this part of the state since I was twelve and had completely forgotten how beautiful it is.



Day 161 Goodbye Dahlia


The Visitor
Watercolor

This was painted from a photo I took at a dahlia farm near Lynden, a small town
close to the Canadian border. It was the first painting to sell at
 the show at the Grill. I will miss you yellow dahlia but I'm
happy you have a new home.