april

 The cherry trees have been  beautiful for the last few days.  This is painted on a 6 x 8"linen panel.sold













This is the newest additon to our family.  Her name is Ruthie.  She lives in my studio so we are going to be best buds.  I have not had a cat since I was little so this is a learning experience for me.  There is something very calming and pleasing when a cat purrs.  Ruthie starts purring as soon as you walk in so I am going to be one chill artist.

Happy Easter!

engaged

 I am ready to feel some sunshine on my shoulders at the beach.  This is painted on an 8 x 8" linen panel.sold

georgia

 This is a commission piece for a patron.  I painted it on a 9 x 12" gessoed art board.  The surface was a lot slicker than I am used to.  I had to make sure that I loaded enough paint on the brush and use a lighter touch when I applied it.  Otherwise, I took more paint away than stayed on the surface.
 Black labs are a bit tougher for me because of keeping the temperatures right in the shadows and highlights.  This was one of those paintings where I did not start with a lot of confidence but pushed through and am happy with the out come.  Thinking..."I painted that? Cool."  The reason I painted on this surface is because Georgia's family had an artist in the family and she had painted another dog for them on wood. Thought I would try to mimic the look.sold

sage's lucy

 This is a commission piece for a friend.  Lucy looks a little skeptical.  This is painted on a an 8 x 8" canvas.sold

psst.....

 What can I say?  I painted another cow.  Can't resist their looks and faces.  This one is painted on an 8 x 8 x 1 1/2" canvas.
On another note, I am the "spotlight artist" of the week on Daily Paintworks.  They feature a different artist each week and the artist is interviewed and gives away a painting to folks who sign up to win.   You don't even have to read the interview to sign up to win "white face".sold

girl's best friend

 I have a group of friends that have been together as a tennis team for a while and when one of them has a birthday they pool their money together to get a present.  Many times it is a painting from me.  It was my friend, Tracy's, time to be feted so she decided she wanted a painting of her dog Dixie.  She sent me some pretty good photos of Dixie but I had remembered seeing this one of her on facebook. They look so happy enjoying the lake together.  So.....I complicated it by adding Tracy to the painting.  You know I do not do faces because I agonize over getting it right. (I would almost rather peel my fingernails off than paint a face.)  I also decided to go for it without asking her permission.  Yikes!  I hope she likes it.  I do.
This is painted on an 8 x 10" linen panel.sold

mad cow

 I think this cow is a little angry that I took some liberties with her coloring.  This is painted on an 8 x 8 x 1 1/2" canvas.sold

mad cow

 I think this cow is a little angry that I took some liberties with her coloring.  This is painted on an 8 x 8 x 1 1/2" canvas.sold

stuck on you

 Nothing like painting two chicks to brighten an already sunny day. This is painted on a 6 x 6 x 1 1/2" canvas.sold

color punch

Two of God's most beautiful creations....pears and pansies.  This is painted on a 5 x 7 linen canvas.sold

sunday

 This is my first still life to do in my new digs.  Not bad for having to hold it on the easel at times with my left hand.  I left my favorite easel in Nashville so I am using a sorry back up.  I discovered while doing this that I need new brushes too.  It is so important to have good materials to make the work and process better.  A bit frustrating today but so fun to do a still life.  I really miss painting from life. this is painted on a 5 x 7 " linen panel.

white face

Another handsome bovine.  This one is painted on an 8 x 8 x 1 1/2" canvas. I am going to be the spot light artist next week on the Daily Paintwork's Site. This painting is going to be the give away so it is not for sale. Go to the site next week and sign up for a chance to win it.  

 I am going to share some photos of new additions to my studio.  

The first photo is of a corner shelving unit that I ordered from overstock.com.  It is great as a space saver and for displaying small works.  And....it only takes ten hours to put together.  I might be exaggerating a wee bit.

 I found two bulletin boards that used to be in my son's rooms and hung them over my desk.  I plan to start pinning things to them as reminders instead of having notes all over my desktop. ( I am SO creative.) I am going to go back through my notes from workshops I have attended and put my favorite tips from each teacher on pieces of paper and tack them up. I need to be reminded on a daily basis. One of my favorites is from Tim Horn and it is "big shapes, thick paint."    

The view next to my desk. I DO NOT take it for granted.

Critter tracks behind my studio.  I bet the raccoons love the creek as much as I do.

king of the crowers

 I  am still very busy getting settled in my home and have many distractions at the moment.  I have painted lots of animals lately so I guess that is my comfort food. (I like mac and cheese too.)
I look forward to painting still life set ups and figures soon. I will post a few updated photos of my studio soon.  Still working on it.  Would rather paint than organize.
This is painted on an 11 x 14 x 1 1/2" canvas.sold

mellow

 One of the things I like about this painting is the mellow colors.  I am a pretty colorful painter so it was fun doing something a bit softer. The colors in this piece are actually a little softer than this image but that is another hour spent tweaking that I don't have. "mellow" is painted on a 10 x 10 x 1 1/2" canvas.sold

birds of a feather

 I give baby chicks a ten out of ten on the cute scale. This is painted on a 5 x 7" gallery wrap canvas.
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just swell

 This young teen was actually kind of awkward in real life but I thought she looked very graceful in this shot. This is painted on a 6 x 12 x 1" panel.sold

hot seat

 Think I am at a place where I can get back to painting regularly.  I am still figuring out my studio.  I have discovered that I have a lot of sun streaming in my front windows in the afternoon.  In a few months when the trees are leafed out that will change.  Makes it a bit hard to see my computer screen when I am using it to paint an image. A lovely problem in my opinion.  I think the new studio will have an affect on my painting and I hope you will stick with me.
This is painted on a 6 x 12 x 1" panel.sold