No. 523 The Last Dahlias #3

 

 

The Last Dahlias #3

Oil on Linen Panel

7" x 5"

 

Look at that. I could only go a day without throwing a Chinese lantern in!

 

I'm pretty happy with the way the dahlias are coming out. Truth be told I'd been avoiding them all summer. So many petals! I wasn't sure I could pull them off in a daily painting. Joe Anna Arnett's method of filling in most of the flower with the inner color and then coming back on top with petal highlights works again!

 

If you would like to know more about Joe Anna Arnett click here. Her still life DVD is on my wish list. :)

No. 487 Kathy and her Pansies

 

 

More Pansies

Oil on Gessobord

6" x 6"

 

I recently acquired an instructional video by the amazing painter, Kathy Anderson. A more enthusiastic painter simply doesn't exist. Her still life set up was very intriguing and she explained her process in detail. I have almost always used cut flowers for my still lifes. Kathy used whole plants - lots of them. So here is my attempt at using whole plants and one cut flower. I must add, Kathy is a huge fan of pansies!

If you would like to learn more about Kathy, her website is www.kathyandersonstudio.com

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No. 452 the Antique Rose Farm

 

 

Antique Rose Farm #1

Oil on Gessobord

6" x 6"

I decided the other day that I wanted to improve my ability to paint roses. To do that meant focusing on just roses for awhile. What a great excuse to buy roses! But when I looked at the roses in the store they just seemed to have no character. Where to find roses to make you swoon? The Antique Rose Farm of course! My timing was perfect. The roses were their peak.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Day 345 Return of the Poinsettia #4

 

 

Return of the Poinsettia #4

Oil on Gessobord

5" x 7"

 

And you thought you'd seen the last of the poinsettias. Goodness no! They keep coming and coming......

 

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Day 338 Return of the Poinsettia #3 - The Mumsettia

Return of the Poinsettia #3 - The Mumsettia

Oil on Gessobord

6" x 6"

Someone, somewhere came up with the interesting idea of combining a poinsettia and chrysanthemums in the same pot. How festive is that! I found this one at Molback's.

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Day 337 Return of the Poinsettia #2

Return of the Poinsettia # 2

Oil on Gessobord

6" x 6"

Currently whallowing in Christmas movies and music. How is your holiday season going?

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Day 336 The Return of the Poinsettia #1

Return of the Poinsettia #1

Oil on Gessobord

6" x 6"

That's right people, mama's got her poinsettia thing going on again. This is the first of many. Molback's inspired me with this lovely variegated leaf variety.

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Day 334 Plein Air Up Close

Plein Air Up Close

Oil on Canvas Board

5" x 7"

While painting plein air, sometimes it's just as fun to paint what's right in front you instead of a grand vista. The texture of these spent flower heads against the red leaves of a fall tree really caught my eye.

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Day 323 It's a Jungle Out There

 

It's a Jungle Out There

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

 

A quaint old home in downtown Snohomish being consumed by it's landscaping. What a beautiful way to go! Mild temperatures and plenty of moisture cause the vegetation to go wild here at times and many people hesitate to cut back their rhodys and azaleas. I love it!

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Day 311 Peek-A-Boo

Peek-A-Boo

6 x 6

Oil on Gessobord

One day, after watching a particularly inspiring video on painting, I set to work putting together a still life. After I finished arranging everything, I grabbed my camera to get photos for later. By the time I lifted my camera for the picture someone appeared out of no where, apparently to join in on the game.

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Day 305 Studio Envy

Studio Envy

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

I painted this still life in the amazing studio of the wonderful lady and artist, Donna Trent. Her studio is large, full of light and stocked with wonderful still life props. It's also full of art books and Donna's lovely paintings. What more could a person ask for?

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Day 297 Fellow customer at the U-Pick Farm

Fellow Customer at the U-Pick Farm

Oil on Gessoboard

5 x 7

Thai little guy really kept an eye on me while I took pictures of 

the sunflowers at the U-pick farm. I don't think he appreciated

me inturupting his sunflower seed breakfast.

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Day 295 Backlit Zinnia

 

Backlit Zinnia

Oil on Canvasboard

6 x 6

A backlit Zinnia from the U-pick farm in Snohomish.

 

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Day 262 Lilacs in the Morning

 

Lilacs in the Morning

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

 

Another image from the spring plein air trip. These were

growing in front of an old abandoned house. The house was

in sad shape but the lilac bush was gorgeous.

Day 258 The English Red Gate

The English Red Gate

Oil on Gessobord

5 x 7

Last year I was fortunate enough to see my sister get married in England. One day, as we were walking around her neighborhood, I spotted this great red gate. I tried to sneak a photo but was caught red handed by the owner. My sister had to hastily explain I was just visiting and was charmed by his gate. Phew!

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Day 257 Everett Dahlia Show

Prize Winner

6 x 6

Oil on Gessobord

I attended the annual dahlia show in Everett a couple of weeks ago hoping to see some spectacular flowers. I wasn't disappointed. This particular one has to be my favorite.

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Day 256 Another Antique Rose

Antique Rose 3

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

They keep on coming. This one reminds me of something you'd find on a birthday cake.
Daily painting has been a surprising comfort these days. I suspect the routine of it and the focus needed to complete a painting is what makes it a nice respite. Getting the paintings photographed for blogging is a different story. So my blogging might be intermittent for a bit, just to let you know...

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Day 255 My Mom and More Antique Roses

Once again we are at the Antique Rose Farm. It's a painting I'm sure my mom would've liked as she loved roses and antiques.

A favorite photo of my mom and me. She passed away a little over a week ago after a long struggle with Parkinson's Disease. She was smart, funny, creative, patient, adventurous and the perfect mom for me. She's the reason I became a painter.

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Day 252 Snohomish Antique Rose 2

 

Snohomish Antique Rose 2

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

Another rose from the trip to the antique rose farm. I'm especially fond of these old style, English roses.

 

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Day 251 Snohomish Antique Rose

Snohomish Antique Rose

Oil on Gessobord

6 x 6

    This painting is based on a photo I took at the Snohomish Antique Rose Farm last fall. Oh my, I feel like I just took that photo yesterday...

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