Out the Door, and Up the Street

This is the view from our front door, looking up the street, towards the opposite end of the court, in the late afternoon. I'm having fun taking photos of what's right in front of me. Hoping to do more like this.

Germany Challenge

This was done for Carol Marine's Germany Challenge. Still working with light and dark value patterns. I've been having fun looking online at the work of various artist's, who work with dramatic lights and darks. Two women artist's, whose work I love, are Anne Ward Sures, and Maureen Gallace . Their paintings have been so inspiring! Looking forward to doing more!

Let me Give you a Ring

I've been working on finishing a larger painting, that is taking a lot longer than I expected. I decided to take a short break to paint this little phone portrait! It is so much fun to start and finish something, all at once! I love the feeling of accomplishment!

Happy June

Hope that everyone's long weekend was wonderful. With the beginning of summer, I'm looking forward to things slowing down, and having more time to paint. This was done very quickly, during a busy Memorial Day weekend.

More Texas Rio Star

More Texas Rio Star grapefruit. I had so much fun painting this. All the time, wondering how grapefruit got it's name. Grapes are so tiny, and grapefruit is so big. Does anyone know why grapefruit is actually called, grapefruit? Actually, a name like, Texas Rio Star, seems like a much better choice!

More from the Higher Ground

Here is the redo of the photo from the last post. This time the photo was taken in the early morning. I think that it is a little better. It could be that the painting is just a little blurry. The second painting is more of the red plums. These are so much fun to paint. I can't seem to get enough. Meanwhile, I am still working on my landscape painting in my Friday class. Will post my latest one soon. It needs a little more work. So much to paint, so little time.

A Strong Wind

Back to the pears. I need to bring some paintings in for our gallery exhibit change coming up. I am hoping to have a series of pears done, and ready for hanging by the 11th. Time seems to be flying by. Yikes!

Still Friendly

More cherries, and more words of wisdom from Pam's blog. Pam mentioned that Quang Ho advised artists to make a decision, that no decision is wrong, only that it is wrong not to make a decision. I love that! It is useful advice for painting, and for life!

Five and an Eighth

We just returned from Santa Fe, where I always get so inspired with all of the art everywhere. I ended up finishing several small paintings each day. I will try to keep the momentum going! Last night, after arriving home from the airport, I read Pam Holnback's blog about a workshop that she attended in Colorado. Quang Ho was one of the speakers with ideas for painters, also very inspiring. I can immediately see ways to improve this painting, just from reading her post about Quang Ho's presentation. To read about his inspiring ideas, visit Pam's wonderful blog at pamholnback.blogspot.com.

Way Up There

One more of the same composition. This is still a fun challenge for me. I'll forge ahead with more of the same, and we'll see how it goes!

More of the Edge

I'm still working on the same composition, with more tomatoes. I am also still trying to create a looser, less structured look. This is something that I need to work on. More of this to come.

Let Me Tell You A Secret

I was trying for a looser, more casual feel with this painting. I'm staying with the "on the edge" composition, and trying for a more effortless, less overworked look. I'm enjoying working in this direction. We'll see how this ends up. Stay tuned for more.

We're Still Here

Just had to squeeze in one more painting of these, by now, overly ripe apricots. I can see some things that I wished I had done differently, which may mean another apricot painting. This involves a trip to the store. Got to run!

More Lemons on the Edge

This painting was done along with my other lemon paintings a few weeks ago. I did not have a chance to post it, so here it is. On this one, I was trying for a looser look. I will keep trying!

Still on the Edge

I'm still working with the lemons on the edge of the upside down shoebox. I was trying to use looser brushstrokes, this time. It's fun to experiment, using the same subject, with different kinds of brushstrokes, colors, and compositions. This time I used a more monotone color palette. I feel like doing more with the lemons, with the shadow going over the edge. We'll see...

More of Hercules

Here are some of the paintings that were done for the " Fur, Fins, and Feathers" exhibit at The Lafayette Gallery. These are ready to be dropped off next Sunday. This was a fun project, that includes more paintings than are shown here, all very similar. I used lots of photos of Hercules, who is unwilling to pose for longer that 2 seconds. If you are in the area, please stop by and see the exhibit. It will be open, starting June 2, and ending August 1.