Summer Scene

8 x 8 Oil on Archival Board  

I needed to get back into painting after a short intermission. My Daughter-in-Law visited us for a while and it was wonderful! It felt good to take a break and focus on different things. This was a quick study just to get my brush working again. A little boy fighting the incoming lake waves with his small boat. He was persistent, I must say!!

Quality Time

8 x 8 Oil on Gessobord

Sometimes things just work out, and this painting just happened to "appear."  I think it had something to do with a passion for painting it.  There are days where I go into the studio to paint, but don't have a real desire to paint what I had planned.   Instead of forgoing the subject on hand, I forge ahead.  These paintings usually don't excite me when I'm done.  Not always, though.  Sometimes I get a wonderful surprise.  I really like this painting!! 

Taking Five

8 x 8 Oil on Gessobord

It's hard to remember what it was like to be away from all distractions and to be disconnected from everything that is going on in the world...Just to "be."  Apparently, this young man had enough of the scenery and needed that connection.  The professor teaching the course on mindfulness and meditation says that a number of his students find it impossible to disconnect from all devices for 24 hours.  I can understand that.  The first thing I do when I come home is check my email, but I do think I could avoid doing that if I had to.  I wouldn't like it, though.  Younger people would have a harder time since they grew up "plugged in."  They definitely need to be connected in all ways at all times. 

Blue Float

SOLD

8 x 8 Oil on Gessobord

No catchy title on this one :-)  All of these water paintings are for an upcoming exhibit I'm going to be in.  I'll post the info soon.  I have to say, this is one of my favorites...so far...I got a lot of mileage out of my friends' family being here to spend a summer day.  Lots of pictures and memories to paint.  I'm finding that I'm not relying on the photos but using them as a starting point, and I think the paintings I've been doing have much more movement than they did when I first started.  Progression is a good thing.  After all, that's what it's all about.  No going back; only forward...Right?!

Zach and Grandpa

SOLD

11 x 14 Oil on Gessobord

This painting is a commission I was asked to do and really enjoyed.  It's always hard to paint people you don't know and have never seen.  I was given a good photo, though.  I really had to study the image and call to ask lots of questions because colors in photographs are not accurate.  Even the image of the painting I did (shown here) is not...Too much of a green tint to this.  I will try to take another picture to see if I can get a better match to the original and post it.  Another thing....Children are really hard for me to paint if I want to get a portrait type of painting.  I enjoy doing them, but for a commission it has to be what the buyer specifically requests, AND everyone has their own perception.  This buyer was really happy though, so I'm really happy :-)

About a Boy

8 x 8 Oil on Gessobord

An exercise in movement...Nothing too specific, just limited color and a large brush.  I'm used to using relatively small brushes which tends to make my work more detailed than I would always like.  On this one, I stood back and just placed color as I saw fit.  Very little detail, but it all seemed to come together.  I've been watching a lot of painting DVD's and would recommend that others who are basically self-taught do the same.  It's not always easy or convenient to travel to take classes, and the DVD's are an excellent second best.  They have certainly helped me and continue to help me define my personal style.  I don't try to "copy" what I see, but use it to define my own sense of painting "reality."  By the way, this is Rocky.  One of my favorite people to paint :-)

Bhutanese Boy

8 x 8 Oil on Gessobord

What fun I had painting this!!  My son and daughter-in-law just returned from Bhutan in the Himalayas.  They were running in a marathon there as well as sightseeing.  If I could go anywhere and didn't mind heights, that is where I'd like to go.  I have to give credit for the image that inspired this painting to a wonderful photographer, Jay Farbman.  He took lots of photos of the marathon and the people in the countryside and was kind enough to allow me to paint some of them.  There are so many great shots that I'll be happily painting for quite a while.  Of course, my daughter-in-law, Katherine (KK's Photo Friday), took great pictures as well, so lots more to come :-)

Christmas Train

 Oil on Gessobord

I figured this was a good way to start the Christmas season.  Better than camping outside a store all night to get a bargain.  That practice still amazes me.  It was in the teens and really windy here in VA the night before Thanksgiving, and they interviewed a few people on the nightly news who had set up camp outside a electronics store.  YIKES!  Back to the painting, this little red haired boy was fascinated by the train under one of the trees at the Hotel Roanoke.  Each year, the hotel has a wonderful array of decorated trees sponsored by different organizations. It is really a Christmas wonderland.  I get a real kick out of the children (and some adults) all dressed up for the holiday.  This piece was done for Goose Creek Studio for their "O Christmas Tree" display.  What Fun!

"Rabbit Run"

8 x 10 Oil on Gessobord

"His hands left of their own and he feels the wind on his ears even before, his heels hitting heavily on the pavement at first with an effortless gathering out of a kind of sweet panic growing lighter and quicker and quieter he runs.  Ah: runs.  Runs."  Wonderful words from one of my favorite authors, John Updike.  It fits this painting, don't you think?!  Long, thin limbs;  Long, long hair .....

You Can Do It!

6 x 6 Oil On Gessobord

Winding down the summer beach theme as Fall sets in...  I'm not quite sure whether this young girl was pulling her brother out of the water or pushing him in.  I prefer to think she was protecting him by keeping him from danger;  however, that might be wishful thinking on my part. This little painting is just a study of movement.  Something I enjoy so very much :-)

Outsider Artist

12 x 12 Oil on Gessobord

SOLD

This is how most of us who become artists start out. You can't get a better canvas than a Brownstone stoop.  I have painted Rocky before, and I must say he is turning into one of my favorite subjects.  I'm pretty sure his father helped him with the face, but you can see him starting one of his own.  It's so cool that they live in this part of  Brooklyn because that's where my parents and his great grandparents lived.  Probably not too many blocks from this building.  Life's all a big circle, isn't it?!

Train Spotting

9 x 12 Oil on Canvas

12 x 16 Matted

One of my favorite subjects, Rocky.  He's the comedian who stuck his head in the water in one of the previous paintings I did.  Here, he seems to be getting a better view of his trains.  It was pointed out to me that Thomas the engine should be in front, but obviously Rocky has a different take on it.  I go with his interpretation...Be Your Own Man :-)  I love this kid!

Lake Jump

11 x 5-1/2" Pastel on Wallis Paper, 20 x 14" Framed

$150 + s/h (Framed)

We've had a whole lot of shakin' goin' on here in VA!  Yesterday, during our earthquake, some of my pastels rolled off my desk and smashed on the floor.  I didn't realize it until today when I went out to paint and stepped on one...
This is another in the series of "kid" paintings, possibly the last but one never knows.  For the next few months, I'm going to paint up a storm.  We are getting a puppy the end of October or early November, and I have a feeling that my painting sessions might be cut short.  Ah, but it's worth it...!!

Little Surfer Dude

6 x 6 Pastel on Wallis Paper, 16 x 16 Framed

$150 + s/h (Framed)

 

He caught me!  I was taking his photo as he was walking towards the water with all his "toys."  I was on my way off the beach, but would have loved to see him out there in the waves.